Adventures In Making Sour Beer

Top stuff Joshua! Sorta develops a SCOBY on top of the brew eh? I used to make kombutcha and you ended up with a gelatinous sponge on top of the tea which increased in size as the tea fermented looks similar to what you were skimming off the top of that brew.
 
Thanks buddy! I have a doctorate in video trolling that i earned a few years ago while battling it out in the trenches of the YouTube world! lol

Yep it must be buddy. Nasty stuff! lol Like i said, i couldn't get myself to taste the wort, but the beer when i racked it, it wasn't bad.... but i don't think it was sour enough to be a hit, maybe it will get better while it has oak in it? Guess, i could always add some tart fruit and let it sit some more?
 
Wonder if anyone has ever blended a sour.... with some mead?
 
Your post reminded me of that scene in half baked with Dave Chapelle and Jon stewart. you ever see the back of a $20 bill...on mead?

LOL..... right on!

In all reality tho, i think i want to try it! .... a super sour & tart brew and blend it with a jalapeno mead.
 
Just bottled up my sour beer! I keep forgetting i used a Saison yeast SmackPak, that's what's sparking it up and most pronounced, it's quite good. Just had a small sip but it's pretty good. Couldn't taste the oak, but it was just a small sip....

The end of my bottle filler fell off in the 3rd bottle, so i threw that bottle in the fridge, and i will recover it tonight sometime when i get off work.

My next sour will be an IPA, or a brown ale that i oak up again. I will probably let it sour for at least a week, and i will probably go with crushed barley this time as the souring ingredient.
 
Yeah it's not even close to being sour enough for me, the Saison yeast is overpowering everything else.....

.... it ain't a bad Golden Saison brew tho!..... but it needed way more oak tossed in, or time sitting on it?
 
Maybe use a cleaner fermenting yeast so as not to get in the road of the sour and oaks?
 
Maybe use a cleaner fermenting yeast so as not to get in the road of the sour and oaks?
I'd agree with you on this one. At least until you become more familiar with the whole souring process.

I think you said you let it go for a day and a half or so Joshua? Try 3 days, seems to give a good enough sour for my tastes at least. You could also try dosing it with some lactic acid if it's still not enough for ya
 
I had a Colorado sour brew, that was a golden ale fermented with Saison yeast..... their's was excellent.... mine not so much buddy!

I had a pack of CryHavoc at the time, i should have used that and saved the Saison for a different beer!

Yep you are right, I think it ended up souring for 36 hour till i was able to boil it. I'll try to let it sit for at least 3 days next time and see how it turns out. Right now it's just slight, barely taste a bit of the souring process right after the yeast starts to mellow out.

It's not a bad run of the mill saison brew, it's just not an outstanding beer on any scale. My friends probably won't know what to think of it LOL
 
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Well that's good to hear guys, thank you!

I plan on trying out my waxing ability and doing labeling job on them... so maybe i'll just hold on to them for a couple months and cross my fingers that they settle down. I only have one other good friend who's probably ever had a saison brew before, so who knows.

I feel like i should do the same brew again, but just souring it longer... and adding some lactic acid like you said buddy, and see if it turns out better?
 
Well that's good to hear guys, thank you!

I plan on trying out my waxing ability and doing labeling job on them... so maybe i'll just hold on to them for a couple months and cross my fingers that they settle down. I only have one other good friend who's probably ever had a saison brew before, so who knows.

I feel like i should do the same brew again, but just souring it longer... and adding some lactic acid like you said buddy, and see if it turns out better?
I'm thinking no good getting advice on a brew someone has no idea about Joshua. Eg most mainstream beers aren't going to be as spicey and phenolic as a Belgium brew let alone a Belgium sour brew heck even is you poured me a pint of your soured saison I'm not sure what I'd expect let alone gauge it upon for a supposed par beer:).

One thing I did find from drinking them Belgium Trappist beers awhile back is that 1 is not enough you need a few to get your pallet going and to start appreciating the flavours . There is a lot going on in a Trappist beer I'm sure a saison isn't too far from this yeast strain.
 
Alright sweet guys, thank you!

Yeah i'm going to give it another swing next month and see if can get a better Golden Ale to sour up
 
Also, I think saison yeasts need a little longer than some strains to mellow and come together. So who knowshould how it'll be in a month or 2

I'm having one now, you are right buddy!.... The saison taste has been been cut back to about 50% as strong as it was at the beginning. Still needs more souring and oaking, but it is really pretty good!
 
Mmmm yum that looks like a lovely beer there Joshua nice head and it looks like and orange colour in the photo . Love ya work mate :p

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