Sour beer curious, any suggestions?

[Chadwick]

I gotta say that I'm curious about these sour beers. I've never tasted one and can't even begin to imagine what one might taste like. The closest place I know to get them would be the liqueur barn about an hour away.

When I do get a chance to go, which sour carried by liqueur barn would be a good one to try for me to get an idea what sour beer is all about? Or, should I just go ahead and try to brew a small batch of it myself and go with that? Its basically lacto fermented wort right? Please excuse my obvious ignorance of this stuff.

 

[JordanThomas]

I gotta say that I'm curious about these sour beers. I've never tasted one and can't even begin to imagine what one might taste like. The closest place I know to get them would be the liqueur barn about an hour away.

When I do get a chance to go, which sour carried by liqueur barn would be a good one to try for me to get an idea what sour beer is all about? Or, should I just go ahead and try to brew a small batch of it myself and go with that? Its basically lacto fermented wort right? Please excuse my obvious ignorance of this stuff.

Try a jolly pumpkin bam biere.

Mmmm

 

[danielofthedale]

duchess de Bourgogne was the beer that opened up sours to me.

 

[Braufessor]

+1 for duchess......

Also, Rodenbach if you can find it is very good.

I am a big fan of New Glarus sours.... but, unlikely you are finding one of those where you are at.

Goose Island - Madam Rose is a good starter sour.

Big thing with sours- you can drink 3 sours and one can be the worst beer you have ever drank, one can be ho-hum, and one can be one of the best beers you have ever had. Don't make up you mind after one.... keep an open mind. Personally, I am not a big fan of the "funky" sour beers, but I love the tart, acidic, fruity types of sours.

 

[Billy-Klubb]

+1 for duchess......

Also, Rodenbach if you can find it is very good.

I am a big fan of New Glarus sours.... but, unlikely you are finding one of those where you are at.

Goose Island - Madam Rose is a good starter sour.

Big thing with sours- you can drink 3 sours and one can be the worst beer you have ever drank, one can be ho-hum, and one can be one of the best beers you have ever had. Don't make up you mind after one.... keep an open mind. Personally, I am not a big fan of the "funky" sour beers, but I love the tart, acidic, fruity types of sours.

whereas I likes the funky sours.

 

[Randy_Bugger]

Does the store have a website? That way we could suggest something they have.

You definitely should try a few varieties before you make a batch. Some people hate them. They take 9-12 months to make.

 

[Gixxer]

I enjoy the tart fruity sours more than the funky ones... Another plug for Rodenbach... I think something like that could be a good starter instead of jumping right in and buying a bottle full of stinky locker room funk (LOL). Also agree you have to try more than one, and they all taste different.

 

[mcbaumannerb]

Petrus Aged Pale was my introduction (not so long ago.) Not too expensive and shouldn't be too hard to find. I liked it - best of luck on your journey (still learning myself)

 

[ShaineT]

A member of my local home brew club turned out an amazing sour by wet bagging a small portion of the grist, sealed air-tight and letting it sit out in the sun a few days then adding to mash on brew day. It was excellent.

 

[Braufessor]

Petrus Aged Pale was my introduction (not so long ago.) Not too expensive and shouldn't be too hard to find. I liked it - best of luck on your journey (still learning myself)

Forgot about that one - one of my favorites as well.

 

[Xpertskir]

Rodenbach gran cru is an extremely easy drinking flavorful sour that's a perfect intro.

They have it in stock at the LB

Also in stock and worth picking up is duchess de b.

They have jolly pumpkin listed as white and amber, which is strange, but basically read the flavors on the JP labels that you like and get one. They make fantastic not to style sour beer.

 

[mytommygundont]

My first sour was New Belgium's La Folie about 8 years ago. Talk about jumping into the deep end! I had it at the Boulder Sourfest a few weeks ago, and it still holds up. What a great beer. I think La Folie might be the widest distributed sour beer in the US by a US Brewery. Go get some!

