Any Interest in Barrel Aged Sour

LiverDance · Post by **LiverDance** » Fri Oct 10, 2014 3:32 pm

mcgster wrote:I can post a couple of different options for recipes, Michael Tonsmeire's book "American Sours" has a ton of great recipes and some hints on doing group barrel brews like this.

I think the most reliable way to do this is that the barrel gets steam cleaned (i can do this at the house) then all the wort gets added to the barrel with no bugs in it yet. Chances are there will be lots of bugs in the barrel that get into the pores of the wood and aren't killed by the steam cleaning but we would either start off with a clean yeast and add some other bugs once we hit a desired SG. It really depends on what approach we want to take. I can post a couple different approaches later on.

I'm torn between lambic and flanders red.. both are great choices.

If we ended up doing 2 runs it would be better to do the clean lambic first so it wouldn't pick up any additional flavors

mcgster · Post by **mcgster** » Fri Oct 10, 2014 3:55 pm

Valid point! I'll map out a few options tonight for a lambic.

We should also take a tally on who is contributing what. I'm looking to put 10 GAL in myself. I'm waiting to here when we can get the barrel it could be a few weeks because apparently they are in the middle of harvest.

Keith · Post by **Keith** » Fri Oct 10, 2014 3:59 pm

Let me know when and where. I'll definitely haul my brew gear down for this. I can do a 10 gallon batch on my current setup.

mcgster · Post by **mcgster** » Sat Oct 11, 2014 7:34 am

If you follow the Mad Fermentationist on facebook he has mentioned a few times that three of his favourite recipes are

His Wine Barrel Aged Flanders Red
http://www.themadfermentationist.com/20 ... s-red.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Berliner Weisse #3
http://www.themadfermentationist.com/20 ... -brew.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Summer in Brussels (all brett)
http://www.themadfermentationist.com/20 ... brett.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I also shot him a message saying that we were going to do a group barrel recipe and asking if he had any suggestions other than the ones above (specifically a lambic)

On his blog he singles out this lambic
http://www.themadfermentationist.com/20 ... -mash.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Just some thoughts for everyone to discuss!

Post by **chalmers** » Sat Oct 11, 2014 10:14 am

I'm in for 19L lambic.

CartoonCod · Post by **CartoonCod** » Sat Oct 11, 2014 10:20 am

I'm in for 19L of lambic

GasMD30 · Post by **GasMD30** » Sat Oct 11, 2014 10:35 am

Anyone know if a guy can get a lambic in NL?

CartoonCod · Post by **CartoonCod** » Sat Oct 11, 2014 10:47 am

We'll have to think about getting some good quality bugs. I think the yeast bay has a lambic blend called Mélange. I haven't heard many results from it yet but it might be worth trying.

amartin · Post by **amartin** » Sat Oct 11, 2014 11:04 am

I'm in.

mcgster · Post by **mcgster** » Mon Oct 13, 2014 10:35 am

FWIW Michael wrote back and had some good feedback. He basically said if its a white wine barrel that a lambic would be a good choice but if the barrel is a fresh red wine barrel we should go with a sour with more malt body than the lambic.

I know that these guys age both red / whites in oak so i'll try and find out what it is so we can plan accordingly. I have a feeling that the barrel is from Chardonnay but i'll find out for sure. He had wanted 150 / barrel which i think is fair but he also said he wants in on the end product so i'll offer him a case and see if he'll lower the price. He also farms hops for a few breweries in the area so there is a possibility we could get some oxidized hops that have been sitting around. That wouldn't be overly helpful where we aren't doing one massive brew though.

gm- · Post by **gm-** » Mon Oct 13, 2014 1:42 pm

mcgster wrote:FWIW Michael wrote back and had some good feedback. He basically said if its a white wine barrel that a lambic would be a good choice but if the barrel is a fresh red wine barrel we should go with a sour with more malt body than the lambic.

I know that these guys age both red / whites in oak so i'll try and find out what it is so we can plan accordingly. I have a feeling that the barrel is from Chardonnay but i'll find out for sure. He had wanted 150 / barrel which i think is fair but he also said he wants in on the end product so i'll offer him a case and see if he'll lower the price. He also farms hops for a few breweries in the area so there is a possibility we could get some oxidized hops that have been sitting around. That wouldn't be overly helpful where we aren't doing one massive brew though.

