Just wanted to say that your video has inspired a few of us here in Canada to brew sour beers. I ramped this up to a 3 gallon batch and converted a mini fridge into a fermentation chamber capable of reaching 120F. It's hard to believe you can make a great tasting Berliner Weisse in under 3 weeks, but this really is a solid brew. Thanks guys!
perfect timing, I was just reading about sour wort for a berliner Weisse that I am brewing this week in Michaels book, cheers guys, I'll be sure to mention you in my video ;)
When I was there back in the early 80's we also drank them through a straw. And thanks for this. Now I can work on making my own without paying a small fortune for it, or having my daughter bring it with her when she comes.
You guys got me interested in brewing a sour beer! I always thought they'd be too difficult, but you two made it look easy. Maybe I'll wait for my attic to heat up in the summer! Thanks and cheers to you both!
Love your videos on Berliner Weiss. Very informative and helpful. My question is, do you use RO water for the mash and make water corrections? And if so, what do you use? Thanks guys! Cheers!
The syrup stuff was very interesting! So was the BW... I think your method of keeping out all of the air is what made that work so well. If you can't do that, you could use a cultured Lactobacillus instead of the grains. I want to give both of these things a try!
The syrup is very tasty, even in tea or other beverages, too. I like the idea of harvesting "wild" bacteria on the grain to do the job. Of course, there are many ways to skin a cat. - James
Fantastic video guys. This method looks a lot more practical and like you say controllable. I'll have to think about how I can keep the liquid at 49C for 3 days. I'm really tempted to give it a go. Thanks for another inspiring video. Cheers!
You refer to your grain as unmilled 2-row, has it been malted just not crushed or is it unmalted (raw if you will) and not crushed? Would it matter if it was milled? Thanks again for the information. Mike.
For those wondering how to heat your wort to 120 deg for 3 days without spending $100s on a smoker, read on. I purchased a 10.5" x 20" hot plate @ Walmart ($29) then placed each 1-gal jug of wort in a hot water bath in a 12 qt stainless pot then put both pots on the hot plate. Turned the hot plate up to 300 deg for 3 days. The water bath stayed a constant 120 deg for 3 days. I had to add more water on the 2nd day. I was worried that the jugs might break if I put them directly on the hot plate. I boiled the wort today and it had a good sour odor. Looking forward to tasting it in 4-5 weeks and, as a bonus, I can cook some brats on the hot plate to go with it. It's very cloudy in the fermenter though. How did you all get yours so clear?
1. Rest at 66.6C - 5.6L of water @ 71C - 680g of 2-row - 450g of malted wheat - 113g of mated rye 2. Add 3.7L of water to get it at 49C and rest for 30min with - 226g of unmilled 2-row 3. Put it in two gallon jugs, with no air contact and leave it for 3 days at 49C (suggestion: use an electric smoker) 4. Add 7g of Hallertauer hops and boil it for 15min. 5. Cool it and ferment with Safale US-05 for one week 6. Serve with fruit syrup
Awesome video fellas, and never new you where from washington, cty, AR. I'm in Columbia, AR and need to find a close grain store, Shreveport is the closest I could find, any idea's?
In Germany the syrup generally goes in first, and then they pour the beer relatively aggressively over the syrup. This blends the syrup thoroughly through the liquid without having to stir. Fortunately the Berliner Weisse isn't the foamiest / headiest of styles - minimizing gushing / overflow risk.
+AussieBattler Yeast wouldn't like that temperature very much. It is in the comfort zone for lactobacillus, which sours the wort. Boiling after would neutralize the lacto, and yeast would ferment. - James
Excellent as always guys!! Brewing a sour beer has been a bit intimidating to me but now I'm inspired to give it a try. Quick question or possibly an episode idea; Have you brewed a hopped cider? I have a cider in ferment now and will dry hop at the secondary. If you have done this please let me know so I can view that show. I really should have done a search first :) Thanks again for the great vids!!
Thank you very much for your video. Excuse my bad english, I'm writing you from Spain. It seems you boil the wort for only 15 min. Is it Possible?. Thanks in advance. Antonio.
I am a new home brewer and I am an absolute fan of your podcast and videos. I really like sour beers and now I am really tempted to try this out. I don't have an electric smoker and being in California the temp doesnt really get hot enough to leave the wort in an attic. Any other suggestions? Would a brew belt or ferm wrap get me there? I think they are suppose to only get about 10 degree above ambient though.....?Thanks and great work!
There are some who use light bulbs or other imaginative methods to achieve the desired temp. That's part of the beauty of homebrewing - you get to find the solution that fits your particular situation. Cheers! - James
I purchased a 10.5" x 20" hot plate @ Walmart then placed ea 1-gal wort in a hot water bath in a 12 qt stainless pot then put both pots on the hot plate. Turned the hot plate up to 300 deg for 3 days. The water bath stayed a constant 120 deg for 3 days. I had to add more water on the 2nd day. I was worried that the jugs might break if I put them directly on the hot plate. I boiled the wort today and it smelled sour. Looking forward to tasting it in 4-5 weeks. It's very cloudy in the fermenter though. How did you all get yours so clear?
Awesome video! i never thought id attempt a sour beer but im thinking about it after this and the other video. just wondering if theres a reason your only doing a 15 min boil. can i boil for an hour or would the sour flavor get boiled off?
I boiled for fifteen minutes to sanitize the wort before pitching the yeast. Since we're not looking for a lot of bitterness in this style, that's all you need. - James
So, once you used those containers to sour in do they only get used for sours? Also, you missed a great title opportunity with your DVD set (love it BTW) your Stepping into All Grain Should have been called Steeping into all grain (fits your sense of humor;) Keep up the great work.
Fun fact for the day: James and Steve are both left-handed. wha?!? Two questions gentlemen: If I was to scale this up to a 5 gallon batch would I proportionally increase the un-milled grains? Any suggestions on how to keep a ~8-10 gallon vessel at 120F? Thanks for the videos! You guys are awesome.
+basicbrewing quite sour had to leav it for 4-5 days due to not been able to boil it right away I ended up cold crashing it before I boiled it just so it didnt sour to much.ended up ditching that batch will try again once I have time still have faith
I've never tried sour beer, do you have any recommendations on a good brand that would sell some? I would hate to make a batch not knowing if I would like it our not. Cheers!
Some brewers have used light bulbs near the wort (or mash) while others have used hot water baths, as in sous-vide. An attic in summer might not be a bad idea. - James
Your reactions to this version spoke volumes. I just saw the episode where you tasted the first attempt and started this one. Obviously this worked better than the funky version that almost gassed yous. My wife would kill me if I anything similar to that pre souring version, in our kitchen. Yea tho I am the only cook in the house, I would be homeless, begging on the street, forced to drink the dregs of commercial beer, all because of your evil influence.😅
+ericmillerlite I think some electric ovens get down to that temperature (mine doesn't). I have talked to home brewers who have used incandescent light bulbs to regulate temperature. Time to get creative. :-) - James
I let the lacto sour the wort for three days before boiling and pitching US05. The sourness is achieved before the boil. If souring "bugs" are added in the fermenter, souring would take longer. - James
I tried looking through comments and couldn't tell if this has been asked. What is the fermentation schedule after the boil? Did you do a secondary? How long between the boil and packaging total? Great video, thanks!
