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Author Topic: belgian wit and blondes keep turning out tasting sour  (Read 1145 times)

Offline KCguy

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belgian wit and blondes keep turning out tasting sour
« on: April 25, 2019, 08:07:52 am »
Is a brett contamination as simple to confirm as having batches with obvious sour tastes?  Brewed four wits, all similar grain bills, and a belg blonde with similar grains, all with same process and plastic fermenters.  All five beers come out with a sour taste note.  Not what I wanted. 

Is it possible my plastic equipment has a wild brett conamination seated in them? 
Drinkin Tripels, Seeing Double, Feelin Single...

Michael B
Kansas City

Offline RC

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Re: belgian wit and blondes keep turning out tasting sour
« Reply #1 on: April 25, 2019, 09:09:22 am »
Brett and other wild yeasts don't really create sourness. Some brewing yeasts create more acidity than others, but if the sourness is strong, you probably have a bacterial infection. If it's in all your beers, that suggests the source is somewhere between the kettle and the fermenter. Do you use a plate or counterflow chiller? If so, these would be an obvious candidate as the source, unless you thoroughly pasteurize them.

Offline KCguy

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Re: belgian wit and blondes keep turning out tasting sour
« Reply #2 on: April 25, 2019, 12:36:30 pm »
DIY copper tubing chiller is all I got in between.  But thats sterlized in the last 5 minutes of the boil.  Reason I suspected my plastic big mouth ferms. 
Drinkin Tripels, Seeing Double, Feelin Single...

Michael B
Kansas City

Offline RC

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Re: belgian wit and blondes keep turning out tasting sour
« Reply #3 on: April 25, 2019, 01:22:42 pm »
Same big mouth carboys as sold by Northern Brewer? I used those (briefly) a long time ago and quickly discovered that the dimpling pattern stamped into the plastic, which serves no purpose that I can tell, was nearly impossible to clean. It was too easy to leave crud in the dimples, despite my best efforts at cleaning. So yeah that could be the issue here.

Offline KCguy

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Re: belgian wit and blondes keep turning out tasting sour
« Reply #4 on: April 25, 2019, 01:30:46 pm »
Same big mouth carboys as sold by Northern Brewer? I used those (briefly) a long time ago and quickly discovered that the dimpling pattern stamped into the plastic, which serves no purpose that I can tell, was nearly impossible to clean. It was too easy to leave crud in the dimples, despite my best efforts at cleaning. So yeah that could be the issue here.

Yeah, same ones.  You know, I had always thought the same.  I think its time to just go stainless.  Ive gotten years of use out of them, time to retire anyway. 
Drinkin Tripels, Seeing Double, Feelin Single...

Michael B
Kansas City

Offline ynotbrusum

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Re: belgian wit and blondes keep turning out tasting sour
« Reply #5 on: April 25, 2019, 07:55:06 pm »
While you have to be careful with prolonged soaks with certain cleansers, I found that filling with warm water and Craftmeister Oxygen Cleanser really got all of the dimples clean.  But, yea, I ultimately went stainless and would recommend the Kegmenter for many reasons!
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Offline reverseapachemaster

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Re: belgian wit and blondes keep turning out tasting sour
« Reply #6 on: April 29, 2019, 07:51:25 am »
Have you brewed any other beer with this equipment and not had it turn sour?

Are you repitching the same culture for those five beers?

Before buying new equipment you should rule out any other reason for the sourness. If you have an infection lurking somewhere then you could inadvertently infect new equipment or, alternatively, if there is another explanation for sourness then buying new equipment will remedy the problem.
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