Simple Things Fermentations Wild Style – Stock Ale

We matured our Burton IPA with a mixed culture of wild yeast in oak casks outside the brewery, exposing the wood to the elements for over a year in an attempt to simulate the sort of conditions that gave rise to the strong, vinous stock ales produced in a similar way two or three hundred years ago.

The maturation has transformed the beer, rounding off the bitterness and producing a much drier finish, albeit with an appreciable amount of residual sweetness. The characteristic honey and apple notes are still prominent but are now part of a more complex picture that includes wine-like acidity, sour cherry, dried fruit, toffee, soft vanilla and of course the characteristic Brettanomyces funk.