Topics

76

Kegging and Bottling / Correlation between bottle weight and max CO2 volume?

« on: April 18, 2012, 02:24:53 PM »

Is there a rule of thumb for bottle weight vs max CO2? Or I guess the weight to volume ratio to total carbonation volume?

I have some Boulevard bottles that weigh 256g and had beer with published CO2 of 3.5 volumes. I have some Piraat bottles that weigh 283g, and had a lot of carbonation, but I don't know how much. My plain old longnecks weigh about 200g, and those I assume are only safe up to 3 volumes.

77

All Grain Brewing / Eric Warner's "German Wheat Beer" and wheat brewing techniques

« on: April 14, 2012, 10:29:08 AM »

I read Warner's book last night, and I had a few questions. I know people say that parts of the book are outdated. Is it outdated because malt quality is better today? Which parts, in particular, should I ignore? Can any of the advice be used to brew better beer?

This passage jumped out at me, because my malt's S/T is 34%: "The most intensive mash program commonly used for brewing a Weissbier is the double decoction mash. This mash program is chosen for malts that not highly modified, particularly if the degree of soluble protein is less than 36%. . ."

He also recommends an extended boil (90-120min+) because of the higher level of coagulable protein.

The way I've been brewing my wheat beers: I dough-in around 100*, keeping the barley separate from the wheat. Through direct heat, I raise the temp of the wheat portion to 120-130*, hold for 15-20min, raise to a saccharification temp of 150*-ish for 15-20min, then bring to a boil for 10-15min. I then add that portion to the barley portion, and the temp will hit around 150*. I let that rest for 30-45min, then start to vorlauf and lauter. I generally use a 60min boil for the wort.

I've tried doing single infusions with this malt, but in large amounts it gets really gummy and my sparges stick. My batch efficiency is also really poor (around 60%) when using a single infusion.

Using the above-mentioned method, I can brew with around 55-60% wheat malt, and my sparges are slow but they don't tend to get stuck, and batch efficiency is around 70%.

Here are the specs for my wheat malt:
Fine/Coarse - 78.5/77.1
DP - 188
Total protein - 15.24
Soluble protein - 5.2
S/T - 34.12
Mealy/Half/Glassy - 90/10/0
pH - 6.1

So, any thoughts?

78

Ingredients / Northern brewer flat-rate shipping on grain sacks?

« on: April 13, 2012, 03:00:54 PM »

Hey guys,
I ordered a 55lb sack of grain from Northern Brewer. In my cart it estimated shipping at about $26. I added a few more items and checked the shipping estimate again, and it gave me the $7.99 flat rate. Is their cart buggy, or do you get flat-rate shipping if you spend over a certain amount with them?

79

The Pub / Beer anxiety dreams

« on: April 10, 2012, 06:49:12 AM »

Does anyone else have anxiety dreams about brewing flaws? I had a dream last night my IPA turned to cardboard. I've only made one seriously oxidized beer (old hops) but it was the worst beer I've ever had.

80

General Homebrew Discussion / Methode Champenoise, dry hop in bottle?

« on: April 09, 2012, 01:12:49 PM »

I'm working a Belgian Brut and will be doing the methode champenoise to bottle it. Basically, you let it carb up on the lees, invert bottle, freeze lees into a plug, uncap the bottle, blow out the lees, then recap.

Would it be possible to dry hop in the bottle, then blow out the pellets with the lees? Is there a reason I should, or shouldn't try this?

81

Going Pro / Brewing on a schedule

« on: April 08, 2012, 06:46:40 AM »

On the advice of some of the guys here, I've been trying to brew on a weekly schedule, in anticipation of brewing commercial a few years down the road.

What do you do if your beer isn't done when you need the empty tank? Is this just yeast selection, where you only pick strains with quick and acceptable performance?

I haven't been monitoring fermentation progress every day. The beers are usually ready to rack within a week. Two batches ago I used Danstar Windsor for the first time, since I ran out of S-04, and after a week I was only at 33% apparent attenuation. I was boiling a wit at the time, and I needed the bucket, so I racked anyway.

If this were a commercial beer I was trying to make on a schedule with limited fermenting space, this could've been a real disaster. 

82

Ingredients / Undermodified pils malt?

« on: April 05, 2012, 12:49:01 PM »

Sorry if this has been covered before, but my google skills fail me.

Does anyone know of any supplier for undermodified pils malt? Does such a thing exist anymore?

I've seen floor-malted Bohemian pils from a few stores. Is that the same, or is it pretty well-modified?

83

Yeast and Fermentation / Best practice for WY3711?

