Can You Brew Beer With a Sourdough Starter? Here’s What Happened
What If You Brewed Beer With a Sourdough Starter Instead of Yeast?
Spoiler alert: I already did it. And it turned out better than I expected.
I’m DrHans, and this is DrHans Brewery—my channel and blog dedicated to beer, homebrewing, and crazy experiments I do so that you don’t have to. Today, we dive deep into a brewing method that strays far off the beaten path: brewing beer using sourdough starter.
The Setup: Brewing with the iGulu F1
I brewed this experimental sour beer in the iGulu F1, a small-batch brewing machine I really like. It wasn’t a sponsored video—just an honest exploration of what the iGulu F1 can do, especially for funky brews like this one. (Though hey iGulu, send me a second machine already!)
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Batch Size: 1 gallon / 4.31 liters
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Fermentation: Under pressure in iGulu F1
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Starter: Homemade sourdough starter (link to how to make one)
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Extract: 500g of medium DME (Dry Malt Extract)
Fermentation & Temperatures
Sourdough starters typically ferment well at low temps (I usually start pizza dough at 8°C / 46°F), but for this beer, I treated it like an ale:
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Start Temp: 18°C / 64°F
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Ramp Up: Up to 21°C / 70°F after 2 days
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Fermentation Time: ~7 days total
Tasting the Sourdough Beer
After a short cold crash, it poured hazy (thanks to the medium DME), but oh boy…
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Aroma: Sour, bready, but super fresh.
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Flavor: Bright sourness, no funk, with a subtle sweetness. Super clean, like a lacto-fermented sour beer.
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ABV: 4.3% (OG 1.048 / FG 1.015)
This might be the best sour I’ve brewed yet.
Why This Works for Sour Beers
Using a sourdough starter gives you a natural mix of wild yeast and lactobacillus. That’s perfect for sour beer styles. The iGulu F1 helps here too—since each spare keg comes with its own sealed tap system, you can dedicate kegs for sour beer to avoid cross-contamination.
“The yeast surrounds us, combines us…” – Me, channeling Star Wars with Chewie nearby.
What’s Next?
This beer is a great starting point for:
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Higher temp ferments – Does hotter equal funkier?
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Crazy flavors – Tzatziki sour (cucumber & mint?), Lingonberry sour, Pizza sour?
I even once brewed with a ginger beer starter—that turned out more like cider. But this… this is beer. And damn good beer.
If you’re not baking your own sourdough, now might be the time to start. Not just for bread, but for your next unique brew.
Video Recap
Watch the full experiment on YouTube: 👉 Watch now on YouTube
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