How have you used it? What can I expect? I was thinking of something along the lines of a sour pale ale (not APA), with Brett. c. and lacto added to 2ndary. Looking for something that plays sweetness off sour like my Flanders brown with Roselare did, but w/ tropical fruit instead of cherry character. Does this seem like the ticket? What might you change? Boil 7.5 g Batch size 6 g OG 1.050 7 SRM 18 IBUS 10 # pils 1.5 # Cara 20 .5 oz Brewers gold (90 min) S-04 primary In secondary White Labs Brett C White labs Lactobacillus
I have never done a Brett C/Lacto combo fermentation but I would suspect the lacto would eventually overpower any contribution the Brett C might have had.
I have done a 100% Brett C fermentation with a very similar grist...90% Pils, 10% Wheat + 1 oz Amarillo split with .5 oz at 60min, and .5 oz at 5 min. O.G. around 1.048. It fermented for about 2 months at an ambient 75-80 degrees F, finally dropping to 1.010. I bottled at 1.010 and had gushers within 2 months...so it evidently needed to dry out more. The main yeast character was bigtime honeydew melon/canteloupe, vanilla, coconut, and a little pineapple. The honeydew really surprised me. It was a little peachy, but I believe that was mostly from the amarillo hops. Beyond 2 months in the bottle it got a little cheesy, but a really different funk profile from Brett B and L. If I were to repeat this (probably will soon), I'd certainly add lactobacillus. It'd certainly help dry it out and make it a little more well rounded. Maybe skip the SO-4 and primary with Brett C? The behavior was pretty similar to Saccharomyces only requiring a little bigger starter than usual.
My thinking was that the lacto will be kept in check by the hops, and by the fact that much of the fermentation would be done in the primary by the dry yeast pitch. This seems to be what happened when I used the Rosealare blend previously; however, pitching ratios of bugs was different. Another approach I was thinking about was a sour wort approach, as described in the pages of Zymurgy last year, to achieve the souring. This beer will be a summer project, so I'll have time to think it through more.
If you've never done this before, and I haven't, I would do a 100% Brett C fermentation and see how that works. Then I would do it again adding lacto somewhere in the mix. This way you can see what differences you have between the two.
Peter, I would recommend that you consult with the Mad Fermentationist (Michael Tonsmeire) on this topic. He was very helpful to me when I had questions on a beer that I brewed last year that was a combination of regular yeast and Brett. His e-mail address is: [email protected] He is also a BA: OldSock Good luck with your beer. Cheers! Jack
Hi Jack, Great advice for anyone not familiar with Michael's blog. I frequently read it and have listened to his contributions to the Basic Brewing and Beersmith podcasts. Great stuff. Old Sock hasn't come to this forum as much, as of late - seems to me he posted about writing a book on sour brews, which probably takes up a chunk of his beer time. I may seek him out directly but am grateful to hear about others who have played with Brett. c. Cheers, Peter
I did an all brett c fermentation on a mostly pils base, some vienna and bit of sour malt, all amarillo hops. I did a 2l starter and oxygenated, was still a slow ferment and finished at 1.008. It was a huge pineapple bomb!
A couple months...but I have heard of people that have had really quick fermentations also. Also, as it aged it went more from pineapple to a more traditional brett character/flavor.
Brewed an all brett c beer a few months back based on Mo Betta Brett inspired recipe which I'd found on both White Labs and the Mad Fermentationist. Turned out fantastic! Here's my post on it. --> http://snbbrewing.blogspot.com/2011/12/my-funky-brother-brett.html
Just to throw my 2 cents into the ring--would also primary with Brett C rather than S-O4. I have used Brett C before with great results, although in a split batch it took longer to ferment than Brett B. and Brett L. (6-8 weeks if I remember correctly).
is the white labs brett c similar to ecy19 brett c. ? i just did a saison inspired by hill farmsteads mimosa and they said they used brett c for their primary fermentation. i used the whitelabs brett c. but then i saw the brett description on funk factory brewing and im kind of worried that i wont get that fruity taste that im looking for.
When used secondarily, B. clausenii has more funk in the aroma, though a nice light fruit note in the taste.
