# The Homebrew Beer Thread



## Marc (May 31, 2007)

Ok, so it wasn't a difficult recipe in the least, but it was a good starter.  Just a simple wheat beer, very lightly hopped.  About 4.5% ABV.  Tried the first of it tonight and it was very good.  Tasted similar to any number of hefewiezen's on the market.  But at the same time, fresh and clean.  Ahhh.....


Gonna buy another couple cases of bottles and do another batch ASAP!


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## roark (Jun 1, 2007)

Nice job Marc. Before you know it you'll be on to all grain and kegging!


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## riverc0il (Jun 1, 2007)

So, Marc is bringing the Brew to the next meetup with parking lot festivities?


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## Greg (Jun 1, 2007)

riverc0il said:


> So, Marc is bringing the Brew to the next meetup with parking lot festivities?



Word.

I made a two batches of beer during my short homebrew career. A Sam Adams like lager and a stout. Both came out good. I found it too time consuming and cumbersome to make it worthwhile, but it was interesting. But if you have the time to do it, I'll be happy to sample a few for ya...
:beer:


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## ctenidae (Jun 1, 2007)

Marc said:


> Gonna buy another couple cases of bottles and do another batch ASAP!



The key is to have 3 batches worth of bottles- Drink one while you make one while you rack one.


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## Marc (Jun 1, 2007)

roark said:


> Nice job Marc. Before you know it you'll be on to all grain and kegging!



Heh, not for a while.  I actually want to try growing my own hops next year first.



riverc0il said:


> So, Marc is bringing the Brew to the next meetup with parking lot festivities?



Feckin A man.  Name the time in place.  I'm thinking a pre season Stowe trip again next year.



Greg said:


> Word.
> 
> I made a two batches of beer during my short homebrew career. A Sam Adams like lager and a stout. Both came out good. I found it too time consuming and cumbersome to make it worthwhile, but it was interesting. But if you have the time to do it, I'll be happy to sample a few for ya...
> :beer:



Anytime you want some I'm happy to provide.  I can imagine with the house and kid you're probably a shade short on time.  Just wait til your kids are old enough to drink though.  'Nother year or two probably right?



ctenidae said:


> The key is to have 3 batches worth of bottles- Drink one while you make one while you rack one.



See now, that's a damn fine idea.  I don't know why I didn't think of that.  It's a little bit like having a CD ladder, only better, because you can't drink money (not directly anyway).


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## Greg (Jun 1, 2007)

Marc said:


> Anytime you want some I'm happy to provide.  I can imagine with the house and kid you're probably a shade short on time.  Just wait til your kids are old enough to drink though.  'Nother year or two probably right?



Not so much. I joke that when my oldest turns 21 she can take her first sip of beer. Riiiiiiight.......... :roll:


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## Marc (Jun 1, 2007)

Greg said:


> Not so much. I joke that when my oldest turns 21 she can take her first sip of beer. Riiiiiiight.......... :roll:



Hahaha, Greg's going to be the digruntled old father figure type sitting in the rocking chair on the front porch waiting to greet his daughter's first date holding at shotgun... and the daughter would be around age... 35?


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## Grassi21 (Jun 1, 2007)

Greg said:


> Not so much. I joke that when my oldest turns 21 she can take her first sip of beer. Riiiiiiight.......... :roll:





Marc said:


> Hahaha, Greg's going to be the digruntled old father figure type sitting in the rocking chair on the front porch waiting to greet his daughter's first date holding at shotgun... and the daughter would be around age... 35?



Everyone looks at my prego wife's belly and predicts girl.  I don't have a preference.  But when I look back at my life and see how my friends treated women I am truly scared.


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## roark (Jun 1, 2007)

Greg said:


> Not so much. I joke that when my oldest turns 21 she can take her first sip of beer. Riiiiiiight.......... :roll:


Let em try it when they're young, they'll hate it. I wasn't drinking (beer anyways) until well after most my peers thanks to that early memory. Than agian now I drink more beer than most of them...:???:


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## ctenidae (Jun 1, 2007)

roark said:


> Let em try it when they're young, they'll hate it. I wasn't drinking (beer anyways) until well after most my peers thanks to that early memory. Than agian now I drink more beer than most of them...:???:



I liked beer starting about age 6, and never stopped. Of course, my dad drank Pearl Light, which is closer to sex in a canoe than even Coor's. So maybe I just liked bubbled water when I was a kid.


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## Greg (Jun 1, 2007)

Marc said:


> Hahaha, Greg's going to be the digruntled old father figure type sitting in the rocking chair on the front porch waiting to greet his daughter's first date holding at shotgun... and the daughter would be around age... 35?





Grassi21 said:


> Everyone looks at my prego wife's belly and predicts girl.  I don't have a preference.  But when I look back at my life and see how my friends treated women I am truly scared.



Marc is probably right and Grassi explains why. I plan to let my house be the place where the kids like to hang. Want to spend time with your new boyfriend? Sure! Tell him to come on over.  I'm hoping to have a dozen or so years before I have to deal with that though...


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## Marc (Jun 1, 2007)

ctenidae said:


> I liked beer starting about age 6, and never stopped. Of course, my dad drank Pearl Light, which is closer to sex in a canoe than even Coor's. *So maybe I just liked bubbled water when I was a kid.*



Probably cause of all those chocolate swirlies you got.


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## SkiDog (Jun 1, 2007)

Cool man..congrats..its very fulfilling to have made something thats soo fresh and sooo tasty all by yourself. I found I also gained a greater appreciation for what companies like Sam Adams and the like go through to produce the same EXACT beer every time. You'll find its nearly impossible to reproduce the same results even if following the same exact recipe. Too many factors involved in the homebrewing process. 1 degree of temp difference can produce different flavors...super fun hobby though.

Since I am now in SLC and can't get "real" beer as easily the homebrew kit will be back in full force soon. 

As mentioned kegging is the way to go...makes life soooo much easier. 1 rack to a keg...no sugar or closed fermentation to produce CO2, you just force carbonate with your CO2 tank. 

To make things easier on the bottling side, id suggest trying to find growlers or EX Cap bottles (like grolsch) you can get the ez caps in 16oz or 1 liter ( i like the liters). Since they have their own caps attached its SUPER easy. 

As for the all grain brewing, I personally find that you get great homebrews with extract. There is a lot more room for error in all grain brewing. It is "TRUE" brewing though and is worth doing at least once to see how the process works. Will make you a much better brewer in the end. 

If you havent read it yet get Charile Papazians The complete Joy of Homebrewing. Also the Homebrewers Bible is a good reference. 

Good luck and if you ever want any recipes shoot me a PM I have quite a few and some GREAT ONES...

Keep it up.

M


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## Marc (Jun 1, 2007)

Thanks SkiDog.  I don't feel bad for you "having" to be in Utah just so you know.

I've read a lot at www.howtobrew.com.  The first thing I did with advice from a fellow brewer at work was to use 22 oz bottles instead of 12.  I didn't find it to be to tiresome with a friend helping.  I'd love to get some flip top bottles but they're expensive to buy outright.  I'm going to do several, several batches before I even think about PM or all grain.  First things first is to get a wort chiller.  Putting the kettle in an ice water filled bath tub was a PITA.  A gas burner would be a lot nicer to head of boil overs too, but I'm content to work with what I have for now.


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## SkiDog (Jun 1, 2007)

Marc said:


> Thanks SkiDog.  I don't feel bad for you "having" to be in Utah just so you know.
> 
> I've read a lot at www.howtobrew.com.  The first thing I did with advice from a fellow brewer at work was to use 22 oz bottles instead of 12.  I didn't find it to be to tiresome with a friend helping.  I'd love to get some flip top bottles but they're expensive to buy outright.  I'm going to do several, several batches before I even think about PM or all grain.  First things first is to get a wort chiller.  Putting the kettle in an ice water filled bath tub was a PITA.  A gas burner would be a lot nicer to head of boil overs too, but I'm content to work with what I have for now.



Outdoor cooker is key...brings 5 gallons to boil WAY fast...Wort chiller is key too...if you're handy making one is EASY...just some copper tubing and some clamps and some rubber food grade hose...some garden hose fittings...BOOM...instant wort chiller...brings down temp in about hmmm few minutes? maybe 10 max....

I'd also suggest starting to use liquid yeasts. It takes a bit more planning because you have to make a "mini beer" to get the yeast up to acceptable levels and then you HAVE to be ready to brew 2-3 days later or the yeast eats all that sgar you gave it to get it up to speed. Really does make a HUGE difference.

What do those bottles go for these days...?? I have like 3 cases of 16oz browns and 2 cases (12) of the 1 liters...I have about 10 growlers, a mini keg system and a corni keg setup. plus tons of cases of 12oz. I also was able to keep my 6.5 and 7 gallon carboys. Cant even find them anymore hardly.

Good luck with your future brews...and yeah..Utah is a hard place to live .... HA...

M


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## ctenidae (Jun 4, 2007)

If you don't want to build a wort chiller, just dump ice in your carboy and pour the hot wort over it- just remember that 1 gallon of water weighs 8 pounds, and the standard bag of ice is 5 pounds. It takes some fiddling to get the water level right, but it works. Not as sexy or as fast as a wort chiller, but a hell of a lot quicker than just waiting.


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## Marc (Jun 4, 2007)

ctenidae said:


> If you don't want to build a wort chiller, just dump ice in your carboy and pour the hot wort over it- just remember that 1 gallon of water weighs 8 pounds, and the standard bag of ice is 5 pounds. It takes some fiddling to get the water level right, but it works. Not as sexy or as fast as a wort chiller, but a hell of a lot quicker than just waiting.



I think it took about 20 min in an icy bathtube.


Another method I read was to freeze a 2 liter soda bottle (filled with water), then when you're ready to chill the wort, sanitize the outside of the soda bottle and put it into the kettle.


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## Marc (Jun 4, 2007)

Building a wort chiller would be easy, and I might do that at some point, but you need a fairly large volume of sanitizer to sanitize the outside of the whole thing, it would seem...


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## ctenidae (Jun 4, 2007)

Marc said:


> Building a wort chiller would be easy, and I might do that at some point, but you need a fairly large volume of sanitizer to sanitize the outside of the whole thing, it would seem...



Submerge the coil in ice/rock salt and run the wort throught the coil. Faster, cleaner, cooler.


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## SkiDog (Jun 4, 2007)

ctenidae said:


> Submerge the coil in ice/rock salt and run the wort throught the coil. Faster, cleaner, cooler.




Gret suggestion and I have used this method...not much faster than using it the regular way, but still cool and save you from having to sanitize it...

I just dip it in my sanitizer bath for a few minutes.

I would REFRAIN from the ice method directly in the wort....could introduce too many nasties.

Just my $.02

M


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## Marc (Jun 4, 2007)

SkiDog said:


> Gret suggestion and I have used this method...not much faster than using it the regular way, but still cool and save you from having to sanitize it...
> 
> I just dip it in my sanitizer bath for a few minutes.
> 
> ...



Ever use the soda bottle?


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## SkiDog (Jun 4, 2007)

Marc said:


> Ever use the soda bottle?



I have not personally but have heard it used. Since the bottle is pre sanitized and the ice inside never hits the batch it should be no problem. I would seriously consider the wort chiller though...really saves time, and in the long run pays for itself...the faster to cool = faster to pitching = less chance of nasties. 

I personally dont even like to add water to bring to volume of 5 gal. I perfer to boil a full 5 gal. The outdoor cooker helps with this process since it boils water VERY fast.

M


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## Marc (Jun 4, 2007)

SkiDog said:


> I have not personally but have heard it used. Since the bottle is pre sanitized and the ice inside never hits the batch it should be no problem. I would seriously consider the wort chiller though...really saves time, and in the long run pays for itself...the faster to cool = faster to pitching = less chance of nasties.
> 
> I personally dont even like to add water to bring to volume of 5 gal. I perfer to boil a full 5 gal. The outdoor cooker helps with this process since it boils water VERY fast.
> 
> M



I don't have the means to do a full boil, however I do preboil the non wort water I put in the fermenter.

The only reason I ask about the soda bottle is I might brew another batch tonight and I won't have time to make a chiller.  Soda bottle combined with the ice water bath is probably the way I'll go.


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## SkiDog (Jun 4, 2007)

Marc said:


> I don't have the means to do a full boil, however I do preboil the non wort water I put in the fermenter.
> 
> The only reason I ask about the soda bottle is I might brew another batch tonight and I won't have time to make a chiller.  Soda bottle combined with the ice water bath is probably the way I'll go.



It will certainly suit you for tonight.....not to worry. Just make sure EVERYTHING is sterilized. Smart on preboil on the addition water...good man...

So what you boil about 3 gallons? you using steeping grains while it comes to boil ?

M


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## Marc (Jun 4, 2007)

SkiDog said:


> It will certainly suit you for tonight.....not to worry. Just make sure EVERYTHING is sterilized. Smart on preboil on the addition water...good man...
> 
> So what you boil about 3 gallons? you using steeping grains while it comes to boil ?
> 
> M



I used steeping grains for a batch I made a while ago with a friend.  This wheat beer I just brewed didn't use grains.

I have a 16 qt stainless pot that I boiled 3 gallons in... which was pretty close to the top after adding two roughly 24 oz cans of malt into.

I was pretty fanatical about sterilization during boiling and bottling with this last batch and it turned out great.  So I'm a bit more confident for my second batch.


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## SkiDog (Jun 4, 2007)

Marc said:


> I used steeping grains for a batch I made a while ago with a friend.  This wheat beer I just brewed didn't use grains.
> 
> I have a 16 qt stainless pot that I boiled 3 gallons in... which was pretty close to the top after adding two roughly 24 oz cans of malt into.
> 
> I was pretty fanatical about sterilization during boiling and bottling with this last batch and it turned out great.  So I'm a bit more confident for my second batch.



As you obviously know...sterilization is the KEY to good batches....what are you currently using for sanitization one step? I personally use Iodine. It doesnt require warm water...only requires literally seconds of contact to sterilize. They use it in hospitals and restaurants. Great stuff also requires very little rinsing. You should give it a try. 

Think about a larger pot if you can put your hands on one. I think I have about 4 ;-) . Yeah the wheat likley was plenty colored just from malt. 

I think i'll do a lager again soon, but I have to get the fridge up and running with the external temp gauge. This helps regulate temps overrides fridge thermostat. Very nice since lagers need to be fremented WAY cold....

Any questions dont hesitate to ask. Good luck with the latest batch...

M


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## Marc (Jun 4, 2007)

SkiDog said:


> As you obviously know...sterilization is the KEY to good batches....what are you currently using for sanitization one step? I personally use Iodine. It doesnt require warm water...only requires literally seconds of contact to sterilize. They use it in hospitals and restaurants. Great stuff also requires very little rinsing. You should give it a try.
> 
> Think about a larger pot if you can put your hands on one. I think I have about 4 ;-) . Yeah the wheat likley was plenty colored just from malt.
> 
> ...




Yeah, I use the idophor stuff.  Bleach is a PITA and I have a feeling I'd end up with white spots or holes in my shirt.


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## ctenidae (Jun 4, 2007)

SkiDog said:


> I would REFRAIN from the ice method directly in the wort....could introduce too many nasties.
> 
> Just my $.02
> 
> M



Make your own ice with boiled water. Easy to measure it that way, too.



Marc said:


> Yeah, I use the idophor stuff.  Bleach is a PITA and I have a feeling I'd end up with white spots or holes in my shirt.



Brew naked.


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## SkiDog (Jun 4, 2007)

ctenidae said:


> Make your own ice with boiled water. Easy to measure it that way, too.
> 
> 
> 
> Brew naked.




Lots of work there though......would work and likely be MORE sterile.

M


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## Marc (Jun 4, 2007)

I think someone's a little too anxious to get my clothes off...


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## Marc (Jun 5, 2007)

Brewed again last night... a 1.040 OG.  Ale style.  Should be pretty good.

Hallertau and Tettnang hops.  Light barley steeping grain.  Looking forward to bottling and tasting this one.


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## ctenidae (Jul 25, 2007)

My wife (saint that she is) bought me a Cooper's kit for my B-day. I know using a canned kit is cheating, but the fermenter's nice, and it came with 30 re-useable plastic bottles. Anyway, I cranked it up Friday (1040 Lager) and will be bottling tonight. Quick and easy, adn the can of concentrate is only about $15 or so. We'll see how this batch turns out.

www.coopers.com.au


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## ctenidae (Dec 6, 2007)

Bump

http://www.ldcarlson.com/public catalog/Brewers Best Recipes/1047 Dortmunder.pdf

Brewed this up last week, bottling tomorrow, ought to be ready for Christmas cheer!
OG was 1.052, as of last night it was 1.012, so figure about 8% ABV, which will be nice.

