FUNKY PHANTON (1st Session - May, 2015)

SUMMARY
This beer was OKAY. 
The sour contribution of lactic acid is slightly less subtle than intended, and the overall flavor is not as complex as desired. Also, the coriander flavor is almost completely absent. However, the beer is very refreshing, and quite interesting (salty, sour beers are certainly not commonplace). I've purchased Gose's that are certainly better than this iteration, but I've had even more that are worse. All in all, I am happy with the result and proud of my first sour beer venture (beit an artificial one). Next time, I will hold off a majority of the salt addition until bottling, and try to add some complexity by manipulating the grain bill.

RECIPE
Grains (11.25lbs)
     5.5 lbs German Wheat Malt
     5.5 lbs German Pilsner Malt
     1.0 lbs Acidulated Malt (Mill Separately)
     1.0 lbs Rice Hulls (Do Not Mill)
Hops (4.5 AAUs)
     4.5 AAUs Spalt (1oz | 4.5%)
Yeast (1 Packet)
German Ale / Kölsch WLP029 (White Labs)

(Medium | 72-78% | 56-70°F)

Misc

.65 oz Salt

.50 oz Coriander Seeds (crushed)

~3 tbsp Lactic Acid (88%)

BREW NOTES

Maintained high mash temps for longer than necessary
Did not fall into the alpha-amylase temp range as quickly as desired
Could add excessive body for this style
Coriander seeds were difficult to crush thoroughly (used rolling pin)
Coriander spiciness might be lacking
Boiled off potentially too much wort (could add even more body)
Color was beautiful

FERMENTATION NOTES

Did not transfer to secondary (it was filled with Que Sarah Sarah)
Fermented for 4wks
Occasionally shook carboy to agitate yeast (hoping for low FG)
Ended with 3.8 gals
     

TASTING NOTES
Bottling Taste (2 weeks)
- First sip is quite salty with zero sourness (acid malt did not serve purpose)
- Added 2 tbsp of Lactic Acid
- Mildly sour, but needed more
- Added 1 tbsp of Lactic Acid
- Perceptibly sour, but not aggressively (bottled 24) [~13ml/gal]
- Added 3 ml of Lactic Acid 
- Pleasantly sour (bottled 8) [~15ml/gal]

- Added 1 ml of Lactic Acid
- Closing in on too sour, but still quite good (bottled 8) [~16ml/gal]
Initial Taste (2 weeks)
- Medium yellow color. Wish it was a bit brighter
- Decent head, and wonderfully effervescent
- Malt profile doesn't add much to this beer
- Lactic acid addition is noticible, but dominates flavor
- Wish the beer was more complex, but thats the inherent draw back to using lactic acid instead of wild yeast
- Coriander doesn't make it through
- Confident that with this beer will age well 
Secondary Taste (3 months)
- Slightly over-carbed, but still wonderfully effervescent (throw it in the fridge w/in a month of bottling) 
- This beer has grown into itself
- Lactic acid flavor has become more mellow. Still strong but not overly so.
- Age helped add a bit more complexity, but you can tell it the lactic acid was added rather than created with lactobacillus
- Coriander still doesn't make it through
Final Taste (6 months)
- High carbonation yields an invincible head
- Flavor profile has changes drastically
- Flavor and feel has developed a 'creamy'-ness
- Tastes cheap (like a sour BMC)

LESSONS LEARNED
Hold a majority of the salt addition for bottling
Experimenting with multiple batches (beit fermenting or bottling) is fun and helps home in on recipe adjustments
Sour beers don't require wild yeasts (although to make a really good one, they do)
Beers that are this effervescent need to be refrigerated quickly to prevent over-carbing