Seabuckthorn sour

Beer Recipes
1

Hi y’all!

I’ll be getting my hands on a quantity of seabuckthorn sometime soon.
I plan to brew a sour wheat beer with it, à la so:

For a batch of 1050 beer:
50% pale malt
30% wheat malt
20% Munich malt

Mash on the warm side (69°C) so the bugs have something to chew once the Sacchs are worn out.
Boil for 70’
with 15 IBU at t-70
and  5IBU at t-15
I’m planning on using Saaz because that’s what I have lying about the place, but I reckon something more floral wold work nicely too.

Pitch bug blend: Sacch, Brett, Lacto and Pedio. Something à la Roesselare Blend or Sour Melange.
Once krausen subsides, add seabuckthorn and cranberries, both frozen/bletted for easier access to the sugars.

The idea is to end up with a sour ale just shy of Lambic complexity, with seabuckthorn addind a touch of orangey-berry flavours, and the cranberry adding something cosmopolitan-without-actually-tasting-of-cosmopolitan :).

The berries will also import tartness of their own.

Your thoughts very appreciated.

2

I’m not a fan of adding fruit early in fermentation/aging with sour beer. I want to get to know the beer before deciding whether the fruit is the right addition. You also risk changing the fermentation profile–not necessarily in a bad way–by adding additional fermentable sugars so early in the process.

If acidity is your goal then the IBUs are unnecessary and counterproductive.

3

Hm true. I may want to rethink this particular recipe. My enthusiasm stems from finding myself suddenyl in the possession of a small quantity of berries, but that should not be an excuse to rush things.

So, berries in the freezer until the beer is ready for them :slight_smile:

IBUs can go down to 5-10 or so for sanitary purposes.