Cromaine District Library Shares New Materials For June 1

Press release from the Cromaine District Library:

June 1, 2021

Ale Together Now: Sour Ales, Part 2

Funky, Fruity, Tasty, Tart!
Exploring Sour Ales: Part 2

Earlier this week, Michelle from River’s Edge Brewing Co., visited Cromaine to continue our Ale Together Now monthly series from where we left off in the fall--with Sour Ales! We learned about the history, brewing process, and various styles of even more sour ales than we covered in October, and our taste buds were in for a treat with the unique samples she brought us. In case you missed it, here’s a look at some of the interesting topics we touched on in Sour Ales: Part 2!

What is a Sour Ale?

Brewers have been intentionally producing sour ales for centuries, but because of the high probability that early beers were infected with bacteria from brewing in open vats outside, the earliest beers were likely sour as well--and unlike modern sour ales, earlier beers probably didn’t taste all that great. A variety of airborne microorganisms and other outdoor materials, like plant matter, insects, and wild yeast contaminated early beer vats, making for some truly funky flavors and unpredictable safety and quality levels.

But as we know, brewers are some of the most innovative folks out there. They played with this flavor to create intentionally sour and enjoyable beers like Berliner Weisse and Gose. Sour ales have fallen in and out of popularity throughout the long and complex history of brewing, however, sour ales have become a significant part of the American beer scene within the past five years or so. With this “Sour Beer Craze” brewers are getting wild! New sours are developed all the time in the modern beer scene as brewers continue to push the limits of what it means to brew a sour beer. But regardless of the adjuncts a brewer may add to a beer to balance its flavor, sour ales are always marked by an acidic, tart, sour taste. Some major styles include Lambics, Flanders Red, and American Wild Ale, among others. For our Ale Together Now session, Michelle focused on the very popular styles of Berliner Weisse, Gose, and Kettle Sour.

What Exactly Makes a Beer Sour, Anyway?

The tart and sour flavor profile of a sour ale is caused by an infection of certain bacterial microorganisms in the beer, which produce lactic acid after consuming the sugars and starches in the brew wort. There are two methods of producing lactic acid in a brew. One is by introducing bacteria to the brew, such as Lactobacillus and Pediococcus, to produce lactic acid and a tart flavor. In fact, Kettle Sours are made by introducing bacteria to the brew kettle before the wort is boiled, to sour a beer while also ensuring that the microorganisms will be killed during the boil and that the beer is safe to drink after brewing. Another way to sour a beer is by using a yeast strain that will produce lactic acid along with its typical byproducts of carbon dioxide and ethanol, such as Brettanomyces sp., or the bioengineered yeast strain Saccharomyces sourvisiae. Brewers have to be careful when brewing sour ales because once they add these microorganisms to their recipe, their brew lines can become permanently tainted with sour flavor, making future brews sour that are not intended to be.

Diving into the Styles: Berliner Weisse

What Lambics are to Belgium, Berliner Weisses are to Germany. It’s a light-bodied wheat ale with a tart front and a dry, sweet aftertaste. It’s a very drinkable sour with low alcohol by volume and a bitterness unit of 2-8. Berliner Weisse likely originated in the 16th to 17th century. Some scholars attribute the style to Huguenots traveling from Belgium to Northern Germany, while others say it was the brainchild of Cord Broihan, a Hamburg brewer. However it originated, the style was boosted in popularity around the mid-18th century by Fredrick Wilhelm I, and has been a staple ever since as a refreshing, funky, light-bodied Wheat Ale. The traditional way of serving a Berliner Weisse is in a Goblet with a splash of bright green Woodruff Syrup or a green Raspberry syrup, countering the tartness with a sweet flavor and a fun color. Modern Berliner Weisses are brewed with fruit, usually a type of berry, to counter the tartness.

Michelle brought us a popular Berliner Weisse from Drafting Table in Wixom to try--Tarty Slip. It’s a 5% abv, easy drinking Berliner Weisse brewed with different fruits throughout the year. The variety we tried was brewed with raspberries, which gave the beer a light pink color and a sweet tartness to compliment the sour flavor of the brew.

Gose

A tart, light bodied German Sour Ale, Goses are similar to Berliner Weisse. But Goses are brewed without the use of wild yeast, and therefore have a more mildly tart flavor. Goses were originally brewed in Goslar, Germany with water from the Gose River, which is naturally saline. This gave the Gose an added flavor component not found in any other style–salty! Historically, Goses were fermented naturally–giving them a subtle tartness. During the 19th century, brewers in Leipzig tried to recreate the Gose by using top-fermenting ale yeast and adding bacteria into the mash before it was boiled. With this practice, the “Kettle Sour” was born. Goses dropped out of fashion (and out of existence) in the 20th century, but have been revitalized as interest in sour beer has grown. In order to get a Gose’s unique flavor profile, brewers typically add bacteria called Lactobacillus for tartness, and salt for the true Gose River flavor.

Our Gose sample was a brew from Destihl Brewery in Normal, Illinois, called Here Gose Nothin’. A Gose brewed with coriander and sea salt, this brew packs a punch in its tang and salty flavor, with a nice grainy finish and good drinkability. Goses tend to be about 4-5% alcohol by volume and have a very low bitterness unit of 5-15.

Kettle Sours

Kettle Sours are a recent player on the American beer stage. They are an adaptation of German (Gose, Berliner Weisse) and Belgian (Lambic, Gueuze) sours, but have a modern take on traditional sours. Instead of using open-vat fermentation to allow microorganisms to sour the brew, kettle sours are brewed quickly utilizing a modern, industrial brewhouse. Lactobacillus is introduced to the wort for about a day to sour the beer; then, the wort is boiled and hops are introduced, killing all bacteria and making the beer safe to drink with a sour and tart flavor. Most modern Kettle Sour Ales have fruit or dry hops added post-fermentation to give a sweet or spicy counterpart to the tart base, and to provide more of a balanced brew.

Michelle introduced us to a fantastic kettle sour from Prairie Artisan Ales in Krebs, OK, called Slush. This brew packs a lot of flavor from its blend of strawberries, raspberries, lemon, and lime, plus the sour, tart flavor you can expect from a kettle sour. It is 6% alcohol by volume and has a crisp, mild grain finish.

Sour Ales are an exciting part of the modern beer industry. Beer is changing as fast as brewers come up with new ideas, and unique flavors are introduced to the beer scene every day! The sour beer craze has made for more bold and experimental brews, where there’s no “no” in beer adjuncts. Past brewers have paved the way for today’s fantastic sour ales and the creativity that this style inspires, and as a result the future of brewing is limitless! We look forward to seeing the new beer styles and flavors that develop in the future. Our next Ale Together Now session is scheduled for Wednesday, June 30th on the South Lawn. We hope to see you there.
Cheers!

This press release was produced by the Cromaine District Library. The views expressed are the author's own.