Funny thing is, I was really worried that the yeast never got cranked up- I never saw a single bubble come out of the airlock. I pitched about 11 pm on 11/27, then didn't lok at it again until about 6 pm the next day. Full head of foam in the fermenter, but no bubbling. So, I let it sit, and half forgot about it. When I did check it, there was some bubbling int he wort itself, but nothing out the airlock. I let it sit, thinking the yeast might just be running really really slow for some reason. Finally, last night was shit-or-get-off-the-pot day, so I checked it just to see. Imagine my surprise. Hopefully it hasn't been sitting on the yeast too long, but I'm not too concerned about it.


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## roark (Dec 6, 2007)

ctenidae said:


> OG was 1.052, as of last night it was 1.012, so figure about 8% ABV, which will be nice.


Might want to check that calc. Off the top of my head that's more like 5%


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## roark (Dec 6, 2007)

ABW = 76.08(OG-FG)/(1.775-OG).
ABV = ABW (FG/.794).

So about 5.4%


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## roark (Dec 6, 2007)

ctenidae said:


> Funny thing is, I was really worried that the yeast never got cranked up- I never saw a single bubble come out of the airlock. I pitched about 11 pm on 11/27, then didn't lok at it again until about 6 pm the next day. Full head of foam in the fermenter, but no bubbling. So, I let it sit, and half forgot about it. When I did check it, there was some bubbling int he wort itself, but nothing out the airlock. I let it sit, thinking the yeast might just be running really really slow for some reason. Finally, last night was shit-or-get-off-the-pot day, so I checked it just to see. Imagine my surprise. Hopefully it hasn't been sitting on the yeast too long, but I'm not too concerned about it.


 
Airlock not sealed? If there's co2 coming out it's got to go somewhere...

That's not that long to be sitting on the yeast. Although I do usually transfer to a secondary once the primary fermentation has mostly subsided 
(where I tend to forget about it for another week or two).


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## ctenidae (Dec 6, 2007)

roark said:


> Might want to check that calc. Off the top of my head that's more like 5%



Yeah, I didn't run the numbers- just used the handy-dandy chart with the hydrometer. YMMV.


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## ctenidae (Dec 6, 2007)

roark said:


> Airlock not sealed? If there's co2 coming out it's got to go somewhere...
> 
> That's not that long to be sitting on the yeast. Although I do usually transfer to a secondary once the primary fermentation has mostly subsided
> (where I tend to forget about it for another week or two).



I think it did it's big bubbling overnight and during the next day. Maybe the yeast was on steroids.

Ont eh timing, I'm actually more concerned about making sure it has enough time in teh bottle before Christmas to be tasty. Yum!


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## ctenidae (Dec 7, 2007)

Looked at my notes last night- OG was 1060, so that gets me closer to 6.8-7%.
Mmmm, high alcohol beers...


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## Marc (Dec 7, 2007)

ctenidae said:


> Looked at my notes last night- OG was 1060, so that gets me closer to 6.8-7%.
> Mmmm, high alcohol beers...



All of mine so far have been about 5% bv.  I'd like to notch that up in my next batch.  Let me know how this one turns out.


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## ctenidae (Dec 7, 2007)

Marc said:


> All of mine so far have been about 5% bv.  I'd like to notch that up in my next batch.  Let me know how this one turns out.



Will do. My big fear is if it got light enough- I'm not sure how much of the OG was really sugar, or how much of the FG is protien gunk. The truth is in the glass, I suppose. I'm planning on bottling tonight, so expect an update within about 2 weeks.


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## ctenidae (Dec 12, 2007)

Cracked open a bottle of the dortmunder last night, just to check its progress (I bottled 3 smallr 12 oz bottles just for this purpose). I bottled on the 7th, so it's only been in for 5 days.

Impressions from the pour: This shit is still flat. Smells young. This won't be good. Color is great, a deep copper, but still cloudy.

Taste: Not good. Very strong hop bite up front. Really aggressive. Malt barely has a chance to show up in the back before being covered by yeasty green bananas. Probably could have stood to be colder, too.

Overall: With some age, the hops should mellow out, especially as the carbonation kicks in and helps lift out some of the bitterness. There's certainly some malt in there that ought to start to show up soon. Hopefully the cloudiness will settle out some more, too. I'll open another one this weekend and see how it's going.


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## ctenidae (Feb 11, 2008)

Gotta find a new recipe. Thinking Porter this run.

Ingredients 

5 lbs Light Dry Malt Extract (Your Favorite Brand)
2.0 lbs Pale Ale Malt
2.0 lbs Crystal Malt
0.25 lb Black Patent Malt
0.5 lb Chocolate Malt 
1.25 cups Brown Sugar 

1.25 oz Northern Brewer - boiled 60 minutes
0.5 oz Northern Brewer - boiled 40 minutes
0.5 oz Perle - boiled 10 minutes
0.5 oz Cascade - boiled 1 minute
0.75 oz Kent Goldings - dry hopped in secondary fermenter 

Wyeast British Ale Yeast, in 12 ounces of starter wort. 

Maybe?


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## roark (Feb 11, 2008)

ctenidae said:


> Gotta find a new recipe. Thinking Porter this run.
> 
> Ingredients
> 
> ...


Wouldn't the pale malt need to be mashed?

I've never been a big fan of sugar, even the brown will lighten the body.

That yeast is great for maltier british ales.


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## ctenidae (Feb 11, 2008)

The brown sugar might be good for some flavor. Maybe sub in 1/4-1/2 cup of molasses instead?


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## roark (Feb 11, 2008)

I've done molasses in a kitchen sink type (molasses, brown sugar, licorice... probably more I'm forgetting) imperial stout. Took nearly 10 years to hit it's peak.

I'd give it a shot in a porter, why not?


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## Brettski (Feb 11, 2008)

I gotta start up again

all grain brews are great, but very time consuming, but well worth it


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## BeanoNYC (Aug 22, 2008)

Bump...

How's the brewing going Marc?  You had given me a great website for equipment but I can't find the thread.  My neighbor and I were discussing plans to do this together over a few pops last night.  Looks like this is finally coming to fruition.


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## Marc (Aug 22, 2008)

I haven't brewed in a while.  Too busy working on the house and such.

Not sure which website I gave you, but my supplier is the Homebrew Emporium.  They take internet orders and their prices are pretty reasonable-

http://www.beerbrew.com/


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## BeanoNYC (Aug 25, 2008)

Got some basic supplies.  Waiting on some books from Half.com.  Going to read up and give it a try.


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## ctenidae (Aug 25, 2008)

Now that construction is done, I carved out part of a closet for bottles and such. I'm now collecting glass bottles. I've decided that the plastic ones aren't much good- very inconsistent on the seals- sometimes they carbonate, sometimes they don't. I don't like that kind of variability.


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## Marc (Aug 25, 2008)

Plus "collecting" bottles can be pretty fun in it's own right, if you start with them full.


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## Marc (Aug 25, 2008)

Does anyone get a chuckle out of the people who homebrew only to make labels?  I swear there are a couple people at work who do this, and are appalled when I tell them I don't label my beer.

And coincidentally, the beer they make is usually bland or swill, because all their effort is spent on making "cool" looking labels.


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## BeanoNYC (Aug 25, 2008)

Marc said:


> Plus "collecting" bottles can be pretty fun in it's own right, if you start with them full.



That's my current project.  Brooklyn Brewery seems to have the perfect bottle.  

I have a question on my first batch.  I bought a basic kit which has a plastic fermenter.  Should I:

A) keep it simple for the first batch and just keep it in there.
B) Get a glass carboy for a second fermentation (what else do I need with the glass carboy)
C) Get a glass carboy for the first fermentation
D) Get two glass carboys for first and second fermentation.  

I know that I'll probably graduate to better equipment eventually but would like first timer advice from some seasoned pros.


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## Marc (Aug 25, 2008)

I'm not a seasoned pro, but a plastic fermenter is just fine for several batches if you keep it clean.  I'd go with a simple recipe for the first few times you brew that don't require secondary fermentation.  It's just another racking and another step in which to screw up.  Besides, carboys are a biatch to clean.


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## ctenidae (Aug 25, 2008)

There's nothing at all wrong with plastic buckets. Glass carboys are, as Marc says, a biatch to clean. And move. And fill. And empty. They do look cool, though.

Secondary fermentation (a misnomer, anyway) is only a requirement for a few styles of beer, and only useful for a few more. Until you get into that, there's no need to even worry about it. Concentrate on making a consistent, simple beer first. Once you can get two batches to taste the same (or at least somewhat similar), then you can start branching out.


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## BeanoNYC (Aug 25, 2008)

Marc said:


> I'm not a seasoned pro, but a plastic fermenter is just fine for several batches if you keep it clean.  I'd go with a simple recipe for the first few times you brew that don't require secondary fermentation.  It's just another racking and another step in which to screw up.  Besides, carboys are a biatch to clean.





ctenidae said:


> There's nothing at all wrong with plastic buckets. Glass carboys are, as Marc says, a biatch to clean. And move. And fill. And empty. They do look cool, though.
> 
> Secondary fermentation (a misnomer, anyway) is only a requirement for a few styles of beer, and only useful for a few more. Until you get into that, there's no need to even worry about it. Concentrate on making a consistent, simple beer first. Once you can get two batches to taste the same (or at least somewhat similar), then you can start branching out.



Thanks.  I got the simplest pilsner on the shelf at the store (as per the guy there)

http://www.monsterbrew.com/Prod_Pilsner.cfm


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## Marc (Aug 25, 2008)

BeanoNYC said:


> Thanks.  I got the simplest pilsner on the shelf at the store (as per the guy there)
> 
> http://www.monsterbrew.com/Prod_Pilsner.cfm



That's cool, looks like a good simple one... although bear in mind, it isn't a true pilsner, since pilsner is technically a lager and this is an ale.


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## roark (Aug 25, 2008)

ctenidae said:


> There's nothing at all wrong with plastic buckets. Glass carboys are, as Marc says, a biatch to clean. And move. And fill. And empty. They do look cool, though.
> 
> Secondary fermentation (a misnomer, anyway) is only a requirement for a few styles of beer, and only useful for a few more. Until you get into that, there's no need to even worry about it. Concentrate on making a consistent, simple beer first. Once you can get two batches to taste the same (or at least somewhat similar), then you can start branching out.


 
The problem with plastic is that it _will_ get scratched, which provides a nice place for nasty bacteria to hang out.

The most useful part of the secondary IMHO is you tend to get less sediment in the final product. Or maybe I just suck at racking. And if something comes up and you don't get around to bottling for a couple extra weeks, no big deal. 

But for the first few batches anyway, plastic single stage fermenting is cool.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Aug 25, 2008)

Marc said:


> That's cool, looks like a good simple one... although bear in mind, it isn't a true pilsner, since pilsner is technically a lager and this is an ale.



See these are the types of things I hope to learn about down the road.  So how do they get away with calling it a pilsner?  Don't Lagers have to age cold?



roark said:


> The problem with plastic is that it _will_ get scratched, which provides a nice place for nasty bacteria to hang out.
> 
> The most useful part of the secondary IMHO is you tend to get less sediment in the final product. Or maybe I just suck at racking. And if something comes up and you don't get around to bottling for a couple extra weeks, no big deal.
> 
> But for the first few batches anyway, plastic single stage fermenting is cool.



Ok, well my next door neighbor and I are brewing together.  He has access to a shit load of carboys because he makes wine.  Should we look to using carboys 10 batches down the road?  

I hear ya on the bacteria thing.  A friend of mine brews and the only advice he'll give me is "sanitize, sanitize, sanitize."


----------



## ctenidae (Aug 25, 2008)

BeanoNYC said:


> See these are the types of things I hope to learn about down the road.  So how do they get away with calling it a pilsner?  Don't Lagers have to age cold?
> 
> 
> 
> ...



If you have the carboys already, and a place to keep them, then go ahead and use them. They're just not something you'd wnat to jump into, especially if you don't know how much you'll brew or if you'll stick with it. They're just a hassle to clean, though a good bottle brush and a strong sprayer can handle it. If you have a a spray nozzle in your shower, that works (just don't break one). With the carboys, you also have to siphon everything, since they don't have bottling taps, and that can be a bit messy, especially until (and even once) you get your technique down.

On the "Sanitize^3"- absolutely rule #1. Most important thing of all. Best equipment, best recipe, best ingredients, matters for naught if you allow contamination.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Aug 25, 2008)

What's the scoop with tasting?  Is it unhealthy to taste the batch during any part of the process from beginning to end?


----------



## Marc (Aug 25, 2008)

BeanoNYC said:


> What's the scoop with tasting?  Is it unhealthy to taste the batch during any part of the process from beginning to end?



Not unhealthy, just not advised.  Eating part of a half baked loaf of bread will not tell you much about how the finished bread will taste.  Same goes for beer.


----------



## roark (Aug 25, 2008)

BeanoNYC said:


> What's the scoop with tasting?  Is it unhealthy to taste the batch during any part of the process from beginning to end?



Chewing on grains can be educational, maybe a sip of wort after taking the starting gravity (after all, you're not going to dump that ~4 oz of wort in the fermenter... _are you_?). Beyond that, not going to learn much.

I'd say chew on a hop pellet, but I'd want to be there to see the reaction.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Sep 7, 2008)

Ok...brewed my first batch yesterday.  All seemed to go fine, sans two concerns.

1) Fermenting temp.  Fermenter is in the basement, but it's been quite hot.  How do I 
       a) Gauge the temp of the fermenter
b) Keep it cool if necessary.

2) Hop Pellets:  Mine dissolved in my wort.  Is that normal?

I found a good forum for homebrewing and put the same questions up there as well.


----------



## roark (Sep 7, 2008)

BeanoNYC said:


> Ok...brewed my first batch yesterday.  All seemed to go fine, sans two concerns.
> 
> 1) Fermenting temp.  Fermenter is in the basement, but it's been quite hot.  How do I
> a) Gauge the temp of the fermenter
> ...



1) you could keep a thermometer near the fermenter (understanding that the fermenter is prob a few degrees warmer. Or buy a stick on one. The hardcore get probe type thermometers.

To keep cool I've used a water bath (large plastic water saucer for a plant) and old t shirt. Place the fermenter in the water bath and put the t shirt on the fermenter. T shirt wicks up the water, keeping it cooler. I now have an old fridge and external thermostat, but have yet to use them. Maybe the engineer type can chime in with all the details of this process.

2. Normal.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Sep 8, 2008)

Thanks Roark!


----------



## BeanoNYC (Sep 21, 2008)

Well, it's been a week since bottling.  I opened up a bottle yesterday to check it's progress.  Seems to be doing the right things as far as carbonation; a few more weeks will bring the batch up to speed.  I'm assuming that during this time the batch will condition a bit better as well.  As of now though, I'm quite happy.  It's hoppy, it's tasty...it's Beer!!!

Thanks for all the help.

On a side note.  I got a hold of a  6 gallon carboy.  I'm going to brew my next batch in a few days and use that as the fermenter.  I'm planning on running a length of hose from a drilled stopper into some water as a blowoff.  Is this overkill for a 5 gallon batch?  Should a bubbler do fine without a krausen blowoff?


----------



## ctenidae (Sep 22, 2008)

I'd think a 6 gallon carboy will handle the foam from a 5 gallon batch okay. Might want to be prepared, though, jsut in case.

Do yourself a favor and mark 5 gallons on the fermenter in some permanent fashion.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Sep 22, 2008)

ctenidae said:


> I'd think a 6 gallon carboy will handle the foam from a 5 gallon batch okay. Might want to be prepared, though, jsut in case.
> 
> Do yourself a favor and mark 5 gallons on the fermenter in some permanent fashion.




Wow...good idea.  I'll just dremel a line at the 5 gallon mark.  I actually have two 6 gallon carboys now.  (found an old one with pennies...some oxyclean and starsan will take care of that)  I'm going to start an Applevein this week...should be fermented, carbonated and conditioned for Christmas.  (6-8 in the fermentor)


----------



## Greg (Sep 22, 2008)

I made two batches in my life, but I had a dream I was brewing up a batch last night. Ironic this thread got bumped this morning. Maybe it's a sign. Might have to go pick up a kit...


----------



## BeanoNYC (Sep 22, 2008)

Greg said:


> I made two batches in my life, but I had a dream I was brewing up a batch last night. Ironic this thread got bumped this morning. Maybe it's a sign. Might have to go pick up a kit...



