Med Bag of Chips

Ham, cheddar cheese, fresh tomatoes, and arugula.

Ham and Cheese Sandwich

Sliced turkey, lettuce, tomato, and mustard in a whole wheat wrap.

Fit Turkey Wrap

This is a citrusy IPA that has the pucker and tartness of kettle souring. This beer is from Epic Brewing and is 4.5% ABV.

Heat approximately 3.5 gallons of your brewing water to 165°F (74°C). Dough in the crushed grains to reach a mash temperature of 152°F (67°C). Stir and rest for 60 minutes. Maintain temperature ±2°F during the mash.

Heat strike water and mash in

After 60 minutes, perform a mash out by raising temperature to 168°F (76°C) for 10 minutes if desired to improve lauterability. Vorlauf until the runnings are clear and collect into the kettle. Target pre-boil volume ~5.0 gallons.

Mash out and vorlauf

Cool the wort in the kettle (or in a separate vessel) to 110°F (43°C). This is the temperature for lactobacillus activity. Keep the wort oxygen-minimized: gently transfer with minimal splashing and cover to limit oxygen exposure.

Heat to 110°F for souring

Pitch the Lactobacillus culture into the 110°F wort. If using a commercial pure culture, follow manufacturer instructions for rehydration. If using a slurry, stir gently to distribute. Optionally add 1/4 lb acidulated malt to increase acidity development. Maintain 100–120°F range if possible (110°F target) for 18–36 hours until desired pH is reached (~3.3–3.5 for a tart but not extreme profile). Monitor pH. Keep the wort unboiled and covered.

Add Lactobacillus

When target pH is reached (typically 18–36 hours), bring the wort to a vigorous boil to kill lactobacillus and stop souring. Boil for 60 minutes. This also sanitizes and allows hop additions. Note: boiling will reduce some bright citrus aromatics — we will add hops and zest late to preserve character.

Kill Lactobacillus and boil

At the start of the 60-minute boil, add Citra 1.0 oz. This provides a moderate bitter backbone but keeps the beer balanced at ~35–40 IBU for a 5 gallon batch targeting 4.5% ABV. Add gypsum and calcium chloride to the kettle early in the boil if desired; they were measured in the water section.

Bittering hop addition

With 10 minutes left in the boil, add Mosaic 1.0 oz to build citrus and tropical hop character without excessive bitterness.

Late hop addition

Add fresh orange zest (0.5 oz) and fresh grapefruit zest (0.25 oz) at flameout or with 2 minutes left to capture volatile citrus oils. If adding at flameout, cover the kettle and steep for 10 minutes before chilling.

Zest / peel addition

Chill the wort quickly to yeast pitching temperature (64–68°F / 18–20°C). Aerate lightly — because this is a kettle-soured beer with a clean ale yeast, moderate aeration is appropriate: a few gentle shakes or a brief aeration with an aquarium stone for 30–60 seconds.

Chill wort and oxygenate minimally

Pitch a healthy ale yeast starter or rehydrated packet (e.g., US-05 / Wyeast 1056). Ferment at 64–68°F (18–20°C) for 7–10 days until active fermentation subsides. Add yeast nutrient at the start of fermentation to help a clean finish.

Pitch yeast and primary fermentation

Taste after 5–7 days. The beer should retain a pronounced tartness from the kettle sour step but be balanced by hop bitterness and citrus aromatics. If acidity seems low, you may add a small amount of food-grade lactic acid (to taste) before packaging, but do so cautiously — small drops at a time.

Monitor acidity and flavor

After primary fermentation is complete and gravity has stabilized (final gravity target ~1.010–1.014 depending on mash efficiency), cold crash to 35–40°F (2–4°C) for 48 hours to clear. Bottle with 3.75 oz (approx. 3.75 oz / 106 g) corn sugar priming for 5 gallons to reach moderate carbonation, or keg and force-carbonate to 2.3–2.6 volumes CO2.

Cold crash and carbonate

Allow bottles to condition at room temperature for 2 weeks, then refrigerate and sample. Flavor will mellow and integrate over 3–4 weeks; the beer is best enjoyed fresh to capture citrus and bright sourness.

Conditioning

If you want to accentuate the fresh citrus aroma, add a small whirlpool addition of 0.25 oz Citra or Mosaic at 170°F for 10 minutes before chilling. If you used a Campden tablet or sulfite to stop lactobacillus activity, follow package directions; typically one crushed Campden tablet in the cooled wort will halt further souring, but ensure adequate time between sulfite and yeast pitching if pitching a non-sulfite-tolerant strain.

Pale malt (2-row)

Flaked wheat

Vienna malt

Light crystal (10L)

Lactobacillus culture (pure sachet or slurry)

Acidulated malt (optional to boost lactic character)

Corn sugar (dextrose) for priming

Citra (pellet)

Mosaic (pellet)

Zest/peel blend: fresh orange zest

Zest/peel blend: fresh grapefruit zest

Ale yeast (neutral, low esters) - e.g., SafAle US-05 or Wyeast 1056

Yeast nutrient

Wort sanitizer (Campden tablet, optional) for stopping sour

Brewing water (to 5.0 gallons pre-boil)

Gypsum (calcium sulfate)

Calcium chloride

Tart 'n Juicy Sour

Make Tart 'n Juicy Sour Recipe in just 12h . This is a citrusy IPA that has the pucker and tartness of kettle souring. This beer is from Epic Brewing and is 4.5% ABV.

Tart 'n Juicy Sour

Descriptors

Tasting Notes

Food Pairings

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