Taste test?

[Brewddah]

My lambic officially turned 1 year old today. My plan is to wait a few more months, and split the batch. Half will get bottled, and half will be racked on to sour cherries. Lambic and Kriek lambic. Anyway, I was wondering if I should taste it soon...or not? The pellicle has dropped off significantly, but there are these little white things that have me mildly concerned.

Thoughts?

 

[Brewddah]

Not sure why the image isn't appearing, but here is a link to it: http://i.imgur.com/23JdgUf.jpg

 

[oli-aus]

Yeah, true spontaneous ferments can take quite a while to be ready. You should taste it and see if your happy to bottle/rack or if you would prefer to give it more time.

My first lambic attempt is only 8 months in the fermentor so I'm only repeating what I've heard/read.

I would just be cautious about letting in oxygen if you don't have a way of flushing with co2. That's why I'm hoping the first time I taste mine I can bottle it.

 

[Brewddah]

I guess I could bring my CO2 tank over to it and have a stream of it going in while I take the airlock off? Maybe it's not worth it.

 

[burninator]

I guess I could bring my CO2 tank over to it and have a stream of it going in while I take the airlock off? Maybe it's not worth it.

Wouldn't hurt.

FWIW if those spots aren't growing fuzz, I wouldn't worry too much. I sometimes get a second, patchy pellicle on my sours.

 

[Elduder]

I guess I could bring my CO2 tank over to it and have a stream of it going in while I take the airlock off? Maybe it's not worth it.

You can take your sample, then use a section of tuning to purge the headspace with co2 right before you seal it up. Go ahead and give it a taste; you will want to see what flavor profile you are dealing with before you make any decisions on what to do with it.

 

[Brewddah]

So I tasted it, and I'm very happy with the result. My only complaint is that it could be a little more sour. Right now it's tasting a lot like a Brett beer. Anyway, I was careful to not let oxygen in. I had a constant stream of CO2 going in while I was messing with it. A few days after the taste test, the pellicle kind of came back. I think some oxygen must have gotten in anyway. I hope I haven't ruined it!