1885 article on Berliner Weisse

I can understand about the (lack of) knowledge about Brettanomyces, but would sanitation still have been so poorly understood and/or so much of a concern for these brewers 20 years after pasteurization (and more than 100 years after artificial refrigeration) that their beers were in danger of spoiling that quickly? I know Gose was rather temperature-sensitive -- the way it was typically served especially required some deft cellarmanship. Was it the same for Berliner Weisse?

 

Not a full translation, but there is a summary in these blog posts: http://refreshingbeer.blogspot.com/search/label/groterjan

 

Great stuff. Answers a couple of my questions, above, as well. Cheers!

 

The big difference with Berliner Weisse and other sour beers is the lack of a boil. Without that sterilization, you open the door to all sorts of other kinds of infections (ever smelled an dirty lauter tun in the middle of summer?). Producing good, consistent quality Weisse was a challenge, which lead to the introduction of the Francke method of kettle souring in 1906 that is used by a lot of craft brewers today. This was a way to produce a weisse of consistent sourness, then sterilize the beer before fermentation. It was there that the Brettanomyces was probably picked up in the wooden barrels and thrived with the lower pH . And Weisse was only served from heavy stone crocks or bottles, not on draft, but they too required a certain amount of skill to pour as the carbonation would continue to build in the bottle.

 

Thanks for all the info. I assume that even after the Franke method was introduced, the traditional processes of lautering, krausening, and/or blending were still, to a large degree, retained by Berlin brewers (including but not limited to Schultheiss)?

EDIT: Actually it looks like the Doerfel piece from 1947 answers my question(s), assuming they aren't talking exclusively about Schulheiss....

 

Right on. Besides, isn't there only one Berlin brewery left that brews Berliner weisse (Schultheiss)? To ignore the copy cats would leave you with few options.

BTW, I love what Schell's does with their limited release BW's. Better than New Glarus by multiples.

 

Thanks. We make ours as traditional as possible, and I think that makes a big difference.

 

Schönfeld described in great detail the interaction of yeast and lactobacillus in the fermentation, but it wasn't until the 1980's that the role of Brettanomyces was recognised.