wyeast 3278: lambic blend

General Homebrew Discussion
1

greetings…

i’m about to venture into the realm of the funk and uncertainty: sour beer.

just ordered in a pack of of 3278; i’m wondering what general advice anyone has for this strain.  some specific questions i have include:

  1. how long until this yeast sours?
  2. is racking from primary to secondary necessary (if you do so, will you bring the bugs with you to continue souring)?

any other thoughts/advice would be much appreciated.

best,
jared

2

1)  In a few months you’ll start to get some character, then I’ve seen it develop a lot of diacetyl that gets reabsorbed and at a year it is nicely funky and tart.  You might be able to drink it at nine months, it just depends on how things develop for your particular brew.  It’ll be even better at two years, and I’ve seen things start mellowing at three years so I’d plant to drink it before then.

2)  I usually rack after a few weeks, yes the bugs come along and a pellicle will form.

This blend contains Sacch yeast that do their business first, then the Brett and lactobacillus have their turns.  You have to give the beer time for this progression to take place.

3

I’d add that if you’re doing a lambic style beer, I’d recommend not racking at all. Traditionally a lambic is left in primary until it’s time to bottle/blend.