All Brettanomyces Claussenii Farmhouse Ale

I've been wanting to experiment with an all Brett brew for a while, and thought that I would put together a simple brew to see what this methodology has to offer.  While the original recipe was designed as a low alcohol table beer, the Brett attenuated amazingly well and this ended up around the 5% mark.

The Rural Refresher -- All Brett C Farmhouse

OG: 1.040

FG: 1.000

ABV: 5.3%

SRM: 5

IBU: 25

Grain Bill:

5 lbs Vienna malt

1 lb Wheat malt

8 oz Acid malt

8 oz Carapils

Hop Bill:

1.5 oz Czech Saaz (3% AA) @ FWH

1.5 oz Czech Saaz (3% AA) @ 10 minutes

Yeast:

1 pkg WLP645 Brettanomyces Claussenii stepped from a 1L starter to a 2L starter

Other:

1 tsp wyeast yeast nutrient @ 10 minutes

Brew Notes:

mashed @ 149F for 90 minutes

Fermentation Notes:

Fermented @ 78F

Tasting Notes:

Pours hazy gold with a one finger white head that leaves a pretty good lace.  The Brett generated really nice fruit notes of mango and pineapple that could easily be confused as heavy aroma hopping.  A slight hint of mustiness.  The mid palate gives way to the distinct biscuit flavour of Vienna malt, and it finishes off with a subtle spicy hop bitterness.  Moderate to full carbonation with a creamy wheat mouth feel.

I was really happy with the way that this came out.  I followed others' suggestions and pitched a massive amount of yeast to ensure a thorough fermentation, and had no issues with yeast laziness.  I'm amazed by the balance that the Brett gave this beer, it has a pleasant combination of yeast, hop and malt notes with no individual component taking over.