August 2, 2007 – Planning out the next ones
Now that I have a free keg, albeit one minus a rubber o-ring, I think that it is time to start planning out the next two brews. I would like to select two beers that use the same yeast; I will pitch one on top of the other’s yeast cake.
The first styles that come to mind are Bock and Sour Beer. It is hard to imagine that I only really had my first bock beer ( Granite City’s Benedictine Bock) this last year and I certainly did enjoy it. I believe that his style requires lagering so it may have to wait. The other style, sour beer, I have not yet tried but it sounds quite intriguing.
With sour beer, as I understand it, you take about half of your grist and add enough water to wet the grain. You then leave it in the mash tun in warm place for about four days until it gets really good and stinky. Then you add the rest of the grain and mash according to a normal schedule ( of course you have to make some corrections for the water already in the tun). When you boil the wort, all the nasties are kill and your are left with a soured beer that is supposed to be quite nice. I figure I could try this with a honey wheat or the like.
If any of you have tried making a sour beer, let me know. I would love to hear your tips.
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I have never brewed a sour beer, but I do know it’s an acquired taste. I was in my LHBS and I was talking with a guy about them. If you like them, then it sounds like a cool beer to try out. But if this would be your first shot at it, you might want to hunt down a sixer and check your taste buds before you make 5 gallons of it.
I made a cherry wheat (I had had them many times before, and was never crazy about them) after my friends were begging me to make one. I had to drink 5 gallons of that ape piss. Never again! It’s just not a style I like, I like other fruit beers, just not the cherry.
Seriously though, always keep in mind you gotta drink it.
Cheers!
That sounds like a reasonable thing to do. Now I just need to find a commercial example! Travis, what is your favorite beer style?
I am not crazy about the style, but I suppose a Lambic would be the best choice. They are pretty wildly available around where I am.
Enjoy
Travis