Brett Beer Saison Brett

[grizzly2378]

Anyone have any issues bottling these in standard 12 oz bottles?

Funny, I was just coming to this thread to ask that same question. I've got a crap-ton of standard bottles, but wasn't really looking forward to shelling out money for some Belgians.

Another question about bottling. This is my first Brett beer and I'm wondering how much priming sugar to use? Do I carb it just like I would for a "normal" beer? Want to make sure I don't overcarb and end up with bottle rockets.

Okay, one more question while I'm here. Brewed mine on August 9th, so coming up on 3 months in primary. I've checked gravity twice and it was at 1.000. Wondering if I should let it ride for awhile longer or bottle. Any need to rack to secondary?

 

[klowneyy]

People recommend using heavier bottles for the sake that brettanomcyes can ferment well below 1.000. You are fine using standard bottles but I would make sure the gravity doesn't change for at least for 6 weeks.

I would bottle like normal maybe go a little light on priming sugar just in case but should be fine.

Brett works fast in primary fermentation normally takes 6 weeks and has more of a clean taste

I would give it another 2 weeks before bottling to make sure gravity stables.

I normally leave my Brett beers in primary. Moving to secondary gives a chance for oxygen to get in and turn it into vinigar. Brettanomcyes eats dead yeast so it has plenty of food in primary.

 

[m00ps]

Funny, I was just coming to this thread to ask that same question. I've got a crap-ton of standard bottles, but wasn't really looking forward to shelling out money for some Belgians.

Another question about bottling. This is my first Brett beer and I'm wondering how much priming sugar to use? Do I carb it just like I would for a "normal" beer? Want to make sure I don't overcarb and end up with bottle rockets.

Okay, one more question while I'm here. Brewed mine on August 9th, so coming up on 3 months in primary. I've checked gravity twice and it was at 1.000. Wondering if I should let it ride for awhile longer or bottle. Any need to rack to secondary?

You cna leave it in primary.

FWIW, Ive bottled all ym brettd beers in under 3 months. The gravity really should stablilize in about 2 months. Its the flavor development that makes peopel leave it longer. I co-pitch brett and sacch typically so mine develop rather quickly. I bottles a 9 week old brett wit last week and it alreayd had more brett character than msot commercial ales. I did use heavier bottles though as I do for all my wild beers.

 

[m00se]

I like my saisons at 3.5vol like they are traditionally packaged so I use champagne style. If you are at a stable FG and priming below 3.0vol you are fine with standard bottles and normal amounts of priming sugar. No need to undershoot the priming sugar.

 

[m00ps]

are you my twin?

 

[grizzly2378]

I like my saisons at 3.5vol like they are traditionally packaged so I use champagne style. If you are at a stable FG and priming below 3.0vol you are fine with standard bottles and normal amounts of priming sugar. No need to undershoot the priming sugar.

Guess I should've mentioned that I'm shooting for a more "standard" 2.4 vol rather than carbing to style. If I were willing to shell out some cash for heavier bottles, I'd shoot higher, but I'd rather go low on the CO2 and save a few bucks.

 

[grizzly2378]

You cna leave it in primary.

FWIW, Ive bottled all ym brettd beers in under 3 months. The gravity really should stablilize in about 2 months. Its the flavor development that makes peopel leave it longer. I co-pitch brett and sacch typically so mine develop rather quickly. I bottles a 9 week old brett wit last week and it alreayd had more brett character than msot commercial ales. I did use heavier bottles though as I do for all my wild beers.

Thanks, I co-pitched my sacch and brett too. Haven't taken a sample for over a month now, so I'll check it again soon and probably bottle if it's still at 1.000.

 

[grizzly2378]

I just finally bottled my first crack at this beer last week, 6 months after brew day. Honestly, I kind of forgot about it sitting down in our boiler room all winter. It fermented down to 0.998, just over 8% ABV, but you'd never know drinking it....it's so drinkable, it could get you in trouble quick. Really looking forward to tasting it once it has carbed up.

 

[Physics202]

Just bottled my first crack at this beer, but may have been a little premature on bottling...

Brewed 11 gals. Put half in a fermenter with raspberries and half as is. Fermented at 80 for one week then dropped to 70 for 2.5 weeks. Checked FG of the raspberry one and it was at 1.010. Thought it was strange but bottled it anyways. Then prepped the "as is" for bottling and found a gravity of 1.020. Decided this one absolutely needed more time, and now I'm wishing I gave the raspberry one more time... This was the first time I've gone to bottle a beer and not had it be at the expected gravity. I'm assuming that's the slow acting brett. Should I be worried about bottle bombs with bottling a batch at 1.010???

 

[tagz]

Yes.

 

[nthammer]

Thank you OP for a wonderful recipe, I entered my sour variation of this (using jp weizen bam bottle dregs) into the wisconsin state fair amateur homebrew competition under category 28b and got a first place ribbon and scored 37.5. Though, I was the only entry in category 28.

 

[Murphys_Law]

I'm thinking of making a double batch with one half using only sac and racking on cherries at secondary and the other half keeping true to the OP's recipe with sac and Brett.

Anyone try this with only sac and some fruit?

 

[Murphys_Law]

I ended up pulling off 1.5 gallons for 3724 only and 5 gallons for 3724/brett

Bottled the 3724 only today and sample was very good!

I have my mixed fermentation @ 70* - how long does it usually take to start seeing pellicle...or is it normal to not see anything?

 

[jdlevity]

So I made a very similar recipe but sadly I added Brett-C at the end of the saison yeast fermentation and later added some additional wort from another batch to feed the Brett...I then left it for 6 months.
Guess what? No brett character (as if anyone's surprised)-just an extremely clean, almost white wine character in the hydro sample (8% abv)
Any tips or tips on how I could resurrect sum funky Brett-C character?
Anyone else make the same 'mistake' and find a way to salvage some sour with an addition or two?

