BBA/EBY Brett Experiment Update 3

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Hello everyone. This is the third update concerning the BBA/EBY Brett Experiment and should give you further information about the evaluation of the beers and yeast strains. After some issues with leaking tubes, it all seems to be fixed now. At least I did not receive any feedback so far about problems with any of the yeast strains. I learned one lesson already which is to use a different kind of tube to send out yeasts in the future.

If you are interested in any upcoming strain releases and general news about my yeast lab, please go to https://groups.google.com/forum/#%21forum/eureka-brewing-yeast

I would like to thank all the people for sending me the money for the shipping and am especially thankful for all the ones who sent me some extra as well. This money will flow back into the lab and any yeast related projects. Thank you for that. Unfortunately, there are still three people who did not send me the money for their shipping yet. I might have to cover these shipping costs myself as it seems.

And I got my first yeast package as well. My thanks to Barrett for sending me some dregs of Jester King’s Das Wunderkind and Green Flash’s Rayon Vert. Already excited to have a closer look at these dregs. And since I am already talking about dregs, I recently put aside the dregs of Lost Abbey’s Amorosa de Framboise and Mo Betta Bretta. Again, really excited to see what I can get out of these dregs. I already have enough material for a second round of Brett Experiment…

Sensory evaluation and the Brett score sheet

Jeff put together a pretty nice Brett score sheet in the beginning which was transformed into a Google Form by Luke later on. There is nothing wrong in using Jeff’s Brett sheet for the evaluation process as I prefer to do my tastings with a pencil and paper. The Google Form includes the same structure as Jeff’s form but makes it a bit easier for us to do the evaluation a bit easier afterwards. Whenever possible, please transfer all your data from the Brett sheet to the Google Form. We ask some background information in the Google Form to have additional information available for the evaluation process later on. Here are the links to the mentioned score sheets:

If you include any other (commercial) Brett strains in the experiment, please use the same form and just mention the strain in the appropriate field (yeast code).

When do I sample the beers?

The planned tasting time points are as following:

  • Month 1 (uncarbonated at bottling), Month 2, Month 6, 1 Year

Just mention the closest time point if you for example taste the beers after seven months instead (like 6 months for this example).

How/where to sample the beers?

As Ryan pointed out, to get more evaluation data, it is a good idea to share the beers with other homebrewers, professional brewers, beer judges, beer geeks, friends etc. Either by sitting together to do the actual tasting or sharing bottles with others. How you do it is up to you and it is not mandatory to trade nor share the beers with others. It’s just an idea. Jeff for example is thinking of offering some spots for a tasting panel in the San Diego area (http://jeffreycrane.blogspot.com). On my side (although I haven’t actually brewed the batch yet) will share the beers with a recently set up Wild Ale/extreme beer geek group in Switzerland at one of our upcoming meetings. If you are from/living in Switzerland and are interested in either our newly formed group or be present at the tasting of the beers, please write me an email (contacteurekabrewing@gmail.com) and we will figure out things.
The question here is how to do the organization. As I do not want to give away any collaborator’s email address without even asking, we could use the HBT forum thread about this experiment to organize swaps and meetings. If you have better ideas how to do the organization, please let me know.

I would like to finish with a few links to other blogs writing about this experiment. Please let me know if I forgot someone.

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12 thoughts on “BBA/EBY Brett Experiment Update 3”

  1. Hello:
    Thanks for the update, Sam. Of the 20 cultures seesm only EBY001 did not grow up in 15 ml tube (this one was crushed and had little volume). Anyone in the Midwest U.S. willing to send me slant or tube full. I am willing to send you sterile microfuge tubes and small labeled padded envelope to send it back..
    Roy Ventullo
    Waverly, Iowa 50677

    • Roy,
      I should be able to help you depending on your timing. I just started my main batch yesterday, so it will be 2-3 weeks before I bottle and have access to the yeast. I have plenty of vials and can send you one at that time.

      Send me a reminder to Jeffrey.E.Crane at gmail.com in a couple weeks.

      • Thanks Jeffrey. I am moving to 200 ml cultures Thursday so may just go with 19 cultures for experiment but will contact you in few weeks for 001 (in case that turns out to be an awesome one). Roy

  2. Hey Sam, is there anyway to see this without having an acct….don’t have google acct and don’t necessarily wanting one…..

    If you are interested in any upcoming strain releases and general news about my yeast lab, please go to https://groups.google.com/forum/#%21forum/eureka-brewing-yeast

    Going to try and do brew this week if possible….been out of town helping my son move and just got back today (Mon evening) so want to do it this week or beginning of next….all yeast seem to be doing find…just hope I don’t have any crosses from the open ones I had when the they arrived and were open….hoping all is well….later

  3. Sam,
    My starters smelled awesome. I decanted the starter wort yesterday before pitching into my .5 gal batches. I plan to taste them soon and will post a miniature preview to what we might be in for.

    This is a lot of fun.

    • Hey Jeff,
      thanks for helping out Roy. Looking forward to your first review of the strains. I am already excited. I will propagate my yeasts next week and start the experiment in early November.

      Cheers, Sam

  4. Well, it seems that 001 was just slower than the rest. Here is a photo of all 20 after 9 days of growing at 27 C.

  6. Hey Sam.
    What is the disadvantage of your tubes? Why do you want to use another kind of tubes next time? Did they break in the mail or did the caps of the tubes fail which caused a leakage?
    Greetings,
    Oettel

    • Hey Oettel, the caps failed which lead to leaking tubes and loss of cultures. Hence the choice for new tubes with screwed caps. More expensive but more reliable.
      Cheers, Sam

  7. Fellow BBA/EBY Brewers: Working on spreadsheet of initial results from all 20 cultures (start date, end date (no more bubbles from airlock), # cells added to each, pH starting and current gravity measured in Brix (with corrections for alcohol production). All but EBY # 9 have started.

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