First 100% brett c beers

[Liam_snorkel]

I basically got that from Chad's appearance in that podcast, i think he mentioned it in the youtube video too (will have to revisit it) - essentially, proteins are there to add to the perception of body, not actual final gravity, and are last on the menu.. but yeah, they will be broken down eventually.

EDIT:

aforementioned vids.

Part 1:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjVOzBtE27Y

Part 2:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Swv294Xkbq8

 

[mje1980]

Cheers mate.

Just transferred the porter into glass. Didn't want to waste the yeast cake so I put a cube of mild onto it. Not sure how splashing the cube into the fermentor will affect things but we'll see. I'll keg the mild.

 

[Liam_snorkel]

sounds delicious.
my brett fermenter is currently idle, NEED TO BREW!

 

[Fourstar]

From what I've read you're looking at more like 3-4 months for straight brett, maybe someone else can chime in?

Using Brett B for 100% of the yeast bill took 9 months before i got any real decent acidity for a brett IPA i had planned. when it was at 'terminal' 1 month after pitching @ 1.004 there was no funk. only once it got to 1.001 after 9 months there was significant 'brett' character.

time is money for Brett beers IMO.

 

[drsmurto]

Using Brett B for 100% of the yeast bill took 9 months before i got any real decent acidity for a brett IPA i had planned. when it was at 'terminal' 1 month after pitching @ 1.004 there was no funk. only once it got to 1.001 after 9 months there was significant 'brett' character.

time is money for Brett beers IMO.

If you want funk, yes. If you want to add an extra dimension to your beers without funk then no.

2 weeks primary, keg and drink. Tasty stuff! I need to fire that vial up and get some more 100% brett milds in me. Amazing in a low alcohol beer.

 

[Fourstar]

If you want funk, yes. If you want to add an extra dimension to your beers without funk then no.

2 weeks primary, keg and drink. Tasty stuff! I need to fire that vial up and get some more 100% brett milds in me. Amazing in a low alcohol beer.

after 'primary' i didnt notice much character at all. it was pretty neutral short of some fruit esters. Maybe thats just Brett B qualities vs C or other strains.

 

[Liam_snorkel]

isn't brett B actually sacc.. or something?

 

[manticle]

As far as I know it's brettanomyces bruxellensis, not saccharomyces cerivisae

 

[Liam_snorkel]

Sorry, I was thinking of Brettanomyces bruxellensis Trois.

 

[mje1980]

The mild I pitched into the cake is fermenting nicely .

 

[drsmurto]

Sorry, I was thinking of Brettanomyces bruxellensis Trois.

That's the one I use. Pineapple esters from primary. Love it in a mild, espiecally rye milds where the rye spice, combined with homegrown Victoria hops (mango, peach, citrus) work very well with the pineapple esters from Brett.

 

[Liam_snorkel]

Awesome. Was just pointing out that they recently discovered it's actually saccharomyces. Fun times on the fringe of yeast biology

 

[Fourstar]

yeah, the whitelabs Trois is a completely different beast compared to the brett b offered by wyeast. The Trois us commonly used as a 'quickfire' funk strain (Brett IPA's etc) which is where mine failed* using the wyeast strains.

* I have dry hopped a growler of this beer for a couple of weeks and force carbed then aged for a fortnight in PET bottles. I ended up with a dangerously delicious funk IPA. Sadly it doesn't have the turnaround enjoyed with using the Trois strain so its unlikely i'd dedicate another 12 months to brewing this.

 

[mje1980]

yeah, the whitelabs Trois is a completely different beast compared to the brett b offered by wyeast. The Trois us commonly used as a 'quickfire' funk strain (Brett IPA's etc) which is where mine failed* using the wyeast strains.

* I have dry hopped a growler of this beer for a couple of weeks and force carbed then aged for a fortnight in PET bottles. I ended up with a dangerously delicious funk IPA. Sadly it doesn't have the turnaround enjoyed with using the Trois strain so its unlikely i'd dedicate another 12 months to brewing this.

This is why I'm trying the 100% Brett beers. From reading of people who brew them often, if you make a good starter, they are meant to ferment out much quicker than adding Brett to secondary ( which produces great beers, just take a few months ). My first 2 are almost at fg after a month. I left my starters for 2 days, though people like Chad yacobson recommend leaving the starter for a week, he believes it's important.

I think I'll do a double batch next, both batches will get lochristi ( yeast bay Brett blend ), one will get a 48hr starter, the other will get a 7 day starter.

If I can brew then to be ready to keg/bottle in less than 6 weeks I'll be happy. Mine were both around 1060 as well. Current mild that I pitched onto the yeast cake is 1.030, so I'll be interested to see how long it takes. It's had the heat belt on the whole time too. Will check gravity today.

 

[mje1980]

For bigger beers like Brett porters, I'm still quite happy to age them in glass for months, but to have some mid to average strength "everyday" Brett beers on tap is what I'm going for.

 

[Liam_snorkel]

Bang on. The brett beers I've brewed from a repitch of slurry have been crazily active. Big krausen, lots of movement in the fermenter, OG drops just as fast a sacc strain for the first week or two (then creeps down).
He's right that the flavour keeps changing after the initial fermentation though, as after its run out of sugars to eat and it starts on everything else (hop compounds etc). You get some really surprising results from really hoppy beers. Love it!

 

[mje1980]

I tried victory wild devil not long ago, a Brett IPA. You're right there, the hops and Brett played really well together.

 

[TheWiggman]

For bigger beers like Brett porters, I'm still quite happy to age them in glass for months

Considering they chew down slowly over a few months, how would you go about this? I'd imagine a few weeks in the primary down to 'terminal' gravity for the first phase, then bottle with little or no priming sugar. That way the extra few points it drops due to Brett activity will go towards carbonating the brew.

 

[mje1980]

I just let it sit for 2 months and check the gravity. If no change then I bottle. I carb medium and use champagne bottles. Wine Brewers add up to 15g of sugar to champagne ( per 750m ) so 5-10 for beer is fine.

 

[mje1980]

Mild hit 1.010 so I just kegged it, hoping to keep some body in it. It's had the heat belt on it the whole time. Fruity!