Messages

1

Yeast and Fermentation / Re: Bugs in the bottle

« on: May 09, 2013, 04:05:02 pm »

well I guess aging is out of the question. 

2

Yeast and Fermentation / Re: Bugs in the bottle

« on: May 09, 2013, 08:25:46 am »

Will chilling the bottles to say 40F completely halt fermentation once Ive reached where I want it?

3

Yeast and Fermentation / Re: Bugs in the bottle

« on: May 09, 2013, 08:19:42 am »

I mashed reasonably high at 154F for 60min.  I pitched roselare blend + a bottle of cali ale yeast.  The pellicle was never huge but did form and then dropped.  there was perhaps a little activity of pellicle left at bottling.  The secondary was kept in a basement that probably averages 60F which in retrospect maybe accounts for the slow brett/bacteria activity.  I'll try one in 10 days and see where I am at.  I assume it will take the brett awhile to continue to produce enough gas from residual dextrins. Ive never made a bottle bomb before- do these spontaneously explode or is just dangerous when you open them?

4

Yeast and Fermentation / Bugs in the bottle

« on: May 06, 2013, 06:38:56 pm »

Just bottled my first attempt at a Flanders red, 5 gal batch.  It spent 8+mos in the secondary, pellicle seemed to drop out so I decided to bottle.  SG was still a little high (not sure how much 3/4cup priming sugar would add to that) at 1.014.  Can I expect the yeast and bugs to continue to metabolize leftover sugars/dextrins and it to further drop over time or am I pretty much done beyond carbonation.  Also hoping it sours a bit more with time. I also threw in champagne yeast at bottling to help carb it up.

5

Beer Recipes / Re: Belgian Stout Critique/Help?

« on: April 26, 2013, 04:34:16 pm »

Alright this is where I am at thus far:

6 Gal Batch, 75 % Eff

14.5 lb Belgian Pale
1.5 lb Midnight Wheat
1.5 lb Chocolate Malt
1 lb Carafa II
1 lb D180 Belgian Candy Syrup
0.25 lb Special B

Hops
Herkules 14.5 % : 2 oz at 60 min- these hops are new to me but I am told very smooth, similar to magnum

Yeast:
1.8L Starter of Belgian Ale Yeast (WL550)

Mash at 153F x 60 min
Mash out to 167F

Ferment 68F x 3 days then raise to 72F till done

I have not used the midnight wheat before.  I'm looking for overall very smooth with touches of roast from the Carafa and midnight Wheat.  I am forgoing the late hop additions as I don't see a huge point in their presence for this beer.  Additional Suggestions?

6

Beer Recipes / Re: Belgian Stout Critique/Help?

« on: April 18, 2013, 06:19:37 pm »

Yeah the midnight wheat was something I was considering, available locally.  without the black patent will it have enough roasty character to it just from the other grains as the caraffa won't add much?  On the plus side it would be awfully smooth with the caraffa 2.  Special B I like but need it restrained- my baltic porter had a good dose of it in it and it was overpowering.  I'm hoping to have the final gravity around 1.02, maybe a bit less. The sugar just sounded interesting and I thought it would add some more complexity.
Still confused on late hopping these type beers- does it come thru at all, and if not, why do it.  Right now I am planning on 2oz magnum at 60min to bring it to around 70IBU.
 Thanks for the suggestions. 

7

Beer Recipes / Belgian Stout Critique/Help?

« on: April 16, 2013, 10:53:55 am »

Looking to brew up a belgian stout to be ready for fall/winter next year.  Aiming for something along the lines of Great Divide Belgian Yeti.  Here is what I have for the malt bill:

~75 % efficiency
16lb Belgian Pale Malt
1 lb Black Patent
1lb chocolate malt
1 lb chocolate wheat
0.25 lb special B

*May consider adding 1lb of the D180 candi sugar syrup and cut back on the pale malt a bit

OG ~1.088
FG ~1.020 or so
Single Infusion with a mashout, goal temp ~152F x 90 min

Hops: I'm not sure where to go here.  I don't make a lot of stouts so it is not familiar ground for me.  I typically use magnum or warrior for bittering.  Target maybe 60-70 IBU for this batch.  Are late additions appropriate and if so what type?  I'm open to all suggestions. I feel like a lot of the flavor if this beer is going to come from the yeast and malt, hops are mainly there for bittering balance.  Next topic: yeast

Obviously if its a belgian stout the yeast is going to belgian.  I have a vial of WL 550 Belgian Ale Yeast, will use a large starter given the high OG.  anybody had other success stories with alternative yeast?  I know wyeast makes a blegian stout strain but its seasonal.  I'm open to any and all thoughts on this one.

8

Beer Recipes / Nelson Pairings

« on: March 17, 2013, 05:15:14 pm »

I picked up some Nelson Sauvin hops recently and haven't used them yet.  I am going to brew up a big base wort and split it between an English and American IPA.  The NS is going in the American side- I have heard good pairings with Simcoe.  I brewed an IPA recently that was heavy on the citrus/fruit side recently and wanted to swing back more towards some pine notes.  I was thinking of pairing the NS with some Simcoe and Chinook as flavor/dry hop/flameout additions.  I use magnum for most bittering additions.  Any thoughts?

