Category Archives: sour beer

Rated “PG” (for Pineapple Guava) 2026

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Our feijoa (pineapple guava) tree had a slack year in 2024-2025 (probably due to dry conditions), so I wasn’t able to gather any fruit. But, the tree produced fairly well towards the end of 2025, so it was the perfect time for a rebrew of my old favorite sour beer. The feijoa fruits weren’t quite as large this year, and were perhaps a bit riper when I picked them, so the overall quality is different from the first batch. That said, it still turned out as a great beer (even if a bit of extra work)!

Everything is pretty much the same this year as the previous version; there is a mix of pilsner malts, because I was getting to the end of my Pilsner Zero supply. With a smaller harvest of fruit, I opted for a 2.5 gallon instead of a 3 gallon recipe.

Rated “PG” (for Pineapple Guava) 2026

  • 1 lb. 12 oz red wheat malt (Briess)
  • 14 oz. Pilsner Zero malt (Viking)
  • 8 oz. Synergy Select Pilsen Malt (Briess)
  • 2 oz. rice hulls (added to mash)
  • 0.25 tsp. BrewTanB, added to mash
  • 0.25 tsp. BrewTanB, 10 minute boil
  • 1 oz. Saaz whole hops (South Dakota; est. 3.5% alpha), 5 minute boil
  • 0.5 tsp. yeast nutrient (WLN1000), 5 minute boil
  • 1 pkg. Wildbrew Philly Sour (Lallemand)
  • 2 lb. feijoa (pineapple guava) puree, added at end of fermentation

Target Parameters

  • 60 minute infusion mash, 152°, full volume mash
  • 1.031 o.g., 1.006 f.g., 3.2% abv, 5 IBU, 3 SRM
  • Claremont tap water, neutralized, to hit 120 ppm Ca, 7 ppm Mg, 89 ppm Na, 50 ppm SO4, 120 ppm Cl, 10 ppm bicarbonate, -81 RA
  • 2.5 gallon batch

Procedure

  • Starting with 3.75 gallons of tap water, I added a quarter of a Campden tablet to drop the chloramines, and then 2.65 mL of 88% lactic acid, to neutralize the bicarbonates.
  • I heated the water to 155°, before adding the grains, and holding at 152° for 60 minutes, with recirculation.
  • After the main mash, I raised the mash temperature to 168° and held it there for 10 minutes.
  • Once the mash was done, I pulled the grains. I had 3.4 gallons of runnings with a gravity of 1.025, for 72% mash efficiency.
  • I brought the runnings to a boil, and boiled for 60 minutes, adding hops and other ingredients per the recipe.
  • After the 60 minute boil, I chilled to 84°, transferred to the fermenter, pitched the yeast, and fermented at ambient. I wrapped a towel around the temperature to maintain temperature.
  • I brewed the beer on 18 February 2026; starting gravity was 1.033.
  • The beer was down to 70° by the morning of 19 February 2026, with active bubbling in the airlock. I put my fermentation heater next to the fermenter and wrapped the fermenter in a towel in order to keep the temperature up.
  • The fermenter was around 76° when I checked it on 22 February 2026.
  • I added the fruit puree on 22 February 2026. I had picked the feijoa at the end of December, skinned it, and then froze the pulp. After thawing, I pureed the pulp with an immersion blender, heated the puree it to between 160° and 165°, and then let it sit for 30 seconds. I added the pasteurized puree to the fermenter at this point, which raised the temperature to 86°. There was a gentle krausen on top when I opened the fermenter.
  • The fermenter sat at ambient, until I kegged the beer on 7 March 2026. I used 1.5 oz of corn sugar dissolved in water to start carbonation (and reduce oxygen).
  • Final gravity was 1.009, down from 1.033; this works out to 3.1% abv, pretty close to my initially estimated target.
  • After a few weeks, I moved the keg to the fermentation chamber and topped up the CO2 with forced carbonation.