I'm so glad I got into it. I have this applewein and a nut brown ale ready to brew for the weekend.  

It would be fun to follow your progress, Greg.  I actually saw some equipment for sale in CT on Craigslist recently.


----------



## Grassi21 (Sep 22, 2008)

BeanoNYC said:


> I'm so glad I got into it. I have this applewein and a nut brown ale ready to brew for the weekend.



who do you think you are homer simpson following the hullabalooza tour with a skin full of strawberry wine?  :lol: ;-)


----------



## Greg (Sep 22, 2008)

BeanoNYC said:


> I'm so glad I got into it. I have this applewein and a nut brown ale ready to brew for the weekend.
> 
> It would be fun to follow your progress, Greg.  I actually saw some equipment for sale in CT on Craigslist recently.



I wish I held on to my kit from many years ago. If I recall correctly, the initial investment is small though.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Sep 22, 2008)

Grassi21 said:


> who do you think you are homer simpson following the hullabalooza tour with a skin full of strawberry wine?  :lol: ;-)



It will be like that.  The prep time is actually about an hour for the applewein.  No cooking...super easy.


----------



## ctenidae (Sep 22, 2008)

BeanoNYC said:


> Wow...good idea.  I'll just dremel a line at the 5 gallon mark.



Don't score too deep, or you'll end up with a 6 gallon glass bucket.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Sep 22, 2008)

ctenidae said:


> Don't score too deep, or you'll end up with a 6 gallon glass bucket.



Nope...just a scratch.


----------



## UnaBonger (Sep 22, 2008)

BeanoNYC said:


> I'm so glad I got into it. I have this applewein and a nut brown ale ready to brew for the weekend.
> 
> It would be fun to follow your progress, Greg.  I actually saw some equipment for sale in CT on Craigslist recently.



I just picked that up over the weekend   Got a ESB fermenting as I type :smile:


----------



## Brettski (Sep 22, 2008)

Any good online brew stores?


----------



## ctenidae (Sep 22, 2008)

Brettski said:


> Any good online brew stores?



http://www.beer-wine.com/

My brother reports success with these guys. He's in NY, so the tax savings has been a help.


----------



## UnaBonger (Sep 22, 2008)

I like ->

http://www.austinhomebrew.com/
http://www.northernbrewer.com/


----------



## BeanoNYC (Sep 22, 2008)

Austin and Northern are the ones I check out often in this new venture of mine.  I'm fortunate to have a few wine and beer supply stores around too.  

Getting back to this apfelwein...anybody ever make it?  Was thinking about using a sweet mead or champagne yeast.


----------



## UnaBonger (Sep 22, 2008)

I haven't made it yet, but I think it's next on my list... The recipe I'm looking at uses a wine yeast.


----------



## Brettski (Sep 23, 2008)

UnaBonger said:


> I haven't made it yet, but I think it's next on my list... The recipe I'm looking at uses a wine yeast.



Well, don't do that for a first batch.

Make an Extra bitter English Ale with a lot of hops in the boil and at the end of the boil (turn off the boil and toss some hops in)

Use 8-10LBS of Malt to start

Almost fool proof

And use a liquid English Ale yeast

In any case, I'm not thrilled with $20 for 5#'s of Malt extract

What's the cheapest out there?

I'll go back to all grain, but It's been awhile...used to get 50#'s for U$30...but that was direct from the (now defunct) Manhatten Brewing Company...


----------



## UnaBonger (Sep 23, 2008)

Brettski said:


> Well, don't do that for a first batch.
> 
> Make an Extra bitter English Ale with a lot of hops in the boil and at the end of the boil (turn off the boil and toss some hops in)
> 
> ...



Nooo, I've got a few batches under my belt already and in fact have a ESB currently in the primary  I'm thinking the apfelwein will be my next batch  

Thanks for the recipe tho :-D


----------



## BeanoNYC (Sep 23, 2008)

UnaBonger said:


> Nooo, I've got a few batches under my belt already and in fact have a ESB currently in the primary  I'm thinking the apfelwein will be my next batch
> 
> Thanks for the recipe tho :-D



I'm going to oxyclean this new carboy of mine overnight and will make the Apfelwine tomorrow.  Going to tweak the original recipe a just a little bit from the original.  I'll let you know how it goes and post my recipe once I figure it out.  

Basic Recipe

5 gallons of apple juice or cider (no preservatives)
2 pounds of corn sugar 
Montrachet yeast

My take on it (this is for Christmas)

May substitute a pound of sugar with a pound of brown sugar
may add some apple juice or other fruit juice concentrate
maybe some vanilla
maybe some cinnamon  
I have a different wine yeast that will allow for a sweeter finish

6-8 in the carboy
prime normally for bottling
may leave a gallon or two unprimed for grog...

on deck for the next few weeks:

Nut Brown Ale Extract Kit
Cactus Milk Stout Recipe I found

Bottled:

Pilsner Kit: 2 weeks conditioning before I serve it to others

I really like this new hobby of mine


----------



## UnaBonger (Sep 23, 2008)

Beano - I'm wondering if we're both looking at the same Apfelwein thing over on HBT? I like the idea of the brown sugar and/or the cinnamon (sticks would be the way to go I think, not ground)...

I only have one fermenting bucket and either need to free mine up or get a second... I'm voting for the later, just gotta go to the store  

It is a great hobby, isnt it?


----------



## roark (Sep 23, 2008)

BeanoNYC said:


> May substitute a pound of sugar with a pound of brown sugar
> may add some apple juice or other fruit juice concentrate
> maybe some vanilla
> maybe some cinnamon
> ...


 I've never been a fan of corn sugar, I'd avoid. Brown sugar sounds like a worthy substitution. Honey works well, but is pricey (I made a great cyser about 10 yrs ago, mmmmm). Spices sound good. I've used vanilla beans in the past (an xmas vanilla-cadamom ale that was pretty tasty). Another option is to reserve a small amount and add extract at bottling. Sweeter yeast is prob better too. 

Have fun.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Sep 23, 2008)

UnaBonger said:


> Beano - I'm wondering if we're both looking at the same Apfelwein thing over on HBT? I like the idea of the brown sugar and/or the cinnamon (sticks would be the way to go I think, not ground)...
> 
> I only have one fermenting bucket and either need to free mine up or get a second... I'm voting for the later, just gotta go to the store
> 
> ...



You are correct, Sir.  EdWort's Apfelwein.  I'm learning a lot over there.   My name is BoxofRain over there.  That's my handle everywhere else but here.  (Wish I could change it on here, actually)




roark said:


> I've never been a fan of corn sugar, I'd avoid. Brown sugar sounds like a worthy substitution. Honey works well, but is pricey (I made a great cyser about 10 yrs ago, mmmmm). Spices sound good. I've used vanilla beans in the past (an xmas vanilla-cadamom ale that was pretty tasty). Another option is to reserve a small amount and add extract at bottling. Sweeter yeast is prob better too.
> 
> Have fun.



I was thinking about adding a vanilla bean along with the cinnamon stick.  How much would you guys suggest?  I went to the brew shop looking for a mead yeast...they didn't have any.  Spoke with the guy there and he suggested the one he gave me which can be used for sweeter wines.  I can always taste and take gravity readings after a month or so.  When I hit the desired sweetness, I can go ahead and kill the yeast.  No carbonation that way though.  I think the corn sugar is to drive the abv up.  I like the idea of using some brown sugar...the molasses will give it a nice taste.  Will try splitting the difference this time between the corn sugar and brown sugar.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Sep 25, 2008)

Put together the apfelwine recipe today.

5 gallons Motts apple juice
1 pound dextrose
1 pound dark brown sugar
1 Cinnamon stick
1/2 vanilla bean
Cote Des Blancs yeast

OG 1.062

Fermenting away as we speak.  Bubble a second, no krausen like beer.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Sep 26, 2008)

Looks like I'm talking to myself here.

Just found some great deals at this going out of business sale:

http://store.brewerscorner.com/


----------



## UnaBonger (Sep 26, 2008)

I got mine together Wednesday. Just followed th basic recipe but used a champagne yeast instead of the wine yeast. After sitting in the carboy for nearly a day and a half, I'm not seeing much fermentation but am wondering if its just because of the different yeast type... I'm trying real hard to just forget about it and let it go for 4 weeks.

Edit - Went down and checked it this morning and all is well in Apfelwein land  Fermentation is going like crazy... Whew...


----------



## BeanoNYC (Sep 26, 2008)

UnaBonger said:


> I got mine together Wednesday. Just followed th basic recipe but used a champagne yeast instead of the wine yeast. After sitting in the carboy for nearly a day and a half, I'm not seeing much fermentation but am wondering if its just because of the different yeast type... I'm trying real hard to just forget about it and let it go for 4 weeks.
> 
> Edit - Went down and checked it this morning and all is well in Apfelwein land  Fermentation is going like crazy... Whew...



From what I understand there is not much Krausen with this fermentation.  As long as the bubbler is popping, you should be ok.  It's cranking now.  Got a slight sulfer smell, but that's expected for a few days according to HBT. 

Edit: didn't see your fermenting finally.  Took a day for mine to crank.  Good vibes!


----------



## BeanoNYC (Sep 26, 2008)

UnaBonger said:


> Edit - Went down and checked it this morning and all is well in Apfelwein land  Fermentation is going like crazy... Whew...



Una...would you like to work out a swap of a 22 ounce bottle or two?  I'd love to taste the unadulterated recipe.  Maybe we can work together to make an official AZ cider recipe.


----------



## UnaBonger (Sep 26, 2008)

BeanoNYC said:


> Una...would you like to work out a swap of a 22 ounce bottle or two?  I'd love to taste the unadulterated recipe.  Maybe we can work together to make an official AZ cider recipe.



Of course I'd be happy to work out a swap   After reading your recipe, I was wondering how it would come out and thinking my next batch would be something like you did. This way, I wont have to wait so long 

Still have to wait a month or so, plenty of time to work out the details.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Sep 26, 2008)

UnaBonger said:


> Of course I'd be happy to work out a swap   After reading your recipe, I was wondering how it would come out and thinking my next batch would be something like you did. This way, I wont have to wait so long
> 
> Still have to wait a month or so, plenty of time to work out the details.



True!  I plan on carbonating my bottle.  I can prime and send off to you provided you promise to wait 3 weeks before opening.  I would offer to drop it off on my way to VT, but skiing in December will be difficult as I have a little one due on December 2nd.


----------



## UnaBonger (Sep 26, 2008)

BeanoNYC said:


> True!  I plan on carbonating my bottle.  I can prime and send off to you provided you promise to wait 3 weeks before opening.  I would offer to drop it off on my way to VT, but skiing in December will be difficult as I have a little one due on December 2nd.



There's a chance I will be in the city sometime in November. if so, we can work out the details and maybe grab a beer somewhere for the swap or do it through shipping. Either way works for me...

Being my first attempt at this no promises on the quality, but it certainly sounds fool proof aka Una proof 



Edit - I was going to carbonate as well...


----------



## roark (Sep 26, 2008)

Nice, I hope to get some cider together this year as well. Whenever I'm not so darn busy.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Sep 27, 2008)

Chugging away, no krausen.  Roark, should I expect any?


----------



## roark (Sep 27, 2008)

BeanoNYC said:


> Chugging away, no krausen.  Roark, should I expect any?


Wow, youtubing the fermentation. :lol:

I wouldn't worry about the lack of krausen.


----------



## UnaBonger (Sep 28, 2008)

Beano - Mine appears to be at the same stage as your is... It seems to have lightened in color and has gotten very cloudy. Also, my fermentation seems to have stopped/ended. Nothing noticeable coming from the airlock... I have mine sitting at 70 - 72 degrees. As I understand (from reading on HBT), you don't need to keep it covered as light doesn't have a negative effect on this. I think its the hops in beer that light can mess with and alter the flavor of beer...


----------



## BeanoNYC (Sep 28, 2008)

UnaBonger said:


> Beano - Mine appears to be at the same stage as your is... It seems to have lightened in color and has gotten very cloudy. Also, my fermentation seems to have stopped/ended. Nothing noticeable coming from the airlock... I have mine sitting at 70 - 72 degrees. As I understand (from reading on HBT), you don't need to keep it covered as light doesn't have a negative effect on this. I think its the hops in beer that light can mess with and alter the flavor of beer...



The room that it's fermenting in is at 68.  I threw the fleece throw on it just in case it dropped any further. I have to figure out what I should do to keep fermenting temps up in the winter.  Might move my setup to a utility closet in the kitchen.  Not too sure how keen I was anyway fermenting so close to my tuning bench.   My airlock is still going strong, albeit a bit slower now.


----------



## roark (Sep 29, 2008)

BeanoNYC said:


> I have to figure out what I should do to keep fermenting temps up in the winter.


 I've always taken a brew with the season approach. The california common lager yeast works well in the low 60's range. Also the chico ale yeast is incredibly tolerant of lower temps. If you have a spot that stays a bit cooler bocks are fun to try. 

Or you could buy more equipment - basically an electric blanket for your fermenter.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Sep 29, 2008)

roark said:


> I've always taken a brew with the season approach. The california common lager yeast works well in the low 60's range. Also the chico ale yeast is incredibly tolerant of lower temps. If you have a spot that stays a bit cooler bocks are fun to try.
> 
> Or you could buy more equipment - basically an electric blanket for your fermenter.



Ahhh.  That's a good point.  I'm still green when it comes to brewing knowledge so I wouldn't know what to brew when.  Maybe I'll poke around HBT for some lower temp recipes.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Oct 8, 2008)

Brewed a Nut Brown Ale on Saturday.  (Partial Mash) Looking to make a Stout on Columbus day.  (Partial Mash, as well)  First batch tastes good!  Hoppier than I expected too!  Very satisfying to drink my own homebrew indeed.  Got a lead on some cornies.  80 bucks for 4.  Pressure tested with new o-rings.  My neighbor/brew buddy and I are are considering.  This guy has about 200 of them if anyone is interested.  He only sells in lots of 4.

Also thinking about jerry-rigging a water basin with an aquarium heater to put my fermentation vessel in for the winter months.  Figured it's a nifty way to keep temps up in the winter.  Heater would go in the water + Carboy in the water = Indirect heating.  Thoughts?  I'm particularly interested in Marc's reaction from a safety point of view.


----------



## roark (Oct 8, 2008)

BeanoNYC said:


> Brewed a Nut Brown Ale on Saturday. (Partial Mash) Looking to make a Stout on Columbus day. (Partial Mash, as well) First batch tastes good! Hoppier than I expected too! Very satisfying to drink my own homebrew indeed. Got a lead on some cornies. 80 bucks for 4. Pressure tested with new o-rings. My neighbor/brew buddy and I are are considering. This guy has about 200 of them if anyone is interested. He only sells in lots of 4.
> 
> Also thinking about jerry-rigging a water basin with an aquarium heater to put my fermentation vessel in for the winter months. Figured it's a nifty way to keep temps up in the winter. Heater would go in the water + Carboy in the water = Indirect heating. Thoughts? I'm particularly interested in Marc's reaction from a safety point of view.


 
Aha soon you will be a full mash convert. Cheaper and you have a greater range of flavors. The downside is the extra 2 hours or so.

Good deal on the kegs. Typically I've seen more like $30 pressure tested, but no seals replaced. I might be interested in one if anybody wants to split up a lot. I can't see myself using more than 2 kegs these days.

Interesting idea on the heater.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Oct 8, 2008)

roark said:


> Aha soon you will be a full mash convert. Cheaper and you have a greater range of flavors. The downside is the extra 2 hours or so.
> 
> Good deal on the kegs. Typically I've seen more like $30 pressure tested, but no seals replaced. I might be interested in one if anybody wants to split up a lot. I can't see myself using more than 2 kegs these days.
> 
> Interesting idea on the heater.



I'd  split the batch with you.  My only concern is logistics. I won't be up north for a while on account of the baby coming. When I do, I can certainly swing by keene. We can look into a shipping charge too.   If someone closer to you is interested, I can keep the 4.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Oct 31, 2008)

Oh Yeah!


----------



## roark (Oct 31, 2008)

BeanoNYC said:


> Oh Yeah!


Nice. Looks a lot like my setup. I'd recommend drilling a hole and mounting a tower, something I've been meaning to do with my setup for awhile now. Is that fridge big enough for 2 kegs (or a carboy)?


