re: Homebrewing Thread: Volume II

Wyeast 5335 did work once again

I would expect the finished beer to be a bit higher than this. It tastes fantastic though chocolate and a bit of caramel and no roastiness or acridness. Was exactly what I was looking for at this stage. I'm going to rack it to a carboy with some Cabernet-soaked oak cubes and then in a month or so then it gets raspberries.

Got me some hop juice fermenting right meow! Can't wait to sip on it

i double wrapped my temperature probe with towels and then taped it to the side of the carboy to get the best temp readings for my fermentation controller. It'll do for now until I can put together something a little fancier

Kegged up Purple Drank just now. 3 lbs blueberries, 2 lbs blackberries puréed.

Wow, looks like Kool-aid.

That looks good as hell! I need to put an order in for a bottle as well

Live in Denham but always in BR. I could bring a bottle of my latest IPA in two weekends. Of course if it is worth a damn lol

i want to do a long ages sour now but i have no clue what else sours entail. i guess ill need to get a fermentation spot for it which is temp controlled cause i only have room for one. and i dont want to take that up for my normal brews.

Some tips.

1) For your first one, as i said, just keep it in a room temp closet. 70-74 degrees will work.
2) Be prepared to wait. I let mine age for a year. Probably didn't need to go that long, but i'm patient.
3) Fill your carboy up. I'd design my recipe for 6-6.5 gallons (depending on carboy size). The idea is you want little headspace for O2 to get in.
4) Keep that airlock filled. It will evaporate so just check the airlock every week or so.
4.1) Also, use the bubbler airlocks, as opposed to 3-piece. I find they are much easier to maintain your liquid in the airlock.
5) Co-pitch your bugs together. This is completely optional, but if you don't know what you are doing off the bat, just co-pitch everything. Your sach strain, brett strain, and Lactic acid bacteria (lacto, pedio). I did this with my first and it came out great. My second one that is currently doing its thing, i did not do this as i learned more about the process.
6) Once everything is pitched, your bung is in the carboy tight, and your airlock is positioned. Leave it alone and forget about it. I waited 3 months before testing it the first time and would only open the bung to test every 3 months after. I would also flush with co2 towards then end after each sample.
7) Pellicles aren't consistent. I didn't see my first sign of a pellicle until about 4 months in. Coincidentally, that is also when the first bit of o2 ingressed the carboy. A pellicle is a sort of natural defense that Brett creates to protect the wort from unwanted creatures, O2, etc... Pellicles are both good and bad. Having a pellicle shows that your brett is there and doing its job. However, it also shows that you let O2 in at some point. Too much O2 can produce acetic acid which is not good.
8) Buy yourself a ph meter. If you like sours, find one from the store and if it's the acidity amount you like, then measure with the ph meter (after you calibrate). That'll give you an idea of what you like. Ph isn't the most accurate acidity measure, but it will get you there. Also, for every tenth of a point in ph, that equates to 10 times the acidity. So if your ph goes from 3.3 to 3.2, your beer is 10 times more acidic. Now how you perceive that acidity is up to the individual.
9) Don't add hops...Hops are not necessary. My first i only had 3 IBU's worth of Saaz i believe. Hops will restrain or flat out prevent (in case of pedio) souring of your beer. My latest sour batches are no hops at all. Hops, even a couple IBU's could cause your beer to go from souring in 4 weeks, to souring in 10 months. Now there are some more hop tolerant LABs out there (lactic acid bacteria), but to be safe, just hold off on the hops.
10) Join the milk the funk facebook group, and check out the milk the funk wiki. Also, pick up the book "American Sour Beers". All excellent sources for everything sour/funky.

There are some other things i'm sure i'll think of.