pH control on a sour

[The_Brewzer]

I have a dilemma that my current knowledge of water chemistry is not affording me an answer to. My wife was kind enough to surprise me with a Russian River Consecration clone kit for Christmas, and I have finally gotten around to being ready to brew it this weekend.

I have gotten in the habit of using the 5-star 5.2 pH control in most of my all-grain brews, and it seems to work pretty well. My question is, since sour beers like Consecration are soured through acid-producing bacteria (a well as the yeast), will adding the pH control in my mash tun cause problems later during fermentation and souring? In other words, will the pH control powder inhibit the ph lowering? I'm not entirely sure how it works, but I don't want to throw it in if there is a chance it will keep the beer from souring.

Any input is well-appreciated!

 

[jhall4]

Well, from everything I've heard, no.

A) 5.2 isn't that great a buffer (from what I've heard around the forum and via product reviews)
B) those souring bacteria are changing your pH a LOT more than the mash ever could

 

[KeystoneHomebrew]

It's not going to particularly matter if you use the 5.2 or not. Seriously. What is more important is that you give that beer the aging time it needs. You are introducing bugs that thrive in harsh environments.

The only way to trip them up is to drink them before they're finished doing their job!

 

[The_Brewzer]

That is kind of what I figured, I just wasn't sure if the buffer stuck around past the mash and might resist or counteract the acidity produced by the bugs. Sounds like not much of an issue. Tha ka for the responses