----------



## BeanoNYC (Oct 31, 2008)

roark said:


> Nice. Looks a lot like my setup. I'd recommend drilling a hole and mounting a tower, something I've been meaning to do with my setup for awhile now. Is that fridge big enough for 2 kegs (or a carboy)?



Big enough for 2 kegs w/o the tank, but the fridge is on loan.  No drilling.  What do you mean by a tower?  I'm thinking about picking up a chest freezer and putting a temp controller on it.  I'll drill 3 or 4 taps into the front.

Edit:  I figured out what you meant.  That's a 6 foot fridge, no tower.


----------



## ctenidae (Nov 17, 2008)

The Kolsch I bottled 2 weeks ago made its debut this weekend. Nice and light, fairly wheaty. Took a 6 pack down to my brother-in-law in Jersey- got good ans shaken up in the car, but we let it settle in the fridge for 2 hours. Even still, quite a lot of suspended yeast, distinct phenol kick on teh backside. The ones here at home are much better, since they've settled out very well.

Put a Scotch Ale into the fermenter last night. Starting gravity oc 1052. Ought to be a good one.


----------



## Marc (Nov 17, 2008)

ctenidae said:


> The Kolsch I bottled 2 weeks ago made its debut this weekend. Nice and light, fairly wheaty. Took a 6 pack down to my brother-in-law in Jersey- got good ans shaken up in the car, but we let it settle in the fridge for 2 hours. Even still, quite a lot of suspended yeast, distinct phenol kick on teh backside. The ones here at home are much better, since they've settled out very well.
> 
> Put a Scotch Ale into the fermenter last night. Starting gravity oc 1052. Ought to be a good one.



Wow, any of that one for sale?  I love scotch ales.


----------



## ctenidae (Nov 17, 2008)

Marc said:


> Wow, any of that one for sale?  I love scotch ales.



You can't sell homebrew.
Wrong number! Prank caller! Prank caller!

After Thanksgiving, come on by.


----------



## Marc (Nov 17, 2008)

ctenidae said:


> You can't sell homebrew.
> Wrong number! Prank caller! Prank caller!
> 
> After Thanksgiving, come on by.



Sure you can.  You just have to make sure the ATF doesn't find out.

Wait, what?



How about a barter for some locally grown fresh hop cones at the end of the growing season next year?


----------



## UnaBonger (Nov 17, 2008)

I'm bottling a Kolsch tonight  

Brewed a coffee stout this weekend... Cant wait to tear into that 

BeanoNYC - My unadulterated Apfelwein came out great. I must say I think I have some brewing envy after seeing yourpic up above


----------



## ctenidae (Nov 17, 2008)

Marc said:


> Sure you can.  You just have to make sure the ATF doesn't find out.
> 
> Wait, what?
> 
> ...



Barter is certainly outside the ATF jurisdiction. For that, you're on.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Nov 17, 2008)

You're looking at a long fermentation with that OG, CTen?

Killed off the yeast and backsweetened the Apfelwine.  Kegged it yesterday.  I'll give it a week on the gas before giving it a go.


----------



## roark (Nov 17, 2008)

ctenidae said:


> Put a Scotch Ale into the fermenter last night. Starting gravity oc 1052. Ought to be a good one.


 


BeanoNYC said:


> You're looking at a long fermentation with that OG, CTen?


1052 is pretty much standard strength, no? ~5.5%?

Heh, in ~50 batches I think I only had a couple less than that. Always figured for the time I put in I might as well get some bang out of it.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Nov 17, 2008)

roark said:


> 1052 is pretty much standard strength, no? ~5.5%?
> 
> Heh, in ~50 batches I think I only had a couple less than that. Always figured for the time I put in I might as well get some bang out of it.



You're right...I read it as 1.062.


----------



## eatskisleep (Nov 17, 2008)

Greg said:


> Word.
> 
> I made a two batches of beer during my short homebrew career. A Sam Adams like lager and a stout. Both came out good. I found it too time consuming and cumbersome to make it worthwhile, but it was interesting. But if you have the time to do it, I'll be happy to sample a few for ya...
> :beer:



How long does it usually take to brew your own stuff?


----------



## BeanoNYC (Nov 17, 2008)

eatskisleep said:


> How long does it usually take to brew your own stuff?


Are you asking from brew day to drinkable beer, or time spent during brew day?


----------



## ctenidae (Nov 17, 2008)

eatskisleep said:


> How long does it usually take to brew your own stuff?



Day 1: Brew. All in (boil, cool, pitch) 3-4 hours (give or take. Fluctuates based on beer intake and preparedness)
Day 2-5: sit and wait
Day 6: Bottle ~2-3 hours, again depending on level of preparedness and beer intake.
Day 7- 21: Wait Varies based on beer intake.
Day 22: Enjoy.

All times are estimates. Your mileage may vary.


----------



## jaja111 (Nov 17, 2008)

ctenidae said:


> Day 1: Brew. All in (boil, cool, pitch) 3-4 hours (give or take. Fluctuates based on beer intake and preparedness)
> Day 2-5: sit and wait
> Day 6: Bottle ~2-3 hours, again depending on level of preparedness and beer intake.
> Day 7- 21: Wait Varies based on beer intake.
> ...



Dear god, you're joking right? 6 days and then to the bottle? Ever had any grenade?


----------



## ctenidae (Nov 17, 2008)

jaja111 said:


> Dear god, you're joking right? 6 days and then to the bottle? Ever had any grenade?



Had one from the last batch crack, not sure if it was a pressur thing, a cheap bottle, or a hit. Never had a full blowout (knock on wood)


----------



## roark (Nov 17, 2008)

jaja111 said:


> Dear god, you're joking right? 6 days and then to the bottle? Ever had any grenade?


agreed, I usually go 3 days to 1 wk primary, at least another wk secondary. But I don't make weak beer either. ;-)


----------



## ctenidae (Nov 17, 2008)

roark said:


> agreed, I usually go 3 days to 1 wk primary, at least another wk secondary. But I don't make weak beer either. ;-)



6 days is between 3 and 7.
I don't currently have a secondary, either. Besides, the secondary doesn't really do anything for alcohol content, unless you're dumping a bunch of sugar in it again.

Besides, asking a question about the timeline indicates someone who has not done homebrewing, and as such is unlikely to be involved in secondary fermenting or any of teh intracacies. So, the time line I laid out is appropriate.

So there.
:beer:


----------



## BeanoNYC (Nov 17, 2008)

jaja111 said:


> Dear god, you're joking right? 6 days and then to the bottle? Ever had any grenade?




Meh...if your gravity is reading the same for three days you're out of the woods.  I've been going a week in the primary, 2 in the secondary, Cold Crash overnight then keg.


----------



## UnaBonger (Nov 18, 2008)

I've been averaging 2 - 4 weeks in primary, bottle then condition for another 2 weeks min... Patience is a virtue


----------



## Marc (Nov 18, 2008)

I usually bottle 2 - 3 days after seeing that last bubble come through the air lock.  Yeah... I sit and watch the air lock because I have nothing better to do with my time.  Usually about 2 weeks.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Nov 18, 2008)

Marc said:


> I sit and watch the air lock because I have nothing better to do with my time.  Usually about 2 weeks.



I like to watch the whole fermentation process.  That's why I use a carboy for primary now.  It's really the only advantage to using a carboy.


----------



## UnaBonger (Nov 18, 2008)

BeanoNYC said:


> I like to watch the whole fermentation process.  That's why I use a carboy for primary now.  It's really the only advantage to using a carboy.



It's really rather relaxing to just sit and watch the bubbles come out of the airlock and the wort (or is it beer now once fermentation begins?) swirling around...


----------



## Marc (Nov 19, 2008)

UnaBonger said:


> It's really rather relaxing to just sit and watch the bubbles come out of the airlock and the wort (or is it beer now once fermentation begins?) swirling around...



If it's still too week to be considered beer, I like to call it beert.


----------



## ctenidae (Jan 29, 2009)

I put 5 gallons of apple cider into the fermenter on New Year's Eve.
Still bubbling. About 1 a minute.


I'm a little scared. Haven't checked the gravity yet (started at 1080 or so, IIRC). It'll either be rocket fuel, or tasty rocket fuel, I think.


----------



## roark (Jan 29, 2009)

ctenidae said:


> I put 5 gallons of apple cider into the fermenter on New Year's Eve.
> Still bubbling. About 1 a minute.
> 
> 
> I'm a little scared. Haven't checked the gravity yet (started at 1080 or so, IIRC). It'll either be rocket fuel, or tasty rocket fuel, I think.


 
Champagne yeast? I did that once for a cyser and it finished well below 1.000. Puckeringly dry. Good for the first couple months but then the fruit faded and all that was left was alcohol.

1.080 sounds high, did you add other fermentables?


----------



## ctenidae (Jan 29, 2009)

roark said:


> Champagne yeast? I did that once for a cyser and it finished well below 1.000. Puckeringly dry. Good for the first couple months but then the fruit faded and all that was left was alcohol.
> 
> 1.080 sounds high, did you add other fermentables?



Champagne yeast, and about a cup of light brown sugar.
OG may be high because the cider was unfiltered, and was pretty thick and sweet. Part of the drop, if/when it occurs, from OG to FG will, undoubtedly, be from sediment settling out.

On a seperate but related note, I found a packet of gelatin left over from some kit at some point. Anyone ever use it? If so, how'd it work? I'm thinking fining the cider might make sense, since A) it had a lot of particulates, and 2) It had a lot of particulates


----------



## roark (Jan 29, 2009)

Used isinglass a couple times, followed the directions.


That was helpful, wasn't it.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Jan 29, 2009)

ctenidae said:


> Champagne yeast, and about a cup of light brown sugar.
> OG may be high because the cider was unfiltered, and was pretty thick and sweet. Part of the drop, if/when it occurs, from OG to FG will, undoubtedly, be from sediment settling out.



I ended up adding campden tablets to stop fermentation then added sugar and apple extract to taste to make it more of a cider.  Many use frozen apple concentrate instead.  
Careful...this stuff will mess you up!

You could throw it in a secondary for a while but if your starting with an unfiltered cider, you may never get it clear unless you pour it through a filter.


----------



## Chris I (Jan 30, 2009)

I want to brew my own beer, looks fun.  Looks very similar to growing edible mushrooms

shiitake !


----------



## ctenidae (Jan 30, 2009)

BeanoNYC said:


> I ended up adding campden tablets to stop fermentation then added sugar and apple extract to taste to make it more of a cider.  Many use frozen apple concentrate instead.
> Careful...this stuff will mess you up!
> 
> You could throw it in a secondary for a while but if your starting with an unfiltered cider, you may never get it clear unless you pour it through a filter.



Def putting it into a secondary to age a bit. Maybe I'll draw a sample to check the gravity, and give it a taste. I wonder, though, how the flavor now will relate to the flavor after bottle conditioning.


----------



## Marc (Jan 30, 2009)

My friend, assisting in bottling, broke my siphon.


----------



## ctenidae (Jan 30, 2009)

Marc said:


> My friend, assisting in bottling, broke my siphon.



How do you break a piece of flexible tubing?

And, is he still your friend?


----------



## ctenidae (Jan 30, 2009)

roark said:


> Used isinglass a couple times, followed the directions.
> 
> 
> That was helpful, wasn't it.



In the event I need the input of a minorly experienced, strong direction reader, I will certainly come to you.

But, you bring up a good question: Isinglass, Irish Moss, or Gelatin- which clarifier reigns supreme?

And, is it even worth teh effort? Not that it's much effort, but it's just one more step. Personally, I wouldn't notice a chill haze if it bit me on the keister.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Jan 30, 2009)

ctenidae said:


> In the event I need the input of a minorly experienced, strong direction reader, I will certainly come to you.
> 
> But, you bring up a good question: Isinglass, Irish Moss, or Gelatin- which clarifier reigns supreme?
> 
> And, is it even worth teh effort? Not that it's much effort, but it's just one more step. Personally, I wouldn't notice a chill haze if it bit me on the keister.



I use irish moss, but you need to put that in a boil.

Also, as far as taste.  Will you be keeping it as a apfelwine of will you sweeten it?  Carb or no?


----------



## ctenidae (Jan 30, 2009)

BeanoNYC said:


> I use irish moss, but you need to put that in a boil.
> 
> Also, as far as taste.  Will you be keeping it as a apfelwine of will you sweeten it?  Carb or no?



Hadn't decided on sweetening. Guess it depends on how it's coming along. Will carbonate in the bottle, I think. Again, depends on the taste.

I did little or no research on making a cider before launching into this project, other than getting the yeast (English Cider Yeast, from Beer-Wine.com, I figure, this is the way my ancestors did it, seat of the pants, and all that. I may even split the batch, and bottle with and without added sugar, and see how they turn out. It's a topsy-turvy world, who can say what will happen?


----------



## Marc (Jan 30, 2009)

ctenidae said:


> How do you break a piece of flexible tubing?
> 
> And, is he still your friend?



Yes, he seems to be.  He didn't break the vinyl tubing... there's a 90 degree elbow that's part of the molded plastic plunger of the siphon... where you connect the vinyl tubing.  He broke that piece at the elbow.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Jan 30, 2009)

ctenidae said:


> Hadn't decided on sweetening. Guess it depends on how it's coming along. Will carbonate in the bottle, I think. Again, depends on the taste.
> 
> I did little or no research on making a cider before launching into this project, other than getting the yeast (English Cider Yeast, from Beer-Wine.com, I figure, this is the way my ancestors did it, seat of the pants, and all that. I may even split the batch, and bottle with and without added sugar, and see how they turn out. It's a topsy-turvy world, who can say what will happen?



If you want to bottle carb and sweeten, be sure to use splenda or lactose or else:

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!!!!!!!

I kegged my cider and forced carb, so not an issue.


----------



## ctenidae (Jan 30, 2009)

BeanoNYC said:


> If you want to bottle carb and sweeten, be sure to use splenda or lactose or else:
> 
> BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!!!!!!!
> 
> I kegged my cider and forced carb, so not an issue.



Hmmm...A couple of grenades might be a good incentive for my wife to support a kegging system...


----------



## BeanoNYC (Jan 30, 2009)

ctenidae said:


> Hmmm...A couple of grenades might be a good incentive for my wife to support a kegging system...



That's the spirit!  Just put some sugar water in a bottle and pitch a package of yeast in that sucker.  I'll be honest, kegging makes the process much easier.  I'll be purchasing a small chest freezer eventually to convert into a keggerator.


----------



## ctenidae (Feb 17, 2009)

Coopers Amber Plain Malt Extract- 6.5 lbs
Crystal Malt - 1 lb
Cascade Hop Pellets - 2 Ounce
Fuggles Hop Pellets - 1 Ounce
SafBrew T  58 Ale Yeast


Just ordered this recipe. Sort of a basic Bitters, I think. May add 1/4 lb brown sugar to get it closer to an actual bitters.
Maybe.
Maybe it will taste like a pale ale.
Maybe it will be a Belgian
Maybe it'll be total skunk. Who knows?
Anyway, it is now my official base-line beer, from which all future beers will be born.
Unless it tastes like total ass, in which case I'll try something new.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Feb 17, 2009)

ctenidae said:


> Coopers Amber Plain Malt Extract- 6.5 lbs
> Crystal Malt - 1 lb
> Cascade Hop Pellets - 2 Ounce
> Fuggles Hop Pellets - 1 Ounce
> ...



Roark is going to tell you to substitute a dark malt extract for the brown sugar.   I will agree with him.


----------



## GrilledSteezeSandwich (Feb 17, 2009)

I don't think I told you guys but I used to work at Big Hole Brewary in Belgrade Montana.  I worked on the assembly line packing cases and what-not.  Anyway we were allowed to take home the low fills, the bottles that had 10-11 ounces of beer.  My favorites were Headstrong and Mythical White..I would take home way more beer than I could drink so I would hook friends up with beer and get homecooked meals in exchange.  The worst thing ever was one day, they had to throw away a few pallets of spoiled beer which was not popular.  We helped load the cases into a truck and it just seemed so wrong..as microbrews only have a shelf life of around 90 days..

One day I like to brew my own beer..


----------



## ctenidae (Feb 17, 2009)

BeanoNYC said:


> Roark is going to tell you to substitute a dark malt extract for the brown sugar.   I will agree with him.



Yeah, but I already placed the order, and the dark malt doesn't come in a small enough size for my purposes at this time. Also, for a baseline, I figured staying with sort of middle-of-the-road ingredients is good. Perhaps, if this turns out decently, I'll adjust up the darkness scale.

I wonder- would 1 light and 1 dark malt taste the same as 2 Amber? A question to be answered on, perhaps, the next batch...

