Gose not sour enough

[SasquatchSmith]

Hi all, this isn't a lambic or a "wild" beer but hoping this is a good place to ask this one.

I brewed a tangerine Gose last week, attempting to use acid malt for a bit of tartness instead of lacto. Just tasted it, and as I sort of expected, it's not nearly tart enough for my liking. The salt is there at the end but it's definitely missing a sour bite. In fact, the salt is fairly strong so I need something to balance it.

What's the best option to get this done at this point? I have heard that throwing some raw grains and lactobacillus into it can work...if anyone has tried that, how much of each?

Also read something about just using lactic acid at bottling...any experience with that?

Any other ideas?

THANKS in advance!

 

[Jhubbard9]

What kind of a yeast did you use first off. While acidic malts add a bit of a souring effect the type of yeast used also plays a huge role in producing flavors within fermentations. In a gose and many other sour ales you want your yeast to produce phenols in which also provide your beer with that souring flavors. Introduction of a lambic strain or a Brett strain could help but also I would pitch a very little amount and if fermentation is complete it may be hard for the new yeast to 1. Stand the alcohol within the beer and 2. To have enough sugar to produce adequate amounts of phenols to sour your beer. Also of adding Brett be careful and sanitize very well after its a very aggressive strain and can invade other fermentations. Hope this helps.

 

[Jhubbard9]

Also raw grains can introduce wild yeast which might sour or also might cause molding and can have adverse effects. Stick with what you know and dont hope to get the right wild yeast strain.

 

[SasquatchSmith]

What kind of a yeast did you use first off. While acidic malts add a bit of a souring effect the type of yeast used also plays a huge role in producing flavors within fermentations. In a gose and many other sour ales you want your yeast to produce phenols in which also provide your beer with that souring flavors. Introduction of a lambic strain or a Brett strain could help but also I would pitch a very little amount and if fermentation is complete it may be hard for the new yeast to 1. Stand the alcohol within the beer and 2. To have enough sugar to produce adequate amounts of phenols to sour your beer. Also of adding Brett be careful and sanitize very well after its a very aggressive strain and can invade other fermentations. Hope this helps.

I used a german ale yeast smack pack, thanks for the tips

 

[Calder]

As far as souring this beer, you are out of luck, unless you want to wait a year, and hope it comes out good. Pitching a sour blend with Brett and Pedio would probably get you there.

I've never added lactic acid myself. I hear it does not produce a good beer. You could try it in a glass with some of the beer and see what it is like.

An alternative would be to make a quick Berliner and mix the two

 

[Arrheinous]

Acid malt is pretty much lactic acid sprayed malt. You need a lot of it to get significant sourness rather than a twang.

If you want sourness without lacto go for a sour mash for a few days next time.

If you add lactic acid you will get sourness but it will lack the complexity that makes a sour beer special. It'll be a bit monotone like sour candy. But with the ethanol from fermentation and the added lactic acid maybe you will get esters (ethyl lactate) over time? An alcohol and an acid will form an ester over time but it doesn't tend to happen around water and it's definitely better to let the microorganisms do that faster.

It might not be the worst thing to just add some lactic acid if your yeast is already providing esters. A neutral yeast wouldn't help but a clovey German ale yeast might. There's probably enough going on there that you'll be fine.

 

[505-Brewer]

How bitter is your beer? If the hops r low enough then You could possibly add some maltodextrin then some bugs to eat on that for say 3 months. I'm not sure how we'll lactose does with maltodextrin but maybe someone here will chime in. I know it prefers simple sugars but if you can get a hop tolerant lacto and it'll break down the dextrin then that might work. I just added 4 oz to sour beer that never soured but it has all kinds of bugs in it. Looks like a pellicle is growing again.

Anyone know if lacto will eat lactose as we'll? Might be another option.

 

[mnick12]

I would just re-do the brew and pitch a lacto strain. That is probably not what you want to hear, but fixing a recipe doesnt usually work.

If you are doing a gose you dont want funk and you dont want a long fermentation. Brew your beer and pitch lacto then yeast and be done with it.

 

[SasquatchSmith]

Thanks for all the tips, will probably attempt to add lactic acid to get this batch at least drinkable even if it's not great, and will definitely pitch lacto next time around.

 

[SasquatchSmith]

Update:

I went with the lactic acid. Used a whole 150ml bottle for my 5 gallon batch, and opened by first one last night.

It's not bad! It added a fairly sharp tartness and the beer is drinkable which is all I was hoping for. As I had read might be the case - the acid gave it a one dimensional sourness as compared to a true sour and a slightly buttery aftertaste which is a little weird but other than that, i'm happy with the result.