I'd like to get some fellow HBT'ers feedback on choosing bugs for a sour ale. I'm really trying to decide between two methods.
I think the most common method, certainly advocated by The Mad Fermentationist, is to pitch Saccharomyces, a "pre-mix" such as the ubiquitous Roeselare Blend, and also the dregs from a commercial bottle or two.
For some reason, with no real justification, I'm more inclined to pitch direct cultures. I.e., pitch Saccharomyces, and vials/packs of Pediococcus, Brettanomyces, and maybe Lactobacillus, as well as the dregs from a commercial bottle or two.
Bottle dregs, by the way, of sour beers are hard to come by here in Lincoln, NE. There's three bottles, that I know of or can think of, that I'd be pitching. I have a bottle of a wild beer named Maggie from a CO brewery, Crabtree, I can get one bottle of decent lambic from a nice shop in town, and I'd probably pitch dregs from Orval too.
Am I fooling myself? Should I just use the Roeselare Blend + bottle dregs? Is there solid reason to use a blend over individual strains, or to use strains over the blend?
I'd like to hear your experience.
Cheers!
I think the most common method, certainly advocated by The Mad Fermentationist, is to pitch Saccharomyces, a "pre-mix" such as the ubiquitous Roeselare Blend, and also the dregs from a commercial bottle or two.
For some reason, with no real justification, I'm more inclined to pitch direct cultures. I.e., pitch Saccharomyces, and vials/packs of Pediococcus, Brettanomyces, and maybe Lactobacillus, as well as the dregs from a commercial bottle or two.
Bottle dregs, by the way, of sour beers are hard to come by here in Lincoln, NE. There's three bottles, that I know of or can think of, that I'd be pitching. I have a bottle of a wild beer named Maggie from a CO brewery, Crabtree, I can get one bottle of decent lambic from a nice shop in town, and I'd probably pitch dregs from Orval too.
Am I fooling myself? Should I just use the Roeselare Blend + bottle dregs? Is there solid reason to use a blend over individual strains, or to use strains over the blend?
I'd like to hear your experience.
Cheers!