Sounds good, and if we get both red and white barrels we could do both?

mcgster · Post by **mcgster** » Mon Oct 13, 2014 2:51 pm

I'd love to do both, especially once the grain order comes in!

Keith · Post by **Keith** » Mon Oct 13, 2014 8:41 pm

Do we have a date set for this or a time? I need to be sure I'll be able to contribute and plan a beer accordingly. Would love to get a Lambic or sour going.

mcgster · Post by **mcgster** » Mon Oct 13, 2014 10:42 pm

Well the barrels should be available for pick up in the next week or two. When i get my hands on them i'll post some pics and we will know more about next steps. I'm not sure what kind of condition they will be in and what kind of cleaning they will require. I do have a industrial steamer that i used in stripping room and room of wallpaper from my old house that will be perfect for cleaning the barrel as long as its been fairly well kept.

GasMD30 · Post by **GasMD30** » Tue Oct 14, 2014 6:31 pm

Tips on big brewing

https://byo.com/stories/issue/item/3150-big-club-brews" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

CartoonCod · Post by **CartoonCod** » Wed Oct 15, 2014 12:22 am

Mark, will this barrel brew happen in New Brunswick?

mcgster · Post by **mcgster** » Wed Oct 15, 2014 7:10 am

CartoonCod wrote:Mark, will this barrel brew happen in New Brunswick?

Yes i have a spot at my house to keep the barrel at a stable temp.

Post by **chalmers** » Wed Oct 15, 2014 11:14 am

Let's get to work on a recipe/technique soon, if the barrels are coming in the next couple of weeks, we'd like them to remain empty the least amount possible (even with steam cleaning, I thought this was important).
Are we bringing wort, or finished beer? If beer, then we need to decide on a yeast.
Does everyone involved have kegs, or other easy-to-transport containers?
Are we bringing the beer carbed, or still?
mcgster, what's your schedule looking like for time in SJ (I know you split your time out of the province, too)?

mcgster · Post by **mcgster** » Wed Oct 15, 2014 12:48 pm

I think we are better off if we add only unfermented wort to the barrel. In speaking with Michael who has done many of these he highly recommended that we don't ferment the wort first.

I can handle doing a suitable starter to kick off fermentation when we decide on a yeast.

I haven't heard back on when the barrels will be emptied... he said he has two for me for sure but he said his #1 priority is the harvest right now.

I'm going to be back for a weekend or two in november, then all december and the first two weeks of january. I was hoping to get the barrels when i'm home that weekend but i haven't confirmed yet. If i'm not around i can have the barrels picked up by the other SJ guys in on this.

CartoonCod · Post by **CartoonCod** » Wed Oct 15, 2014 1:06 pm

I don't have any kegs. Would a plastic bucket with a closed lid work just as good?

mcgster · Post by **mcgster** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 9:09 pm

In a perfect world we could put this:

https://www.thebeerbug.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

In our barrel and all watch it ferment

Post by **chalmers** » Sat Oct 18, 2014 8:55 am

CartoonCod wrote:I don't have any kegs. Would a plastic bucket with a closed lid work just as good?

Yes, was just a bit concerned about oxidation and spilling during delivery.

So, the barrel will be in Saint John, we need to talk about transport of wort to there, for those out of towners.

mcgster · Post by **mcgster** » Sat Oct 18, 2014 9:39 am

Is everyone else from the HRM?

CartoonCod · Post by **CartoonCod** » Sat Oct 18, 2014 10:14 am

I'm from HRM

amartin · Post by **amartin** » Sat Oct 18, 2014 10:18 am

Me too, but if it's going to happen in the next few weeks, I may have to back out. I have some stuff coming up, so the timing won't work for me.

If the wort isn't going to be fermented here, how is it going to get to Saint John first? I don't know how a sour would work, but with regular yeast we'd want to pitch as soon as it's cooled. Is everybody going to brew on the same day and get transported at the same time for this to work?

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