Tasting

  • Appearance
    • Very hazy and straw-colored beer, with a surprisingly persistent white head (likely helped by the high level of carbonation).
  • Aroma
    • Highly tart, acidic aroma, with a medium level of tropical fruit; very ripe, almost like papaya, especially on the initial pour; as the beer warms, I pick up more guava, and a bit of apricot and pineapple.
  • Flavor
    • Very clean sour profile, with a lactic acid character; a light bread dough malt flavor. As the beer warms, a medium-low level of tropical fruit comes through, with well ripened pineapple as the dominant flavor. Minimal bitterness.
  • Mouthfeel
    • Highly carbonated, crisp, light-bodied beer; a wonderful effervescent character.
  • Would I Brew This Again?
    • This is a super amazing beer, made even more special by the fact that I picked the fruit in my yard. It is just about the perfect fruited sour; the aroma is a little more “ripe” than the previous version. The flavor is not as fruit-forward (hence the 9/10), but still nice. The Philly Sour strain works well for these kinds of beers; I’m definitely sold on it! Comparing with the previous version, the color is a little lighter; maybe that’s something about the fruit?
  • Overall
    • 9/10

Salty One Gose

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I’ve never made a gose before! This confession is probably not terribly surprising for those who know my brewing preferences, because I find most sour beers a little too annoying to deal with. Kettle sours take time, and other sour processes are prone to contamination of subsequent batches in the same equipment. Plus, I find many sours just a little too sour to be drinkable beyond a half glass. That said, gose is only lightly tart and lower alcohol, which puts it into the space of beers I enjoy. I think the main thing deterring me from the style in the past was the annoyance of having to dial in the sourness without overshooting (undershooting?) the pH.

Then, I spotted a neat recipe in the January 2025 Zymurgy magazine–a brew called “Salty One Gose” that won gold in the European Sour Ale category at NHC 2024. Crafted by Jonathan Hernandez of Waterville, Maine, the beer drew my interest because it used kettle soured sauergut added to the main kettle in order to hit the perfect level of sourness. So, you’re essentially blending wort for a desired result.

I modified this beer only slightly from the original recipe. The published version was 6 gallons, so I reduced it towards a 5.25 gallon batch. I also adjusted the amount of pilsner malt required downwards, anticipating high efficiency (as is typical of my batches with minimal grain volumes). I used a mix of Viking and MCM malt, because I had a pound of the latter on-hand to use up. Finally, I used whole Saaz hop cones from South Dakota; hops are a minor consideration for this style, so I wasn’t too concerned about alpha level, aroma, or flavor.

Coriander choice took some thought–although I have it on-hand for cooking, it had been in the pantry for a few years, and I was worried about freshness. So, I ordered a small quantity online; the package didn’t document origin of the spice, but when I smelled the crushed seeds they had the fresh lemon quality I was looking for.

Recipe Name

  • 1 gallon sauergut (added to kettle at boil)
    • 1 lb. pilsen light DME (Briess)
    • 1 pkg. Wildbrew Sour Pitch (Lallemand)
  • 3.5 lb. white wheat malt (Briess)
  • 2.5 lb. pilsner zero malt (Viking)
  • 1 lb. pilsner malt (Montana Craft Malting)
  • 2 oz. rice hulls
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, added to mash
  • 1 oz. Saaz whole hops (est. 1.5% alpha), 60 minute boil
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, 10 minute boil
  • 8 g. coriander seed, crushed, 10 minute boil
  • 13.1 g kosher salt, added at end of boil
  • 1 pkg. Köln Kölsch-style yeast (Lallemand)

Target Parameters

  • Full volume mash with 5 minute rest at 131°, 40 minute rest at 147°, 30 minute rest at 161°, and 10 minute rest at 168°
  • 1.042 o.g., 1.007 f.g., 4.6% abv, 5 IBU, 3 SRM
  • Mash water adjusted to 37 ppm Ca, 20 ppm SO4, and 51 ppm Cl.

