Messages

256

Equipment and Software / Re: Immersion chiller question

« on: July 31, 2012, 08:40:04 am »

It sounds like you have a bad design for an immersion cooler based on what you have said (long cooling times and water coming out of IC is cold).  What is the length and diameter of the tubing?  Can you post a picture of your brew pot and your IC?  The water coming out of my IC is steaming hot initially. 

In the meantime, you can stir your wort. 

257

Equipment and Software / Re: building vs. buying mash tun

« on: July 26, 2012, 03:10:18 pm »

http://hbd.org/cascade/dennybrew/

The above is a good design for batch sparging.  The manifold for fly sparging is a more complicated.  The pros and cons of batch vs fly is the subject of many threads here.

As you are just beginning to get into all-grain, it is probably easier for you to start with batch sparging.  I have a three tier system indoors that I fly sparge with.  When I brew outside, I do batch sparge. 

258

Beer Recipes / Re: Recreating an old recipe

« on: July 26, 2012, 06:53:23 am »

Baking yeast = brewer's yeast
Fleishmann's yeast = Budweiser yeast at least for one variety of Fleishmann's

259

Ingredients / Re: Decarbonation by Boiling

« on: July 25, 2012, 11:51:36 am »

                              
The water is heated to boiling or near-boiling and stirred, splashed, or aerated to help get the CO2 out of the water.  As CO2 leaves the water, CaCO3 precipitates and causes the water to become cloudy.  The heating is ended and the precipitate is allowed to settle quietly to the bottom of the vessel.  The water is then immediately decanted off the sediment and used for brewing.  The water cannot be allowed to sit too long on the sediment or CO2 will again diffuse from the atmosphere into the cooled water and redissolve the CaCO3. 

This process does not reduce the magnesium content since Mg(OH)2 is much more soluble than CaCO3 in water and the CaCO3 precipitates first, leaving the magnesium with the bicarbonate remaining in the water. 
                                                   

Some of the explanation confuses me but I think I figured it out.  Does this sound right?  Aeration and heat causes CO2 to be emitted.  The source of the CO2 is bicarbonate which has to absorb a proton.  This causes the solution to become slightly more alkaline causing some of the remaining bicarbonate to transform into carbonate and to precipitate as calcium carbonate.

260

Ingredients / Re: Big 'old hops

« on: July 25, 2012, 11:38:12 am »

My Cascades are much bigger this year than in the past 3 years.  They also look like they will be ready earlier than in previous years.  I think the unusually hot summer in Chicagoland is the reason, but a little fertilizer probably didn't hurt.

261

Yeast and Fermentation / Re: Sour Worting

« on: July 25, 2012, 08:17:53 am »

 I do my sour worts in a growler (so you can see why it's easier to just sour part) but I fill it into the neck so there is very little oxygen contact. That is probably where you are going wrong with the igloo. I would recommend souring in a glass carboy or some other container with a very small opening or at a minimum use saran wrap over the top of the liquid in your cooler and push out all the air bubbles so there is next to no exposure.

Lacto is tolerant to low levels of oxygen and warm wort should be low in oxygen.  I've soured 10-gallon batches of Berliner Weiss in my 15-gal brew kettle successfully without taking any special precautions such as purging the headspace or covering the surface with foil.

262

Yeast and Fermentation / Re: Sour Worting

« on: July 25, 2012, 08:12:44 am »

No, I'll taste. I just want to get below 4.3 ph so the bad bugs can't reproduce.  The last experiment was a little unsettling and I don't want to repeat it.  The smell has ruined my Igloo and I'd feel better knowing those bugs are not going to be a problem.

I've reused a mash tun that contained a mash that smelled like vomit without problems.  Others have too.  I even made a no boil Berliner Weiss using the mash tun.  Just clean well and use some sanitizer.

263

Yeast and Fermentation / Re: Sour Worting

« on: July 20, 2012, 08:28:08 am »

If I recall Wild Brews correctly, Lacto Delbruekii, which I assume is what you got, produces 1 molecule of CO2 for each molecule of lactic acid.  I'll try to remember to check at home.  Different lactos do different things so experience with yoghurt may not be that helpful.

Anyway Igloo coolers generally allow air in and out so you can drain cold water through the bottom tap.  So I wouldn't worry about the lid blowing off unless you did something to block the vent.

264

Yeast and Fermentation / Re: Is Wit Fermentation Sensitive to Pitch Rate?

« on: July 19, 2012, 10:40:27 am »

At the risk of revealing my ignorance, why not use Mr Malty's calculator, http://www.mrmalty.com/calc/calc.html?

265

General Homebrew Discussion / Re: What's Brewing This Weekend - 7/20 Edition

« on: July 19, 2012, 10:35:09 am »

American Pale.  What is the boards thinking about 10% of grain bill being 40L caramel?  I'm pretty sure that is what Brewing Classic styles uses since the recipe is adapted from BCS.  I may dryhop with fresh Cascades from garden as they look like they will be ready next week, which is unusually early for me. 

266

Equipment and Software / Re: Half Barrel Brew Tower Design

« on: July 18, 2012, 11:59:20 am »

I think your 2-tier system will meet your objectives, setting aside construction issues that I'm not qualified to evaluate. 

I'm thinking though you could build a 3-tier system that would operate entirely by gravity and do away with lifting and pouring of wort into the boil kettle.  The 3-tier design would probably be a little taller than your current milk-crate system.  You could save some height by converting a cooler into your mash tun.

267

Equipment and Software / Re: Half Barrel Brew Tower Design

« on: July 17, 2012, 09:52:46 am »

Is this meant to be a three tier gravity system?  Where is the mash tun, HLT, boil kettle and burners going?  I don't want to make any assumptions.  Will you have access from all four sides?

268

General Homebrew Discussion / Re: Simplifying Recipes

« on: July 16, 2012, 10:58:05 am »

Perhaps Mark was intending to refer to Randy Mosher instead of Ray Daniels.  Anyway, the first book I read that said to keep the recipe simple was Brew Like a Monk.

269

Ingredients / Re: Calcium Carbonate

« on: July 12, 2012, 02:30:14 pm »

I wasn't expecting you to say lake or that the water tastes fine.

Some quick internet research leads me to believe that your water may be fine for IPAs but should probably be diluted 1:1 with RO or distilled water for most other styles to lower the sulfate and magnesium levels. See http://www.antiochsudsuckers.com/tom/brewingwater.htm. 

You should run your water profile through one of the water spreadsheets to see roughly what adjustments you might need to make to get a suitable mash pH.

270

Ingredients / Re: Calcium Carbonate

« on: July 12, 2012, 01:11:33 pm »

OK, here's what I just got from our city water report. Now can someone tell me what the heck it means?  And, more specifically, any help with what this means for water treatments I should be using?

Total  Dissolved Solids   591 Phenolphthalein Alkalinity as CaCO3   13 Total Alkalinity as CaCO3   36 Hardness as CaCO3   228 Calcium as CaCO3   130 Hardness in grains per gallon   13 Bicarbonate Alkalinity as CaCO3   10 Calcium as Ca++   52 Magnesium as Mg++   25 Sulfate   211 Chloride   125 Bromide   <0.25 Fluoride   0.54 pH (Std. Units)   9.8

Sulfates and chloride are really high!  Where do you live?  Where does your water come from?  How does it taste?  Your water might be unsuitable for brewing or limited to certain styles.