 

[dwarven_stout]

I ended up pulling off 1.5 gallons for 3724 only and 5 gallons for 3724/brett

Bottled the 3724 only today and sample was very good!

I have my mixed fermentation @ 70* - how long does it usually take to start seeing pellicle...or is it normal to not see anything?

I typically do not see much of a pellicle, and if your fermenter is relatively oxygen-free you are less likely to see one form. If you leave it longer you might see what looks like a gritty or dusty krausen. As long as the aroma and flavor develop over the course of a couple months I would not worry.

So I made a very similar recipe but sadly I added Brett-C at the end of the saison yeast fermentation and later added some additional wort from another batch to feed the Brett...I then left it for 6 months.
Guess what? No brett character (as if anyone's surprised)-just an extremely clean, almost white wine character in the hydro sample (8% abv)
Any tips or tips on how I could resurrect sum funky Brett-C character?
Anyone else make the same 'mistake' and find a way to salvage some sour with an addition or two?

Plus it up with 5-10 gravity points of dry malt extract (1-2 lbs in 5 gal) and give it a couple months. It may take time to get the cell count up to restart fermentation if you just added a vial of commercial brett to a very dry saison.

 

[jdlevity]

Thanks for your feedback!

 

[hopularkid]

Mines been going since 7/29 and I’m moving at the end of the month. Is it too soon to bottle?

 

[hopularkid]

Mines been going since 7/29 and I’m moving at the end of the month. Is it too soon to bottle?

It’s at a little under 1.000 I think I can bottle. Yea?

 

[Kee]

It’s at a little under 1.000 I think I can bottle. Yea?

It sounds like it's ready to bottle. I usually put dregs of Orval in the bottling bucket for this kind of recipe and never had a problem with over-carbonation.

But I always open a bottle at least every few weeks (0k, usually a lot more often).

 

[radwizard]

How long has it been at 1.000? What kind of bottles do you have? If you haven't been stable for 1-2 months I would say, play it safe and get a stronger Belgian bottle to go into.

 

[hopularkid]

How long has it been at 1.000? What kind of bottles do you have? If you haven't been stable for 1-2 months I would say, play it safe and get a stronger Belgian bottle to go into.

Not sure, this was my first reading, I'll check again before I bottle. I don't have Belgian bottles, I'll risk it.

 

[hopularkid]

UPDATE: It was fine to bottle it, no bombs. Tastes great! have been drinking a bottle or 2 every few months and it's only getting better.

 

[bjhbrew]

I'm planning on brewing a 10 gallon batch of this recipe this weekend. I'll split the batch into 2 separate 6 gallon fermenters with wy3724 in one and the other wy3724 and white labs brett C. I'm curious if I'll need to top up the co-pitched fermentor at some point to limit o2 exposure during extended aging. Should I let both go through primary and then rack a gallon from the clean batch over to top it up? Anyone have advice?

 

[Grimstar_]

Saison Brett (with apologies to Boulevard - there simply isn't a more fitting name)


Recipe Specifics:
Batch Size (Gal): 5.0
Total Grain (Lbs): 12.00
Anticipated OG: 1.063
Anticipated SRM: 5
Anticipated IBU: 34
Brewhouse Efficiency: 70 %
Wort Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Grain/Sugars:
10.00 lb Belgian Pilsner
1.00 lb Munich Malt
1.00 lb Clear Candi Sugar

Hops:
2.00 oz Williamette [3.90 %] @60 min (25.6 IBU)
1.00 oz Saaz [4.00 %] @15 min (6.5 IBU)
1.00 oz Saaz [4.00 %] @5 min (2.6 IBU)

Yeast:
Co-pitch Wyeast 3724 Belgian Saison and the dregs from a bottle of Boulevard Saison Brett (or Wyeast Brett Clausenii)

Mash Schedule:
Mash Type: Single Step
Grain Lbs: 11.00
Water Qts: 14
Water Gal: 3.5

Saccharification:150 degrees, 90 minutes
Sparge: 170 degrees, 10 minutes

General Instructions:
Mash and boil are straightforward. Add the candy sugar with 5 minutes left. Pitch yeast at 75 and keep it warm for a couple of weeks, then let it sit undisturbed for a month or two until the brett is done. And for heaven's sake don't fear the 3724! I didn't dry hop this beer, but it would be very good with some dry hopping. You could do Amarillo to boost the citrus, EKG to compliment the brett, or more Saaz.

Tasting notes/compliments:
On the 1-year anniversary of brewing this beer:

Aroma: Strong brett nose, some graininess and pie cherry/citrus notes. Muted spicy/floral hops.
Appearance: Somewhat hazy, copper colored with a off-white head that falls relatively quickly.
Flavor: Crisp brett with bread, slight tartness. Some mineral character, some light fruit. Finishes very dry with a slight astringency and lingering brett funk.
Mouthfeel: Medium to light body, good carbonation. Slight astringency
Overall: Good brett character does not completely dominate, but saison character is still muted. Carbonation a bit on the low side. Next time add a few % flaked grain to improve head.

My club keeps asking to trade for bottles of this. There are several guys who started seeking out saisons because of this beer.
At NHC, a BJCP Master judge commented: "Frankly, I would just keep this beauty to myself. Competitions won't do justice to how elegant this beer is to enjoy."
Also, Charlie Papazian liked this beer, so you should go make it now.

Would recommend anyone who wishes to brew this recipe, to increase mash strike temperature up another 5-7 degrees. 150F for 90 minutes has a lower extraction efficiency, as was when I conjured mine. Sparge temperature is fine though, just bump up the mash temperature.