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Last: 26 days ago by bmc13
RIS is kegged and aging! I'm going to try to wait until Feb or so to tap it. That would be a good 4 months aging.
Got my grains and such ordered from Northern Brewer for the simple hefe I'm doing next. Didn't change anything from what I posted above. Going to knock that one out next weekend, and hopefully get some people to come help clear out my beer fridge, so I can fit a couple of kegs in there!
Got my grains and such ordered from Northern Brewer for the simple hefe I'm doing next. Didn't change anything from what I posted above. Going to knock that one out next weekend, and hopefully get some people to come help clear out my beer fridge, so I can fit a couple of kegs in there!
Any reason you guys don't just go for a fridge for a temperature controlled fermenter? We got this for $100 off of my buddy Craig's list after waiting for a decently priced deep freezer for months. I used an oscillating saw to cut the plastic shelves out, pulled out all the other shelves/drawers, built a shelf out of two 1x12s with a support foot out of a 2x4. Added the johnson controller for temperature. It's held my sweet potato porter at a steady 65*F for a few days, I'll let you know how it works for the cold crashing. I know folks prefer the freezers because the compressors are "used" to turning off and on more, but in my extremely limited experience I'm happy with the fridge.
Brewing up a stout tomorrow with a couple of friends...along with a couple of Pork Butts cooked overnight
Brew Method: All Grain
Style Name: American Stout
Boil Time: 60 min
Batch Size: 12 gallons (fermentor volume)
Boil Size: 16 gallons
Boil Gravity: 1.055
Efficiency: 75% (brew house)
STATS:
Original Gravity: 1.074
Final Gravity: 1.021
ABV (standard): 6.96%
IBU (tinseth): 74.39
SRM (morey): 40
FERMENTABLES:
25 lb - American - Pale 2-Row (75.8%)
2.5 lb - American - Chocolate (7.6%)
2 lb - American - Roasted Barley (6.1%)
1.5 lb - American - Caramel / Crystal 150L (4.5%)
2 lb - Rolled Oats (6.1%)
HOPS:
6 oz - Cascade, Type: Pellet, AA: 7, Use: Boil for 60 min, IBU: 63.44
2 oz - Centennial, Type: Pellet, AA: 10, Use: Boil for 10 min, IBU: 10.95
MASH GUIDELINES:
1) Decoction, Temp: 152 F, Time: 60 min, Amount: 10.3 gal
2) Sparge, Temp: 170 F, Time: 0 min, Amount: 9 gal, Single Batch Sparge
Starting Mash Thickness: 1.25 qt/lb
YEAST:
Fermentis / Safale - English Ale Yeast S-04
Starter: No
Form: Dry
Attenuation (avg): 72%
Flocculation: Medium
Optimum Temp: 59 - 75 F
Fermentation Temp: 66 F
Pitch Rate: 0.5 (M cells / ml / deg P)
Brew Method: All Grain
Style Name: American Stout
Boil Time: 60 min
Batch Size: 12 gallons (fermentor volume)
Boil Size: 16 gallons
Boil Gravity: 1.055
Efficiency: 75% (brew house)
STATS:
Original Gravity: 1.074
Final Gravity: 1.021
ABV (standard): 6.96%
IBU (tinseth): 74.39
SRM (morey): 40
FERMENTABLES:
25 lb - American - Pale 2-Row (75.8%)
2.5 lb - American - Chocolate (7.6%)
2 lb - American - Roasted Barley (6.1%)
1.5 lb - American - Caramel / Crystal 150L (4.5%)
2 lb - Rolled Oats (6.1%)
HOPS:
6 oz - Cascade, Type: Pellet, AA: 7, Use: Boil for 60 min, IBU: 63.44
2 oz - Centennial, Type: Pellet, AA: 10, Use: Boil for 10 min, IBU: 10.95
MASH GUIDELINES:
1) Decoction, Temp: 152 F, Time: 60 min, Amount: 10.3 gal
2) Sparge, Temp: 170 F, Time: 0 min, Amount: 9 gal, Single Batch Sparge
Starting Mash Thickness: 1.25 qt/lb
YEAST:
Fermentis / Safale - English Ale Yeast S-04
Starter: No
Form: Dry
Attenuation (avg): 72%
Flocculation: Medium
Optimum Temp: 59 - 75 F
Fermentation Temp: 66 F
Pitch Rate: 0.5 (M cells / ml / deg P)
price, gator. I didn't have the patience for trade in so buying a small chest freezer and building a thermostat was the cheapest for me
A deep freeze is also better insulated, won't dump all the cool air out when the door is open, and, most importantly, holds more kegs. I wouldn't turn down a cheap fridge though if I was in the market for a fermentation chamber.
