Messages

1

General Homebrew Discussion / Re: Competition letdown

« on: May 19, 2011, 09:21:03 AM »

I enter beers into competitions for feed back.  Feed back is given by humans and therefore the quality can vary.  I also like to try and enter the beers I think a really good into a couple of competitions.  This allows me to get more of an average on the feedback notes.  It also helps me to start recognizing when that particular beer is getting past its prime.  If you brew a beer that you can taste mild flaws in I wouldn't bother with entering it.  I only enter beers I believe to be dialed, and hope to get some feedback that can make them even better.  This year for first round one of my entries was a German Pils.  I felt that it missed the mark a little on hop presence so I decided, last minute, to enter it as a Dortmunder as well.  It took first place in the light lager but scored poorly in the pils category.  So, once you've decided its good and there's not detectable flaws then you have to pick the appropriate category or all is for not.

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General Homebrew Discussion / Re: Do you give your beers a name?

« on: May 07, 2011, 08:57:56 AM »

I tend to just name the beer what it is, like Dort X #1 and then continue on with the numbers until I get something I believe to be a recipe that doesn't need fixing.  At that point sometimes (if I ever get that far) the beer will earn a name. Here are a couple

Poets Pale (named after a nephew)
Raspy Blonde (Raspberry Blonde)
Chordial Cherry (Cherry Baltic Porter)
Incarcerated Christmas (Baltic Porter, and a very long story)
Cinderellas Pumpkin (best served @ 40 F, in a glass slipper)
Bruised Bonch Blonde (best drank after a day of Mountain Biking, hence the name)

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General Homebrew Discussion / Re: What's Brewing This Weekend - 2/4 Edition

« on: February 09, 2011, 12:22:33 AM »

Got a double brew day tomorrow.  Brewing a India Dark Ale, and a Pale Ale.  After that there's only one more brew day before first round NHC.  Thursday I'm making the starter for This weekends group brew.  70 gallons of export stout that will be aged in a Bourbon Barrel.  Thanks Deschutes for the Barrel, and Wyeast for the....well....yeast. 

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All Grain Brewing / Re: Vienna Lager water profile...

« on: February 03, 2011, 07:57:12 PM »

Water adjustments are tricky.  This isn't for you Lonnie but for others reading.  The most important thing is to know what your base water is.  If your using RO or Distilled that's easy, but if your using tap it can fluctuate depending on time of year.  For my Vienna (and all my water adjustments) I focus on the style and not always the City it came from.  By reading the BJCP guidelines we can start to see what you should be looking for in flavor.  When you calc. your recipe you'll get an estimated SRM and that will help you determine mash PH.  I only add Buffers and Acidity to my Mash and adjust the Chloride to Sulfates for my boil (that's just me).  I have found that the simplest way for me to break down water adjustments is this; PH of your mash, and Chloride to Sulfates of your wort.  Yes, Calcium and Mag. is important for yeast health and some flavors (calcium).  so we should atleast try and have 50ppm calcium.  I always shoot for a min of 75 ppm calcium.  Here's my last and favorite Vienna adjustments.  Calcium 106, Mag 22, Sodium 15, Chloride 41, Sulfates 77, CaCO3 153.  the SRM of that particular Vienna was 15, and the IBUs where around 27 of Hallertauer.  Hope this helps.

5

Equipment and Software / Re: CFC to Whirlpool question

« on: October 14, 2010, 09:42:40 AM »

I tend to look at it a little different.  From the reasearch I've done on whirlpooling it doesn't have to be a really fast whirlpool.  My inlet is at the top of the boil kettle.  A 1/2" stainless still tube goes from there and drops straight down to about 6 inches from the bottom.  It then makes another 90 degree turn so that it rests right on the wall of the kettle and pushes the wort in a circular motion as it coms out.  The pick up tube is U shaped and pulls wort from the wall of the kettle right where the wall starts to transition to the base.  The wort leaves the kettle and runs through the chiller directly below the kettle.  It then drops another foot to the pump (march 809 I believe) and is pumped back up to the kettle inlet.  I don't worry as much about how fast the top is spinning.  I worry about the main body of fluid and how fast it is spinning.  I let it whirlpool until the wort reaches about 70 then I give it a 20 min rest.  I then let gravity pull it back through the chiller for a final cooling and into the carboy.  I normally leave alot of hot break and a fair amount of cold break behind.  I do wind up with some cold break into the carboy but that's ok with me and some believe it actually carries some good nutrients for the yeast.  Sometimes if I'm brewing a light lager I will go one step further and let the cold break settle completely, then rack to a second carboy before pitching my yeast. 
Note:  If I am using whole hops I use hop bags to prevent them being able to get caught in the chiller, pump, etc....  at the begining of whirlpool I pull them out so that they will not interfere with the whirlpooling.  Thats just what I do.

