How I spent my Sunday.......Bottling a Flanders Red Ale - a 2 year project completed

Cookinbob

Two years ago my son scored a used wine barrel.  Some folks would make a planter, some would bust it up for smoking chunks.  He decided to make a Flanders red ale which is a sour Belgian style fermented with Lactobacillus in an oak barrel for a year or more.  How to get 55 gallons of beer to start with?  Line up 11 home brewers to contribute 5 gallons each - I was one of the 11.  He coordinated it all and in November of 2012, the fermented wort went into the barrel and was inoculated with the Lacto.  It has been resting and fermenting in the basement of an old house in Buffalo since then, today was bottling day.  7 30-something beer geeks plus I were there, bottled slightly over 23 cases over about 4 hours.  Of course we tasted, and if you like the style, this stuff will be excellent.  It needs about 2 months in the bottle to carbonate, but will cellar for years - Flanders red is a lot like wine in that regard.

gmac

Awesome. I have a small barrel that I used for oaking an imperial milk stout and sours are next on the list for it. But it's too small to share so I will just keep it all to myself

tjosborne

I hope it turns out great. I've only tried two sours, both by Boulevard. They are something different to say the least.

Cookinbob

gmac said:

Awesome. I have a small barrel that I used for oaking an imperial milk stout and sours are next on the list for it. But it's too small to share so I will just keep it all to myself

Wish we could come up with a small one.  It was hard to coordinate so many people for this project.  The barrel is now on the way to a local craft brewer who will do another funky batch for  limited release.  The barrel aging is pretty cool once you get into it.

If you ever visit Rochester, look me up, we'll share a sour!

Cookinbob

tjosborne said:

I hope it turns out great. I've only tried two sours, both by Boulevard. They are something different to say the least.

Rodenbach seems to be the standard if you wanted to explore a bit more.  You really can't think of it as beer when you are drinking it.

BYS1981

Awesome, simply awesome.

Griffin

Could ya send me a bottle to sample? Pretty , pretty please?

NervousDad

Very cool, i've done my share of barrel aged beer, but only 8 gallons. Flanders red is one of the few sours that I really like.