Beer Forum

Hey everyone. I will be brewing a Berliner weisse this weekend, and I plan to sour it by pitching lacto along with my yeast. How long should I expect this beer to develop the proper character (primarily the appropriate level of sourness)? Thanks for the help!

Definitely watch the video. I've been doing what Jess suggested for my last few Berliner Weisses, and they turned out very well.

I have observed anywhere from 6-10 mos based on the size of the lacto pitch and temps that the beer was allowed to age. Don't rush these styles though as lacto can take its time to reach a proper acidity level.

If you can pitch the Lacto before the ale yeast, and keep the Lacto around 90F while it works, you can get the acidity much more quickly. That's the technique Jess discusses in the YouTube video. You can certainly go with the traditional route, but I think it can also be done much faster also with similar results.

In my last batch, the initial Lacto ferment took the beer to about 3.4 pH. Then, I pitched the ale yeast. After the ale yeast was done, it ended up at 3.3 pH. I think I can get it a bit lower. 3.2 or 3.1 would be ideal. The Lacto fermented for a week, and the ale yeast then took a about week. The beer was ready to go shortly after.

Thanks guys. I appreciate the help. Great video. I was going to follow the Brewing Classic Styles method of just co-pitching the yeast and lacto, but I will give this method a try. I guess the logic is that even though you are letting wort with plenty of sugar in it sit for a week before pitching the yeast, a proper pitch of lacto will reduce the ph enough that other critters won't thrive. I will give it a go.