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Ingredients / Re: 2012 Hop Crop?
« on: October 31, 2012, 08:33:59 am »I always do this with my hops from freshops and they stay nice and fresh for up to 2 years, sometimes more.
ditto
I feel relieved now. Thanks!
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I feel relieved now. Thanks!
77
Ingredients / Re: Pumpkin
« on: October 31, 2012, 07:25:13 am »
My pumpkin beer is ready. The carbonation is silky, almost like nitrogen. The spices came out a lot more once it was carbonated. The pumpkin flavor is really there too by boiling the pumpkin. No haze whatsoever. Glad I made 10 gallons.
78
Ingredients / Re: 2012 Hop Crop?
« on: October 31, 2012, 07:22:46 am »
I got my hops from fresh hops. They look wonderful, but, as I feared, they're not sealed well. I think my best plan would be to split them into smaller packages with a vacuum sealer and keep them frozen. I'm hoping they'll stay good for a year. Where's nitrogen when ya need it.
79
Equipment and Software / Re: Aquarium heater for controlling fermentation temps
« on: October 29, 2012, 04:15:10 pm »
Didn't recirculate. The carboy was in an Igloo cooler or two carboys in a 45 gallon (I think) plastic tub. The space is so small that recirculation wasn't needed. I covered everything with a thick blanket to keep the heat in. The temps stayed nice and steady.
80
Equipment and Software / Re: Aquarium heater for controlling fermentation temps
« on: October 29, 2012, 02:48:07 pm »
I started doing that very thing now that the temperatures are cooler. I got a heater meant for a 30-60 gallon aquarium. I was able to ferment a Saison at 90F and another batch of Pumpkin beer around 68F with no effort whatsoever. I did have a heated water bath ready a day before so I could zone in the thermostat. I think with some practice, I'll be able to guesstimate the thermostat setting close enough for government work.
81
Yeast and Fermentation / Re: Pumpkin beer and Belgium yeast
« on: October 28, 2012, 09:05:32 am »
I never used Belgian yeast to ferment a pumpkin ale, but once I accidentally used White Labs 300 Hefeweizen yeast. It wasn't bad. The cloves worked with the pumpkin. The banana flavor wasn't even that weird.
82
Ingredients / Re: Pumpkin
« on: October 19, 2012, 10:30:57 pm »All, I have an amber ale in the keg ready to carbonate. I would like to make this into a "pumpkin ale" by adding spices, but I am not sure whether to use Pumpkin Pie spice, straight Nutmeg, or a combo of 1/2 nutmeg and 1/2 cinnamon. Any advice is appreciated.
The spicing is a personal preference. I love the flavor of Saigon cinnamon. It's about 80% of my spicing regimen. I add ginger, too. If using fresh, use more. I use close to a tablespoon. If using dry, use a lot less. I go with a teaspoon of ground nutmeg. I don't like cloves or allspice, but add them if you like 'em. It's best to go low on spices. You can always add more. I also add 2-3 tsp of good vanilla, which seems to blend the flavors. Do not go overboard on the vanilla, though. It's something that you really can't detect, but will miss if it's not there. The vanilla flavor is permanent; it won't mellow with age.
83
Events / Re: NHC 2013 Hotel?
« on: October 19, 2012, 02:40:24 am »it is most likely going to be at the Pennsylvania Convention Center
The Convention Center, yeah. But does that have hotel rooms?
84
Wood/Casks / Re: Jim Beam --> Allagash Curieux --> ???
« on: October 14, 2012, 02:27:32 am »
You won't get much bourbon character, mostly just flavor from the wood. I've always wondered if it's possible to "re-charge" a barrel. After the barrel is emptied, put in a few bottles of bourbon to slosh around inside and be absorbed by the wood.
85
Ingredients / Re: Coconut Porter
« on: October 10, 2012, 02:24:58 am »I think they just shredded it (Flat Earth was the last stop in the tour, and there were a lot of beverages involved). I'm sure toasting wouldn't hurt, though.I had a wonderful coconut porter at Flat Earth Brewing at the 2010 NHC in Minneapolis/St. Paul. The aroma and flavor were off the charts. Here's how they did it: Soak coconut in vodka for a few weeks. Drain the vodka and mix it with brown sugar until it's a gravy-like consistency. The brown sugar takes away the harshness of the vodka. Boil the "gravy" lightly to drive off some of the alcohol. (Maybe you don't want to drive off some of the alcoholDo you know if they used just shredded coconut, or did they toast it first?) Add the mixture to the secondary.
86
Ingredients / Re: Coconut Porter
« on: October 09, 2012, 02:29:39 pm »
I had a wonderful coconut porter at Flat Earth Brewing at the 2010 NHC in Minneapolis/St. Paul. The aroma and flavor were off the charts. Here's how they did it: Soak coconut in vodka for a few weeks. Drain the vodka and mix it with brown sugar until it's a gravy-like consistency. The brown sugar takes away the harshness of the vodka. Boil the "gravy" lightly to drive off some of the alcohol. (Maybe you don't want to drive off some of the alcohol ) Add the mixture to the secondary.
) Add the mixture to the secondary.
87
General Homebrew Discussion / Re: Should I be worried about this? (Calling all chemists)
« on: October 02, 2012, 06:29:57 pm »
I use the glass "rocks" for aquariums as weights. I put them inside a hopsock inside the mesh bag of hops.
88
Yeast and Fermentation / Re: Reusing yeast
« on: October 02, 2012, 07:17:55 am »Like Joe said, you may try washing the yeast. I just started doing this and have had great results. Here's a link I used to get me going: http://billybrew.com/yeast-washing
+1 on the billybrew.com!
89
Ingredients / Re: Where to get cherries?
« on: October 02, 2012, 02:31:02 am »
I've never used them, but this source looks promising: www.leelanaufruit.com. They sell either concentrate or dried tart cherries.
90
All Grain Brewing / Re: Best size boil kettle for 10 gallon batches
« on: October 01, 2012, 03:29:38 am »
I just bought a 20 gallon kettle. It'll have its maiden voyage in a few days. I figured if I want to make 10 gallons, I'll need to brew 12 to compensate for the sludge in the bottom of the kettle. If I want 12 gallons, I'll have to sparge off close to 14 gallons. A 15 gallon kettle just won't cut it. The 20 gallon kettle was only $30 more at NB. I figured it was a no-brainer.