Bret beer

[Fido97]

Hi, I am thinking of trying my first one of these. Can anyone point me in the right direction to suggest a suitable first timers recipe and methodology. I am inclined towards maybe an IPA and then shove some bret in the secondary...but how long to leave it thereafter and what sort of conditions in advance of bottling? Cheers,

[DaveyT]

There's the Mad Fermentationist who does all sorts of things. I find his website very helpful, although I haven't used his Brett ideas.
Have you checked that out?

[jmc]

There's the Mad Fermentationist who does all sorts of things. I find his website very helpful, although I haven't used his Brett ideas.
Have you checked that out?

+1. His site: http://www.themadfermentationist.com/ is very interesting

Personally, I wouldn't start with a heavily hopped brew as I think the hops will compete with the Brett character.

Tom_D includes a recipe in his post : Wild Kiwi - 100% brett brewday

You could see the effect of Brett by brewing a standard bitter or Wheat beer then splitting at the bottling stage.
Bottle half as normal then adding Orval dregs (or Brett from WLP) to bottling bucket before bottling other half.
Use strong bottles for these though as Brett consumes some sugars other yeasts can't.

See also : All Brett Pale Ale

[Fido97]

Cheers JMC. Splitting the batch is a good tip. So my plan is to do a reasonably standard ale (not too hoppy) ferment with normal ale yeast aiming for about 4.5-5%abv. Then bottle half and shove some brett in the other part. But questions then are 1. What sort of container to use? Would ordinary plastic fv be any good or do you need something more specialist/robust? 2. What conditions do bret like 3. How long to leave it munching before bottling? Advice here seems to range fropm a week to 12 months! 4. At bottling is any priming required? 5. How long to leave before drinking thereafter? Sorry for all the questions but I'm a bret virgin. Cheers

[jmc]

Cheers JMC. Splitting the batch is a good tip. So my plan is to do a reasonably standard ale (not too hoppy) ferment with normal ale yeast aiming for about 4.5-5%abv. Then bottle half and shove some brett in the other part. But questions then are 1. What sort of container to use? Would ordinary plastic fv be any good or do you need something more specialist/robust? 2. What conditions do bret like 3. How long to leave it munching before bottling? Advice here seems to range fropm a week to 12 months! 4. At bottling is any priming required? 5. How long to leave before drinking thereafter? Sorry for all the questions but I'm a bret virgin. Cheers

If you're worried about the Brett making bottle bombs maybe best bet is to let the brett do a secondary fermentation under airlock.
So for say 5 gal batch, do primary fermentation with std yeast then siphon to bottling bucket add sugar syrup as normal & bottle 2 gals.
Add Orval dregs / Brett from WLP, mix, note SG, then siphon to 3 x glass DJ. Many people would be worried about using Brett in their normal kit.

Let the DJs brew for as long as you want, but I'd give them at least a month. Brett takes much longer than sacchromyces to brew. Make sure SG has gone down before you bottle Brett x 3 gals. White Labs say the preferred temp for Brett is over 75F, preferably 85F

As far as the WLP653, this yeast is not meant for primary fermentation and is much slower than sacchromyces. We suggest you use standard brewing yeast for primary and pitch the Brett at the end of the fermentation. If you do use in the primary, you need a higher cell count and would need to pitch about 3 times as much as normal. And it would take a good deal longer to ferment. Brettanomyces also likes higher fermentation temps, so at least 75 degrees and ideally 85.

Once your Brett has brewed in DJ, I'd bottle but use strong bottles.
I'd leave Brett at least a month before sampling bottles.

Brett will age and change for many months. That's why Orval tastes so different depending on how long its been bottled.

I've been doing an experiment with secondary fermentations with various lambic / brett dregs.
I've split brew into 6 DJs, started last November and just 2 DJ's bottled so far.
AG70 - Apricot Saison (+ pics)

[Fido97]

Thanks mate.

[AlphaAcidHouse]

Sorry its a bit late but this is my Brett Saison recipe

Title: brett saison

Brew Method: All Grain
Style Name: Saison
Boil Time: 60 min
Batch Size: 21 liters (fermentor volume)
Boil Size: 28.5 liters
Boil Gravity: 1.048
Efficiency: 75% (brew house)

STATS:
Original Gravity: 1.065
Final Gravity: 1.013
ABV (standard): 6.85%
IBU (tinseth): 34.75
SRM (morey): 10.39

FERMENTABLES:
5 kg - German - Floor-Malted Bohemian Pilsner (87.7%)
0.4 kg - German - CaraMunich I (7%)
0.3 kg - Belgian Candi Sugar - Amber/Brown (5.3%)

