Sorta Random Sunday: My Love for Sour Beer

As a reminder, here at The Prudent Plastic Surgeon, I’m going to be doing something new. Every week, I’m going to make a post called Sorta Off Topic Sunday. This week, it’s about my obsession with sour beer.

Don’t knock it ’til you try it

Sour beers are intentionally acidic, sour, or tart.

That may sound weird to a lot of people. But it…is…so…good.

If you’ve never tried it, give it a shot. Start with a mild, fruit flavored one. And go from there.

What kinds of sour beer are there?

They come in a lot of varieties.

Broadly, Gose is sour beer from Germany. There are Berliner Weisse’s which are a maybe milder variety from, you guessed it, Berlin. Lambic varietals are from Brussels. America has American wild ales.

How do we make sour beer?

Sour beers intentionally allow wild yeast strains or bacteria into the brew, something not usually done with other beers. These wild strains are allowed in through the barrels or during the cooling of the wort in a coolship open to the outside air.

Another method for making the beer “sour” is adding fruit, which adds organic acids like citric acid. Acid can also be directly added to beer or added by the use of excessive amounts of acidulated malt.

My top 5 favorite sour beers

1. Strawberry milkshake IPA (also a sour) by Big Ditch Brewery
2. Sour Sea Quench Ale by Dogfish Head
3. Super Eight Super Gose by Dogfish Head
4. Mixed Berry Sour by Resurrgence Brewery
5. Flo-Mingo by 12 Gates Brewery

Let me know what your favorite beers or drinks are!

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