Berliner Weisse

[akueck]

Another attempt at a Berliner Weisse-style beer, this time with bugs in the jug.

2.5 lb German Pils
1 lb wheat malt
1/2 lb white wheat malt
1/2 oz Hallertau (whole, 3.5% AA) 15 mins
US-05 yeast and homemade lacto culture

Initial mash temp 151, cooled to 146 over an hour. Preboil gravity 1.035, 2.25 gallons in the fermenter at 1.037ish. Lacto culture pitched while warm, waiting to drop below 70 to pitch yeast.

Lacto culture made with some generic 1.040 wort, a spoonful of yogurt, and a pinch of crushed malt. It was about 4 days old and I poured in about a cup of the liquid into the fermenter. Stinky. ;D

You could probably sparge more and get a larger volume too if you wanted. My first runnings were a whopping 1.080 and second runnings were 1.024; I ended up diluting with some water to push the gravity low enough.

 

[akueck]

Now happily fermenting at 62. Hopefully the wet shirt can keep temps relatively stable throughout the day. Temperature swings here are usually at least 10 degrees.

 

[buzzerj]

You're doing a sour mash? I've given up beer brewing right now as we are due for a heat wave this week and my house doesn't have air conditioning. Otherwise I have my fermenters in a bath of water with 2 liter Ice bottles with them. Hope your t-shirt evaporation works well for you.

 

[akueck]

Nope, no sour mash. The last two times I tried this style I did a sour mash for 24 hours, but it wasn't quite sour enough. Suppose I could just wait longer, but for this one I put the bugs in the fermenter. We'll see if it comes out any different from my previous attempts. I have also seen recipes which put hops in the mash and run the wort directly into the primary without a boil; I'd like to try that method too eventually.

I am a little worried about the temperature swings here. It is a low alcohol beer, so hopefully it will finish quickly before anything weird happens to it. My other option is to try and insulate against cooler overnight temperatures and do something like a Belgian Golden in the low 70s. Down to my last 12 beers though, so I'm a bit desperate.

 

[wildoates]

You are almost out of beer? Powers forfend. But look at it this way--if you get stuck having to buy some, at least you'll have the bottles to use later.

/trying to find the bright side for you...

 

[akueck]

Wet shirt is doing swell. Ambient is now 72 and both carboys are sitting pretty at 64.

I should have enough beer to hold me until these are ready. If not, I'll have to break into the mead. Shucks.

 

[akueck]

Racked a gallon into a jug and bottled the rest. Not as sour as my previous, sour mash, attempts. At least not yet. I'm interested to see if the bottles and the jug age differently. I'd love for the sourness to pick up.