I normally don't do extract kits but my in laws bought me one for a gift so I said what the hell and brewed it. It was an Oktoberfest "Lager" by Mr. Beer.
The dry yeast pack seemed very small for 2 gallons and it was probably 6 months old before I used it (still within the expiration date).
Anyways, the beer is done fermenting and bottle conditioning and it has a strong pear smell and pear/banana ester flavor. Is this from underpitching/old yeast or is it supposed to taste like this? I know in some German beers banana and pear esters are desirable but this seems too strong.
The dry yeast pack seemed very small for 2 gallons and it was probably 6 months old before I used it (still within the expiration date).
Anyways, the beer is done fermenting and bottle conditioning and it has a strong pear smell and pear/banana ester flavor. Is this from underpitching/old yeast or is it supposed to taste like this? I know in some German beers banana and pear esters are desirable but this seems too strong.
There's no cause for alarm. Mr Beer yeast is garbage, and it makes all their kits have that distinctive taste.
So the brew day went about as awry as possible. We were brewing at a friend's house and managed to forget lots of necessary equipment. Then we battled a mash that was so stuck, we ended up with only 8 gallons instead of 12. What was supposed to be 12 gallons of regular stout turned into 8 gallons of imperial stout.
Even when stuff goes crazy like that, you can still sit back and think, "hey, I just made beer!" Hopefully it turns out to be tasty.
Exactly. As long as it tastes decent coming out of primary, I think we're going to do a bunch of 1 gallon secondaries and do different additions.
Well, my Sweet Potato Porter is cold crashing and will be kegged in a few days.
Next on the docket will be:
Apollo Creed's Midnight Power Malted Liquor for Fine Gentlemen
Base Malt 16lb
Flaked Corn 6lb
Turbinado 6lb
Perle 1.25oz @ 60min
Saaz 1oz @ 15min
I'm trying to stay hop and malt neutral so all 10% ABV shines through. Working on sourcing some 40oz bottles, otherwise I'll keg it.
Next on the docket will be:
Apollo Creed's Midnight Power Malted Liquor for Fine Gentlemen
Base Malt 16lb
Flaked Corn 6lb
Turbinado 6lb
Perle 1.25oz @ 60min
Saaz 1oz @ 15min
I'm trying to stay hop and malt neutral so all 10% ABV shines through. Working on sourcing some 40oz bottles, otherwise I'll keg it.
LOL, love the name!
I'm brewing my WIlly Pete Wheat (Bavarian Hefe) on Saturday. Now I just need to make an HE Stout, and then I can do a mix of the two and call it "Shake and Bake"!!
I'm brewing my WIlly Pete Wheat (Bavarian Hefe) on Saturday. Now I just need to make an HE Stout, and then I can do a mix of the two and call it "Shake and Bake"!!
Equipment question: If you were operating on a reasonably sized budget and were going to go all grain in five gallon batches, what would you get? Excluded would be the automated systems, just thinking pretty "standard/nice" hombebrew setup.
How much weight are you comfortable lifting?
Edit- of HOT water
Edit2 - inside or outside?
Edit- of HOT water
Edit2 - inside or outside?
No idea. Reasonably fit/strong guy. Would probably love some sort of tower setup though. I don't love the idea of relying on pumps to move liquid since it's one more thing that could break.
