First sour - sanity check

[gorlox18]

I’m brewing my first sour using wisdom gleaned from other posts here. My target beer would be something like a super sour cherry pie beer (dry), or a cheap knockoff of Wicked Weed’s Cerise Morte . A little funk would be a-ok with me

6# pilsner LME
OG: 1.057

I pitched 2 Goodbelly shots (~40B cells) and 11g packet of Nottingham at 95F.

Fermentation is going strong after 12 hours, (hot Notty, obviously)

I plan to add a pack of tart Cherry jungle powder after 5 days, and letting that ride for another two weeks

I considered a hop tea to stop lacto production, but since I’m aiming for maximum sourness, I think it’s better to let pH stop it naturally.

My main question is, what kind of crazy flavors should I be expecting from the Nottingham fermented so hot?

I know that the target beer would likely need some Brett involvement, which I haven’t planned for. My main purpose in making this batch is to learn lessons for the next one and get a sour under my belt. I’ve considered adding dregs from a suitable bottle (unfortunately I don’t have any more cerise morte), but have also seen specific Brett strain for “cherry pie” flavor (wyl5526). I’m completely open to questions and suggestions. I also recently moved from east coast to the west coast, so if you can recommend beers I should replace my cerise mort addiction with while I hone a recipe, I’m all ears.

 

[KepowOb]

Replying because I want to follow this to see some insights from people who know more about this than me, but I'd be worried about fusels from fermenting so hot.

Maybe I just don't know about something here, but why not go with a proper strain or strains here, and what's the idea of fermenting the Nottingham hot?

 

[gorlox18]

Welcome!

I was trying out the “souring - modern methods” technique of co-pitching yeast as normal alongside the lacto. I read lacto likes it a little warmer, and I had Nottingham on hand so I rolled with it. This is only my fourth beer so I didn’t really consider fusels but in hindsight you’re probably right.

I pulled a sample today after airlock activity stopped.
1.020 SG, moderate-low sourness, and light bodied. I added the packet of cherry powder in hopes to kick up fermentation and lower the gravity a bit more.

I lack temp control and I’m a little concerned the drop from my initial ~82F fermenting temp (approx 36hrs) to 70F caused fermentation to prematurely stall.

 

[AlexKay]

I’ve made beers I liked a lot with both Philly Sour and Sourvisiae. Not traditional, of course, but you can’t beat it for simplicity.

 

[gorlox18]

I considered both strains and will likely branch out to try them at some point. I don’t have dedicated souring equipment and figured L. plantarnum was a very easy strain to start with since it’s so hop intolerant. I have no hang ups on traditionality, so really open to any option!

 

[gorlox18]

Update: after slight airlock activity (likely due to cherry powder) and steady high 60s ambient temp, I took another SG of 1.020. I decided to move it near the dehumidifier (measuring ~75F localized) and wrap it in a blanket to try and increase the temp to see if fermentation picks back up.

The tart Cherry powder added more “tart” than “cherry” in a nice way that added a slightly different sour layer to the lacto sourness observed prior to its addition.