Almighty
Well-Known Member
ashmgee - I'm glad someone is getting some use from the info.
An Orval clone is where a lot of people start when getting into wild beers and using dregs. Mainly because it is really easy and the results are great. I have not used Orval dregs, but similar. (I have a few bottles of Orval waiting for a vertical tasting). I have read several accounts of great success.
To answer your questions:
3 months?
Time limits don't work well for wild beers (or any beers for that matter) because they depend on so many factors. I have used a bottle of Mikkeler It's Alright dregs in a gallon which supposedly used the same Orval Brett B strain. (reminds me I need to do a tasting)
http://jeffreycrane.blogspot.com/2011/03/dreg-series-mikkeller-its-alright.html
The beer was stabilized and bottled in about 3 or 4 months. But that involved checking the gravity twice.
Orval is a very interesting beer and you should try to do a vertical tasting of some, fresh, 1 year old and 2 year old vintages. You will see a big difference.
The issue with bottling is that it will pick up carbonation as it ages and without brewing the same beer for a hundred years you can't be certain how much it will carbonate. So to be safe us homebrewers wait till it stabilizes. If you do the math, every gravity point drop is around .5 volume of CO2. I'm not sure what the Grolsch bottles are rated for so do your research.
No worries on disturbing the pellicle you will just want to avoid doing it very often and try not to completely destroy it. I take sample every 3 months and don't have a problem with oxidation or acetic acid. Oxidation from bulk aging is really not a problem with these types of beer.
I have never been convinced that bulk aging is much different than bottle aging (unless using a barrel or wood aging). The main issue is to avoid over carbonation.
In Summary,
Go for it. Brew a nice dry blond base beer that will finish low. (The lower it finishes the less concern with over carbonation.) In secondary, add a bottle or 2 (anymore probably won't make a difference) of Orval. Check the gravity at 2 months and 3 months. If no drop in gravity, bottle to 2.5-3 Volumes and make sure your bottles can handle up to 4-5 Volumes and you should be safe.
An Orval clone is where a lot of people start when getting into wild beers and using dregs. Mainly because it is really easy and the results are great. I have not used Orval dregs, but similar. (I have a few bottles of Orval waiting for a vertical tasting). I have read several accounts of great success.
To answer your questions:
3 months?
Time limits don't work well for wild beers (or any beers for that matter) because they depend on so many factors. I have used a bottle of Mikkeler It's Alright dregs in a gallon which supposedly used the same Orval Brett B strain. (reminds me I need to do a tasting)
http://jeffreycrane.blogspot.com/2011/03/dreg-series-mikkeller-its-alright.html
The beer was stabilized and bottled in about 3 or 4 months. But that involved checking the gravity twice.
Orval is a very interesting beer and you should try to do a vertical tasting of some, fresh, 1 year old and 2 year old vintages. You will see a big difference.
The issue with bottling is that it will pick up carbonation as it ages and without brewing the same beer for a hundred years you can't be certain how much it will carbonate. So to be safe us homebrewers wait till it stabilizes. If you do the math, every gravity point drop is around .5 volume of CO2. I'm not sure what the Grolsch bottles are rated for so do your research.
No worries on disturbing the pellicle you will just want to avoid doing it very often and try not to completely destroy it. I take sample every 3 months and don't have a problem with oxidation or acetic acid. Oxidation from bulk aging is really not a problem with these types of beer.
I have never been convinced that bulk aging is much different than bottle aging (unless using a barrel or wood aging). The main issue is to avoid over carbonation.
In Summary,
Go for it. Brew a nice dry blond base beer that will finish low. (The lower it finishes the less concern with over carbonation.) In secondary, add a bottle or 2 (anymore probably won't make a difference) of Orval. Check the gravity at 2 months and 3 months. If no drop in gravity, bottle to 2.5-3 Volumes and make sure your bottles can handle up to 4-5 Volumes and you should be safe.