Messages

16

Events / Re: NHC Streaming?

« on: June 13, 2013, 12:05:18 pm »

Usually the Brewing Network does this.

17

General Homebrew Discussion / Re: Stir Bar Tip

« on: June 13, 2013, 10:19:24 am »

I feel like the only one without a stir plate...maybe that'll be the next upgrade.

nah, I don't have one either. I don't have flasks either. I use 1 qt mason jars or .5 gallon ones if I need a big starter

I use a 3.5L cookie jar from the Wal-Mart. Cost me $4.88 as opposed to the $25-$30 Pyrex flasks I kept breaking. That this has lasted me nearly a year now!

18

Equipment and Software / Re: I'm ready to trash my kettle

« on: June 13, 2013, 10:17:46 am »

Honestly, it sounds like you've already made up your mind. But like other posters have said:

- 'calibrated' stick for measuring volumes. I use a very large spoon.
- a partially covered boil or lower heat will reduce evaporation
- you can get weldless plugs, plug it up and drill a new hole. Get a new spigot.

There, you just saved ~$500.

19

General Homebrew Discussion / Re: BJCP Category for Coconut Porter

« on: June 13, 2013, 06:41:57 am »

Basically we need to find these things before the Final Round.  Asking people to ship 3 more bottles at their own expense and then telling them "sorry, you're not eligible for a medal" is wrong.  (again, IMO)

cheers--
--Michael

Without knowing how the beers taste, how can you do this effectively?

The best beer of the category was kicked before it was opened.  They judged it anyway, but had already declared it ineligible for a medal based solely on the base style being "historical" and thus should be in 23.  My argument was and is that it is silly to kick out a gose because of this and not kick out coconut beers which should be in 21A.  There are gruits listed among the commercial examples in 20A anyway; pretty sure they are just as "historical"

I don't think we should have kicked out anything.

I see what you mean now. But aren't you supposed to consult with the judge director or competition organizer if you feel like a beer was placed in the wrong category? I don't know that this didn't happen, but it seems a bit presumptuous to kick a beer out of contention because a judge (or judges) feel(s) it doesn't fit the guidelines - especially if you haven't even tried it.

20

General Homebrew Discussion / Re: BJCP Category for Coconut Porter

« on: June 13, 2013, 05:55:54 am »

Basically we need to find these things before the Final Round.  Asking people to ship 3 more bottles at their own expense and then telling them "sorry, you're not eligible for a medal" is wrong.  (again, IMO)

cheers--
--Michael

Without knowing how the beers taste, how can you do this effectively?

21

General Homebrew Discussion / Re: BJCP Category for Coconut Porter

« on: June 13, 2013, 05:32:17 am »

from this forum a couple years ago...
good enough for me.

21a is the right place.  I'll clarify in the next set of guidelines.  The intent of fruit vs SHV beers is to keep to the culinary interpretation of the ingredient not the botanical one.  If (God help us) you made a tomato beer, it would be entered in 21a not 20.  Coconut tastes more like macadamia nuts and cashews than it does raspberries and cherries.  So it goes in 21.  I thought 'nut' was good enough, but apparently not.  That was the intent, though.

Nice find!

But didn't a coconut stout win Category 20 at last year's NHC? I think until the guidelines get updated we will keep having this question and have no clear answer.

EDIT: Yeah, "Koko's Nut Porter" won Category 20 last year.

22

General Homebrew Discussion / Re: Stir Bar Tip

« on: June 13, 2013, 05:23:19 am »

I do the same with a magnet on the bottom.  If I needed to get the stir bar out without decanting, I would use the magnet to pull the stir bar up the side and out.

Same here - I have some rare earth magnets from an old hard drive laying around. Stick 'em to the kegerator when not in use.

23

Commercial Beer Reviews / Re: Re: HooDoo Brewing

« on: June 12, 2013, 08:09:35 am »

It has been fun.  But only two breweries and I'm here for three days.  What am I going to do tommorrow?!

Go back to the one you like the most?

24

All Grain Brewing / Re: Hot Side Aeration

« on: June 12, 2013, 05:04:28 am »

Sounds like Jamil's whirlpool chiller does just about the same thing.

Like Jeff said, if Charles Bamforth thinks it's nothing to worry about and I haven't seen it in my own brewery, I'm not gonna worry about it!

25

Ingredients / Re: General hop guidelines

« on: June 11, 2013, 07:17:14 am »

The book For the Love of Hops has a pretty comprehensive and current table in it. I use it for reference a lot. Highly recommended book.

26

Going Pro / Re: Filled Keg storage

« on: June 10, 2013, 12:32:23 pm »

why bottle conditioning is superior for long term flavor stabilization.

Is it the yeast sediment that's the crucial factor, or something to do with the bottle conditioning itself?

According to Boulevard, who centrifuges all their beer and adds their proprietary bottling strain (yes, even the wheats), it is for the yeasts' superior oxygen depleting properties. They claim much longer shelf life over counter pressure filled bottles.

That is totally believable to me.

I believe it, but I don't have the data or sources to back it up. Just by going to the brewery and knowing one of their retired sensory leads is what makes me believe it.

BTW - it has got to be more expensive to centrifuge out the yeast, add bottling yeast and priming sugar/cap than it is to just counter pressure fill.

27

Yeast and Fermentation / Re: Infection

« on: June 09, 2013, 06:39:56 pm »

The beer is sours during the fermentation.  All in all I have had 7 sour batches out of about seventy batches.

All my hoses are high temp silicon and all the fittings are stainless camlocks.  The wort goes from the boil kettle to a march pump then a blichmann ferminator.  After that straight to the glass carboy.  I add 60 seconds of Oxygen at 1 cfm thru a stainless 5 micron air stone.  After that I pitch the yeast, cap the car boy with a bung, and agitate it for 60 seconds.  I then place the air lock and fill it with everclear and put it in the chest freezer.

I identified some discoloration in my carboy bungs.  Looked like a mold discoloration.  I am leaning toward the carboy bungs being the case of the infection.

So the ones that aren't infected, what changes to the process are you making? Or is it as simple as using a moldy bung on the suspect batches?

Either way, please report back when you get a new beer through the system - we all love closure! 

28

Yeast and Fermentation / Re: Roselaere Blend repitch

« on: June 09, 2013, 06:36:03 pm »

It is presently in a plastic barrel - 10 gallon batch in 14 gallon plastic barrel that has a metal compression band.  Should I bulk age it in that?  I was thinking of getting it into glass for long term storage - then finish by putting 5 gallons in an oak barrel I acquired...at least for a month or so at the very end.

I would not age in plastic. If you have glass, use it.

29

Going Pro / Re: Re: Filled Keg storage

« on: June 09, 2013, 04:16:26 pm »

why bottle conditioning is superior for long term flavor stabilization.

Is it the yeast sediment that's the crucial factor, or something to do with the bottle conditioning itself?

According to Boulevard, who centrifuges all their beer and adds their proprietary bottling strain (yes, even the wheats), it is for the yeasts' superior oxygen depleting properties. They claim much longer shelf life over counter pressure filled bottles.

30

Yeast and Fermentation / Re: Infection

« on: June 07, 2013, 08:26:39 am »

FWIW, I had a small phenolic infection in my brewery about 8 months ago. I did not chance wasting any more beer and threw out all of my plastic stuff and started again.

...usually cheaper than a 5-gallon extract batch that might otherwise go down the drain.

Exactly.