 

[terrapinj]

Liefman's Goudenband and Monk's Cafe are other good intro sours that should be easy to find

 

[Nargan]

Don't make up you mind after one.... keep an open mind. Personally, I am not a big fan of the "funky" sour beers, but I love the tart, acidic, fruity types of sours.

Definitely listen to this guy. The "sour" category is often a broad catchall for a bunch of different styles. Brettanomyces yeast is often the reason for "funky" beer and a lot of people hate it. A lot of people love it. Bacteria like Lactobacillus and Pediococcus are often the reason for the puckering, vinegar-like sour taste in beer. The combination of them can yield endlessly complex beers but you can't judge them all by tasting just one or two because of that.

I see Liquor Barn carries Dogfish Head's Festina Peche. I think that'd be a good starting point. Light, refreshing, fruity, and only lightly sour (Berliner Weisse style).

 

[Chadwick]

Definitely listen to this guy. The "sour" category is often a broad catchall for a bunch of different styles. Brettanomyces yeast is often the reason for "funky" beer and a lot of people hate it. A lot of people love it. Bacteria like Lactobacillus and Pediococcus are often the reason for the puckering, vinegar-like sour taste in beer. The combination of them can yield endlessly complex beers but you can't judge them all by tasting just one or two because of that.

I see Liquor Barn carries Dogfish Head's Festina Peche. I think that'd be a good starting point. Light, refreshing, fruity, and only lightly sour (Berliner Weisse style).

Your advise is well noted. When I decide to explore this, I'll try to pick up 3 or 4 different kinds. After I have the opportunity to do this I'll follow up with a post providing my thoughts of each and possibly further questions about the bugs involved with whatever it is I'll be tasting.

 

[MidTNJasonF]

Rodenbach and Rodenbach Grand Cru are good first choices. Liefmans Goudenband or Cuvée-Brut are nice as well. I am also a fan of Boon Geuze or Boon Oude Lambic which are fairly available and inexpensive.

While it is often considered the Bud Light of Sour/Lambic/Funky beer do not over look Lindemans Gueuze or Gueuze Cuvée René. While their fruited beers are akin to Mad Dog 20/20 fortified wine or cough syrup their Gueuze is actually fairly nice and is readily available in most every state. It is also very cheap so if you do not care for it you are not looking at an expensive drain pour.

If Jolly Pumpkin or New Belgium distribute their funky and sour series beers in your area many of them are very nice.

 

[TwoGunz]

I'm still relatively inexperienced with sours but I go out of my way to drink em ever since I had a bottle of the Duchess, so I'll throw in my +1 on that. One of these days ill take the plunge and brew one up as well.

 

[Indianhead_Brewer]

Too bad you aren't in Wisconsin because I just opened a New Glarus Berliner Weiss and all I can say is that this thing is a thing of beauty. Crisp, tart, and refreshing without all the funk that sometimes can be off putting if you are new to sour/fruit beers. Good style to try for the sour virgin.

 

[pkrath84]

Which sours are best to try for someone in the tart/fruity category?

I have a lot of Russian River (supplication wasn't my style) around me and I've been saving my Lost Abbey for a rainy day because of my first experience. The only sour style I've had and thoroughly enjoyed was New Glarus - Serendipity which I believe is technically a fruit beer? But it got me to go out and buy a Cascade Blueberry and Raspberry Tart do dig into at some point this summer.

Looking for something that wont break the bank though... /threadjack!

 

[matt08wrx]

Liefmans Cuvee brut is a good starter sour. My favorite is Cascade Sour Apricot from Portland, OR, they make face melting sours and are $20-30 a bottle. Petrus is a good pale sour though.

 

[DrunkleJon]

My first sour was New Belgium's La Folie about 8 years ago. Talk about jumping into the deep end! I had it at the Boulder Sourfest a few weeks ago, and it still holds up. What a great beer. I think La Folie might be the widest distributed sour beer in the US by a US Brewery. Go get some!

I am still newish to sours myself, but really like the la folie. Not too hard to find either. I have heard it described as drinking a warhead made into a beer.