February 2019 Bosmopolitan

Flanders Red Solera

The club has participated in various group brew barrel projects in the past. About a year and half ago we started a Flanders Red Solera. The idea behind a Solera is that you periodically remove some beer from the barrel and then add more new beer into the barrel. Theoretically the Solera can keep going for years. It took some time for the beer to initially sour, so the beer is finally ready to start the cycling process.

In general, participants provide 5 gallons to put in the barrel and then later receive about 4 gallons back out. Our plans are to draw from the barrel once per month. At that rate, a person who adds to the barrel will be drawing their share from the barrel one year later.

Dave Harsh has agreed to be the point of contact for the barrel (thanks Dave!). If you are interested in contributing beer to the barrel, let Dave know ASAP and get that beer in there!

For those of you who are interested, here’s the Flanders Red recipe we used. This came direct from Brian St. Claire and it is the recipe he used for his Flanders Red which took Runner-Up Best of Show at the 2007 National Homebrew Competition.

Bourbon Barrel Flanders Red

5 gallons

OG: 1.054

IBU: 12

5 lb vienna

1 lb carahell

1 lb cara vienna

1 lb aromatic

8 oz special B

1.5 lb flaked corn

handful UNCRUSHED carafa III in sparge for better color, optional

1 oz Mt Hood flowers at 3.7% AA at 45 min (may substitute with another equivalently low %AA Noble hop; check first)

Wyeast # 3763 Roselare yeast (No starter, use it right from the packet)

mash in at 156 degrees for 90 min, boil 80 min, chill to 69, oxygenate one min, ferment in glass then add to barrel when yeast drops out (20 days.)

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