« on: March 31, 2012, 12:52:24 PM »

I've used this yeast a few times, but I wanted to get some feedback on how people like to use this. It's been a year or more since I've used it and I can't find my notes.

I'm planning a 1.080-ish Saison. Any advice on pitching rate and ferm temperature? Should I use additional nutrients?

84

General Homebrew Discussion / Unexpected pellicle? I hope I'm wrong

« on: March 28, 2012, 10:19:23 AM »

I added oak to a Belgian Brut a few weeks ago. When I added the oak, fermentation was definitely over, and it was still and clear. I go to rack it off today, and it had a splotchy, sticky, slimy white film on the top. It sure looks like a pellicle, but maybe it's not? I don't know what else it would be.

I tasted the white film, and it didn't taste like much, just kind of chalky and kind of tart. Do I have a Brett infection? It doesn't look like my Berliner Weisses do, so I don't think it's Lacto.

Would adding more oak (and probably whatever bug it is) make it finish faster?

Gravity is 1.010 right now. If it's Brett, how much lower should the gravity drop? I'm planning on bottling in champagne bottles, so I'm not super worried about bottle bombs, but I was really hoping to bottle it before May.

85

Equipment and Software / Anyone else using Yeastcalc?

« on: March 21, 2012, 06:03:14 PM »

This: http://www.yeastcalc.com/index.html

After futzing with Sean Terrill's MrMalty instructions for stepped starters for a few batches, getting annoyed and calculating them out by hand, someone pointed me to a calculator that figures the steps out for me!

This is probably old news for you guys, but in case it isn't, check it out.

86

Ingredients / How much and when - Nelson for a Brut?

« on: March 21, 2012, 02:33:27 PM »

I'm making a Belgian Brut-style beer right now, and want to dry hop with Nelson Sauvin. It's oaking right now. Should I wait until it gets closer to bottling time to dry hop it, or should I dry hop it now? How much should I use? I haven't dry-hopped any Belgian beers before, and don't want to overdo it. I'm planning on bottling it around the end of April.

EDIT: I'm thinking 2oz, one week from bottling. Does that sound reasonable?

87

Going Pro / Interesting cash-flow spreadsheet I found

« on: March 19, 2012, 10:13:42 AM »

It's for wineries, but there are a lot of variables you change to make it work for a beer brewery. If nothing else, it's a pretty complete list of expenses and issues you might run into.

It's called the Winery Ten Year Financial Planning Workbook
http://www.agmrc.org/commodities__products/fruits/wine/winery_and_vineyard_feasibility_workbooks.cfm

88

All Things Food / French Boule advice?

« on: March 16, 2012, 03:11:54 PM »

Hey guys,
I tried my hand at that other use for yeast: bread. Here's the recipe I used:
http://www.randyclemens.com/2010/02/05/french-country-boule-recipe/

The flavor was pretty good, but the crust was lighter than I wanted. The bread was denser than I was hoping, but the crust texture was good.

Any advice? I was planning on baking it hotter next time, to help with the color, but I'm not sure what happened to make it not-so-fluffy on the inside.

89

Yeast and Fermentation / Why does acidity impair yeast performance?

« on: March 13, 2012, 05:07:42 PM »

I think it has something to do with the H+ ions disrupting proton ATPase, and secondary active transport, but I only have a fuzzy (at best) understanding of microbiology.

90

Yeast and Fermentation / Crazy pH drop during fermentation

« on: March 10, 2012, 05:36:57 PM »

I'm doing six 3L fermentation trials for mead right now, comparing different strains, trying my hand at Curt Stock's Even-speed-mead method, and also the effect of very hard water on mead. I'll do a more detailed write-up later, but the initial results were shocking.

OG: 1.050
500g honey
2g yeast (properly rehydrated)

A1 - 71B with hard water (400ppm CaCO3)
A2 - 71B with lime-softened water (50ppm CaCO3)

Day 0
Added 0.65g Fermaid K to both
Added 0.30g DAP

A1 pH - 5.9
A2 pH - 5.8

Day 1
Roused

Day 2 - SG: 1.030
Roused
Added 0.65g Fermaid
Added 0.30g DAP

A1 pH - 2.3. Added 1tbsp+1/2tsp of 5% calcium hydroxide solution, which raised the pH to 3.7
A2 pH - 1.8. Added 3tbsp of 5% lime solution, which raised the pH to 3.8

I degassed the samples by shaking them repeatedly in a mason jar, and also by letting them sit out for a few hours. I calibrated my pH meter was calibrated twice, to 7 and 4, because I didn't believe my results.

I really didn't expect the pH to fall that much that quickly. I'm not surprised at all that most mead fermentations take months to finish, since the must becomes so hostile to yeast so quickly.