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Equipment and Software / CFC to Whirlpool question

« on: October 13, 2010, 03:03:08 PM »

I have a chillzilla CFC that I have been using for a year with great success.  I am lucky to have cold ground water and it will chill wort to 65 no problem.  I recently set my boil kettle up to whirlpool.  I have the wort run through the chiller into a pump and back into the kettle at an angle.  I know others have done this and results vary, but I have been having great success.  My wort is cooled down fairly quickly and haven't noticed an increase in DMS or lack of late hop addition aromas. 
My question:  Do any of you chemists out there know if cooling the wort to 65 and then pumping back into wort that is basically 212 can negatively effect enzymes?  the overall wort cools down pretty fast so this only happens for the first 5-10 mins, but can cooled wort being reheated have an effect on enzymes or anything else for that matter?  Will the late hop additions being cooled and then re-heated be driven off or further isomerised.  Thanks in advance.

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Equipment and Software / Keggle False Bottom

« on: October 10, 2010, 09:00:21 PM »

Alright forum.  I have a two tier Rims system with 10" false bottoms on my mash tun and boil kettle.  Both are keggles.  The false bottoms are filled with 3/32 holes (prefab.)  I'm looking for something that will completely cover the the bottom of the keggle just where it starts to curve in.  Then I'll place my pick up tube in the middle.  This would make a 15" false bottom with hinges so it can fit through the keggle hole in the top.  I've seen examples of this and even found them on the sabco page.  I'm a chronic do it yourselfer and I already have the pick up tubes in place so I would like to make the false bottoms work with the pickup tubes I have.  I would like to hear about and see your keggle false bottoms.  Also, would love some pointers on where to find supplies and how you made your own.  The problem with the 10" false bottom is that it sits in the middle of the bottom of the keggle.  This allows for grains to filter around the edges because of the curvature.  It even does it when I use a hose clamp to really push the false bottom to the keggle.  Thanks in advance.

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General Homebrew Discussion / Re: Comp Question

« on: October 03, 2010, 08:53:19 AM »

Thanks.  That sums it up.  So, a Cascadian dark/ Black IPA/ India Black Ale, Would be suited well for Wood Aged if the Flavor is more forefront.  If not, then it would possibly do better staying in 23.

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General Homebrew Discussion / Comp Question

« on: October 02, 2010, 09:13:38 PM »

I am planning out my attack for NHC.  I was planning on doing some wood aged stuff.  Does a 22C Wood Aged Beer have to have a Base Beer that is a specific category or can I make a specialty ale 23A and wood age it?  Would you enter that in 22C or 23A or both?  Same Question applied to 22B Other Smoked Beer?  Hope this question makes sense and thanks in advance.

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General Homebrew Discussion / Re: Thermometer Trouble...possible

« on: August 13, 2010, 01:04:51 AM »

Place it in a bowl of dry rice or diatamatious earth.  The rice thing works good for cell phones that get wet.  Diatamatious Earth is the same idea.  just sucks up any possible liquid.  And +1 on re-calibrating.  Good luck.

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General Homebrew Discussion / Re: What's Brewing This Weekend - 8/13 Edition

« on: August 13, 2010, 01:01:21 AM »

No brewing .  But I am filtering and kegging a cream ale, dry hopping a pale, and kegging a raspberry blonde.  I still have my work cut out for me I guess.  Just completely re-did the kegerator today.  Next weekend a late oktoberfest is on deck. 

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General Homebrew Discussion / Re: Keg sanitation is over rated?

« on: July 21, 2010, 11:30:46 PM »

It's kind of like the huge swine flu epidemic.  Everyone walked around with masks on their face.  The funny thing is, the eyes are much more susceptible to germs, but no one wears glasses. 
Point being I would imagine as long as the keg is clean then that technique would work fine.  the beer is fermented and has hops.  All things that can keep germs from growing.  It also is in cold conditions and that slows any critters from growing.  If your drinking your kegs within 3-5 months I would imagine it would be hard for off flavors to show up.  Especially with hoppy or heavy beers.  I would think a pils might show flavors quicker. 
Personally I'm like the people with masks on.  I PBW and Sanitize the parts every time before new beer comes in.  Even if it would be hard for any germs to grow in the beer.  Just a peace of mind thing I guess.

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General Homebrew Discussion / Re: What's Brewing This Weekend - 6/25

« on: June 24, 2010, 11:34:10 AM »

Brewing a pale ale.  Using the CYBI Mirror Pond Recipe for some nice malt backround.  But using Citra as bittering and jacking up the total IBUs a little.  Fermenting with some Pacman and my plate filter came in today so it looks like the pale will be the first filtered batch.

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General Homebrew Discussion / Re: What's Brewing This Weekend - 6/2 Edition

« on: June 03, 2010, 10:38:33 PM »

I work this weekend, so I had to brew today.  Brewed 10 gallons of Blonde, that will become a raspberry blonde.  Then I brewed 5 gallons of Denny's Rye IPA.  First time brewing two batches on the new system.  Was running one batch into fermenters while the other was mashing. 

15

General Homebrew Discussion / Sour Mash

« on: May 25, 2010, 12:45:06 AM »

I recently (Kind Of) enjoyed a sour ale from Big Horse in Hood River.  On the notes, it says the brewer employed a sour mash to make the ale.  I have heard of sour mash four hard A, but not for brewing..   Can anyone explain this means in a beer brewing sense and the techniques used.