How well does malt keep? Say I only used 2 lbs of a 4 lb can- could I put the other half in a non-reactive container and stash it in teh fridge for a while?


----------



## BeanoNYC (Feb 17, 2009)

ctenidae said:


> How well does malt keep? Say I only used 2 lbs of a 4 lb can- could I put the other half in a non-reactive container and stash it in teh fridge for a while?



I would crush dark grains, put them in a hop sock and start the boil with that before adding the extract.  Any leftover will keep better than an open can of extract.  

Edit:  There has to be a homebrew shop in Boston where you can pick up some grains.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Feb 17, 2009)

GrilledSteezeSandwich said:


> One day I like to brew my own beer..



You should totally give it a try.  It's very rewarding.  I just started within the last year and I love it.  I got all nerdy and read two great book and joined a brewing forum.  My next door neighbor and I brew and keg together.  It's great!


----------



## ctenidae (Feb 17, 2009)

BeanoNYC said:


> I would crush dark grains, put them in a hop sock and start the boil with that before adding the extract.  Any leftover will keep better than an open can of extract.
> 
> Edit:  There has to be a homebrew shop in Boston where you can pick up some grains.



There's one in Cambridge I used to go to (Homebrew Emporium), but I'm in Connecticut 5 of 7 days now, and the closes store is about 1 hour away. This end of the state sucks.


----------



## jaja111 (Feb 17, 2009)

ctenidae said:


> Yeah, but I already placed the order, and the dark malt doesn't come in a small enough size for my purposes at this time. Also, for a baseline, I figured staying with sort of middle-of-the-road ingredients is good. Perhaps, if this turns out decently, I'll adjust up the darkness scale.
> 
> I wonder- would 1 light and 1 dark malt taste the same as 2 Amber? A question to be answered on, perhaps, the next batch...
> 
> How well does malt keep? Say I only used 2 lbs of a 4 lb can- could I put the other half in a non-reactive container and stash it in teh fridge for a while?



I would definitely avoid the brown sugar. Seems it yields some super nasty flavors - think band aids, buring plastic, poorly made wine, etc. 

I've found that the darkness of the malt has little effect on anything other than the darkness of the beer. No real noticeable taste difference with Coopers or Muntons. Try partial mashing. Its easier than you would think and you have greater control and less cost. 

And finally, I wouldn't expect an opened tin of malt to stay good for very long (2 days maybe) considering its concentrated sugars which, aside from yeast, are greatly loved by bacteria


----------



## BeanoNYC (Feb 17, 2009)

I added sugar to my cide/apfelwine but that was to raise the alcohol content.  I think sugar will give it a "cidery" finish.  That's what I was looking for with the apfelwine anyway, so I went with it.  Turned out nice.  Beer is another story...


----------



## frozencorn (Feb 18, 2009)

It's Rhode Island, so not sure if that's more convenient, but try this guy out. He's great. He recently got me set up with all my stuff and I bottled my first batch Monday night. 

http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/2019/?view=beerfly&ba=mrbosworth

Also, the Cambridge place has another shop in Boylston.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Feb 18, 2009)

frozencorn;391989\I bottled my first batch Monday night. 

[URL said:
			
		

> http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/2019/?view=beerfly&ba=mrbosworth[/URL]




Sweet!  What type a beer?  What were your gravity readings!  Tell, Tell, Tell!


----------



## frozencorn (Feb 18, 2009)

Can't recall the readings off hand....got em at home somewhere where I wrote em down right before I cracked my hydrometer in two. That was fun. It's a dark ale that my guy hooked me up with, so we'll see.


----------



## ctenidae (Feb 26, 2009)

First taste of my Smithwick's clone brew- tastes great, maybe a bit darker and hoppier than regular Smithwick's, but darn tasty.

Sorry Marc- the Scottish is all gone. I did bottle the cider, finally, last night. Tastes great, even flat and warm.


----------



## FRITOLAYGUY (Feb 27, 2009)

So my cousin thinks hes a brewmaster now it was decent, hes got some wacky ideas of creating the perfect batch over and over and making a  side job out of it selling it, anyone know of someone that has actually had success doing anything like that?


----------



## frozencorn (Feb 27, 2009)

FRITOLAYGUY said:


> So my cousin thinks hes a brewmaster now it was decent, hes got some wacky ideas of creating the perfect batch over and over and making a  side job out of it selling it, anyone know of someone that has actually had success doing anything like that?



Two off the top of my head: The guys who started Cisco Brewing and the guys who founded Peak Organic.


----------



## ctenidae (Feb 27, 2009)

frozencorn said:


> Two off the top of my head: The guys who started Cisco Brewing and the guys who founded Peak Organic.



Boston Brewing started the same way. You know, Sam Adams.


----------



## frozencorn (Feb 27, 2009)

ctenidae said:


> Boston Brewing started the same way. You know, Sam Adams.



Yes, that little place as well.


----------



## BeanoNYC (Feb 27, 2009)

ctenidae said:


> Boston Brewing started the same way. You know, Sam Adams.




The largest U.S. Brewer nowadays.


----------



## frozencorn (Feb 27, 2009)

BeanoNYC said:


> The largest U.S. Brewer nowadays.



I know. It's crazy. Crazier even that so many are foreign-owned it pushes Yeungling to No. 2 and Sierra Nevada to 3.


----------



## FRITOLAYGUY (Feb 28, 2009)

Now in order to sell it to actual bars , etc u need to get a liquor license correct?  I mean drinking it and giving it to your friends is one thing and even though the bars or whoever would sell your beer directly to customers u need a license to sell it to them to begin with correct?


----------



## BeanoNYC (Feb 28, 2009)

FRITOLAYGUY said:


> Now in order to sell it to actual bars , etc u need to get a liquor license correct?  I mean drinking it and giving it to your friends is one thing and even though the bars or whoever would sell your beer directly to customers u need a license to sell it to them to begin with correct?



At the very least, I would think that you would need state licenses and health inspections.


----------



## ctenidae (Mar 3, 2009)

BeanoNYC said:


> At the very least, I would think that you would need state licenses and health inspections.



Federal license, tax numbers, 4 zillion permits, adn all that.
Doable, for certain. But not as simple as enjoying a fresh brew on your couch at home.


----------



## severine (Mar 3, 2009)

I'd add liability insurance...


----------



## frozencorn (Mar 3, 2009)

Those dudes in the AT&T commercial did it no problem though....


----------



## ctenidae (Mar 3, 2009)

frozencorn said:


> Those dudes in the AT&T commercial did it no problem though....



That's true- from start up to international distribution in 5 easy steps. Can't be all that hard.


----------



## FRITOLAYGUY (Mar 4, 2009)

Ok whos in, its free to enter the sam adams homebrew contest, thats what this whole threads about right, u must homebrew to enter this, we have the end of april.  http://www.samueladams.com/promotions/LongShot/


----------



## BeanoNYC (Mar 4, 2009)

FRITOLAYGUY said:


> Ok whos in, its free to enter the sam adams homebrew contest, thats what this whole threads about right, u must homebrew to enter this, we have the end of april.  http://www.samueladams.com/promotions/LongShot/




Ha!  If I had the equipment for an all grain batch I'd think of it.


----------



## drjeff (Mar 4, 2009)

While not exactly a homebrew per se,  there was a VERY interesting article(atleast to me) in today's _Brattleboro Reformer_ about a guy from Dummerston,VT who now works for Harpoon and how his own recipe for a Maple Wheat Ale is now being brewed/released!  Mmmmm Maple Beer!

http://www.reformer.com/ci_11832353

"A touch of gold
Brewery uses local man's recipe for maple beer
By HOWARD WEISS-TISMAN, Reformer Staff



Wednesday, March 4
DUMMERSTON -- As a kid growing up in Dummerston, maple syrup was John Baker's favorite golden liquid. 
Every year in the early spring, the Baker family would gather friends and families to their home in Dummerston to gather and boil sap. 

Now, as an employee of Harpoon Brewery, Baker has another golden liquid that he likes just as much as maple syrup: beer. 

He likes brewing it, selling it, talking about it and drinking it. 

This month, Baker's two favorite golden liquids will be available in beer coolers all over New England and the rest of the country. 

Harpoon Brewery has released Maple Wheat Ale, an original recipe that Baker developed with the brewers at Harpoon and includes some syrup from his family's sugarbush. 

"It's a way of combining my two favorite things," Baker said this week from Chicago, where he is now working as Harpoon's Great Lakes area regional area sales manager. "When I was a kid, I wasn't thinking of making maple beer, but now I'm a beer enthusiast and we like to get wacky once in a while." 

Baker went to work at Harpoon, a Boston company that now brews at the former Catamount brewery in Windsor, right out of college. 

He first made some maple beer for his father as a Christmas present. 

"John made a batch and gave it to his father," his mother, Debbie Baker, said. "Then he gave some to the folks at work. They thought it was great and so do we." 

Making 


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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
syrup is a longstanding family tradition, Debbie Baker said, and she said John learned about more than the basics of boiling syrup during those warm spring days. 
"Helping out the family was part of the deal," she said. "All his friends would come over and it helped build a good work ethic." 

John Baker knew he had a pretty good recipe when he made that first batch for his dad. 

He knew most brewers tend to stay away from maple syrup because it is expensive, but he decided to pass some on to the owners of Harpoon. 

He was proud of the beer and didn't really think it would end up on a grocery store shelf someday, but Harpoon president and co-founder Dan Kenary thought the brew was pretty good. 

"We've been interested in making a maple syrup beer for a while," Kenary said. "John made some and it was delicious. It's great stuff." 

Baker had already been a popular employee around Harpoon after giving out tins of his family's maple syrup around Christmas. 

"Everyone loves it and we got to talking about how much fun it would be to do a maple beer," said Kenary. "John took it from there. He did a test batch and it was delicious." 

Some of the maple syrup in the Maple Wheat Ale comes from Scrag Mountain sugarhouse in Waitsfield. 

Harpoon is producing the beer under its "100 Barrel Batch" label. 

The brewery experiments with different flavors and ingredients that might be a little more expensive and experimental and the Maple Wheat Ale is now on the shelves in 22-ounce bottles. 

John Baker is not the first one to add maple syrup to beer. 

For the past five years, he has been talking to retailers and distributors about various Harpoon products and now he can talk to them about a brew he helped develop, and one that even has his signature on the bottle. 

"People laughed at me when I first talked about this," he said. "When you are using maple in food, you want it to be delicate. You don't want to overwhelm the beer. And with this, the recipe is key. It's good." 

Maple Wheat Ale is available at the Brattleboro Food Co-op and Harpoon is hosting a special tasting party with John Baker at the Windsor brewery tonight at 6. 

More information is available at Harpoon's Web site, www.harpoonbrewery.com. 

Howard Weiss-Tisman can be reached at hwtisman@reform-er.com or 802-254-2311, ext. 279"


----------



## drjeff (Mar 6, 2009)

drjeff said:


> While not exactly a homebrew per se,  there was a VERY interesting article(atleast to me) in today's _Brattleboro Reformer_ about a guy from Dummerston,VT who now works for Harpoon and how his own recipe for a Maple Wheat Ale is now being brewed/released!  Mmmmm Maple Beer!
> 
> http://www.reformer.com/ci_11832353
> 
> ...



I picked up a couple of bottles of this today at the Brattleboro Food Co-op.  It's from Harpoon's 100 Barrel series (batch #26)   Nice brew.  Medium Amber/Carmel color, light foam on pour, distinct Maple aroma.  Initial taste reminded me ALOT of Sam Adams Boston Lager,  but the finish was slightly hoppier and ended with a subtle but definite maple flavor   Nice beer for my palate


----------



## ctenidae (Jun 17, 2009)

Made a 10 gallon batch last night with 13.2 lbs amber malt, 2 lbs 2-row Crystal malt, and 2 oz Fuggles and 2 ozCascade hops. Split the batch in two, and pitched one with Safbrew T-58 yeast (which I've used several times now and like a lot) and the other with the 99 cent basic Muntons beer yeast. OG was 1050. 

Interested to see what difference the two yeast strains makes.


----------



## ctenidae (Jul 6, 2009)

Early results of the yeast test are dramatic. The cheap yeast tastes like alow-mid grade homebrew. Malty, sweet, a touch yeasty an a little green tasting. Low carbonation, and an excess of drub in the bottles. The T-58, on the other hand, is much smoother, a touch of spicy tang, and undertones of a Belgian Abby style. Stronger carbonation (fine bubbles, creamy head), and little muck left in the bottle. 

Take home lesson for today- buy good yeast. It makes a difference.
Next side-by-side yeast comparison will have to wait until I find another yeast I like. Darn it all, that means I'll have to brew up several more batches. However, next batch will be a hefewiessen for my wife.


----------



## scootertig (Jul 6, 2009)

I've got a side-by-side yeast comparison going right now, too, with the Wyeast 2206 (Bavarian Lager) and the Octoberfest Blend (2633).  10 gal batch, split to 5 and 5 with each yeast.  Early results are interesting, as I think I like the Octoberfest blend more, but it's going to lager for another 11 weeks...

Do you use mostly dry yeast?


aaron


----------



## ctenidae (Jul 6, 2009)

scootertig said:


> I've got a side-by-side yeast comparison going right now, too, with the Wyeast 2206 (Bavarian Lager) and the Octoberfest Blend (2633).  10 gal batch, split to 5 and 5 with each yeast.  Early results are interesting, as I think I like the Octoberfest blend more, but it's going to lager for another 11 weeks...
> 
> Do you use mostly dry yeast?
> 
> ...



I've used liquid yeast a couple of times, but not enough to decide if I like it better or not. Really, the only reason I use mostly dry is that I order my supplies from beer-wine.com, and though they're usually very quick on delivery, you never know, and I'd hate for a shipment to get held up a week or something in either the middle of summer or the middle of winter, and have the yeast go bad.


----------



## scootertig (Jul 6, 2009)

ctenidae said:


> I've used liquid yeast a couple of times, but not enough to decide if I like it better or not. Really, the only reason I use mostly dry is that I order my supplies from beer-wine.com, and though they're usually very quick on delivery, you never know, and I'd hate for a shipment to get held up a week or something in either the middle of summer or the middle of winter, and have the yeast go bad.



True.  I'm lucky to have a local shop that stocks fresh liquid yeast, so that's pretty much all I use (and I re-use yeast, when I can).  I brewed a kolsch yesterday, and should be gearing up for an altbier in the next week or two... Gotta have those German-style beers ready for Oktoberfest, you know!


aaron


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## ctenidae (Jul 6, 2009)

I'm just now getting my bottle supply up to levels where I can keep two beers in rotation. Next benchmark is having bottles enough for some longer term cellaring.

Mmmm, Oktoberfest...


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## jaja111 (Aug 16, 2009)

ctenidae said:


> I'm just now getting my bottle supply up to levels where I can keep two beers in rotation. Next benchmark is having bottles enough for some longer term cellaring.
> 
> Mmmm, Oktoberfest...



One word for ya - kegging.

I fell into a stale period just not having the time or energy to bottle, but still wanted to brew badly. 4 Corny kegs, a regulator, and a CO2 tank saved my hobby. I should have done this in the first place. And with kegs, more time is free for just brewing.... time for some crazy shit:

Keg1: Peach Pale Ale (6lbs of peaches secondaried in a heavy Cascaded IPA..... tastes damn good - a winner)
Keg2: Sweet Cocoa Stout (learned that just a few heaping tablespoons of 65% cocoa powder in the boil is a winner)
Secondary: Smoked Pale (trying out 2lb addition of smoked malt to a Pale)
Primary1: Basil Beer (so what will handfuls of sweet basil added to the last 10mins of the boil taste like?)
Primary2: Who knows, maybe this weekend..... since I'm not washing, sanitizing, filling, and capping any bottles!

Do it - Keg. I don't even have a fridge yet, just a cold basement for now and its still worth it.


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## ctenidae (Aug 17, 2009)

jaja111 said:


> One word for ya - kegging.
> 
> Do it - Keg. I don't even have a fridge yet, just a cold basement for now and its still worth it.



Funny you should say that- just this weekend, I bought a whole Tap-A-Brew system, complete with 4 5-liter minikegs (like Heineken comes in, sort of). Uses 2 8 gram CO2 cartridges. And, today I got my ingredients in for a pilsner.

Life is good.


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## tarponhead (Aug 26, 2009)

ok, Saturday is brew day again.

On order is a pils for the first go-around. I got the Victory Prima Pils recipe from Zymergy. Love that beer. Then brew #2 is my own tried and tested Octoberfest recipe. Last lager-fest of the season before I have to shut down the chest freezer. 

