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Berliner Weisse Question

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ynotbrusum:
So it's my first (intentional) sour and I was just wondering, as I am at a little over a month in the primary on WLP630 - should I rack to secondary? Or just let it go the full time on the lees before racking to keg?  I was planning on 6-8 months for this beer.  Since it is so low in gravity, I didn't want to assume that it was to be treated like the bigger Belgians.

 :-[

lornemagill:
this wont necessarily answer your question, just passing along my berliner experiences.  i did a berliner last year and pitched lacto wlp677 first, then wlp611 four days later, the lacto fermented most of the sugars before i pitched the ale yeast.  transferred to a sanke keg for secondary conditioning/souring in the closet for one month.  bottled 5 gallons, kegged 5 gallons.  it was a good clean, clear beer but never got as sour as i like.  i have since done two batches of a sour mash berliner that have been great and are ready in two or three weeks.  one got a 34 score last year, nothing to brag about but within normal limits.

ynotbrusum:
Yeah, I listened to that talk from NHC about going with the Lactobacillus for 5 days and then adding the yeast, but my LHBS talked me into the Berliner Weisse WLP proprietary blend (since it was getting a little long in the tooth, he gave me all 3 of his vials for the price of one - so I pitched em all!)

Just wondering about the racking off the yeast part...

lornemagill:
no matter what i'm sure it will be a fine beer.  it just depends on what you want.  for me i had no real bar to judge by.  the only berliner i had at the time i brewed my first was from my local brewery.  i think i've only had 3 berliners other than my own.  i've yet to have one from berlin or even outside austin.  its a great summer beer, sometimes i mix it with cherry juice.

tom:
Can you check the pH?   A Berliner Weisse should be between 3.0 to 3.2 pH.

For future reference, I like to do a "sour mash"/lactobacillus starter at 100-120F, then add the sour mash/lacto starter to the wort and repeat a sour mash at 100-120F.  After reaching the desired acidity, chill and add a German ale yeast.

How does it taste?

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