Saison #5 (Averagely Perfect Saison)

Based on the 3rd annual group recipe from BeerAdvocate
http://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/averagely-perfect-saison-pellet-hop-version-ag.275601/

Brewed: 4/26/15
12 gallons

Grain
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Avagard Pils 14.75#

Weyerman 6L Munich 3.25#
Flaked Wheat 3#
Wheat Malt .75#

Hops
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Saaz 1.25oz @60 min

Hallertau 1.25oz @60 min
2oz each @10 min
2oz each @1 min

Yeast
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Dupont cake from Saison #2
then split 3 ways
1) Orval dregs copitched
2) Orval dregs @ 40 hours
3) Orval dregs @ bottling

My temperature controller was not working so I just used a small space heater, but things went awry. Pitched at 68 and put on the basement floor (~62 degrees).
15hrs: @66 degrees - moved off the floor to warm a bit
24hrs: @67 degrees - krausen is obvious, turned on heater
40hrs: @95 degrees - high krausen, turned down heater and added mid-pitch
48hrs: @80 degrees - still a krausen
7 days: turned off heater, left alone until bottling

Bottled: 5/17/15

7/2/15:From left to right: Brett added as Co-Pitch, Mid-Pitch, Bottling
The co-pitch was a more gentle pour, hence the smaller head.

Very subtle differences at this point. The bottling addition has more brett character and is a little more dry, but not by much. The biggest difference is the brett seems to linger on the back of the tongue in the bottling addition vs. disappearing almost immediately in the co-pitch. The mid-pitch is somewhere in between. I suspect that the brett will become more pronounced in the bottling version over time while not much will change with the co-pitch.

11/15/15
So, it turns out I was wrong about how the brett was going to affect these beers. At this point, six months after bottling, the three beers are basically the same. Sometimes I think I detect differences, sometimes I don't. Based on this, I don't think there is a big difference in pitching times if you are also pitching Saccharomyces as well.

A: Crystal clear, awesome head and lace, very pretty
S: A little bit of brett barnyard, a slight lemon/citrus.
T: Slight acidity followed by brett earthiness
M: Very dry, almost astringent, lingers on the tongue
D: This beer makes me glad to be a homebrewer. Not the best saison I have ever had or made, but way better than the local breweries. Almost too easy to drink.