I don't brew as often now so when I do it's double batches. Once I did a triple batch and I will do it again but that was a lonnggggg day (7AM till near midnight)

I brew whole grain, thats why it takes so long. But I like doing it, and when I buy grain in bulk (currently got 150 lbs in the basement) my costs for a 5 gal batch is under $15 (yeast/hops included).

I'll probably get one more brew session in before I shut down for winter (who can make beer when we got to ski?). That will be my favorate style - weizenbock -  and probably an american pale ale or rightously hopped IPA.


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## ctenidae (Aug 27, 2009)

ctenidae said:


> Funny you should say that- just this weekend, I bought a whole Tap-A-Brew system, complete with 4 5-liter minikegs (like Heineken comes in, sort of). Uses 2 8 gram CO2 cartridges. And, today I got my ingredients in for a pilsner.
> 
> Life is good.



So, since I'm an idiot, life isn't as good as I'd hoped. After brewing the Pilsner, I went to prepare the yeast for pitching, and realized I forgot to order it. So, what to do? I put in an order, and put the wort into the fermenter, hoping it would hold for a couple of days waiting for the yeast to come in. I kept checking on teh fermentation lock, adn it wasn't bubbling, so I figured I might be safe. Got the yeast yesterday, and when I got home I popped the top off the fermenter, and lo and behold, it was going to town in there. Full foam head, and a powerful bitter smell. Apparently I didn't have the lid as tight as I should have on the bucket. I put the lid back on tight, and the lock started bubbling like mad.

So, I'll let it run its course, and maybe I'll have a geueze in the end. Probably won't bottle the whole batch, since it's just not worth the effort and space to have so many bottles of a beer style I don't much like, and will probably taste like the ass end of a dead camel, anyway.


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## Marc (Aug 27, 2009)

Yeah, that doesn't sound good.  I gave up on my plans for a hops arbor this year... maybe next year.  Who am I kidding, I'll be happy if I find time to brew another batch from kit in the near future.  That last stout I made was really good.


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## jaja111 (Sep 3, 2009)

ctenidae said:


> So, since I'm an idiot, life isn't as good as I'd hoped. After brewing the Pilsner, I went to prepare the yeast for pitching, and realized I forgot to order it. So, what to do? I put in an order, and put the wort into the fermenter, hoping it would hold for a couple of days waiting for the yeast to come in. I kept checking on teh fermentation lock, adn it wasn't bubbling, so I figured I might be safe. Got the yeast yesterday, and when I got home I popped the top off the fermenter, and lo and behold, it was going to town in there. Full foam head, and a powerful bitter smell. Apparently I didn't have the lid as tight as I should have on the bucket. I put the lid back on tight, and the lock started bubbling like mad.
> 
> So, I'll let it run its course, and maybe I'll have a geueze in the end. Probably won't bottle the whole batch, since it's just not worth the effort and space to have so many bottles of a beer style I don't much like, and will probably taste like the ass end of a dead camel, anyway.



Definitely bottle your lambic there. Let it age for a loooong time and it may turn out to be pretty good.


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## tarponhead (Sep 3, 2009)

jaja111 said:


> Definitely bottle your lambic there. Let it age for a loooong time and it may turn out to be pretty good.



Alternatively, if the "pucker factor" is to high for you, you can blend it with another ale to cut back on the flavor.

After bottling, keep a heavy blanket or tarp over it just to ensure you don't have bottle bombs.


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## jaja111 (Sep 7, 2009)

tarponhead said:


> Alternatively, if the "pucker factor" is to high for you, you can blend it with another ale to cut back on the flavor.
> 
> After bottling, keep a heavy blanket or tarp over it just to ensure you don't have bottle bombs.



I'll second that. My one experience with poorly mixed priming sugar yielded half a bottle's worth of glass embedded in a solid door. Scary stuff. Literally grenades.


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## ctenidae (Sep 8, 2009)

jaja111 said:


> Definitely bottle your lambic there. Let it age for a loooong time and it may turn out to be pretty good.



I went to bottle it, thinking I'd bottle a 12 pack or something and stick it in long-term storage. I opened the bucket, adn nearly gaged- no mold or anything funky growing, but the smell was clearly non-beer-like.  I was going to press onward and bottle some, anyway, but then I realized I had already packed up all the brewing equipment, so I dumped it. All in all, a beatiful example of piss-poor planning, on my part. Oh well. $40 down the drain. Or, at least, dumped in the yard.


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## tarponhead (Sep 8, 2009)

ctenidae said:


> I went to bottle it, thinking I'd bottle a 12 pack or something and stick it in long-term storage. I opened the bucket, adn nearly gaged- no mold or anything funky growing, but the smell was clearly non-beer-like.  I was going to press onward and bottle some, anyway, but then I realized I had already packed up all the brewing equipment, so I dumped it. All in all, a beatiful example of piss-poor planning, on my part. Oh well. $40 down the drain. Or, at least, dumped in the yard.



We have all had batches go to $__t. I had a pils that got infected because I got sloppy. Hopped it with a bucket-load of saaz, right when the hop shortage was driving up the prices and the noble hops were hard to come by... :angry:


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## BeanoNYC (Jan 4, 2011)

Resurrection Bump!

BJ's has turkey fryers on sale.  Picked one up for under $80 bucks.  Came with a 7 1/2 gallon, stainless steel pot, one gallon pot, thermometer and some other things pertinent to frying but not brewing. 

I plan on brewing a pale ale batch in the next few weeks and just bought a wort chiller to speed things up.  My next project is to build a kegerator out of a chest freezer (haven't purchased it yet.)  I'm planning on building a wooden collar around the keezer to put taps into.  Nothing too fancy, maybe three taps at most.  Probably getting a smaller, square-shaped freezer.  I already have two cornie kegs and a co2 cylinder with a double regulator.  Will eventually keep two of the kegs at the same pressure and use a "t" for the gas to save some $$.  

I am thinking about making some tap handles with some junk ski tips.  Anyone know where to get junk skis on the cheap?  Would be nice to build a nice facade around the keezer with them eventually.


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## ctenidae (Jan 4, 2011)

Nice bump, Beano. Wort chiller is on my agenda eventually. Seems so simple to build, and if you do it right, could work as a condenser, too (nudge nudge wink wink).

Got a Better Bottles PET Carboy and a 5 gallon wooden barrel for Christmas. Ingredients for a Clonebrew of Okocim Porter came in today. Plan to brew it and rack to the barrel. Bottling one bottle a week, them doing a taste test to see how the barrel changes the flavor over time. Figure the 5 gallons sitting on the counter ought to last, oh, almost four days...


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## BeanoNYC (Jan 5, 2011)

ctenidae said:


> Nice bump, Beano. Wort chiller is on my agenda eventually. Seems so simple to build, and if you do it right, could work as a condenser, too (nudge nudge wink wink).
> 
> Got a Better Bottles PET Carboy and a 5 gallon wooden barrel for Christmas. Ingredients for a Clonebrew of Okocim Porter came in today. Plan to brew it and rack to the barrel. Bottling one bottle a week, them doing a taste test to see how the barrel changes the flavor over time. Figure the 5 gallons sitting on the counter ought to last, oh, almost four days...




Nice on the Better Bottles.  I have two.  They are much easier to work with than my glass carboy.  Would love to find a five gallon sherry oak barrel.  So I can really age the beer for a few months and see how that changes the flavors too.  

As far as the wort chiller goes...I was toying with the idea of making one myself but I was concerned with making the coils right.  Coiling 30' of copper tubing just didn't sound fun to me, especially when I got the chiller for a little over $60, fittings and all.  I should be brewing this weekend.  I'll take pictures.


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## jaywbigred (Jan 31, 2011)

You guys have any suggestions before I buy my first kit? I've read the first part of the Papizan book, and poked around for a few days online. I've read this entire thread, and some of it was certainly over my head. 

Apparently, the homebrew store options in my part of NJ are scant. Brooklyn is far, same for south Jersey. There is a place in Clifton (prob 35 minutes away) but the reviews say that they are almost completely devoted to home winemaking and beer is an afterthought.

So I've been looking for a kit online with reasonable shipping costs that will include everything I need to start. My thinking was to skip the entry level plastic fermenting buckets, mostly because I know how I am, and I will scratch the thing and then have bacteria problems. Therefore I was going to go with a kit that included a 5 gal kettle, 5 gal glass carboy, and 7.8 gallon plastic bucket for bottling. It is the third option ($159) at this link . The shipping costs are only $20 or so. I was thinking I could probably hunt around for a second glass carboy when the time comes that I want to dabble in secondary fermentation. I also imagine at some point I'll make/buy a wort cooler/chiller, but not right away.

Some questions:
1) Someone told me the smell involved with homebrewing is awful. Have you guys found that to be the case?
2) I am going to be doing everything inside. Anything I need to know?
3) If I go w a 5 gallon kettle and a 5 gallon carboy, do I need an overflow/krausen set-up?
4) What do you guys use to sanitize? I'd love to hear a quick description of how one physically sanitizes (do you use gloves? do you dry? where do you place equipment you have just sanitized?)
5) Since this kit comes with a bottling bucket, is it worth transferring from the carboy to the bucket before bottling? Or should I try direct siphon bottling from the carboy first? My thought was that if things were going well, having the bucket around could be versatile. In addition or instead of using it as a bottler, I could use it as a secondary fermenter or as a second primary fermenter if I wanted to have 2 batches going at once. Obviously, this would require me to bottle from the carboy for 1 of the batches, or to time it so I bottled the plastic batch first, then sanitize, then use it as a bottler for the carboy batch.
6) I know using an ingredient kit is cheating, but I thought maybe for the first 2 or 3 batches this would be a good way to go, learning how to use my equipment and perhaps adding a part here or there to make things run smooth. 
7) How heavy is a full carboy? In my head, I boil and fill the carboy in the kitchen but then age and bottle in the basement. 
8) Any advice on what temps in the basement should be? I gather it varies from style to style, I was thinking of starting with a pale ale kit.

Thanks guys, I didn't know this thread existed but, as I was thinking about it over the weekend, I figured some of y'all would be homebrewers, and this thread certainly did not disappoint.


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## ctenidae (Jan 31, 2011)

1) Only if you're doing it wrong
2) Watch the wort carefully as it comes to a boil, or it will boil over. And it's hot and sticky. You will make at least 1 mess per session.
3) More than likely- some recipes will foam over every time, some will only do it sometimes, sometimes it happens for no apparent reason. I made an overflow setup by cutting off a lock, attaching tubing to the stem and running it into a malt can with bleach water in it. Works great.
4) Bleach in water. Let it sit for a little while, rinse with water (or let air dry and don't rinse). If you sanitize just prior to using, doesn't matter where you stash it for a short time (other than in a diaper bucket or trash can). I use C-Brite for after-action clean up if things got ugly. If you do, use gloves.
5) Usually, as it gets the beer off the sediment layer,and you can let it settle again before bottling. Not at all a requirement, but if your bucket has a spigot, it does make life a little easier. Every time you transfer, though, you reduce your yield slightly, provide another contamination point, and introduce more oxygen to the mix. All totally controllable, but factors nonetheless
6) Absolutely- good idea.
7) A bit over 40 pounds. Water weighs 8 pounds/gallon. I carry mine up and down the basement stairs, too.
Eight) 65 to 75 degrees is all-purpose fine, I think. On the warmer end  you have faster fermentation, which has its issues, on the lower end you have slower fermentation, which also has its issues. I would err on the side of cooler, generally.

All-in-one equipment undles are quick and easy. You can save some money by buying a kettle at WalMart or Home Goods or something, but it may not be worth the hassle factor. Your mileage may vary. I tend to order from www.beer-wine.com- very very quick shipping, great service, and since it's in MA no sales tax for deliveries to CT.

If you take nothing else from Papazian, relax- have a homebrew.


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## BeanoNYC (Jan 31, 2011)

1) Sometimes you will get a slight sulfer smell during the first few days of active fermation.  This will go away.

2) What C10 said.  

3) Yes, unless you use fermcap.

4) I use starsan everything that touches the wort post boil gets hit with starsan first

5) I would transfer to a botteling bucket as you can control the on and off of the flow easier.  I usually primary for a month and rarely secondary.  The only times I will secondary is if I were to fruit or oak a batch.  That being said, I wouldn't secondary a 5 gallon batch in a 6 gallon bottling bucket as you may oxidize the beer with all the extra "head space."  I've primaried in a bottling bucket and it made kegging very easy, however.  

6) Kits are awesome....use away.  It will take away the guessing game for you.  Clone kits are always very fun.  You can see how close you can get it to the real thing.  

7) Put the carboy in a milk crate prior to filling.  It makes carrying it easier.  You should be fermenting ale between 60-70.  There are a few ways to keep temperature.  Will your basement be colder than this?  Let me know and I'll give you some tips.

I would look at northernbrewer.com and austinhomebrew.com for kits and receipies.  I buy equipment and ingredients from them often and they outshine the competition.  

Relax, Don't Worry, Have a Home Brew!


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## RootDKJ (Jan 31, 2011)

jaywbigred said:


> You guys have any suggestions before I buy my first kit? I've read the first part of the Papizan book, and poked around for a few days online. I've read this entire thread, and some of it was certainly over my head.
> 
> Apparently, the homebrew store options in my part of NJ are scant. Brooklyn is far, same for south Jersey. There is a place in Clifton (prob 35 minutes away) but the reviews say that they are almost completely devoted to home winemaking and beer is an afterthought.
> 
> ...



Jay, there used to be a home brewing supply store on Valley Street in Maplewood (right by the high school ironically).  Not sure if they are still operating.


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## jaywbigred (Jan 31, 2011)

RootDKJ said:


> Jay, there used to be a home brewing supply store on Valley Street in Maplewood (right by the high school ironically).  Not sure if they are still operating.



That would be convenient but I haven't seen anything in that area come up on any search or website I've seen.

However I did find this in South Orange. Never been to the Gaslight, may have to check it out.


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## jaywbigred (Jan 31, 2011)

Hmm, okay, so if a full carboy only weighs 40-50 pounds, then at least for the next few months, couldn't you cool the wort just by carrying the carboy outside for a few minutes after you fill it?


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## RootDKJ (Jan 31, 2011)

jaywbigred said:


> That would be convenient but I haven't seen anything in that area come up on any search or website I've seen.
> 
> However I did find this in South Orange. Never been to the Gaslight, may have to check it out.



Heh...Ryan's Place.  Still smells like it used to when I was a regular at the bar there in the 90's.  Their food is ok, but the beer is pretty good.  Probably the closest option for a craft beer.


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## ctenidae (Jan 31, 2011)

jaywbigred said:


> Hmm, okay, so if a full carboy only weighs 40-50 pounds, then at least for the next few months, couldn't you cool the wort just by carrying the carboy outside for a few minutes after you fill it?



Yes, but it still takes a lot longer than you'd think- remember, only the liquid in contact witht eh glass is chilling, and perversely packing snow around it doesn't help much, since the snow melts quickly, leaving an air gap. And as we all know, still air is an insulator...


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## jaywbigred (Jan 31, 2011)

ctenidae said:


> Yes, but it still takes a lot longer than you'd think- remember, only the liquid in contact witht eh glass is chilling, and perversely packing snow around it doesn't help much, since the snow melts quickly, leaving an air gap. And as we all know, still air is an insulator...



Let me see if I understand correctly. 
1.) You boil your ingredients to make wort, and then at a given temp. it is safe to transfer to the carboy (what temp is this? I would guess you could transfer it while it was still pretty hot, depending on the siphon used?)
2.) You still may have to wait to add yeast because the wort is too hot.
3.) Once it is below 80 degrees you can add your yeast.
4.) The downside to the slow cooling of wort is ______________ ? More time out in the open for bacteria to enter? 
5.) If you have already transfered to a sanitized carboy, is the extra wait time for the cooling that dangerous?


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## ctenidae (Jan 31, 2011)

You can transfer the wort at any point. Usually post-boil you want to get it into a container with as little risk of contamination (ie a carboy) relatively quickly. However, boiling hot wort is not fun to screw up with. Once in the carboy, the risk of contamination is reduced, but not eliminated. The longer it takes to cool, the greater the risk- some bad bugs live in higher temperatures than yeast does. Not all that dnagerous, but if you can eliminate the risk, why not?

