Also, how long would you estimate it took the flor to complete its fermentation? Am I going to have to set aside a carboy for a whole year for this one? Lastly, did you notice much oxidative type flavors as a result of this yeast? I was sorta hoping to replicate some of those walnut and deep caramel flavors present in a good quality Oloroso sherry.
It was rather quick, though there was a bit of a lag (probably too low a cell count to start) My regular beers I usually let sit in primary 3-4wks, mostly because Im lazy, and this one was no different, although I think I let it go an extra 2wks due to the yeast and gravity
There are some nougat and licorice notes in the beer as it is now, but its difficult to discern whether they are yeast derived or from the sugars in the beer, in the second beer it had a much stronger spicy flavor (maybe it mutated?) but I haven't tasted it since I racked it to a keg
If you read about sherry production they actually let the sherry get exposed to lots of oxygen, usually only partially filling the barrels they use. Sherry is also produced in a solera system, and the final product is quite old when its blended and bottled. The flor are also reportedly difficult to get to develop, especially on a homebrew scale. There is only a narrow range of alcohol content that the flor will form in 16% is the sweet spot, but 17.5% and its killed.
From what Ive read the wine makers often let parts of the flor fall back into the wine as its said to release more flavor.
I dunno about you, but I dont drink many 16% beers (although I have made at least 1 fortified beer) so if you decide to try get the flor to form, maybe you only brew a small portion at that high a gravity, and then use it to blend into a low abv batch to cut the alcohol a bit?
If you do this I'll be very interested in hearing your experiences, the last time I looked around there wasnt anybody else on the webs that had posted about using flor sherry in beer