HOPS:
50 g - East Kent Goldings, Type: Leaf/Whole, AA: 5, Use: Boil for 60 min, IBU: 27.95
25 g - Saaz, Type: Leaf/Whole, AA: 3.5, Use: Boil for 15 min, IBU: 4.85
25 g - Saaz, Type: Leaf/Whole, AA: 3.5, Use: Boil for 5 min, IBU: 1.95

MASH GUIDELINES:
1) Infusion, Temp: 68 C, Time: 60 min, Amount: 15 L
2) Sparge, Temp: 76 C, Time: 10 min, Amount: 23 L
Starting Mash Thickness: 3 L/kg

YEAST:
Wyeast - French Saison 3711
Starter: Yes
Form: Liquid
Attenuation (avg): 80%
Flocculation: Low
Optimum Temp: 18.33 - 25 C
Fermentation Temp: 22 C
Additional Yeast: Brett starter maDE from dregs of Mikeller Funky E star bottle

TARGET WATER PROFILE:
Profile Name: Balanced Profile
Ca2: 80
Mg2: 5
Na: 25
Cl: 75
SO4: 80
HCO3: 100
Water Notes:


This recipe has been published online at:
http://www.brewersfriend.com/homebrew/r ... ett-saison

Generated by Brewer's Friend - http://www.brewersfriend.com/
Date: 2013-10-14 19:12 UTC
Recipe Last Updated: 2013-09-20 12:33 UTC

[jmc]

Really interesting article by The Mad Fermentationist on brewing sour beers

see Sour Experiment #1 - Two Week Sour

I've heard that brewing with 100% brett rather than saccharomyces can be very slow, but he gets around this he uses a low ph wort

Brett works quickly at a pH as low as 3, and produces interesting flavors too

[Fido97]

Right so my Belgian Gold is in the secondary with a pack of Brettanomyces Lambicus (wyeast 5526). After 2 days no visible activity but I gather it takes time. Will probably leave it where it is for 1-2 months and then bottle. Will be interesting to monitor the results over time. Obviously a long term project..just hope its drinkable!

[jmc]

Right so my Belgian Gold is in the secondary with a pack of Brettanomyces Lambicus (wyeast 5526). After 2 days no visible activity but I gather it takes time. Will probably leave it where it is for 1-2 months and then bottle. Will be interesting to monitor the results over time. Obviously a long term project..just hope its drinkable!

Sounds good. The Wyeast 5526 looks interesting.

What did it taste like when you moved it to secondary & what was its SG?

[Fido97]

The sg after primary (using Belgian style classic yeast) was 1010 - surprised me because I mashed at 70 plus. Should still be plenty for the bret to munch. Not tasted it yet - no sign of any activity yet so I'll leave it for week or two yet. Will keep you posted - going to photograph a weekly intervals. Cheers

[Fido97]

An update on this. The secondary has been standing with brett doing its work for 6 weeks now. There are a number of fungus like growths on the surface but otherwise very little activity (certainly very different to yeast and no bubbling whatever). So I am thinking its maybe time to bottle it. However is it necessary to prime the bottles with a bit of sugar, or can it simply be bottles as is? I would envisage leaving it in bottles in a nice cool place for several months before sampling. I'll publish a photo if anyonme inteested to see what it looks like.

[jmc]

An update on this. The secondary has been standing with brett doing its work for 6 weeks now. There are a number of fungus like growths on the surface but otherwise very little activity (certainly very different to yeast and no bubbling whatever). So I am thinking its maybe time to bottle it. However is it necessary to prime the bottles with a bit of sugar, or can it simply be bottles as is? I would envisage leaving it in bottles in a nice cool place for several months before sampling. I'll publish a photo if anyone interested to see what it looks like.

6 weeks is not that long for Brett and I'm sure Brett character will increase the longer you keep it.

What is SG now, has brett reduced the 1010 it was before?
What does it taste like now? Any input taste-wise from the Brettanomyces Lambicus (wyeast 5526)

If you have to bottle now I'd base decision on added sugar on its SG.
If its still 1010 I wouldn't add any.
If its below this I'd add maybe 1/2 typical amount.

If you're not bottling and storing for a long time, do ensure air is excluded as much as possible eg have FV as full as possible.

When you said 'fungus like growths', do you mean start of a pellicle (good) or dark coloured fungus (bad)
Pics are always good

[Fido97]

Ok I'll post a photo later - what does a pellicle look like?

[Morten]

Ok I'll post a photo later - what does a pellicle look like?

Looks like a dusty, white spider web


Pic snatched from a US forum