The way I see it, the biggest problem with a slow cool is simply the amount of time it takes. I almost always get started later than I meant to, it takes longer to get it up to a boil than I thought (depending on how many times it boils over, clean up slows things down), and so it's later than I wanted when I'm ready to pitch the yeast. Cooling the wort quickly (but not too- Charlie warns against using ice directly, though Alton Brown uses it) means you can go to bed sooner. If you put 180 degree wort into a carboy and left it at room temperature on the counter overnight, you probably still wouldn't be able to pitch in the morning, and that's a long time for bad bugs to set up shop.

One trick that works decently is to put your fill water in the freezer before you start brewing. You are using bottled water, right? Get it nice and cold so when you add it to the hot wort it cools things down a bit faster.


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## BeanoNYC (Jan 31, 2011)

1) Well you could transfer at a hot temperature but it would be easier to fill the sink with ice water and drop your kettle in there or use a immersion chiller before transfer.  I use a chiller and transfer around 80-90 degrees.

2) Each type of yeast has different ideal pitching temperatures but the main idea is not to kill the yeast by pitching while it's too hot.  80 usually the highest you want to do this at.  I usually wait as I like to take a gravity reading in the 70's 

3) See Above

4) A few things can happen if you cool slowly. 

a) You're right, Nasties can get into the wort. (Not likely)
b) The beer can become cloudy as rapidly cooling the wort will reduce the amount of "cold break" protiens. (most likely) 
c) Not likely again but you may get some off tastes from other chemicals forming in a warmer wort

Basically it's not big deal to slowly cool, but it's just bad form

5) See above.  It doesn't really have much to do with nasties but more with breaking the growth of protiens and compounds that will cloud and give off flavors.  It will still be drinkable.


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## ctenidae (Jan 31, 2011)

Dangit, Beano, that's too technical!

In my experience, many of the things that you do for santiary purposes have additional positive affects. In the end, though, the one thing most certain to ruin a batch of brew is poor sanitation.


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## BeanoNYC (Jan 31, 2011)

ctenidae said:


> Dangit, Beano, that's too technical!




I guess your right. The simple answer is try your best to cool it quickly but ultimately.  Relax, Don't Worry, Have a Homebrew.   Basically be attentive, but be patient too.   

Jay...you should check out homebrewtalk.com .  Lots of great info on those forums.  

BTW...I started the build on my keezer.  It's going to be sweet!


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## jaywbigred (Feb 1, 2011)

BeanoNYC said:


> Jay...you should check out homebrewtalk.com .  Lots of great info on those forums.
> 
> BTW...I started the build on my keezer.  It's going to be sweet!



I joined HBT on Sunday, but I am trying to avoid being an annoying n00b over there. Figure I will wait until I brew my first batch, at least, before asking questions.

There seem to be a good # of instruction videos on Youtube, so I will probably watch them before each step.

And I had to google what a Keezer was. Very cool! we had 2 kegorators in college before one was stolen from our 3rd floor in the middle of the night while 11 dudes and 7 girlfriends failed to wake up  (fantastic college story btw, classic)--but keezer looks like its taking it to another level.


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## BeanoNYC (Feb 1, 2011)

jaywbigred said:


> I joined HBT on Sunday, but I am trying to avoid being an annoying n00b over there. Figure I will wait until I brew my first batch, at least, before asking questions.
> 
> There seem to be a good # of instruction videos on Youtube, so I will probably watch them before each step.
> 
> And I had to google what a Keezer was. Very cool! we had 2 kegorators in college before one was stolen from our 3rd floor in the middle of the night while 11 dudes and 7 girlfriends failed to wake up  (fantastic college story btw, classic)--but keezer looks like its taking it to another level.



Look me up!  Don't be afraid to ask over there.  People are super nice.


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## pro2860 (Feb 3, 2011)

One trick that works decently is to put your fill water in the freezer before you start brewing. You are using bottled water, right? Get it nice and cold so when you add it to the hot wort it cools things down a bit faster.[/QUOTE]

I've been using tap water with ice for years and never had a problem...Usually takes less than 2 hours including cleanup and after a couple of weeks another 10 minutes to transfer to keg...I've never done bottles..:beer:


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## BeanoNYC (Feb 5, 2011)

Jay.  I just saw this thread and thought of you.


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## jaywbigred (Feb 5, 2011)

BeanoNYC said:


> Jay.  I just saw this thread and thought of you.



A good read. Thanks! I have resolved to make sure I adhere to strict diameter requirements (as dictated by the size of my kitchen sink) when purchasing my brew kettle, as it seem wort cooling is much more effective with the ice and water sink technique than the snow/outside technique. Interesting stuff.


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## BeanoNYC (Feb 5, 2011)

jaywbigred said:


> I have resolved to make sure I adhere to strict diameter requirements (as dictated by the size of my kitchen sink) when purchasing my brew kettle, as it seem wort cooling is much more effective with the ice and water sink technique than the snow/outside technique. Interesting stuff.



If you buy a 30 quart pot it should fit into most kitchen sinks.  If it doesn't I would buy the size pot you want anyway.  You could always fill a rubbermaid tub with water and ice outside to cool everything down.  If you get the brewing bug you will eventually buy or make an immersion chiller.


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## ctenidae (Feb 5, 2011)

Heh- if you get the bug you will eventually buy or make a whole range of things useless for any other purpose.

And you'll love it.


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## jaywbigred (Feb 10, 2011)

Ok, my first batch (extract brew kit Pale Ale kit) is in the carboy.

Here is the thread documenting my experience. You guys have any insight to any of those questions?

http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/first-try-carboy-224290/


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## jaywbigred (Feb 10, 2011)

jaywbigred said:


> Ok, my first batch (extract brew kit Pale Ale kit) is in the carboy.
> 
> Here is the thread documenting my experience. You guys have any insight to any of those questions?
> 
> http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/first-try-carboy-224290/



Just checked and we now have activity in the airlock and a nice little layer of foam on the top! Fermentation appears to be underway!


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## BeanoNYC (Feb 13, 2011)

jaywbigred said:


> Just checked and we now have activity in the airlock and a nice little layer of foam on the top! Fermentation appears to be underway!



Awesome!  I commented on your HBT thread, BTW.  I'm not Beano over there. 

Anyhoo.  I finished my kegerator.  Here's a shot of it.  I posted more on HBT as well.


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## BeanoNYC (Feb 16, 2011)

jaywbigred said:


> Just checked and we now have activity in the airlock and a nice little layer of foam on the top! Fermentation appears to be underway!




So how's it looking?  Still some airlock activity?  Glad you were able to figure out what happened with the hop schedule.  Looks like you just needed to add the bittering hops.  Makes things easier for your virgin batch.


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## jaywbigred (Feb 17, 2011)

BeanoNYC said:


> So how's it looking?  Still some airlock activity?  Glad you were able to figure out what happened with the hop schedule.  Looks like you just needed to add the bittering hops.  Makes things easier for your virgin batch.



Yup, 8 days since boil and still some airlock activity. Pretty slow, the airlock probably pops about once ever 2 minutes or so, but its movin'. Even if it tastes like butt, should be able to get drunk off it!


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## BeanoNYC (Feb 17, 2011)

jaywbigred said:


> Yup, 8 days since boil and still some airlock activity. Pretty slow, the airlock probably pops about once ever 2 minutes or so, but its movin'. Even if it tastes like butt, should be able to get drunk off it!



It will taste awesome.  And if it doesn't let it sit and mellow out.    Are you planning on putting it into a secondary?  I typically don't.


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## jaywbigred (Feb 20, 2011)

Nah, I was just gonna let it mellow at least another 2 weeks or so then go to bottle.


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## BeanoNYC (Feb 23, 2011)

jaywbigred said:


> Nah, I was just gonna let it mellow at least another 2 weeks or so then go to bottle.




Good man.  Hey...want to swap a few pints of homebrews?


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## jaywbigred (Feb 23, 2011)

BeanoNYC said:


> Good man.  Hey...want to swap a few pints of homebrews?



Sure do...but let me brew a few batches first and learn wtf I'm doing. Maybe when I move beyond extract kits...


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## BeanoNYC (Mar 1, 2011)

jaywbigred said:


> Sure do...but let me brew a few batches first and learn wtf I'm doing. Maybe when I move beyond extract kits...




Sure thing.  I'm actually building a mash tun now and hope to be brewing All Grain in a month or so.  I'm just waiting for the weather to warm up a bit so I can use the fryer on the deck.


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## jaywbigred (Mar 10, 2011)

So I bottled my pale ale on Tuesday. Once I got it going out of the carboy and into the bottling bucket, I could see in the tube that it was not as dark as it looked in the carboy, which had worried me. Phew.

Everything went smoothly with the transfer, I added the priming sugar+water to the bottom and then autosiphoned the beer in. On thing of note is that when all was said and done, my yield was pretty low. Only a shade over 3 gallons. I knew it was going to be well less than 5, but I thought it would be around 4 and change. I guess between the boil off and the sediment in the bottom of the carboy, I was over estimating how much liquid was in there.

We bottled it into 8 or 9 big bottles and then the rest into about 3 maybe 4 six packs.

In the process we of course tasted it...and it was good! It tasted like a mostly flat (which is to be expected) pale ale. My buddy who helped me bottle said it "tastes like a fresher version of Sierra Nevada! This is going to be good once it is carbonated and cold." So, at the least, it appears as though it will be drinkable.

I did not take any hydrometer readings (successfully) during this brew, so I don't know the ABV. I did buy a thief so, next time, I will take the readings and hopefully my hydrometer will work.

I am going to wait 2 weeks before refrigerating/drinking some to give it time to mature. Fingers crossed (I'll post some pics later).


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## BeanoNYC (Mar 10, 2011)

Extract batches will typically be darker than all grain, don't worry about a darker color.  What was your starting volume prior to boil?  I suspect that your beer will have more alcohol than intended than the recipe.  Not a bad thing, necessarily.  Are you going to send me a bottle or what?


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## jaywbigred (Mar 10, 2011)

BeanoNYC said:


> Extract batches will typically be darker than all grain, don't worry about a darker color.  What was your starting volume prior to boil?  I suspect that your beer will have more alcohol than intended than the recipe.  Not a bad thing, necessarily.  Are you going to send me a bottle or what?



If I taste it and it is decent, I'll send you bottle :beer:


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## BeanoNYC (Mar 21, 2011)

Finally had some time to drill my Kettles and install the new bells and whistles.  I also did a test run of my outdoor setup on Saturday.  Outside temp was in the 40s and I got 8 gallons to a rolling boil in 50 minutes.  On the left is my new boil kettle and on the right is my HLT.  I also found some kegs on craigslist and will be converting them to 15 gallon kettles in the future.


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## BeanoNYC (Apr 5, 2011)

Bump....anyone still out there?

I have an all grain batch of an American Pale Ale bubbling away at the moment.  My bourbon barrel porter is cold crashing in the fridge while it's oak cube soak in a pint of Makers Mark.  Going to add them for a few weeks, then let it sit until November.


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## Nick (Apr 6, 2011)

Hey Beano, 

I made my first batch of homebrew ever back in October.  I wrote up a blog post on it ... 

http://imgerman.com/2010/11/brewing-your-own-dusseldorf-alt-bier/

I was trying to recreate Alt Bier like I used to drink when visiting my family in Dusseldorf, Germany. 






Right now i've got about 3/4 gallon left of Bock in the basement, the next batch I'm going to make (my 3rd brew) will be a brown ale.


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## BeanoNYC (Apr 6, 2011)

Nice!  Where are you getting your supplies?  All Grain or Extract batches?

Edit:  Just read the blog.  Great stuff.


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## ctenidae (Apr 6, 2011)

My wooden barrel experiment was a great success, except that I've stopped drinking (much) during the week, and so the porter I put in there has been in for longer than one would expect. Last time I tasted it it had a bit of a green/woody taste going, with a bare hint of smokiness. Not altogether pleasant, but not awful. Eventually, I plan to just bottle some and let it mature in bottle for a bit and see what happens.


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## BeanoNYC (Apr 6, 2011)

ctenidae said:


> My wooden barrel experiment was a great success, except that I've stopped drinking (much) during the week, and so the porter I put in there has been in for longer than one would expect. Last time I tasted it it had a bit of a green/woody taste going, with a bare hint of smokiness. Not altogether pleasant, but not awful. Eventually, I plan to just bottle some and let it mature in bottle for a bit and see what happens.



How were you getting it out of the barrel?  Spigot? Sounds awesome.


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## Nick (Apr 6, 2011)

BeanoNYC said:


> Nice!  Where are you getting your supplies?  All Grain or Extract batches?
> 
> Edit:  Just read the blog.  Great stuff.



Extract, still learning about All Grain. I'm almost finished with my 2nd batch, about to embark on my 3rd. 

It is a lot of fun, and the beer tastes friggen great!


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## BeanoNYC (Apr 6, 2011)

Nick said:


> Extract, still learning about All Grain. I'm almost finished with my 2nd batch, about to embark on my 3rd.
> 
> It is a lot of fun, and the beer tastes friggen great!



I know you're a bit busy with this place but check out homebrewtalk.com .  There is a wealth of information.  Or you can just reply to this thread too.  :razz:


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## ctenidae (Apr 7, 2011)

BeanoNYC said:


> How were you getting it out of the barrel?  Spigot? Sounds awesome.



Yup- spigot on the front. Pull the bung out of the top, open the tap, fill'er up. It is, obviously, not carbonated. I did pour a growler and added in some fresh boiled DME and left it to carbonate for 2 weeks a while ago. Got pretty tasty. The beer is a clonebrew of Okocim Porter, and carbonated it tasted pretty darn close.


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## BeanoNYC (Apr 7, 2011)

ctenidae said:


> Yup- spigot ont eh front. Pull teh bung out of the tp, open the tap, fill'er up. It is, obviously, not carbonated. I did pour a growler and added in some fresh boiled DME adn left it to carbonate for 2 weeks a while ago. Got pretty tasty. The beer is a clonebrew of Okocim Porter, and carbonated it tasted pretty darn close.



Oh yeah....bottle and carbonate that sucker.  Send me a taste too.  I'm dying to see how it aged.


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## ctenidae (Apr 14, 2011)

Just got a cutting from some very prolific hops plants from my brother- just might have to do a good homey marzen this fall.


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## BeanoNYC (Apr 14, 2011)

ctenidae said:


> Just got a cutting from some very prolific hops plants from my brother- just might have to do a good homey marzen this fall.



Nice.  How much weight?  I was just watching the Brewingtv episode of hop growing.  I never realized how invasive they are.


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## ctenidae (Apr 14, 2011)

BeanoNYC said:


> Nice.  How much weight?  I was just watching the Brewingtv episode of hop growing.  I never realized how invasive they are.



I haven't even so much as smelled the hops that he harvested last year. It was about a half a big garbage bag from 1 plant, though. He didn't process them right, though, and I think they mildewed before he used them. So, no clue the alpha acid levels, scent, or aything. Or if it'll even root here and grow.


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## ctenidae (Apr 18, 2011)

BeanoNYC said:


> Oh yeah....bottle and carbonate that sucker.  Send me a taste too.  I'm dying to see how it aged.



Went to bottle some yesterday, gave it a taste before setting up, and ended up dumping it. It had oxidized, adn tasted mediciny and woody. It kept a long time, but not that long. Really have to drink more, clearly...


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## BeanoNYC (Apr 18, 2011)

ctenidae said:


> Went to bottle some yesterday, gave it a taste before setting up, and ended up dumping it. It had oxidized, adn tasted mediciny and woody. It kept a long time, but not that long. Really have to drink more, clearly...



Well that's a shitting shame, we should set up a homebrew trade soon anyway.  I currently have an APA, Amber, English Bitter on tap.  An APA in the Carboy.  I'm aging a bourbon barrel porter until November and am brewing a heferwizen on Thursday for a brewing competition.  I'm currently trying to write a recipe for a Cascadian Dark Ale for that same competition.  I'm hoping for a high OG and for it to finish dry.  Probably going to use close to 20# of grain on this one.

Hey Nick....Since this thread has morphed to an all out brewing thread can we name it appropriately?  Maybe...."The Homebrew Thread"  All our first batches were years ago.


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## Nick (Aug 3, 2011)

I brewed a batch of Brown Ale yesterday frmo a kit I had in the house. Surprisingly, there was no grains in it at all. 

It was this kit here: 

True Brew Brown Ale

Just went into primary fermentation last night. We'll see how it comes out. 

@Beano, I never saw this before, my bad. Yeah, we can rename the thread!


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## ctenidae (Aug 3, 2011)

I've built up a sufficient supply of leftover ingredients to put together a Mulligan Stew Brew. I need to catalogue it, and then brew it- might be interesting, a chocolate wheat pilsner with Belgian yeast, or something...


