Hi everyone - sorry my first post is one of those annoying “how does my beer look” kind of things, but I’m working on my first sour so I’m not 100% sure what it should look like at this point. I did a Flemish red ale back in early February, then pitched Wyeast 3763 Roselare in March.
Two weeks ago I added a 2lb can of Amarena cherries (about 1/3 of them whole, and 2/3 pureed). At that point the beer smelled good - slightly sour, but in a good way. I shook the carboy to get everything mixed up but didn’t see much activity for a good week and a half.
Two days ago, I noticed big bubbles on top of the beer and some slow but steady airlock activity (see video at YouTube link). There’s a brown ring around the neck and the whole cherries have floated to the top. The bubbles seem bigger and juicier than usual. Does this look like good activity, or did I introduce some nasties when I put the cherries in? I don’t want to open the airlock and disturb it, so I figured I’d be “that guy” and see if this looks normal. Not panicked, just curious. Thanks!
Haha, I know! Just want to see if this is normal activity. I’ve never had a batch of beer go bad, so I don’t know what that looks like. But I’ve also never added fruit to beer, or brewed a sour, so I don’t know what normal is.
Today is brew day for my summer beer so I’ll be relaxing and drinking plenty!
It is a pellicle forming, I would guess. Leave it be for many months and it will be a complex mix of flavors that you will be pleased with and you will be the envy of all short cutters in the sour world.
Looks fine. I only brew Flemish Red Ale and two recommendations I can make that might help you. One is to use a larger carboy (6gal) and only fill it to the shoulder of the top. That will allow a larger surface area to be exposed and give you a better view of the health of the white bacteria growth. if you start seeing colors, you might have a problem. Second, instead of using a bubbler, try using a breathable silicone bung (used for winemaking). I’ve had excellent results with these steps. Good Luck
