Sour Mash question - please help

[Soulshine]

Hi,
I am doing a batch similar to a clone recipe for Flying Fish Farmhouse Summer Ale. The recipe calls for a "sour mash". The instructions read:

For the sour mash, start 2–3 days in advance. Steep 3 oz. (85 g) 2-row pale malt in a pint of 150 ºF (66 ºC) water, then cover and let sit for 2–3 days. On brew day, steep the sour mash along with the wheat and dextrin malt grains in 3 gallons (11.4 L) of water at 152 ºF (67 ºC) for 30 mins.


So on the day I am brewing what exactly am I using for the "sour mash"? The grains that have been sitting in the muslin bag for 2 days that I had steeped in hot water? Do I use the water also? Do I just use the water?

Thanks for any help..

 

[ReverseApacheMaster]

Basically you are making a mash with the 3oz of pale malt and letting it sit for three days. Then I would just strain out the sour mashed grains but the recipe says to steep those grains along with the rest. Either way probably won't make much of a difference. You do need to add the sour mash liquid to your boil kettle at the start of the boil along with the water from steeping the grains.

Do not be afraid of the sour mash. It stinks like rotten creamed corn but the smells will go away during the boil and during fermentation. Just make sure that you eliminate as much air contact as possible. The easiest way is to lay saran wrap or foil over the top of the liquid and push out any air bubbles.