Brett.

Ingredients
1

Just thinking random brewing thoughts this morning and I’m curious who out there has experimented with adding Brett. to an already fermented beer (perhaps a pale ale, IPA). How did it turn out? How long did you let it sit?

Can you just add it to the keg to condition or does it have to be added into the fermenter?

2

Brett produces more of its funky, earthy characteristics when it is added in small amounts in the secondary. Stressing the brett into an environment with no O2, alcohol, and minimal sugars available force it to work harder which make brett into its super-attenuative beast.
With that being said, a single pitch can easily be added to the keg after the beer has completed fermentation in primary.  For best results, a FG of at least 1.010 is helpful to provide the brett with some remaining dextrins to work on.  If adding it to the keg, I would try to keep the temps around 60-65F for more “cleaner” brett flavors/aromas (i.e. more fruit, less funk), and 70-75F for more phenolic funkiness. This of course, is strain dependent.  Allow the brett to work for around 3-4 mos prior to taking a sample to see where you are at.  6 mos is not unheard of, and even more sometimes to develop the layered complexity you may be looking for.

BTW, which strain do you plan on adding?

3

I really didn’t have a strain picked out! Truthfully I don’t know the difference. So I’d rack to the keg and let the keg sit in my fermentation chamber for a few months?

I wonder if I could do this with an already chilled and carbed beer I wasn’t jazzed about?

4

Milk the Funk Wiki: Brettanomyces

This is a pretty great resource.

5

Thanks Amanda!

6

I just recently dumped some bottle dregs from a couple Jolly Pumpkin beers into a fully fermented keg of a Saison. I let it sit for about a month at room temp and I was very pleased with the result.

7

A few years ago I made this:

http://beersmithrecipes.com/viewrecipe/141259/oakeysmokey-winter-warmer

ignore the bit about WLP 650, it was just orval dregs. It made a very complex, and well - rated strong dark beer.

cheers
steve

8

I’d recommend Brett Claussenii from White Labs as a good starting point for folks who wanna try Brett.  It produces a very pleasant Brett character and is a pretty reliable strain.  And I agree with what brewinhard wrote.

9

To be clear, though, that’s not only Brett.  There are an array of bugs, including souring bugs, in Jolly Pumpkin beers.  They rock and I love them, but just wanna be clear.  If someone wants to add only Brett, this would not be the way to go.

10

I love a good Brett IPA. I’ve got a 1 gallon batch of rye IPA that finished at 1.012 that I pulled off the main batch and added The Yeast Bay’s Amalgamation Brett blend to. 3 months in and it’s got the gnarliest pellicle I’ve ever seen, smells like super ripe fruit. I’ll probably dry hop in another 3 months and then package that.

That being said, B. claussenii would be a good place to start if you don’t want a huge amount of funk. The MtF Wiki that was posted is a fantastic resource, there are a lot of smart people in that group.