31
Club Leadership & Organization / Advice on organizing competitions?
« on: August 22, 2012, 12:46:26 pm »
Any advice on organizing a homebrew comp? My club wants to organize one, but I'm not really sure where to start.
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32
Equipment and Software / How should I store my caustic potash (KOH) solution?
« on: August 19, 2012, 04:23:34 pm »
I had a 2N solution of KOH stored in a 2L plastic soda bottle. I went to use some today and the bottom the bottle had cracked and it leaked everywhere. I've heard you shouldn't store it in glass. Anyone have suggestions for how I should store it?
33
Other Fermentables / My first still beverage, bottling options?
« on: August 17, 2012, 06:12:31 pm »
I'm making a Burgundy pyment. I'm not planning on carbonating it. Can I just put it in beer bottles with caps? I don't really want to deal with corks if I can avoid it. All the other wines/meads I've made have been sparkling so this is new to me.
34
Kegging and Bottling / Plastic champagne stopper warning
« on: August 16, 2012, 06:32:18 pm »
I bottled ~10gal or so of a mead/saison hybrid using the Methode Champenoise a few months ago. I opened a bottle the other night and it was petilant. All of others have held their carbonation pretty well, so I was suprised. I'm not really sure what happened, but I suspect the plastic stoppers may not be as reliable as bottle caps to hold in the pressure.
35
The Pub / Best Portland neighborhood for breweries/restaurants?
« on: August 12, 2012, 06:13:23 pm »
Hey guys,
We're planning a trip to Portland this winter. Any recommendations on an area of town to stay in? We're looking in Kerns and Buckman right now. We're looking for a neighborhood with lots of restaurants/breweries within walking distance (<3-4miles). Basically, the most intolerably hipster part of Portland is what we're looking for.
Thanks
We're planning a trip to Portland this winter. Any recommendations on an area of town to stay in? We're looking in Kerns and Buckman right now. We're looking for a neighborhood with lots of restaurants/breweries within walking distance (<3-4miles). Basically, the most intolerably hipster part of Portland is what we're looking for.
Thanks
36
Classifieds / Wholesale fishing flies
« on: August 11, 2012, 07:04:22 am »
Sorry in advance if this is against the rules. I'm getting ready to order a bunch of flies for the tackle store. If anyone needs some I'd be happy to give them to AHA people for cost + shipping. $0.50/ea on the dry flies, midges, nymphs, terrestrials, and $0.75/ea on the streamers, $1/ea for tungsten beadheads. They're mostly for small fish. Dry flies hook sizes are about 10-22, streamers about 4-12.
37
Ingredients / Low-temp hop utilization - FWH w/o boil?
« on: August 09, 2012, 06:40:40 am »
I've been looking around but haven't found info about hop utilization by temperature. I'm wondering if I can use FWH with a no-boil Berliner Weisse, and if so, how I'd figure what kind of bitterness I'd get from it.
38
Other Fermentables / Bartlett perry
« on: August 04, 2012, 01:51:03 pm »
Any recommendations on how to process the pears? I've got a bushel coming and don't really have a strategy yet. I'm working on making a press, but I'm not sure if that's the best way to process the pears.
39
All Grain Brewing / Fauxpils results and discussion
« on: August 02, 2012, 09:55:15 am »
Here is a rough draft of my fauxpils results, along with my raw data. I'm hoping with some discussion I'll be able to update and change anything I may have neglected. Differences between the beers was very small and frequently contradictory, so I caution you from reading too much into my results.
This study was really easy to put together, very hard to analyze. I'm providing my data so you can look at it for yourself to decide if I draw a reasonable conclusion. If you disagree with my methods or results, it's easy to find qualified people on the AHA forum to serve as evaluators. Any study is useless if it can't be replicated, so I encourage anyone interested in this topic to organize their own study.
https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B29juefwLV4gSk0xN0NfRDFONnM < Latest version of results and summary.
https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B29juefwLV4gcnNjZFRCakpVa2s
https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B29juefwLV4gVnNBanpUaDNscFk
https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B29juefwLV4gRHhZUExfUmlBcHM
Big picture:
1) Decoction probably won't make your beer better.
2) Decoction mashing extracts more gravity from malt, and may extract more compounds that can be perceived as "dry" as well. Whether that's good or bad for a given recipe will depend on personal preference and your targeted beer profile.
3) The wort from the decocted beer was noticeably clearer. Hot break can bind with hop acids and reduce hop utilization, so the difference in perceived bitterness may be due to reduced hot break in the boil kettle.
