Sour Citra Saison I

About This Beer

Owen’s first experiment with WildBrew Philly Sour — a yeast strain from Lachancea isolated by the University of the Sciences in Philadelphia that produces lactic acid alongside ethanol in a single fermentation step, eliminating the need for a separate souring process. The style target was a Saison base: simple, letting the yeast and hop character do the work.

The grain bill keeps it lean: Pilsner Malt at 87%, with a small Medium Crystal and Flaked Wheat. Citra runs from 60 minutes through to a large 65g dry hop on Day 5. Coriander at 5 minutes adds a subtle herbal note.

Owen pitched only 1 packet of Philly Sour — at 0.5 g/L of wort, significantly under the recommended 1–1.5 g/L. To compensate, M29 French Saison was added at Day 5, once the Philly Sour had completed its lactic acid and simple sugar fermentation. The M29 then drove through the remaining complex sugars to reach FG 1.003.

The calculated OG of 1.040 discounts the raw OG of 1.044 by 0.004 to account for the lactic acid production (Philly Sour diverts 5–15% of fermentable sugars to lactic acid rather than ethanol). pH came in at 3.9 — less acidic than the 3.2–3.5 range Philly Sour can produce at correct pitch rates, a consequence of the under-pitch. The result: clean and lemony, softly tart, like a gentler kettle sour.

OG 1.040, FG 1.003, ABV 4.86%. 22 litres bottled with 130g dextrose on 8 September 2022.