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## ctenidae (Aug 8, 2011)

did the Mulligan Brew yesterday-
6 lbs Muntons Extra Light DME
12 oz crystal malt
4 oz chocolate wheat
8 oz cararoma 500LB malt
1 oz Hallertau- 40 minutes
1 oz Saaz 10 minutes

Yeast: Saflager S23

OG was reading 1.080, which seems a bit high for that set of ingrediaents, but maybe...


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## Nick (Aug 8, 2011)

I never even measured the OG of mine. i just brewed it on Aug 2nd and this morning I was peeking at the air lock and I don't see any bubbles. Does this mean it's already done fermenting? After only six days?


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## ctenidae (Aug 8, 2011)

Could be done. Stare at it for at least 30 seconds, pref a minute and see if it bubbles. If not, it's done. I've had batches complete in 3-4 days, others take over a week. Depends on a whole bunch of things.


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## Nick (Aug 8, 2011)

The first beer I ever brewed, an Alt, primary fermented for about 2 weeks. So i wasn't expecting it to already be done. 

Also, I wonder if I did anything wrong, I put the yeast in at like 92 degrees, instead of waiting for it to drop to 90. I got lazy :lol:


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## ctenidae (Aug 8, 2011)

Kind of funny that being lazy is not waiting.


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## Nick (Aug 8, 2011)

ctenidae said:


> Kind of funny that being lazy is not waiting.



haha. I hadn't even thought of that. 

:beer:


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## ctenidae (Aug 11, 2011)

Drool.

http://www.gizmag.com/williamswarn-beer-brewing-machine/19487/


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## Nick (Aug 11, 2011)

$5k doesn't really seem all that bad for that, it looks like serious quality. I was expecting it to say it was like $20k or something.


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## Nick (Aug 17, 2011)

I'm bottling my brown ale today. I didn't get around to it until today. I also think I am getting lazie(er) - I was thinking of sanitizing my bottles in the dishwasher instead of using sink sanitizer method. Just seems quicker and easier to me. Any downsides to that?


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## ctenidae (Aug 17, 2011)

Nick said:


> I'm bottling my brown ale today. I didn't get around to it until today. I also think I am getting lazie(er) - I was thinking of sanitizing my bottles in the dishwasher instead of using sink sanitizer method. Just seems quicker and easier to me. Any downsides to that?



It's unlikely you'll get much spray up into teh bottles themselves, which may impact the effectiveness of the sanitizing. Dry heat might not be as effective as wet heat, and certainly won't wash out any bits that might be left in the bottles. Plus, can you get enough bottles into a single load? (Edit- seems like a reasonable discussion of the topic HERE

I moved my Mulligan Brew from the carboy to the wooden barrel for secondary fermentation last night. Also bottled a growler for comparison purposes. All in the name of science, you know.


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## BeanoNYC (Aug 17, 2011)

This thread lives!  Well I now have two pales, a hefe and a Cascadian Dark Ale on tap.  Haven't brewed in about 6 weeks.   Thinking I may brew an IPA (Pliney or Aggrogant bastard clone) then I'll do a 10 gallon lager batch.


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## Nick (Aug 17, 2011)

ctenidae said:


> It's unlikely you'll get much spray up into teh bottles themselves, which may impact the effectiveness of the sanitizing. Dry heat might not be as effective as wet heat, and certainly won't wash out any bits that might be left in the bottles. Plus, can you get enough bottles into a single load? (Edit- seems like a reasonable discussion of the topic HERE
> 
> I moved my Mulligan Brew from the carboy to the wooden barrel for secondary fermentation last night. Also bottled a growler for comparison purposes. All in the name of science, you know.



I ended up having to wash them by hand anyway with sanitizer. You were right, some of the bottles had crud on the bottom and needed a brush to scrub out. 

I was pissed because I bottled almost all of it (I bottled 10 1-L Grolsch style bottles and 12  .5L Grolsch style bottles). Then I filled up an additional six-pack of 12-oz bottles, and then realized I had left my bottle capper at my friends house, so I wasn't able to cap them. (I actually tried with some pliers and a hammer but it just wasn't working....) 

So I had to waste 60oz of beer. Argh. Other than that everything went fine, not sure how this batch will taste. I'm skeptical since there was no grains in the brew, which seems odd. 

Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk


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## ctenidae (Aug 25, 2011)

I'll be cracking open the growler of Mulligan Brew I put up- been conditioning about 2 weeks. I'm really curious about it, since it started at such a high OG (1.080) and finished down low at 1.010, but the pre-bottling sample seemed really light and thin. Maybe it's just super high alcohol thinning it out. Not sure. I'll have to sample the barreled secondary, too, before bottling.

So, now the question is, with the impending birth of #1 son in early November, what's the right brew to create and celebrate with? I'd love to do something that is cellerable, and crack open a few in a year at his first birthday. A marzen is an obvious option, both because I liek the style and it's fall/Oktober-ish. But, lagering is tougher, adn to do it I really should have started a month ago. Maybe an Altbier, or somethign of a Belgian style, which can age nicely?

Any thoughts/suggestions?


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## roark (Aug 25, 2011)

I've had good success using the chico yeast with marzen grain bills, because it ferments so clean and is tolerant of cold (by ale standards) fermentation temps. I'd still be sure to keep it cool though.

I've still got a few bottles of my kitchen sink imperial stout (~15% abv). Something like that won't meet the drinkable at birth criteria, but I brewed it in 97 and the last bottle I had 2 years ago was mighty tasty


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## Nick (Sep 1, 2011)

ctenidae said:


> I'll be cracking open the growler of Mulligan Brew I put up- been conditioning about 2 weeks. I'm really curious about it, since it started at such a high OG (1.080) and finished down low at 1.010, but the pre-bottling sample seemed really light and thin. Maybe it's just super high alcohol thinning it out. Not sure. I'll have to sample the barreled secondary, too, before bottling.
> 
> So, now the question is, with the impending birth of #1 son in early November, what's the right brew to create and celebrate with? I'd love to do something that is cellerable, and crack open a few in a year at his first birthday. A marzen is an obvious option, both because I liek the style and it's fall/Oktober-ish. But, lagering is tougher, adn to do it I really should have started a month ago. Maybe an Altbier, or somethign of a Belgian style, which can age nicely?
> 
> Any thoughts/suggestions?



Dunno but I am a huge Altbier fan. 99% because my family comes out of Dusseldorf, Germany. So I've got a strong affinity for it. I'm actually drinking Tuck's Headwall Alt right now (yum). 

My brown ale in the basement should be close to ready with its second fermentation.... I hvaen't tried it yet though. Will probably crack it open for a party we are having at my house on Saturday.


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## BeanoNYC (Sep 1, 2011)

Congrats, Cten!  We're expecting our second in November as well. In Feb or March I brewed a Bourbon Barrel Porter.   It's kegged and aging at the moment.  I plan on serving it from October through the winter months (It's a sipper for sure)  If there is anything left, I'll bottle and let age for another year.  Supposedly it ages very well.  Think about brewing that.


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## ctenidae (Sep 2, 2011)

BeanoNYC said:


> Congrats, Cten!  We're expecting our second in November as well. In Feb or March I brewed a Bourbon Barrel Porter.   It's kegged and aging at the moment.  I plan on serving it from October through the winter months (It's a sipper for sure)  If there is anything left, I'll bottle and let age for another year.  Supposedly it ages very well.  Think about brewing that.



Interesting- I did do a porter that I aged in my wooden barrel, and it was quite nice, though it stayed in barrel too long before I got around to bottling, and skunked.

Congrats on your second- I'll drink one when yours comes out.


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## tarponhead (Sep 6, 2011)

roark said:


> I've had good success using the chico yeast with marzen grain bills, because it ferments so clean and is tolerant of cold (by ale standards) fermentation temps.



Don't be afraid to experiment with the kolsch yeast (I have only experience with white labs). Typically, primary fermentation around 60F is ideal. The final product ferments very clean but you do have to lager the secondary 3-4weeks for your typical ales. On the other hand, I have tasted this yeast in wheat beers and found it outstanding as well with no aging (as the norm for wheat beers).

I brewed 18 gal of kolsch that I am enjoying right now, awesome stuff!

Also your typical cali strain of yeast will ferment quite well at low temps if you pitch enough yeast and oxygenate the wort well before pitching (provided it is not a gravity bruiser). My 2 cents, YMMV.


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## Nick (Sep 7, 2011)

I had some of my homebrew brown ale a few days ago. Not really all that great. It's OK, but I'm going back to Alt for my next batch.


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## Nick (Dec 23, 2011)

I want to brew something fresh next week ... not sure what yet. Might hit up the store soon.


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## jaja111 (Dec 23, 2011)

Nick said:


> I had some of my homebrew brown ale a few days ago. Not really all that great. It's OK, but I'm going back to Alt for my next batch.



Give browns lots of time. Never chuck it, wait it out. Anything with darker malts have to mellow out to some degree. I have had quite a few beers that I thought sucked within one month of kegging them, and then 3 months later were complex and fantastic.


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## xwhaler (Dec 30, 2011)

My wife got me a Mr Beer kit for Xmas! I'm sure most of you guys are well beyond the starter kit but wondering if you have any basic tips I should keep in mind for my 1st batch? Of course I will be following the instructions as closely as I can but there certainly seems a lot to it!

Also, if I enjoy this as I'm hoping I will, where do you guys go to get upgraded supplies? Local shops best or are there online sites you reccomend for price?

I've read that it's virtually impossible to brew your own beer for cheaper than a good 6/12 pack equivalent cost per bottle but what is everyone finding in terms of the economics of this hobby?


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## ctenidae (Dec 30, 2011)

xwhaler said:


> My wife got me a Mr Beer kit for Xmas! I'm sure most of you guys are well beyond the starter kit but wondering if you have any basic tips I should keep in mind for my 1st batch? Of course I will be following the instructions as closely as I can but there certainly seems a lot to it!
> 
> Also, if I enjoy this as I'm hoping I will, where do you guys go to get upgraded supplies? Local shops best or are there online sites you reccomend for price?
> 
> I've read that it's virtually impossible to brew your own beer for cheaper than a good 6/12 pack equivalent cost per bottle but what is everyone finding in terms of the economics of this hobby?



Rules 1-15 for beer making: Sanitize. Rinse. Repeat.

I order from www.beer-wine.com Quick shipping, good pricing.

I figure ingredient costs run about $50/batch, depending on what you do, which works out to about 80 cents a bottle. Not many decent six packs available for $5 each.


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## jaja111 (Dec 30, 2011)

ctenidae said:


> Rules 1-15 for beer making: Sanitize. Rinse. Repeat.
> 
> I order from www.beer-wine.com Quick shipping, good pricing.
> 
> I figure ingredient costs run about $50/batch, depending on what you do, which works out to about 80 cents a bottle. Not many decent six packs available for $5 each.



I second that. I'm saving significant $$$ homebrewing. When I can occasionally make a dogfishead quality beer I'm saving $$$$$$$$$. 

I personally like Northern Brewer. They're great people to deal with and have reasonable prices. Maybe you'll get lucky and have a decent local supply store, but all I have is stale ingredients and 99% baked morons more concerned with the hydroponic equipment.


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## xwhaler (Jan 24, 2012)

So I just bottled my first batch from the Mr Beer kit this past Sunday. I let it ferment for approx 2.5 wks after reading its better than the standard 7 days the kit instructions reccomend.

What's the next equipment you would all reccomend I buy? I'd like to get a 5 gal fermenting bucket with spigot to take advantage of the 5 gal ingredient kits I see on northernbrewer and elsewhere.
I like the idea of the plastic bucket better than the glass carboy b/c while the carbnoy is nicer and u can see thru it I'm not sure how I would pour into the bottles once I'm ready to carbonate?

I suppose using a funnell and hoisting the carboy up would work but the spigot at the bottom seems much easier.

I'm not ready to get into boiling kits or CO2 draft systems just yet but would like to step up from the Mr Beer kit so I can make larger batches.
I think once I get set up with a 2nd system I will make 1 brew in the 5 gal bucket and do a smaller batch in Mr Beer.

It's a lot of fun so far and I haven't even done the best part yet (drinking it of course!)


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## ctenidae (Jan 24, 2012)

5 gallon buckets form Home Depot are great. Cheap, and you can retire them to other duties once they get scratched and icky (don't want to make beer in a bucket tha't sroughed up ont eh inside- nasty buggers like rough seurfaces).

I bought a spigot and installed it in the bottom of a HD bucket- in the actual flat bottom (there's a ridge molded in that's just about perfect size already) not the side. I built a stand to sit it on for clearance, adn atach tubing and the racking cane there to let gravity do the work.  To transfer from the fermenter to the racking bucket, I use a siphon (same as you would for a carboy).

90% of the equipment you need you can get from Home Depot. A hydrometer and a capper are about the only things you can't. And a boiling pot and strainer.


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## xwhaler (Jul 5, 2012)

Resurrecting this as I am now on my 5th batch of brew since I started home brewing in January.
I took advantage of a groupon offer through Midwest Supplies for a 5 gal fermenting bucket+5 gal bottling bucket+bunch of extras.
Big step up from the Mr Beer kit....I've brewed an Irish Red Ale with very good results....getting good feedback from friends who I've shared it with.
I'm now fermenting a Pale Ale that I brewed with frozen peaches and grated ginger root. Put it in the fermenter last Sunday so will bottle in a couple weeks.
It's a lot of fun so far....scrubbing bottles does sort of suck though!


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## Nick (Jul 5, 2012)

xwhaler said:


> Resurrecting this as I am now on my 5th batch of brew since I started home brewing in January.
> I took advantage of a groupon offer through Midwest Supplies for a 5 gal fermenting bucket+5 gal bottling bucket+bunch of extras.
> Big step up from the Mr Beer kit....I've brewed an Irish Red Ale with very good results....getting good feedback from friends who I've shared it with.
> I'm now fermenting a Pale Ale that I brewed with frozen peaches and grated ginger root. Put it in the fermenter last Sunday so will bottle in a couple weeks.
> It's a lot of fun so far....scrubbing bottles does sort of suck though!



Scrubbing bottles does suck. I male sure to rinse them really well when I'm done with them ( drinking) before putting in storage. That way a quick sanitize is normally sufficient

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2


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## xwhaler (Jul 30, 2012)

How's everyone doing this summer making beer? I've become pretty into this hobby in a short amount of time!
This Saturday I bottled my Pale Ale brewed with 1lb frozen peaches and a bit of grated ginger root. I have a feeling it may be a tad chunky however as I either used too many peaches or only going with single stage fermentation didn't allow the gunk to settle out compleately.
I'm sure it will be drinkable however in a few weeks!

Yesterday I brewed a 5 gal batch of a Brown Ale extract+grain kit I got from MidWest Supplies. To make it my own I added 3 cinnamon sticks at 30 mins and a hint of Nutmeg on the finish.
Cooled it down, put into fermenter and added abt 5 oz of honey. Hope I didn't add too many things that will compete against one another but we'll see in 5 wks or so.

Next up on the brew docket is a Pumpkin Ale which I will do shortly after the Brown Ale gets bottled and my fermenter is freed up.


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## ctenidae (Jul 30, 2012)

I packed up all my gear for a move at the end of next month, so won't be doing anything for a little while. Surprisingly, only 3 case boxes for all my bottles, mostly because I've gone to all pint bottles, no 12 ozers. Still have some miscellany to pack, but it's not taking up as much room as I thought it might.


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## ctenidae (Sep 28, 2012)

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2012/09/01/ale-chief-white-house-beer-recipe

So, I just brewed up Obama's Honey Ale. Hopefuly it'll be good.  Best part is, I think I did it in true Politician style.

I bought the ingredients using someone else's money (Christmas gift certificate).

I got the supplies from a place that might not be the best, but they've been pretty good to me, and they're in my home state (even though I neither live there now nor was born there).

The ingredients were only available in quantities slightly larger than what I needed, but since they're use it or lose it, I went ahead and used what I had, which is probably more than needed for most of it, and the total cost ended up being more than it really should have been.

I had a recipe that looked good, but didn't really plan things out quite right, and so had to change some parts to fit the then current reality. So, the end result doesn't really look like the plan. I can only hope the deviations from the plan don't lead to unintended consequences.

Best of all, the cleaning ladies are coming tomorrow, so I can leave the mess for someone else to clean up.


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## Nick (Sep 28, 2012)

Still drinking my Altbier from a couple weeks ago. I'm down to 3 liters remaining.


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