![]() In August 2020 we received a shipment of new tanks for our first expansion of the cellar. At this point, the production team will sit down to a final sensory session, selecting barrels and composing blends for every beer. When the beer is ready, we select them for either blending or macerating on fruit that we felt would match the character of the base beer. ![]() We continue to watch as barrels develop their individual characters, each slightly different from the next. From there, we transfer the beer into French oak for extended ageing.Īnd then we wait. We conduct our primary fermentations in an open top fermenter called “The Albatross”, which we converted out of an old stainless steel grist case. The second recipe also utilises a step mash, but is aimed at creating a highly fermentable wort, favouring a Saccharomyces yeast-driven fermentation, with less acidity in the final product. The first was designed to create similar characteristics to a traditional turbid mash used in Lambic brewing, utilising the same technique of boiling part of the mash, creating a dextrinous wort full of complex sugars for a long slow fermentation, as well as a hot sparge to layer some tannin into the beer. Two base recipes were initially used to drive different fermentation profiles of our mixed culture. Ned had been brewing with this culture at home for a couple of years preceding it’s new adventure at Deeds, and he was filled with a mix of excitement and trepidation to take it from 50 to 1500 litre batches! We began by building up our mixed culture, preparing it to embark on the grand task that lay ahead. The program kicked off in the last quarter of 2019 when we welcomed our first delivery of wine barrels. ![]() We’ve drawn inspiration from around the globe, from Lambic and Gueuze producers in and around Brussels, to more modern interpretations by American sour beer brewers. Mixed culture fermentation, whether it be with fruit or without, is a part of that picture that we all desire to make bigger. It’s nearly been three years since we began producing beer at our home in Glen Iris, and while we may have become best known for our IPAs, barrel ageing has always been in the picture. Mouthfeel: Light and creamy, fluffy, soft finish Palate: Watermelon jolly ranchers, lemon sherbert, soft acidity, touch of tannin Introducing: Plutocracy.Īppearance: Persistent foam, pink pastel with a rose-like hueĪroma: Apricot, melon candy, honeydew, rose water, underlying vanilla with a touch of strawberry shortcake However, we just couldn’t get past the character of this beer, and decided to package this fruited ale as is. We sized our fruiting tanks to fit 400kg of fruit and three barrels of beer, with the idea that we’d fruit the beer at a very high rate, then back blend with additional beer to achieve the fruit intensity we’re looking for. On adding beer to the fruit, we included some Petite Saison to add some fresh hop character and temper acidity. This brew was primarily fermented in our open top fermenter, before being transferred to ex-chardonnay French oak barriques for aging. While we don’t get to brew together so often, we have brewed Saison and mixed culture beers a few times together now. Joel lives in London, and is head brewer at 40 FT brewing. This day arrived 12 months later, as we selected some barrels that we thought would work well with Pluots, supplied by our friends at Rayners Orchard in the Yarra Valley.īarrel selections for this fruit blend were all from a brew day back in January 2020 with an old friend of mine, Joel Broad. ![]() We waited patiently for these barrels to mature, to show signs that this golden liquid was ready to enter into its next phase of life. Our first brews to start our mixed culture program went into oak late 2019. A blend of mixed culture and saison beer that was aged in French oak for 12 months, then macerated on Pluots for 5 months at a fruiting rate of 580g/L.īeer Style: Barrel Aged Mixed Culture Ale with Pluots
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