Tart Saison

I make a ton of saisons and to get a nice dry and tart saison is pretty easy. Some background first...
Some saisons are tart from the high attenuation of the Belgian yeast, which can yield a dry/ slightly tart saison.
Some saisons use other use souring techniques (i.e sour mashing, inoculating w/ bacteria and extensive aging).

Saisons are simple beers, so all you need really is 6lbs Pilsner or light DME, .75 belgian candii sugar, some hops for bittering and aroma and a nice Belgian yeast (lots to choose from here).

If you are patient, then I would suggest adding Brett to the secondary and let it dry out the beer for another few months.

 

Kettle souring is a good option for extract. @jbakajust1 and @drewbage probably have the info you need as both seem to be into saisons. Like really into saisons.

 

I would go for Pilsner DME, maybe some table sugar to ensure dryness (don't know the parameters of the DME to know its attenuation levels). Noble hopping in the .75oz @ 25 mins and 1.25oz @ FO. Choose a Saison yeast you like (I prefer 3724).

For tartness you can do a preboil souring with Good Belly at room temp, just watch the pH. Don't go by taste since the Lacto won't eat the sugars so it will taste sweet with a mild tartness, but if you go to desired tartness on taste before boiling and fermenting you will have a much more sour end product. Once the pH is in the high 3 range boil with the hops, cool, and ferment with the Saison yeast.

 

The best Tart Saison I made was actually a blend of a Brett Saison and a Berliner Weisse. I have tried to brew a nicely sharp tart season in the past, but was never satisfied with the end results...but blending 2 different beers worked perfectly for what I wanted out of the final beer!

 

@jbakajust1 what good belly flavors do you recommend if you don't want any fruit flavor in the final product?

 

I like the Mango. The flavor is light once it is fermented out. One carton for 5 gallons works well. It might leave a little tropicalness, but it is nice. I usually pre-sour the wort to 4.1 pH with Citric Acid as well, I like the lemony citrus bite.

 

I will have to invest in a pH meter now. I like tart saisons with hops like Nelson and Galaxy, so the mango will have a lot to compete with. Add in some wine soaked wood and it's really gonna be muted.

 

I use one of the $12 yellow ones from Amazon.

 

If you get the FG down below 1.005 I would recommend bottling 3.5 gallons straight, then, add the dregs from a bottle of Orval to the bottling bucket, stir gently, then finish bottling. Mark those bottles to hold onto a little longer and see how they evolve. You won't be disappointed.