Procedure

  • Two days before the primary brew day (April 3), I measured out 1.1 gallons of RO water (4.164 kg), added 1 lb. of Briess pilsen light dry malt extract, 1.5 tsp. (7.5 mL) of 88% lactic acid, and then boiled this for 4 minutes. Next, I chilled the wort to 90°, before pitching the entire packet of the lacto culture.
  • I started the initial culture on the evening of 3 April 2025, kept a heating pad under it, and wrapped it in a blanket, to hold temperature at 85° to 90°.
  • By April 5, the pH looked to be around 3.2 or 3.3 as measured by pH strips. This was brew day!
  • I mashed in with 6.5 gallons of RO water and mineral adjustments, with 0.9 g gypsum and 2.6 g calcium chloride. I heated the strike water to 134°; once the grains were added, I held the temperature at 131° for 5 minutes, before heating to 147° for 40 minutes, raising to 161° for 30 minutes, and then mashing out at 168° for 10 minutes.
  • Because I had such a low volume of grains, I had exceptional mash efficiency at 1.034 with 6.9 gallons, for 89% mash efficiency.
  • As the main runnings were coming to a boil, I boiled the saurgut prepared earlier and added it to the kettle, getting a pre-boil gravity of 1.035.
  • I brought the kettle to a boil, adding hops, BrewTanB, coriander, and salt per the recipe. After a full 90 minute boil, I turned off the heat and chilled to 72° before transferring to the fermenter.
  • I chilled the wort to 64° in the fermenter, holding it at that temperature for initial fermentation.
  • I brewed the beer on 5 April 2025, and had a starting gravity of 1.043.
  • I kegged the beer on 18 May 2025, with closed transfer. Final gravity was 1.009, for 4.5% abv.
  • My tasting at the time of kegging showed it to be an exceptional beer–the coriander flavor and aroma were perfect, as was the salt balance. After the initial carbonation and tastes, I decided to up the carbonation to about 3.2 volumes.

Tasting

  • Appearance
    • A light yellow, moderately hazy beer, pouring with a fluffy white head of excellent persistence; the head leaves lacing down the side of the glass.
  • Aroma
    • Bright, medium-light aroma of coriander and fresh sea breeze; a light bread dough aroma behind that
  • Flavor
    • Lightly and pleasantly tart; a light lemony coriander flavor alongside fresh sea breeze from the salt. “Doughy” malt flavor of medium intensity. Low bitterness, with no hop character to speak of.
  • Mouthfeel
    • Rounded mouthfeel, high level of carbonation, dry mouthfeel on the finish, medium-light body. Very drinkable and very refreshing!
  • Would I Brew This Again?
    • Yes! This is an amazing beer and a solid first attempt at a gose. I had to adjust the carbonation upwards a bit, because it was a bit flabby on my first few pours, but once that was dialed in it notched the beer to perfection. The coriander and salt balance are spot-on, as is the level of tartness. I might use K-97 next time around, to retain the haze at a slightly higher level for longer, but this is just an awesome beer as is. I especially like the partial kettle sour method, so that I was able to hit a low level of acidity with minimal fuss.
  • Overall
    • 10/10

Rated “PG” for Pineapple Guava

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Even though I have lived here for nearly 16 years, I didn’t grow up in southern California, and so I’m always learning something new about the the kinds of fruits and vegetables that grow in this climate. Last fall, I noted a bunch of fruit on a tree adjacent to our home, and upon examination found that it was rather tasty in aroma. A little internet research revealed the source–feijoa, or pineapple guava!

green fruit with white bloom on the surface -- the fruit are somewhat egg-shaped, and laying on the ground

Pineapple guava (I’ll use that name throughout) are native to parts of South America, including Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay, and have been cultivated in many areas with appropriate climate (apparently they are particularly popular in New Zealand). A member of the myrtle group, rather than a true guava, pineapple guavas produce a small (one to two inch across), green-skinned fruit that tastes and smells almost exactly how the name sounds. Somewhat counter-intuitively, they are not ready to eat until they drop from the tree and onto the ground!

Once I found this fruit, I knew that it would be perfect for enhancing a sour beer–something low abv, refreshing, and spritzy. I chose a Berliner Weisse-style grain bill (50% pilsner, 50% wheat malt), aiming for ~1.030 s.g. I didn’t want a highly hopped beer, so I used ~1 oz. of South Dakota Saaz hops. I didn’t know the alpha acid, but if I added them late enough it didn’t really matter. For this beer, I wanted an easy sour, with a clean character that would let the fruit shine through. Wildbrew Philly Sour was an obvious choice, enhanced by the fact that I wouldn’t have to worry as much about contamination of other batches. The fruit is a fair bit of effort to pick and process, so I stuck with a 2.5 gallon batch, aiming for one pound of fruit per gallon of beer.

The results were totally worth it! This is one of the best experimental brews I made in a long time, and it was really fun to highlight something that I picked from our yard.