Outside/Garage setup.
Outside/Garage setup.
Honestly, I would start by buying a nice boil kettle with a false bottom (that will handle 10 gal batches for the future) and doing a Brew In A Bag setup. That way all you're upgrading right now is the boil kettle.
You can do pretty much any style you want as a BIAB beer. As you're ready to add equipment you can build a mash tun out of an old cooler. Finally, build yourself a shelf/tower setup, add a second burner up high, and a HLT.
You can do pretty much any style you want as a BIAB beer. As you're ready to add equipment you can build a mash tun out of an old cooler. Finally, build yourself a shelf/tower setup, add a second burner up high, and a HLT.
quote:
Equipment question: If you were operating on a reasonably sized budget and were going to go all grain in five gallon batches, what would you get? Excluded would be the automated systems, just thinking pretty "standard/nice" hombebrew setup.
Go get a keg and cut the top out to make a keggle. Later on you can add a false bottom, spigot, and thermometer and it's probably the cheapest way to be ready for 5 or 10 gallon batches.
I have one but have only done 5 gallon batches.
Sometimes breweries give away kegs that don't hold air or have other problems but they are still perfectly fine for a boil kettle.
I second BIAB if that's not what you're already doing. I've done three batches that way and wish I knew what it was sooner because I would have gotten a bigger pot to handle full volume mashes for large beers. The biggest issue I have had to deal with is probably finding a way to let the grains drain back into the pot after the mash. I have a strainer that works okay for 10# of grain or so, but more than that and it doesn't really sit well inside and it runs down the side of the pot if you don't hold it to support it. The easiest thing to do is have some type of pole that has a pulley attached to it. I just haven't gotten around to that yet.
I don't have a lot of experience, but I'd recommend a BIAB setup for a new brewer because the most expensive upgrade is the pot, but most everything else is the same as an extract brewer and you're not buying much additional equipment compared to an extract setup.
I don't have a lot of experience, but I'd recommend a BIAB setup for a new brewer because the most expensive upgrade is the pot, but most everything else is the same as an extract brewer and you're not buying much additional equipment compared to an extract setup.
Another vote for BIAB. I have a 16 gallon Bayou Classic with ball valve that I use, and I can do really big 5 gallon beers with ease. My RIS I did a couple of weeks ago had just over 24lbs of grain, and I had plenty of room to spare in a full volume mash.
So if I bought a nice 15 gallon kettle, that would be enough for BIAB at this point?
Yeah, plenty. I have a length of voile curtain that I use as my "bag", but there are places out there where you can get some nice sewn voile fabric bags. There's a guy on HBT named Whistlebrewer (I think) who sells them for decently cheap.
You can also do a simple sparge step if you want, with BIAB, but I haven't bothered yet.
You can also do a simple sparge step if you want, with BIAB, but I haven't bothered yet.
Wilserbrewer is the name of the poster on HBT and here is his website. I ordered just a grain bag from him (custom fit to my kettle), but he has a hop bag and dry hop bag that he also makes if you want one of those. He also sells a little pulley that should work if you could find a place to tie it up.
Because my pot is only 8 gallons I have had to do sparges to get my boil volume to be correct. It's not a big deal, but it slows down brew day a little and requires you have an extra pot to heat your sparge water. As far as how big you need, you would need to put the information into your brewing software, but with a 10 gallon pot, you could probably fit 15-17# of grain in it for the mash on a 5 gallon batch. 15 gallons would give you plenty of room and then also allow you to make some 10 gallon batches if you wanted, although you would probably have to sparge for those. One drawback to using the 15 gallon for 5 gallon batches will be trying to keep the mash at a constant temperature. That's probably one big advantage using a cooler for traditional all grain has over the BIAB method.
