Lawrence Brewers Guild

When pitching one package of this yeast blend, into a 12 gallon batch, is it wise to build a starter? It seems like I have heard different theories over the past few years.

My only advice when using strains like this is to think about a few things.

1)Temp. Keep it at least in the low to mid seventies. Any cooler and you will not get the sourness level you want. The Brett character will be there a ton if cooler but not much sourness. And of course, expect a good year to wait on it. Its decent at 6mths. But 1 yr is better.

2)o2 penetration. Depending on what your going to do your long term aging in will determine how much o2 penetration you get and of course time effects this as well. If using a carboy, jam a oak dowel (don't use red oak) thru a universal stopper. This allows some o2 penetration thru the oak dowel.

If using a regular plastic bucket, then o2 leaches faster, so time will be shorter. I prefer HDPE as the o2 penetration is slower. But in both of these cases, using a few oak chunks in the bottom will add a slight oak flavor and will give the bugs something to adhere to which is important.

Are you pitching just the Roselare or are you using a Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain first? Id probably pitch just the Roselare since there is already a blend in it. Building it wouldn't be a bad idea, but id prefer using more than 1pk for 12g.

+1 On everything Andy said, he's done a lot with bugs and he knows his schtuff. I've posted on the other board but it's worth stating here:
I make a starter with my Roeselare smacker, understanding that the bugs will prop at different rates, because I prefer a good amount of sour. The bacteria will reproduce faster than the sacch or brett giving them a jump start on their acid production cycles. I'm not really looking for full attenuation from the sacch strain; I want acid production before the Lacto shuts down due to alcohol levels from the yeast. Any residual sugars after primary is complete will be consumed slowly, in the presence of oxygen, by the brett. I ferment in HDPE barrels which have a high oxygen permeability. After primary is over I seal the container completely and only allow oxygen to permeate through the walls of the vessel. I have also repitched my yeast cake and have had more sour results, quicker. I have a dedicated fermenter for such projects, and 12 gals of Flanders anything isn't too much.
For me, this is what beer is all about; empiricism, artistic expression and black magic

Thanks for all the input guys! Any other thoughts please chime them in. In the batch I did a year and half ago I did 1056 for 3 days followed by the Roeselare. The glass fermenter was on the cement floor in a plastic basket. Its life for a year and a half was at 66 deg F. Nice and clean beer, but not enough of the sour I was looking for. Still aging for another year in a secondary at this point.

So this time just Roeselare, and at 70-72ish deg F with a little more oxygen diffusion...

meisel wrote:+1 On everything Andy said,

For me, this is what beer is all about; empiricism, artistic expression and black magic

+1. Sure do love this hobby\lifestyle!

Sounds like you already figured out that temps also play a role in the sourness. Sounds to me tho Jeff your already have your game plan. And Lee makes some pretty outstanding sour beers, so listening to what he says about how to handle the yeast is good advice.

Ended up pitching two packs of Roeselare and a small handful (about 20 chips, not chunks) of boiled oak. It is a roaring fermentation with the 1056, as the Ph drops the critters should start to really come alive... As it dies down a bit, what kind of wooden oak dowel should I use? Where to obtain, and how to treat before I insert it through the drilled out rubber bung (glass piece of mind insurance)?

Well, at three weeks now. A fantastic 1st week of activity! A solid three inch ring of thick head capped the wort. The 11 gallons of beer is still bubbling away about every three seconds. Still a light krausen on top... the bugs are starting to take over now I suspect. No splotches of moldy rubber have formed on top yet though. I think next weekend I'll insert the oak rod.