1st flanders red....need help dialing in my technique

[bctdi]

I'm getting ready to do a Flanders Red based on JZ's recipe, and after doing a little reasearch I've decided to make 2 seperate batches....only difference between the 2 will be 1 with wlp001 only for the initial ferment , then add the rosaleare in the secondary.....then the other batch will just primary with the rosalaere only then rack to secondary for aging. I then plan on blending the 2 to taste.
Just wondering if it would be better to do both these close together and let them age simultaneously or would it be better to space them out a little....and if I do space them out, which one first and how long to space them out? I just want to leave myself a little wiggle room for blending purposes. I've only had 2 sour beers....the duchess and rodenbach flanders red vintage 2007 which I really liked, so not sure how to gauge the amount of sourness I will want ahead of time.
I have 2 better bottles to age these in..I was planning on doing some oak chips in both , and using an airlock / rubber stopper setup.Will the better bottles impart the right amount of o2 to the beer?From what I've been able to gather, buckets supposedly let in too much o2....should I expect the same with better bottles? Thanks!

 

[724b]

I brewed JZ's Flanders Red... it's on tap right now and outstanding.

I can't answer all your questions, this was just my first sour. I soured mine for 15 months in a glass carboy with a carboy hood. Used us-05 for the intial fermentation then racked to carboy to pitch bugs.

After about a year I added tart cherry concentrate. I did reserve a portion (about a growler) of the original unsoured beer and added that back when I kegged.

As far as timing out of two batches, I wouldn't wait too long in between. These take a long time to develop sourness (at least in a glass carboy). If you're looking for residual sweetness you may not have to sour the second batch. You could brew a small unsoured beer to blend back in or reserve some of the original beer.

 

[bctdi]

I brewed JZ's Flanders Red... it's on tap right now and outstanding.

I can't answer all your questions, this was just my first sour. I soured mine for 15 months in a glass carboy with a carboy hood. Used us-05 for the intial fermentation then racked to carboy to pitch bugs.

After about a year I added tart cherry concentrate. I did reserve a portion (about a growler) of the original unsoured beer and added that back when I kegged.

As far as timing out of two batches, I wouldn't wait too long in between. These take a long time to develop sourness (at least in a glass carboy). If you're looking for residual sweetness you may not have to sour the second batch. You could brew a small unsoured beer to blend back in or reserve some of the original beer.

I like the idea of brewing a small un-soured beer to blend with...I do want some residual sweetness to balance out the sour...Actually it would be really nice to be able to blend all 3 when complete, or keep them as is (who knows , they may be great without blending)....I just want to try to cover the bases by being able to blend incase after 2 years my beer didn't come out the way I wanted it...a little insurance never hurts.