28C Wild Specialty Beer
Wild Wort
Grain bill
| Gladfield Pilsner Malt | 2.5 kg | 50% |
| Gladfield Wheat Malt | 2.5 kg | 50% |
Adjuncts
| Whirlfloc | 1 tablet @ 10 min |
| Yeast Nutrient | 4 g @ 10 min |
Hop schedule
| Hop | 60 min |
|---|---|
| Pacific Gem | 10g |
Yeast
| Wild Mixed Cultures | Cube 1: wild culture from collab brewer Paul brewed 06-01-2026; Cube 2: mixed cultures grown from Wild Workshop bottle dregs brewed 22-01-2026 |
Water additions
| Calcium Chloride | 1.5 g |
About This Beer
This is a simple, low-gravity base wort brewed specifically for wild fermentation experiments. Minimal hopping keeps the environment hospitable for wild cultures. The wort was brewed twice and put into two cubes immediately after the boil, each destined for a different fermentation path. Final gravity and ABV are estimates.
This batch is an ongoing wild fermentation project. Cube 1, this batch, brewed 06-01-2026, combined with another 23L of the same recipe from Jamie, and fermented with Paul’s wild culture in his 60L all-rounder. Cube 2 (Cypress) brewed 22-01-2026 is still fermenting and conditioning in my 30L all rounder and uses the bugs from WW bottle dregs.
The Wort
The grain bill is 50/50 Gladfield Pilsner and Gladfield Wheat Malt — a clean, fermentable base with enough protein to support wild culture character. OG 1.040 keeps it accessible for slow-working cultures without producing a thin or unbalanced result. Pacific Gem at 10g for 60 minutes gives just enough bittering to prevent obvious spoilage without inhibiting wild organisms.
Cube 1 — Collaboration
The first cube was combined with another 20L batch from collab brewers Paul and Jamie, and pitched onto an existing wild trub from Paul’s culture. Fermentation moved faster than expected on fresh trub — wild cultures on a healthy active bed can be surprisingly vigorous. The beer completed within about a month, was crash cooled, and transferred to keg. Early tasting is promising: good sourness, clean and developing nicely. Final pH around 3.0 - 3.3, very nice sourness.
Cube 2 — Wild Sour Cypress
See details in wild wort entry brewed 22-01-2026.
What’s Next
The collab cube demonstrates that wild culture on active trub can ferment very quickly — worth factoring into future planning. The Cypress cube is on its own timeline. The key question as it develops will be whether the Brett character settles into something complex and fruity or retains the goaty edge; the March reading suggests it is moving in the right direction.