When you brew sour beer, it is important to evaluate the beer’s sourness to keep your brews consistent.
Sour beer is a unique style of beer that can be intimidating to those who are unfamiliar with it. It has a tart, acidic flavor that is drastically different from traditional styles.
While some people may not like the taste of making sour beer, those who do are likely to enjoy the complexity and depth of flavor it offers.
Learning how to evaluate and taste a brew sour beer is an art. With the tart, tangy flavors of the best sour beers, you can experience a truly unique taste that some say can’t be replicated.
Get ready to explore the world of sours and find your favorite – let’s get tasting!
Brewing Sour Beer
Sour beers are a big unknown and a big risk for a lot of homebrewers. If you believe all of the hype surrounding brewing sour beers, you would think that brewing a rous beer means that every beer you brew after that will become sour due to contamination.
The idea is that if you introduce wild yeast and bacteria into your sour brewing setup, you will have to replace all of your brewing beer equipment or risk every pale ale turning into a hopped-up lambic.
4 Main Bugs That Brewers Use To Brew Sour Beer
- Brettanomyces yeast– Brettanomyces is a genus of wild yeast that is often referred to as “Brett” by brewers. Brett strains can create a variety of flavors and are often used in sour flavor beer for the funkiness they add.
- Lactobacillus– Lactobacillus is a bacteria that helps to create a sour taste in beer. It is often used in Berliner Weisse, Gose, and other sour styles.
- Pediococcus– Pediococcus is another bacteria that is often used to create sour beer. It is a lactic acid-producing bacteria, which gives sour beer its tart flavor.
- Acetobacter– Acetobacter is a bacteria that helps to create acidity in sour beer. Acetobacter isn’t as common as the others, but it still pops up in a handful of beer styles. Acetobacter’s souring agent is acetic acid, the key component in vinegar.
The “big three” in sour beer fermentation: Brettanomyces, Lactobacillus, and Pediococcus. Brettanomyces (Brett) is a wild yeast that is probably the most commonly used agent in sour beers.
One reason for its ubiquity is its versatility: depending on the strain, acidity, and alcohol levels and presence of other microbiota, you can get a range of different flavors and aromas.
Understanding Sour Beer – The Basics of Tasting Techniques
Have you ever wondered how to evaluate the sourness of a beer? While it’s easy to identify when you brew sour beer is sour or not, understanding the subtle nuances of its sourness requires an understanding of specific tasting techniques.
Let’s take a look at some tasting techniques for evaluating your brew sour beers.
Appearance and Aroma
It’s important to start by taking in the appearance and aroma of the beer before you take your first sip. Pour the beer into a glass and observe its color, clarity, and head retention (the amount of foam or bubbles left on top).
Pay attention to any aromas that stand out, such as fruit or floral notes. This will help prepare your palate for what’s to come.
Taste
Once you’ve looked at the appearance and aroma of the beer, it’s time to give it a taste. Take a small sip and roll it around in your mouth for several seconds before swallowing or spitting it out (if you’re trying several different beers).
As you do this, pay attention to the sweetness, bitterness, acidity, and other flavors present in the beer. Do these flavors change as the beer warms up? How does it compare to other sour beers that you have tasted?
Mouthfeel
The mouthfeel is an often overlooked aspect when evaluating beers but it is just as important as flavor when tasting sour beers.
Notice if there is any perceptible carbonation or alcohol warmth present in the finish along with any lingering flavors on your tongue after you swallow or spit out the beer.
Does it feel light-bodied or heavy-bodied? Is there an astringency present due to high levels of tannins? All these factors contribute to how enjoyable (or not) drinking this particular beer will be for you.
Understanding pH Levels
The first step to evaluating the sourness of a beer is understanding pH levels. pH stands for “potential hydrogen” and measures how acidic or basic a liquid is on a scale from 0-14.
The lower the number, the more acidic something is, while higher numbers indicate more alkalinity. Most beers fall between 4-6 on the pH scale, with lighter styles such as lagers being on the lower end and darker styles such as stouts being on the higher end.
Knowing where your beer falls on this scale can help you better understand its overall sourness level.
Using Your Palate
When tasting your beer for sourness, it’s important to pay attention to what you’re smelling and tasting. Take a few sips of your beer and let it linger in your mouth while paying attention to any flavors or aromas that stand out. Is it tart? Fruity? Bitter? Sweet? Identifying these characteristics will help you assess its overall acidity level and determine if it is indeed “sour” or not.
Knowing Your Beer Styles
Finally, knowing which beers are known for their sour notes can be very helpful when evaluating a particular brew’s acidity level.
Popular styles such as Berliner Weisse, Gose, Lambic, and Belgian Witbier are all known for their distinctively tart flavor profiles so if you’re drinking one of these beers then chances are it will be quite sour!
Additionally, many breweries feature seasonal releases that focus specifically on showcasing different types of sours so keep an eye out for those too!
7 Easy Steps To Brew Sour Beer
When you plan to make your first sour beer, there are several easy steps to ensure success.
Step 1: Make the Mash
Step 2: Warm Up the Sparge Water
Step 3: Boil The Wort
Step 4: Incorporate Lactobacillus into the Wort
Step 5: Add The Brewer’s Yeast
Step 6: Add Brettanomyces
Step 7: Store Fermented Beer
Conclusion
Making your sour beer can be a rewarding experience, but it’s also important to understand the nuances of evaluating and tasting it.
With the help of these tips, you’ll be well on your way to mastering the art of tasting sour beers and being able to identify different flavor profiles and acidity levels.
Read Next: The Benefits of Drinking Sour Beer