Pellicle Photo Collection

[mcnewcp]

Well this is my first sour, so that's good to know. However, when I racked into the secondary I ended up with about 5 inches of headspace and I still have a couple inches of white glop on the bottom. Do you think I should rerack and add fruit, or would that be too much oxygen?

I rack my sours once at most, sometimes not at all. One of the main reasons you rack regular ales is to prevent autolysis (sp?) of the yeast, but that's not an issue with sours. When the bugs eat the dead yeast it doesn't add those meaty autolysis flavors, it just adds more sourness (or brett character, etc). Too much oxygen, on the other hand, can give you too much acetic acid, vinegar character.

I only have a few years experience brewing with bugs though, so I welcome other opinions or corrections.

 

[barrooze]

Too much oxygen, on the other hand, can give you too much acetic acid, vinegar character.

Don't you think fermentation will drive off the oxygen and replace the headspace with CO2 for the most part? Just wondering, since my 6.5g carboy is filled almost halfway with my Sour Blonde...

I do agree, though, that if there was no oxygen present, the bugs wouldn't form the pellicle, since it's there to protect it from O2. At least that's what we're told!

 

[dcHokie]

Don't you think fermentation will drive off the oxygen and replace the headspace with CO2 for the most part? Just wondering, since my 6.5g carboy is filled almost halfway with my Sour Blonde...

I do agree, though, that if there was no oxygen present, the bugs wouldn't form the pellicle, since it's there to protect it from O2. At least that's what we're told!

Sexy pellicle, but that is a LOT of headspace, I'd purge with co2.

 

[TNGabe]

I rack my sours once at most, sometimes not at all. One of the main reasons you rack regular ales is to prevent autolysis (sp?) of the yeast, but that's not an issue with sours. When the bugs eat the dead yeast it doesn't add those meaty autolysis flavors, it just adds more sourness (or brett character, etc). Too much oxygen, on the other hand, can give you too much acetic acid, vinegar character.

I only have a few years experience brewing with bugs though, so I welcome other opinions or corrections.

I've sampled several sour beers with notable autolysis character and personally think the whole 'bugs eat dead yeast' thing is either wrong or not entirely right.

 

[smokinghole]

I've sampled several sour beers with notable autolysis character and personally think the whole 'bugs eat dead yeast' thing is either wrong or not entirely right.

Like so many things in homebrewing some people like to repeat something they heard. I would say some styles of sours like Lambic, a single transfer or none is appropriate. A Flanders anything needs at least one if not two or three rackings in my opinion. if your beer is finished fermenting and you start having autolysis issues the fatty acids and acetylaldehyde will not be metabolized. I use heavy caramel malts in my Flanders and they finish at like 3 Plato. I could be wrong on the bacterial side of things but if the Brett is done it wont convert the acetylaldehyde to ethanol or other flavor neutral compounds. So leaving a Flanders on flocc'd out yeast is asking for Apple and other off flavors which wont be as noticeable because of the sourness.

 

[Soma]

Raspberry berlinerweisse at about 90 days

 

[bottlebomber]

Raspberry berlinerweisse at about 90 days

That looks totally badass

 

[Mparsons327]

Raspberry berlinerweisse at about 90 days

Care to share the recipe?

 

[TANSTAAFB]

Raspberry berlinerweisse at about 90 days

Beautiful

 

[Soma]

Care to share the recipe?

50% 2-row, 50% flaked wheat
10 minute boil with just a few grams of Citra leaf hops
Add a mountain of raspberries (I used 10lbs in a 20L batch) at flameout and allow them to stand for 30 mins before chilling.
Wyeast 3191 berlinerweisse blend

I was unaware that 3191 had a brett strain in it, so I was caught off gaurd by this beautiful pellicle! Photo was accomplished by shining a fluorescent light through the side of the carboy and shooting down the neck.

 

[TNGabe]

50% 2-row, 50% flaked wheat
10 minute boil with just a few grams of Citra leaf hops
Add a mountain of raspberries (I used 10lbs in a 20L batch) at flameout and allow them to stand for 30 mins before chilling.
Wyeast 3191 berlinerweisse blend

I was unaware that 3191 had a brett strain in it, so I was caught off gaurd by this beautiful pellicle! Photo was accomplished by shining a fluorescent light through the side of the carboy and shooting down the neck.

