Beer Forum

I've brewed a belgian pale that I finished with two strains of Brett. The beer is a bit cloudy right now with some funky activity going on so I'm assuming it is in its "sick" phase. My question is if I crash the temp of the beer to prevent the Brett from continuing (don't want it to be a brett bomb) and it is still "sick" will it clarify or do I need to wait until the "sick" phase is over?

What makes you think it is in a sick phase? "Sarcinia" (the beer sickness) is typically caused by bacterial strains like pediococcus producing ropiness in the beer. It does get cleaned up over time and the beer will clear nicely given some age. Have you tasted your pale ale to see if the brett flavors/aromas are where you want them to be before crash cooling? If so, then you can crash cool, but be warned that just b/c the beer is kept cold does not mean the brett will totally stop influencing the beer. The beer will still slowly evolve even kept at cold lagering temps. So if you are happy with the beer right now, then cold crash it and package it up for drinking!

halfmonk wrote:I've brewed a belgian pale that I finished with two strains of Brett. The beer is a bit cloudy right now with some funky activity going on so I'm assuming it is in its "sick" phase. My question is if I crash the temp of the beer to prevent the Brett from continuing (don't want it to be a brett bomb) and it is still "sick" will it clarify or do I need to wait until the "sick" phase is over?

Let it ride, brotha. I used to think that lagers were a test of one's patience. I leave most brett beers in the fermenter for 6 months. You don't want to touch it - especially if you see any activity, whatsoever. The only way you can "control" how much Brett funkiness is by how much residual sugars you leave them after primary. After that, you at their mercy.

Yeasts (especially Brett) operate on their schedule, not yours. Rushing them along will never lead to the best beer possible.

Oh, and +1 on the "sick" comment. That is for lacto and pedio.

Mylo

++1 on the brett making the beer sick, that is caused mostly from pedio in all my experiences. Taste the beer and if it tastes like there is enough brett character go ahead and crash. I also agree that the beer will still change if kept cold. I have a biere de garde that is over a year old and the brett is still changing the beer at 38 degrees.

Thanks for the info. Wasn't sure whether brett went through a sick phase or not, but now I know.
Patience is hard once the beer is in the keg, it's too easy to pour a taste, but I'll do my best.

Patience is hard! Dont be afraid to poor and taste often. Its fun to see how the beer evolves, when it hits the flavor profile you like crash and drink.

Ohh those brave souls who use Brett

So long as it ain't ropy when you pour I bet it'll be fine.

shouldnt be ropy, there isnt any pedio in there. How is the beer going?