Here are a few additional items I use that I didn't use for extract brewing, which you may or may not already have around the house:
Because my pot is only 8 gallons I have had to do sparges to get my boil volume to be correct. It's not a big deal, but it slows down brew day a little and requires you have an extra pot to heat your sparge water. As far as how big you need, you would need to put the information into your brewing software, but with a 10 gallon pot, you could probably fit 15-17# of grain in it for the mash on a 5 gallon batch. 15 gallons would give you plenty of room and then also allow you to make some 10 gallon batches if you wanted, although you would probably have to sparge for those. One drawback to using the 15 gallon for 5 gallon batches will be trying to keep the mash at a constant temperature. That's probably one big advantage using a cooler for traditional all grain has over the BIAB method.
Here are a few additional items I use that I didn't use for extract brewing, which you may or may not already have around the house:
- Extra pot to set grains in after mash - previously just threw the bag in the trash right after the steep
- Extra pot for heating sparge water, if necessary
- Bucket to run cooling water in from chiller before dumping in yard - only used ice baths during extract brewing
- Grain bag
- Blanket to help insulate the pot during the mash
- Bungee cord to hold blanket on the pot
- Binder clips to keep bag from slipping into the pot during the mash
- Something to allow you to drain grains after the mash - pulley system, colander, etc.
quote:
Go get a keg and cut the top out to make a keggle.
Keggles are great, but just make sure you acquire them legally. The standard deposit charged by most distributors/retailers isn't intended to cover the actual replacement cost of the keg and it's technically still the property of the brewery, so just keep that in mind if that's the route you go.
quote:
One drawback to using the 15 gallon for 5 gallon batches will be trying to keep the mash at a constant temperature. That's probably one big advantage using a cooler for traditional all grain has over the BIAB method.
I haven't had any problems with my 16 gallon pot in keeping the mash temp constant. Even with lower gravity beers, I'm still over 10 gallons of total space taken up usually, and I wrap a couple of blankets around the kettle and I rarely even lose a single degree over a 90 minute mash.
quote:Agree with all of this, especially the binder clips, since I don't actually have a "bag", I need them to keep the fabric from falling into the pot and getting grain in my wort.
Here are a few additional items I use that I didn't use for extract brewing, which you may or may not already have around the house:Hopefully this gives you a little more information to decide if you might would rather go the BIAB route right now.
- Extra pot to set grains in after mash - previously just threw the bag in the trash right after the steep
- Extra pot for heating sparge water, if necessary
- Bucket to run cooling water in from chiller before dumping in yard - only used ice baths during extract brewing
- Grain bag
- Blanket to help insulate the pot during the mash
- Bungee cord to hold blanket on the pot
- Binder clips to keep bag from slipping into the pot during the mash
- Something to allow you to drain grains after the mash - pulley system, colander, etc.
Brew day tomorrow! Looks like it's going to be a great day for it.
Have fun. Hoping to do a BIAB next weekend. Found a guy selling a 15 gallon blichmann for a good price that I'm hoping to acquire tomorrow.
Has anyone here tried capturing their own yeast for a wild ale and had good results? I've been reading up on it and I'm tempted to give it a shot.
Brew day went smooth, hit my temps right on. Was a little under OG, 1.045 instead of 1.047, but that's not too bad. Hoping it will be kegged and carbed by Thanksgiving, so we can enjoy it while watching the Ags that evening!
Finally got around to kegging my Sweet Potato Porter. Ummm... yum! Also harvested some yeast to use in the malt liquor brew this Sunday.
Nice!
Anyone every do a St. Bernardus ABT 12 clone? A buddy of mine wants me to brew one for him, and he's buying the ingredients.
Here's what I found:
candisyrup.com clone
I haven't tried that one, but the recipe itself is pretty straightforward. The fermentation is fancy and semi-complicated. It's definitely doable with temperature control, but you need to be pretty patient. Also calls for heavy glass bottles.
candisyrup.com clone
I haven't tried that one, but the recipe itself is pretty straightforward. The fermentation is fancy and semi-complicated. It's definitely doable with temperature control, but you need to be pretty patient. Also calls for heavy glass bottles.
Yeah, I found that one, but there isn't really any feedback on how it turned out. I found another one on HBT, too, that was much more complex.
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