That's more of a berlinerbic or lambweisse. Traditional BW is 50/50 pils/malted wheat.

 

[Mparsons327]

50% 2-row, 50% flaked wheat
10 minute boil with just a few grams of Citra leaf hops
Add a mountain of raspberries (I used 10lbs in a 20L batch) at flameout and allow them to stand for 30 mins before chilling.
Wyeast 3191 berlinerweisse blend

I was unaware that 3191 had a brett strain in it, so I was caught off gaurd by this beautiful pellicle! Photo was accomplished by shining a fluorescent light through the side of the carboy and shooting down the neck.

Did you transfer the raspberries to the fermentor?

 

[axacrusis]

Popped the lid to did this unintended infection. Any idea what this is?

I have two berliner Weiss going right now and this smell very different then lacto. I'm thinking acetobactor- the aroma is a cidery not quite vinegar.

 

[bottlebomber]

Popped the lid to did this unintended infection. Any idea what this is?

I have two berliner Weiss going right now and this smell very different then lacto. I'm thinking acetobactor- the aroma is a cidery not quite vinegar.

That there's just yeast rafts

Likely it's some of the same bugs.. Depending on the hop rates and so forth the lacto may not have been able to assert itself as well. It looks good though! What is it?

 

[Keith577]

I agree with you, yellow. I bet underneath that nasty goodness there is a fine brew developing.

 

[jeepinjeepin]

Sour Blonde with persimmons. Brett B, C, L, Lacto, and Pedio.

 

[Soma]

Did you transfer the raspberries to the fermentor?

No, the pulp stayed behind in the kettle.

 

[brewbobaggins]

The pellicle on my Consecration clone looks like something out of an alien movie.

 

[mcnewcp]

The pellicle on my Consecration clone looks like something out of an alien movie.

Wow, that's a unique one. What'd you pitch?

 

[brewbobaggins]

Wow, that's a unique one. What'd you pitch?

Pitched Wyeast 1214 Belgian Abbey Ale yeast for primary then Wyeast Roeselare about a week later. Brewed mid-January 2013.

 

[bovineblitz]

Pitched Wyeast 1214 Belgian Abbey Ale yeast for primary then Wyeast Roeselare about a week later. Brewed mid-January 2013.

Definitely one of the craziest pellicles I've seen, wow.

 

[beerbeerbeer123]

Anybody see creepshow 2? These pellicles remind me of that crazy killer oil slick blob in the lake...Friggn trippy

 

[brewbobaggins]

Anybody see creepshow 2? These pellicles remind me of that crazy killer oil slick blob in the lake...Friggn trippy

Eeeewwww.... Via Creepshow 2...

 

[Tiber_Brew]

The pellicle on my Consecration clone looks like something out of an alien movie.

That's one sexy pellicle!

 

[beerbeerbeer123]

Eeeewwww.... Via Creepshow 2...

ha Im calling pellicles "the raft" for now on

 

[jmich24]

Normally I would just relax and have a homebrew, but this part of the pellicle is thick and very blue... Should I be concerned?

It is slick looking, not furry. About a month ago I transferred to a secondary with maltodextrin.

 

[TNGabe]

Normally I would just relax and have a homebrew, but this part of the pellicle is thick and very blue... Should I be concerned?

Looks like mold.

 

[Tiber_Brew]

Normally I would just relax and have a homebrew, but this part of the pellicle is thick and very blue... Should I be concerned?

It is slick looking, not furry. About a month ago I transferred to a secondary with maltodextrin.

Looks like someone broke an egg in your beer.

 

[bottlebomber]

Normally I would just relax and have a homebrew, but this part of the pellicle is thick and very blue... Should I be concerned?

It is slick looking, not furry. About a month ago I transferred to a secondary with maltodextrin.

That's bizarre.

 

[TNGabe]

Sour mash Betliner Weisse with Brett blend - all the same pellicle over about 12 hrs