Rated “PG” for Pineapple Guava

  • 2 lb. pilsner malt (Rahr)
  • 2 lb. red wheat malt (Briess)
  • 2 oz. rice hulls
  • 1 oz. Saaz whole hops (est. 3.5% alpha), 10 minute boil
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, 10 minute boil
  • 0.5 tsp. yeast nutrient (WLN1000), 5 minute boil
  • 0.5 pkg. Wildbrew Philly Sour yeast (Lallemand)
  • 2.5 lb. pineapple guava puree

Target Parameters

  • 1.031 o.g., 1.006 f.g., 3.2% abv, 8 IBU, 3 SRM
  • Full volume mash, no sparge, 152° mash for 60 minutes, 10 minute mash-out at 168°
  • Claremont tap water, neutralized with 88% lactic acid and treated with Campden tablet

Procedure

  • Starting with 4.75 gallons of tap water, I added 1/4 Campden tablet and 3.2 mL of 88% lactic acid to remove the carbonates. I heated the strike water to 156°, before adding the grains along with 0.7 mL of 88% lactic acid. I held the mash at 152° with recirculation for 60 minutes.
  • After the 60 minute mash, I raised the temperature to 168° for 10 minutes, before pulling the grains.
  • Overall, I collected ~4.5 gallons of runnings with a gravity of 1.025, for 76% mash efficiency.
  • I boiled for 60 minutes, adding finings and hops per the recipe.
  • After turning off the heat, I chilled the wort to 85° and transferred to the fermenter. I pitched a half packet of Philly Sour and sealed up the fermenter.
  • I brewed this beer on 2 April 2024. Starting gravity was 1.033, and I fermented the beer at 80°.
  • I picked the fruit way back in December, peeled it, and put everything into the deep freezer until beer time. I thawed the fruit or a day or two, pureed it, and then pasteurized at 161° for 30 seconds. I let it cool a bit, and then added to the fermenter. All of this happened on 3 April 2024, very early in fermentation.
  • I kegged the beer on 18 April 2024. Final gravity was 1.009, for 3.1% abv.

Tasting

  • Appearance
    • Hazy straw color, like the appearance of grapefruit juice. Pours with a thick white head that persists well.
  • Aroma
    • Quite prominent guava fruit aroma at the forefront, with a little doughy character behind that.
  • Flavor
    • The beer is fairly tart, but not puckeringly sour, at first impression. The tropical fruit character is definitely there, but it’s subtle–notes of guava (unsurprisingly) dominate. Some doughy wheat character hides behind it all, at a low level. Barely perceptible bitterness.
  • Mouthfeel
    • Light body, spritzy carbonation, slightly dry finish.
  • Would I Brew This Again?
    • Yes! This is a perfectly refreshing beer, well suited for the warming afternoons of spring. It is crisp, but not watery. The fruit is gorgeous on the aroma and perfectly restrained on the flavor. It’s that rare fruited beer where you can pick up the fruit character, but it takes a few seconds to process the flavor. This batch was a good bit of extra work in the fruit process, but absolutely worth it. I have sometimes seen some dismissive comments about Philly Sour being too one-note in character, but that is perfect for this beer as a way to let the subtle fruit notes take center stage. I know that I’ll never find a beer like this commercially, and that’s so much of the fun of homebrewing!
  • Overall
    • 10/10
dark green tree
The feijoa tree in all of its glory — the tallest branch is perhaps 8 or 10 feet off the ground

Raspberry Belgian 2021

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According to my records, this is the fifth time I’ve made Raspberry Belgian. It is one of my favorite recipes, without a doubt. The process is a fair bit of work, and it’s not the cheapest thing to brew, but WOW, are the results worth it!

My approach to this has morphed considerably over the years, and there are inevitably some variations in ingredients and process. So, every time is different, even if they’re all more or less in the same flavor space.

As before, the key to this recipe is using fresh/frozen raspberries. Tons and tons of raspberries–4.5 pounds, to be precise. I used just frozen ones this time, which I thawed and pureed before adding to the fermenter. Canned purees just don’t “pop” in the same way. For souring, I tried out the Lactobacillus Blend from Omega Labs, which is what the local shop had on-hand. Past versions of the recipe used acidulated malt in the grist, which was a hold-over from the original “bacteria-free” version, and I decided to just ditch that because it was unnecessary.