9

Pimp My System / Brutus Ten Pressure question

« on: January 26, 2013, 05:39:03 pm »

I'm rounding up components for an upcoming brutus ten-like structure.   I've contacted a welder about the gas beam and he seems pretty excited about the project.  My question is about high versus low pressure.  I'm going to be using banjo BG14 burners (had one on hand, the other two arrived today).  These are sold as high pressure burners but could be converted it seems to low pressure?? (My research seems to say this is possible).  I like the control that high pressure affords with an adjustable regulator which I will likely purchase.  Is there any benefit to low pressure over high?  I am having a hard time finding tubing for a high pressure system.  The stuff at Home Depot/lowes that would be so incredibly convenient only is for low pressure.  I'm headed to an industrial hose supply store Monday to see if they can help.  Any suggestions?

10

Ingredients / Base Malt for APA

« on: December 28, 2012, 01:43:04 pm »

I was considering using a combo of pilsner and 2-row for an APA.  Looking for something fairly light, OG ~1.045-1.050.  Going to hop it with some cascade, sorachi ace (need to use these already!), and simcoe.  I thought the lighter malt would pair well with the lemon/grapefruit characters in the hops and I hear simcoe can pair well with the sorachi ace.  Overall goal is a crisp, citrusy, session type APA.  Any thoughts?  I figured i'd start with a 50:50 split of 2-row and pils + maybe a little crystal 20 to round it out a bit.

11

Beer Recipes / Re: Critique IPA recipe

« on: December 03, 2012, 09:47:26 pm »

So the consensus seems to be to up the late additions quite a bit.  Going with what I have on hand, I'll definitely double up the 5min and WP additions.  I may be able to do the same for the 15min.  I have an oz each of whole leaf I had planned on using for the DH, beyond that it may be another trip to the LHBS. 
The efficiency is set at 75 I think.  I usually come in between 70-73, occasionally better.  We will see how this goes, a little lower wont be the biggest problem. 
I may tool around with a FWH in the future but will probably leave it out this go round.  I feel the need to use these hops all in the later stages as they are tough to find.  Thanks for the tips. Cheers!

12

Beer Recipes / Critique IPA recipe

« on: December 03, 2012, 06:08:32 pm »

So I finally acquired some choice hops and here is how intend to use them.  I've had problems with IPAs before lacking in aroma and flavor and being mostly just unbalanced bitterness so I'm looking to avoid that this go round.  Really looking for some aroma/flavor to stand out in at least half the batch (going to use two different yeasts).  This will be my first 10 gal IPA batch.

Malt:
- 19lb 2-row
- 2 lb Munich
- 1lb crystal 20
- .5lb crystal 40

Hops:
- warrior 1.85 oz at 60 min for bitterring
- at 15 min: 0.5oz each simcoe, citra, Amarillo
- at 5 min:0.5oz each simcoe, citra, Amarillo
- at whirlpool: 0.5oz each simcoe, citra, Amarillo

Dry hop with an ounce each : Amarillo, citra, simcoe (in 2 separate dry hop stages)

Yeast: split to 2 five gal batches (California Ale and Irish Ale), toying around with different strains (one to showcase hops, the other more muted).

OG 1.062
IBU:~60
Mash x 60 min at 150F

In a 10gal batch does this seem reasonable for flavor/aroma?  More/less? Suggestions appreciated.

13

Equipment and Software / Re: Pumps

« on: November 20, 2012, 09:22:47 pm »

Thanks for the suggestions.  Most of these upgrades are aimed at eventually building a brewstand and I think the pump would be a solid addition, not to mention save my back moving large pots of hot wort up and down various levels.  The convenience factor would be a plus.  It seems the chugger SS models is not too much more than the march pump so all things being equal maybe that's the way to go.

14

Equipment and Software / Pumps

« on: November 20, 2012, 03:26:58 pm »

Doing some research on pumps and trying to decide on one to upgrade some features of my homebrewing setup.  Does anyone have opinions on the march pumps vs. chugger pump, or another brand?  I like the idea of a SS head if its not too pricey.  Need it to withstand boiling temps.

15

Ingredients / spice amounts?

« on: October 24, 2012, 08:18:01 am »

I am brewing up a holiday ale tonight with a belgian dark strong ale as the base, 6 gallon batch.  OG ~1.075, IBU ~ 17.   I was a little unsure on the amounts of spices but this is what I have so far:

2 sticks cinnamon
1.5 tsp ground nutmeg
1 oz peeled fresh ginger (minced)

I am also throwing in 1lb of dark brown sugar for some of the fermentables.

I was going to add all at 10 minutes left in boil unless someone can advise otherwise.  Does anyone have a critique on the amounts?  Should the cinnamon be ground up prior to adding?