Topics

16

The Pub / Health effects of phosphoric acid in beer?

« on: November 19, 2012, 08:30:00 AM »

Someone told me I shouldn't use phosphoric acid to acidify my mash because it's more toxic than lactic acid. My first thought was "that's BS." My second thought was "wouldn't 4%ABV alcohol in beer be more toxic than the 20mg or so of phosphoric acid in a 12oz beer?"

Has anyone heard about this? I googled a bit and it looks like people think Cola hurts your kidneys because of the acid, but I would think ingesting that much sugar would mess your kidneys up more than the acid would.

17

All Grain Brewing / Wet milling fail / I'm an idiot

« on: November 14, 2012, 12:33:06 PM »

I tried wet-milling some pils malt on my MM-2. I soaked the grain for about 2-3 seconds, then strained it in a colander. I ran it through once at 1mm, and it milled fine, without jamming up or anything. Because I love clutching defeat from the jaws of victory, I tried to run it through again at 0.5mm, and this happened:

18

All Grain Brewing / Targeting nitrogen levels / where does "body" come from?

« on: October 28, 2012, 09:18:45 AM »

I was thinking about mashing with adjuncts and had a few questions. Does anyone target a specific nitrogen content for their wort?

Adjuncts like rice and corn will lighten body, and they contain very little protein. Wheat malt is frequently used to increase body or head retention, and typically has more protein. There seems to be a correlation between protein content and body, but is it exact enough to use predictably? For instance, would an adjunct-heavy beer with a low-protein pils malt be noticeably lighter-bodied than an adjunct-heavy beer with a lot of 6-row and/or wheat malt, assuming the same Kolbach?

19

Zymurgy / Is there a way to opt-out of the hard copy?

« on: October 22, 2012, 04:33:16 PM »

I read Zymurgy online. I don't like having the hard copies around. I have no friends to give them to. I feel guilty throwing them away, and slightly less-guilty recycling them. Is there a way to opt-out of physical copies? 

20

The Pub / British hops declining due to low demand

« on: October 08, 2012, 03:23:37 PM »

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2012/oct/08/british-beer-makers-fight-foreign-hops

I thought this was an interesting article.

"At the industry's peak in 1872, British hop farmers grew around 72,000 acres of the perennial climbing plant, but demand has decreased to the point that last year only 2,500 acres were grown. The only major hop-growing regions now are Hereford and Worcester and Kent. Despite this, the UK is at the forefront of efforts to develop new varieties – including dwarf or hedgerow plants thought to be more sustainable than higher climbing hops – and the revival of old ones. The hedgerow hops cost less to grow, can be picked by machine, are more resistant to disease and require lower chemical inputs. "

21

General Homebrew Discussion / Aluminum pot and lime decarbonation

« on: October 05, 2012, 10:14:28 AM »

So, I normally do my lime softening in a food-grade plastic trashcan, but I only needed a little bit, so I used an aluminum stockpot. The inside of the pot turned dark gray after I drained it. I used the water to brew a batch of beer. I didn't think about aluminum corrosion until after I was done brewing.

The water sat at about pH 10 for 12-15 hours. Should I be concerned about excessive aluminum content in the beer?

22

Ingredients / How best to use raw wheat berries?

« on: October 03, 2012, 10:09:43 AM »

Has anyone tried soaking wheat berries in water overnight before milling, to soften them up?

Does anyone have advice for torrifying them in an oven? Like how hot and how long?

Thanks

23

Extract/Partial Mash Brewing / Briess lme/dme sodium content

« on: September 29, 2012, 12:46:32 PM »

I came across this over on the probrewer boards, and thought it was interesting:
"Be aware that Briess DME and LME products contain potentially excessive sodium content. For a wort reconstituted to 1.045, the sodium content is 100 ppm when reconstituting with distilled water. That content doubles if the gravity is brought to 1.089. If the local tap water already has sodium content, that impact is added to the extract contribution.

The problem is due to Briess using the local Chilton, WI water which is ion-exchange softened. The typical sodium content of that water is 100 ppm.

Brewers should be aware of this impact and if it degrades the perception of their beers, seek out other extract sources."

http://probrewer.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=25394

24

The Pub / The Dunning-Kruger effect

« on: September 27, 2012, 07:38:42 AM »

I just learned the name for this phenomenon. It explains so many perplexing things in the world.

"The Dunning-Kruger effect occurs when incompetent people not only fail to realise their incompetence, but consider themselves much more competent than everyone else. Basically - they're too stupid to know that they're stupid.

If you have no doubts whatsoever about your brilliance, you could just be that damn good. On the other hand... "

http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Dunning-Kruger_effect

25

Ingredients / NZ hop varieties?

« on: September 16, 2012, 05:29:48 AM »

Nelson Sauvin is the only NZ hop I've used, but I loved it. Are there other NZ hops I should try? I've been reading the descriptions of the varieties, but they're all kinda vague, so I'm looking for some first-hand experience.

26

All Grain Brewing / Tell me about kettle and fermentation pH

« on: September 09, 2012, 10:26:53 AM »

I've started keeping track of my pre-boil and pre- and post-ferment wort pH, but I'm not really sure what numbers I should be aiming for. Any advice? Gordon goes over this a little bit in his book, but I'm interested in some more perspective.

27

Yeast and Fermentation / B. lambicus ending at 1.012? Is that normal?

« on: September 05, 2012, 11:52:19 AM »

I've got two beers I used B. lambicus on. It's the first time I've used those. Both have been stable at 1.012 since July 20th. Everything I've read said Brett should end up in the single digits, so I'm not sure if this is normal. I checked the calibration on the hydrometer in tap water, and it looks to be correct.

28

General Homebrew Discussion / Ordered some fresh hops, what to do if I can't use them right away?

« on: September 01, 2012, 12:16:03 PM »

I'm ordering some fresh hops through my LHBS. I have a tentative delivery date, but I won't be able to brew for about 4-5 days after I get them. I've heard you should use fresh hops right away. Is that true? If so, can I freeze them, or would I be fine using them within a week?

29

Other Fermentables / Medicinal mead - d'oh!

« on: August 27, 2012, 06:18:28 PM »

I'm making a mead. I kinda forgot about it for a week. I'm usually pretty good about monitoring pH and adding nutrients, but this one got away from me. It has kind of a phenolic, medicinal, band-aid flavor. This is the first time I've used POF+ yeast, so, maybe that wasn't the best idea.

It's not awful, but I'm wondering what I can do to mitigate the damage. Gelatin finings? Cold crash? Shouldn't polyphenols fall out of suspension eventually?

7lbs blackberries, fermented with WY3522 ~ 1/2 gallon
+4 gallons water, clover honey to hit OG = 1.072
+1 pack of T-58

8/17 OG 1.072, pH 4.6 4g nutrient, 2g DAP
8/19 1.050, pH 3.3 + 4g nutrient, 2g DAP, stirred
8/27 1.016, pH 3.0, medicinal off-flavor

30

The Pub / Someone stole a whole canning line

« on: August 22, 2012, 02:20:24 PM »

Bummer: http://siouxcityjournal.com/blogs/brew/sioux-brew-canning-line-stolen-from-great-river-brewery/article_fe540eba-ae18-5984-8336-fef3208b1652.html