Raspberry Belgian 2021

  • 6.5 lb. Viking Pilsner Zero Malt
  • 2.5 lb. white wheat malt (Great Western)
  • 1 lb. flaked wheat
  • 0.5 lb. Carapils malt (Briess)
  • 0.5 lb. rice hulls
  • 0.5 oz. Magnum hop pellets (10.1% alpha), 60 minute boil
  • 1 tsp. WLN1000 yeast nutrient (White Labs), 10 minute boil
  • 1 pkg. Belgian Wit Ale Yeast (WLP400), prepared in 1L vitality starter
  • 1 pkg. Lactobacillus Blend (Omega Labs OYL-605)
  • 72 oz. frozen raspberries, pureed

Target Parameters

  • 1.048 o.g., 1.012 f.g., 18 IBU, 4 SRM, 4.8% abv
  • 154° full-volume mash, 60 minutes
  • Overnight kettle sour
  • Claremont tap water, no adjustment

Procedure

  • Way back in May, I made a starter for Pannotia White IPA using WLP400, but it was suuuuper slow to kick off. Worrying that it was dead, I got some Whiteout (Imperial Yeast), but kept the WLP400 starter going just in case. After a day or two, it was off to the races, and so I harvested the results to save for a later brew–which turned out to be the raspberry brew!
  • I mashed in with 7.25 gallons of water at 160°, and held the mash at 154° for 60 minutes with recirculation. I added 7 mL of 88% lactic acid to adjust the mash pH. I raised the temperature to 168° for a 10 minute mash-out, and then removed the grain basket.
  • In total, I collected 6.25 gallons of runnings with a gravity of 1.038, for 61% mash efficiency. This is a bit low, but that seems to be the case for these adjunct-heavy beers (and my mill seems to be not quite tight enough, after inspection of equipment).
  • Next, I boiled the runnings for 5 minutes, before chilling down to 95°. I added 25 mL of 88% lactic acid, to get the pH down to 4.4, and then added the lacto culture. Because I’m using the Foundry, I just let the runnings in the kettle, and set it to maintain temperature at 90°. I did this step on 14 August 2021.
  • After 25 hours, the pH was down to 3.5, right in my target range. I called this perfect!
  • While getting the soured runnings ready, I made a SNS (shaken-not-stirred) starter for the harvested yeast culture.
  • I boiled the runnings, adding hops and yeast nutrients per the recipe. After 60 minutes, I chilled the wort, transferred to the fermenter, and then chilled down to 66° before pitching the yeast starter.
  • I started primary fermentation on 15 August 2021, holding at 66°.
  • On 19 August 2021, I added 72 oz. of pureed frozen raspberries, and raised the temperature to 68°.
  • On 22 August 2021, I brought the beer out to ambient, around 75° or so, to finish up.
  • I kegged the beer on 28 August 2021. At this point, it had a final gravity of 1.013, which works out to 4.0% abv. With the extra sugars from the fruit, actual abv might be a touch higher.

Tasting

  • Appearance
    • The beer is gorgeous! I pours with a pink, frothy, and somewhat persistent head. The beer itself is dark pink, and moderately (but not overly) hazy. I think it’s looking clearer than might be usual, because I’m using a floating dip tube. I wouldn’t mind a little extra haze, if it helped augment the mouthfeel and flavor.
  • Aroma
    • Raspberry is prominent, with a bit of tartness also.
  • Flavor
    • The beer is moderately sour, but not over the top. The sour character is clean (one person who tasted it described it as a sour patch kid–that’s a high compliment in my book!). Bitterness is perceived as low. The raspberry comes through very nicely. There might be a slight wheat flavor, but in general I don’t think the malt is terribly perceptible. I’m a bit surprised that the Belgian yeast character doesn’t come through more, either.
  • Mouthfeel
    • This beer has a light body and effervescent quality, with a tart, modestly sour, and dry finish.
  • Would I Brew This Again?
    • This is a wonderful beer! It’s incredibly drinkable, especially during warm weather. I wouldn’t mind a touch more malt character and a little bit more prominent Belgian yeast character…I would be curious to see if it’s genuinely no Belgian character, or if that is just being covered up by the raspberries. Perhaps I’ll try fermenting at a higher temperature next time, to bring out the phenols more prominently. Those are truly minor issues, and really just in the category of optional tweaks to consider.
  • Overall
    • 9/10

Claremonter Weisse 2020

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As summer and summer temperatures drag on here in southern California, I’m spending my brewing energy on light, flavorful, and refreshing beers. This often means lagers, but sometimes it’s nice to play on the sour side of the street. A few years back, I brewed an award-winning Berliner Weisse, which tasted fantastic. I’ve been wanting to revisit that style and that recipe for awhile, and finally made some time this summer.

