Racking a 100% Brett Beer

[Brett3rThanU]

I brewed a 100% Brett IPA using some dregs I built up from a Crooked Stave Hop Savant bottle (100% Brett) and am just about to dry hop it. Normally I never rack my beers to a secondary, but I'm thinking of racking this one to dry hop making it easier to collect and save some of this Brett for later. I'm worried however about oxygen when racking because I really don't want the Brett to start creating acetic acid. How sensitive is Brett to producing acetic acid with oxygen (I got a lot when I had this on the stir plate)? I could try to purge my secondary with co2, but I've read it just kind of mixes in with oxygen so that may not work. Would it be safer to just dry hop in the primary and rinse the brett a few times to eliminate hop residue and save that?

 

[Agate]

How long ago did you brew it? I usually dry hop Brett beers in secondary and have not had an issue with acetic acid. Typically I rack and dry hop within a couple months of brew day, and the beer is pretty full of CO2 which gets released when it mixes with the dry hops. But I don't go out of my way to purge the carboy.

 

[Brett3rThanU]

How long ago did you brew it? I usually dry hop Brett beers in secondary and have not had an issue with acetic acid. Typically I rack and dry hop within a couple months of brew day, and the beer is pretty full of CO2 which gets released when it mixes with the dry hops. But I don't go out of my way to purge the carboy.

11 days ago. This isn't a beer I'm going to age, I'm just using Brett in place of Sacc.

 

[Agate]

Go fer it, you won't get any acetic character as long as you use halfway decent technique. As in, can rack a sacch beer without oxidizing it.

 

[tagz]

Just curious, did it get sour at all? It seems that almost all of their beers hit the barrels at some point and pick up some bugs along the way... even some that are labeled 100% Brett. If yours came out with no acidity that's great news for the dreg hunters.

 

[Brett3rThanU]

Just curious, did it get sour at all? It seems that almost all of their beers hit the barrels at some point and pick up some bugs along the way... even some that are labeled 100% Brett. If yours came out with no acidity that's great news for the dreg hunters.

You know, it's got a slight hint of sour on the nose, but I don't get that on the taste. Taste is all funk.

 

[Calder]

Treat it just like sacc and you will not have any issues.

 

[tagz]

Just thought I would pass this email along. It's in reference to Hop Savant being exposed to the mixed culture in the barrels.

"100% Brett, no wood, but I wouldn't be surprised if sometimes......... Well, you know."

 

[TheBigLebrewsk1]

Does Brett work in 11 days? I've not brewed with it but I am reading months when pitched to secondary.

 

[m00ps]

Does Brett work in 11 days? I've not brewed with it but I am reading months when pitched to secondary.

Thats only with MIXED fermentation. An all-brett beer doesnt take much longer than an all-sacch beer. The starter definitely takes longer to get rolling though

 

[mitchard]

How developed can you expect the Brett character to be after only two weeks? Even with the primary done by 100% Brett, would it take more time?

 

[Calder]

How developed can you expect the Brett character to be after only two weeks? Even with the primary done by 100% Brett, would it take more time?

You will get little to no traditional 'Brett character' when using it as a primary yeast.

Usually develops a fruity character.

 

[m00ps]

How developed can you expect the Brett character to be after only two weeks? Even with the primary done by 100% Brett, would it take more time?

Plz read post directly before yours