4) Using melanoidin malt doesn't emulate decoction mashing
5) There were a lot of contradictory descriptions of the beers. How people perceive aroma and flavor is complex and not easy to anticipate.
What the data supports:
1) Decoction increases mash efficiency.
2) There was no statistically significant correlation between the BJCP scores and recipe.
3) 57% of evaluators preferred the no-sparge beer with 5% melanoidin malt (5%) over the triple-decocted beer (3X), 29% had no preference, and 14% preferred 3X.
4) Judges were significantly more likely to correctly identify duplicate beers than expected based on a random guess.
What the data probably supports:
1) Small difference with 3X leaning toward dry/bitter, 5% leaning toward malty/balanced.
What the data might support:
1) No difference other than color
2) Small difference, but no agreed-upon difference.
3) Either no-sparge or decoction had no effect, and the only difference was due to melanoidin malt.
What the data doesn't support:
1) Decoction makes a better beer
2) Decoction makes your beer maltier than using melanoidin malt w/no sparge.
3) Decoction makes a smoother beer
4) Decoction makes a beer more people prefer
Problems with the study:
1) Small sample size
2) I only have room for two fermentors in my freezer, so I could only make two beers at once to compare.
3) There were some issues with inconsistent carbonation from bottle priming. I've never noticed a difference in carbonation levels in my beer before, so this was really interesting for me.
4) A couple samples may have had a low-level infection. If I could consistently brew perfect beer, I wouldn't spend so much time on the AHA forum trying to learn about brewing.
Mixed variables:
I framed the study as a comparison of no-sparge vs decoction because I wanted to confound evaluators' expectations. If decoction could provide some special je ne sai quoi beyond just darker color and increased maltiness in a way that melanoidin malt can't emulate, that should have shown up in the results, with more people preferring 3X or more people describing 3X in more favorable terms. In any case, it's possible the no-sparge, decoction or the melanoidin malt had no effect, but I'd say it's more likely that no-sparge or decoction had no effect and melanoidin malt had some effect.
This study was really easy to put together, very hard to analyze. I'm providing my data so you can look at it for yourself to decide if I draw a reasonable conclusion. If you disagree with my methods or results, it's easy to find qualified people on the AHA forum to serve as evaluators. Any study is useless if it can't be replicated, so I encourage anyone interested in this topic to organize their own study.
https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B29juefwLV4gSk0xN0NfRDFONnM < Latest version of results and summary.
https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B29juefwLV4gcnNjZFRCakpVa2s
https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B29juefwLV4gVnNBanpUaDNscFk
https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B29juefwLV4gRHhZUExfUmlBcHM
Big picture:
1) Decoction probably won't make your beer better.
2) Decoction mashing extracts more gravity from malt, and may extract more compounds that can be perceived as "dry" as well. Whether that's good or bad for a given recipe will depend on personal preference and your targeted beer profile.
3) The wort from the decocted beer was noticeably clearer. Hot break can bind with hop acids and reduce hop utilization, so the difference in perceived bitterness may be due to reduced hot break in the boil kettle.
4) Using melanoidin malt doesn't emulate decoction mashing
5) There were a lot of contradictory descriptions of the beers. How people perceive aroma and flavor is complex and not easy to anticipate.
What the data supports:
1) Decoction increases mash efficiency.
2) There was no statistically significant correlation between the BJCP scores and recipe.
3) 57% of evaluators preferred the no-sparge beer with 5% melanoidin malt (5%) over the triple-decocted beer (3X), 29% had no preference, and 14% preferred 3X.
4) Judges were significantly more likely to correctly identify duplicate beers than expected based on a random guess.
What the data probably supports:
1) Small difference with 3X leaning toward dry/bitter, 5% leaning toward malty/balanced.
What the data might support:
1) No difference other than color
2) Small difference, but no agreed-upon difference.
3) Either no-sparge or decoction had no effect, and the only difference was due to melanoidin malt.
What the data doesn't support:
1) Decoction makes a better beer
2) Decoction makes your beer maltier than using melanoidin malt w/no sparge.
3) Decoction makes a smoother beer
4) Decoction makes a beer more people prefer
Problems with the study:
1) Small sample size
2) I only have room for two fermentors in my freezer, so I could only make two beers at once to compare.
3) There were some issues with inconsistent carbonation from bottle priming. I've never noticed a difference in carbonation levels in my beer before, so this was really interesting for me.
4) A couple samples may have had a low-level infection. If I could consistently brew perfect beer, I wouldn't spend so much time on the AHA forum trying to learn about brewing.