For my 2020 brew, I rolled with a similar recipe to my 2016 version, except for the sour pitch. Last time, I used Omega Labs OYL-605 lacto blend. This time around, I had a satchet of Lallemand’s Wildbrew Sour Pitch, which had already been opened for my Raspberry Belgian. Not wanting to waste a good culture, I made the decision to use this instead. I didn’t have to make a starter, which was a nice bonus. I switched in 2-row for pilsner malt, to up the malt character a little for such a low gravity beer. Finally, for the main fermentation, I made the very minor substitution of US-05 instead of WLP001.

Claremonter Weisse 2020

  • 2.25 lb. premium 2-row malt (Great Western)
  • 2.25 lb. pale wheat malt (Weyermann)
  • 2 oz. rice hulls
  • 0.5 pkg. Wildbrew Sour Pitch dry culture (Lallemand)
  • 1 tsp. Fermax, 10 minute boil
  • 0.5 oz. Cascade whole hops (5.5% alpha), 8 minute boil
  • 1 Whirlfloc tablet, 5 minute boil
  • 1 pkg. Amercan Ale Yeast (US-05)

Target Parameters

  • 1.031 s.g., 1.007 f.g., 3.2% abv, 3 SRM, 5 IBU
  • Full volume, no-sparge infusion mash, 152°; 10 minute initial boil, kettle sour; 60 minute secondary boil with hops, nutrients, and finings
  • Claremont water, unadjusted

Procedure

  • I mashed in with 4.8 gallons of water at 155°, to hit 151° in the mash. I added 2 mL of 88% lactic acid to adjust mash pH.
  • After 20 minutes, the mash was down to 149°. After 60 minutes of total mash time, I vorlaufed and collected the runnings. I only had a gravity of 1.026, for 65% efficiency.
  • I boiled for 10 minutes, chilled the wort down to 102°, and added 2.5 mL of 88% lactic acid to bring down the pH. Then, I added 5 g of Sour Pitch culture, and let it sit on a heating pad for ~100° temperature maintenance. This was started on 24 July 2020.
  • After 24 hours, I sampled the wort. It wasn’t quite tart enough yet, so I decided to let it go another 24 hours. When I sampled it on 26 July 2020, it was less tart than expected, but I figured 48 hours at 100° was enough time for the bacteria to work their magic.
  • I boiled the soured runnings for 60 minutes, and added the hops and other finings per the recipe. After 60 minutes, I chilled the wort and transferred it to the fermenter.
  • Starting gravity was 1.031, with ~3.25 gallons into the fermenter on 26 July 2020. I started fermenting at 66°.
  • I moved the beer to ambient temperature on 8 August 2020, to let it finish up.
  • I kegged the beer on 13 August 2020, putting it in one of my 2.5 gallon kegs. I added 3.95 oz. of corn sugar for natural carbonation, sealed it up, and let it sit for awhile.
  • Final gravity was 1.008, down from 1.031, for 3% abv. At the time of kegging, the beer had a gorgeous floral aroma, almost like orange blossom honey.
  • I checked on the natural keg pressure over a few days, as the keg sat at ambient temperatures. On 21 August (8 days post kegging), the keg had hit 32 psi (~2.4 volumes of CO2). On 23 August, the keg had hit 40 psi (~2.8 volumes of CO2). I gave it another day or two, there was no change in pressure, so I put the keg in the lagering chamber and topped up the carbonation level.
  • I measured the final pH at around 3.6.

Tasting

  • Appearance
    • Pale straw color and hazy, with a creamy white head that completely subsides after a few minutes.
  • Aroma
    • Tart, citrus blossom aroma, with a bit of floral honey. Really pleasant! There is a bit of a raw bread dough character behind all of it.
  • Flavor
    • Lemony tartness dominates, with the doughy malt character in the background. The level of sourness is moderately high, and it is a clean sour. I don’t really pick up any hop notes, which is expected given the low level of hopping.
  • Mouthfeel
    • Crisp and dry, but not astringent. Effervescent and highly carbonated, with a light body that makes this very easy to drink.
  • Would I brew this again?
    • Yes! This isn’t a style I want all of the time, or in massive quantities, but it’s really nice every once in awhile. This is a different take on the beer from the 2016 version I made, as expected with a different sour culture. It seems a bit less sour, but is still really nicely balanced. The aroma really is fine on this one, and a true highlight of the beer.
  • Overall
    • 9/10