Equipment Question When Using Brett

[CadillacAndy]

I'm getting ready to brew my first Flanders Red and I wasn't able to track down a vial of Brett L (wlp653), but I was able to get a vial of Brett B (wlp650). Am able to use the same equipment for my next batch if I switch to a different strain of Brett?

I use food-grade plastic buckets for primary as well as secondary (when needed), so buying 2 more buckets for dedicated secondary isn't really that big of a deal.

I already have a dedicated "sour beer" auto siphon, tubing, bottling bucket and spigot, but if I have to buy a whole different set for each Brett strain, I need to make sure Brett B is what I want to stick with.

Thanks!

 

[Pie_Man]

I'm just speculating here, but I think that would be fine. You're dedicating that equipment to Brett and not exactly to a single strain of Brett which seems perfectly reasonable.

 

[mpcluever]

Never done one, but I think I'd be comfortable using a set of equipment for any Brett. The TINY TINY amount that's stuck in the microscopic crevices would sour a regular beer, but with pitching a TON of a slightly different strain, I don't think you'd ever notice the few cells that worked their way in.

 

[ghack]

Brett is a yeast, and is just as vulnerable to sanitizers as any regular strain. In commercial wineries, it can wreak havoc in their equipment, but on a homebrew scale you really don't need separate equipment. With good cleaning and regular sanitation practices, you should not have any problems.

Dedicated plastic buckets for bretted beers might be nice, but even that is not completely necessary. A good practice is to break down and clean any kegs or things with complicated parts after a sour or brett beer. I've been using Brett C for a while and have not had any issues. And for a few microscopic spores of brett to "spoil" a beer, the beer is going to need age a long while before any effects are even noticed.

 

[CadillacAndy]

Thanks for the advice everyone! I appreciate it! I've always thought of Brett as some sort of super bacteria. I'm gonna stick with my dedicated bucket, hoses and siphon but it's good to know that it's not quite the monster that I thought it was. Thanks again!