Mixed variables:
I framed the study as a comparison of no-sparge vs decoction because I wanted to confound evaluators' expectations. If decoction could provide some special je ne sai quoi beyond just darker color and increased maltiness in a way that melanoidin malt can't emulate, that should have shown up in the results, with more people preferring 3X or more people describing 3X in more favorable terms. In any case, it's possible the no-sparge, decoction or the melanoidin malt had no effect, but I'd say it's more likely that no-sparge or decoction had no effect and melanoidin malt had some effect.
40
General Homebrew Discussion / Auf Englisch, bitte. Pitching rates and esters
« on: July 20, 2012, 08:12:32 am »
Mein bisschen Deutsch isn't up to the task, so I was wondering if someone on here could take a look at this for me: http://d-nb.info/978186087/34
According to Kai the paper shows that increased pitching rates leads to increased ester production, so I wanted to know more about what the author is talking about.
According to Kai the paper shows that increased pitching rates leads to increased ester production, so I wanted to know more about what the author is talking about.
41
Ingredients / Special B in a Rauchbier?
« on: July 19, 2012, 10:11:51 am »
I don't really know anything about Rauchbiers, so I'm looking for feedback. What I have on hand: German pils, Melanoidin malt, a bunch of beechwood-smoked malt, a bit of munich 10L, carafa II and special B.
I'm planning on using all the smoked and munich, but was thinking of adding some special B for color. Apparently Sam Adams' Bonfire uses Special B, but I can't find any other recipe that uses it, and I haven't drank Bonfire. I don't really care if what I brew is "to style" as long as it tastes good.
Thoughts?
I'm planning on using all the smoked and munich, but was thinking of adding some special B for color. Apparently Sam Adams' Bonfire uses Special B, but I can't find any other recipe that uses it, and I haven't drank Bonfire. I don't really care if what I brew is "to style" as long as it tastes good.
Thoughts?
42
Yeast and Fermentation / Confused by koelsch/weizen/alt/lager yeast byproducts
« on: July 14, 2012, 09:25:08 am »
In Eric Warner's Koelsch he has a table of fermentation byproducts of Koelsch yeast, Weizen yeast, Alt yeast and Lager yeast.
The Alt yeast produced more Iso-amyl acetate (banana esters) than the Weizen yeast. The lager produced more ethyl caprate/caproate/caprylate (fruity/winy) than any of the other strains. The Koelsch strain produced less higher aliphatic alcohols (fusel/solvent) than any of the other yeasts.
Just going by the numbers it seems his Koelsch strain was "cleaner" than whatever lager strain he used, which is not what I would expect. I drank a Reissdorf Koelsch recently, and I didn't pick up any vinous character. If I didn't know better, I would've called it a typical German lager. So, I don't really know what to think.
The Alt yeast produced more Iso-amyl acetate (banana esters) than the Weizen yeast. The lager produced more ethyl caprate/caproate/caprylate (fruity/winy) than any of the other strains. The Koelsch strain produced less higher aliphatic alcohols (fusel/solvent) than any of the other yeasts.
Just going by the numbers it seems his Koelsch strain was "cleaner" than whatever lager strain he used, which is not what I would expect. I drank a Reissdorf Koelsch recently, and I didn't pick up any vinous character. If I didn't know better, I would've called it a typical German lager. So, I don't really know what to think.
43
General Homebrew Discussion / NHC 2nd round scores for cat.s 1, 2, and 6
« on: July 13, 2012, 08:56:19 am »
I'm looking for anyone willing to share their scores for beer that made it to the 2nd round in the NHC in categories 1, 2, or 6. It's for a project I'm working on about mashing methods. If you could, fill out the brief questionaire below and PM or email it to me. All responses will be kept confidential. Thanks. If I can't find enough 2nd rounders, I'd be interested in 1st rounders.
NHC Year:
Category: (1, 2, or 6)
Mash method: (single-infusion, two-step infusion, single decoction, double decoction, etc.)
Sparge method: (fly, batch, no-sparge)
Aroma: (X/12)
Appearance: (X/3)
Flavor: (X/20)
Mouthfeel: (X/5)
Overall: (X/10)
NHC Year:
Category: (1, 2, or 6)
Mash method: (single-infusion, two-step infusion, single decoction, double decoction, etc.)
Sparge method: (fly, batch, no-sparge)
Aroma: (X/12)
Appearance: (X/3)
Flavor: (X/20)
Mouthfeel: (X/5)
Overall: (X/10)
44
General Homebrew Discussion / Pictures of my house bug, any idea what it is?
« on: July 12, 2012, 03:39:44 pm »
Here are some pictures of the weird bug that lives in my sour beer bucket. Any idea what it is? It tastes OK and I hope it won't kill me:
