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General Homebrew Discussion / Re: cold conditioning
« on: April 30, 2013, 02:01:44 PM »
I consistently make clear beer. I'm worried about taste.
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General Homebrew Discussion / cold conditioning
« on: April 30, 2013, 12:53:56 PM »
I recently made a Blonde Ale and I just finished bottling it. The BJCP guidelines say that sometimes Blonde Ales are cold conditioned and Kolshs seem to also be cold conditioned as they are in the same category of beers. However, John Palmer in his book says that Cold Conditioning just helps to participate out large proteins including tannins and phenols which is what fining agents do anyway. I'm of course paraphrasing but my question is if one were to use fining agents, in my case I use whirlfloc, is cold conditioning really necessary?
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All Grain Brewing / Re: Preboil Gravity off
« on: April 30, 2013, 11:58:04 AM »
Are you taking into account temperature?? Higher temperatures will lower the gravity by a few points.
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General Homebrew Discussion / Re: A few ideas for better beer.
« on: April 14, 2013, 07:44:11 AM »
This is my makeshift "refrigerator" the water is pretty stable at 58 degrees and it's been less than 24 hours since I pitched the yeast...
It's much better than my apartment temp which fluctuates from 65 to 75-ish... I'm looking forward to a cleaner tasting beer...
By the way, I pitched Wyeast 1098 anybody have any fermentation tips for this yeast strain?
I was trying to brew the Summer Ale (Homebrew of the Week - http://www.homebrewersassociation.org/pages/community/news/show?title=summer-ale-what-if-version-c-1830 ) but I put in dark brown sugar and it completely changed the color of the beer... Not very summer-y
It's much better than my apartment temp which fluctuates from 65 to 75-ish... I'm looking forward to a cleaner tasting beer...
By the way, I pitched Wyeast 1098 anybody have any fermentation tips for this yeast strain?
I was trying to brew the Summer Ale (Homebrew of the Week - http://www.homebrewersassociation.org/pages/community/news/show?title=summer-ale-what-if-version-c-1830 ) but I put in dark brown sugar and it completely changed the color of the beer... Not very summer-y
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General Homebrew Discussion / Re: A few ideas for better beer.
« on: April 11, 2013, 08:57:07 AM »
I found this little gem:
http://morebeer.com/content/Controlling_Fermentation_With_Ice_Bath
I'm going to try it on my next beer for some temperature control... the last couple beer I've brewed were either phenolic-y or ester-y. I think temperature control is my number one priority, especially since I don't have a refrigerator...
Thanks for the input!
http://morebeer.com/content/Controlling_Fermentation_With_Ice_Bath
I'm going to try it on my next beer for some temperature control... the last couple beer I've brewed were either phenolic-y or ester-y. I think temperature control is my number one priority, especially since I don't have a refrigerator...
Thanks for the input!
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General Homebrew Discussion / Re: A few ideas for better beer.
« on: March 03, 2013, 07:14:19 PM »
When I brewed my 1st batch of all-grain 100% pale malt, I got a really astringent beer. I immediately looked at my water.
I got a water report from Ward Labs and realized that my water is okay for brown, porter or stout beers. So, I know how important water is. I just need a good way of checking it based on my water report so I think Bru'n Water is definitely what I'm going to look into for next batch.
Aeration is pretty minuscule on my end. I might pour my wort into a carboy and it bubbles up, but I think I should definitely add more O2.
I've never made a yeast starter. I just throw in some yeast and let it do what it does. I just recently bought Yeast by Chris White and Jamil Zainasheff and I realize now that as a brewer I just make food for the brewer. The yeast need to be healthy.
Which brings me to temperature. If I make sure my yeast is healthy and strong with enough O2 and at a temperature that inhibits off-flavors I think my beer would be much better.
So, these things I'm going to be trying in the next couple batches to see what I can produce.
Thanks for the replies! I really appreciate it.
I got a water report from Ward Labs and realized that my water is okay for brown, porter or stout beers. So, I know how important water is. I just need a good way of checking it based on my water report so I think Bru'n Water is definitely what I'm going to look into for next batch.
Aeration is pretty minuscule on my end. I might pour my wort into a carboy and it bubbles up, but I think I should definitely add more O2.
I've never made a yeast starter. I just throw in some yeast and let it do what it does. I just recently bought Yeast by Chris White and Jamil Zainasheff and I realize now that as a brewer I just make food for the brewer. The yeast need to be healthy.
Which brings me to temperature. If I make sure my yeast is healthy and strong with enough O2 and at a temperature that inhibits off-flavors I think my beer would be much better.
So, these things I'm going to be trying in the next couple batches to see what I can produce.
Thanks for the replies! I really appreciate it.
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General Homebrew Discussion / A few ideas for better beer.
« on: March 03, 2013, 05:39:10 PM »
I have a few ideas that I personally need to do for better beer. Please send me some suggestions.
1. Aeration system (aquarium pump / stone)
2. Yeast starter (using MrMalty.com or wyeast calculator)
3. Cooler fermentation temps (fridge / water tub / lowering my apartment temp, etc.)
4. Bru'n Water / 5.2 pH stabilizer (does this work) / John Palmers Nomograph
I think all these are very important but I haven't really worried about them because I was worrying more about mash efficiency more than anything else.
My question: Should I try these all at once or should I do each one one at a time?
1. Aeration system (aquarium pump / stone)
2. Yeast starter (using MrMalty.com or wyeast calculator)
3. Cooler fermentation temps (fridge / water tub / lowering my apartment temp, etc.)
4. Bru'n Water / 5.2 pH stabilizer (does this work) / John Palmers Nomograph
I think all these are very important but I haven't really worried about them because I was worrying more about mash efficiency more than anything else.
My question: Should I try these all at once or should I do each one one at a time?
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General Homebrew Discussion / Re: I need a palate
« on: March 01, 2013, 07:54:34 PM »
I don't know if I had a question. I'm just saying I don't believe in my own taste. So, I would like to find some 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th opinions...
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General Homebrew Discussion / I need a palate
« on: March 01, 2013, 07:10:50 PM »
My palate needs prepping before I can taste any subtle flavors in beer. I'm not a BJCP judge so I'm not trained in beer flavors and off-flavors, etc.
I know what good beer tastes like, but only when I prep my palate with a wide range of tastes (or beers), is when I can really taste the subtle nuances of beer.
I've been brewing since 2005 and I just started doing all-grain a few months ago and now I'm absolutely obsessed. I just submitted a beer in the NHC for the first time. This will be my very first beer competition. I think I make really good beer for a brand new all-grain brewer. I don't have a lot of control over my fermentation process. I still don't have a good aerator, I don't have a stir plate, I don't have a good way of controlling temperature (YET), but I still make pretty good beer.
Even typing that makes me think that's far-fetched. So, I need a palate. I need somebody to judge my beers and tell me what is wrong with it. I want to become a better brewer. I want to become the best brewer.
Please help a homebrewer out!
I know what good beer tastes like, but only when I prep my palate with a wide range of tastes (or beers), is when I can really taste the subtle nuances of beer.
I've been brewing since 2005 and I just started doing all-grain a few months ago and now I'm absolutely obsessed. I just submitted a beer in the NHC for the first time. This will be my very first beer competition. I think I make really good beer for a brand new all-grain brewer. I don't have a lot of control over my fermentation process. I still don't have a good aerator, I don't have a stir plate, I don't have a good way of controlling temperature (YET), but I still make pretty good beer.
Even typing that makes me think that's far-fetched. So, I need a palate. I need somebody to judge my beers and tell me what is wrong with it. I want to become a better brewer. I want to become the best brewer.
Please help a homebrewer out!
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All Grain Brewing / Re: My First Batch Sparge
« on: February 25, 2013, 07:45:02 PM »
I might be wrong but just because you get a couple more points from 190F sparge water doesn't mean it's fermentable. Has anybody tried using lower sparge water temperatures and holding it longer before collecting runnings?
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Kegging and Bottling / Super Hoppy Irish Red Ale.
« on: February 24, 2013, 01:08:43 PM »
This is a super hoppy Irish Red Ale that I just bottled. It's unbelievably clear. It's the clearest beer I've ever bottled.
My question is is there enough yeast in such a clear beer for carbonation? Should I have pitched more yeast prior to bottling?
My FG was right around 1010 - 1012 and fermented for about 3 weeks.
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All Grain Brewing / Re: My First Batch Sparge
« on: February 18, 2013, 09:36:09 AM »
From John Palmer's How to Brew Chapter 17:
"Sparging is the rinsing of the grain bed to extract as much of the sugars from the grain as possible without extracting mouth-puckering tannins from the grain husks. Typically, 1.5 times as much water is used for sparging as for mashing (e.g., 8 lbs. malt at 2 qt./lb. = 4 gallon mash, so 6 gallons of sparge water). The temperature of the sparge water is important. The water should be no more than 170°F, as husk tannins become more soluble above this temperature, depending on wort pH. This could lead to astringency in the beer."
"Sparging is the rinsing of the grain bed to extract as much of the sugars from the grain as possible without extracting mouth-puckering tannins from the grain husks. Typically, 1.5 times as much water is used for sparging as for mashing (e.g., 8 lbs. malt at 2 qt./lb. = 4 gallon mash, so 6 gallons of sparge water). The temperature of the sparge water is important. The water should be no more than 170°F, as husk tannins become more soluble above this temperature, depending on wort pH. This could lead to astringency in the beer."
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All Grain Brewing / Re: My First Batch Sparge
« on: February 18, 2013, 09:15:56 AM »A mashout really doesn't matter in batch sparging, and unless you hold a temp of 170 for 20 min. or more you aren't really doing one. I usually use sparge water around 185-190F so that I can be sure I've gotten complete gelatinization and conversion, not for a mashout.
I thought you don't want your water to be higher than 170 to prevent extracting tannins...
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General Homebrew Discussion / Re: Green Beer Question
« on: February 12, 2013, 01:58:47 PM »
Good news.
I put some bottles of my two green beers in the fridge for about 24 hrs or so... and they are definitely getting better. They are much more drinkable now! I was getting scared there for a second.
I put some bottles of my two green beers in the fridge for about 24 hrs or so... and they are definitely getting better. They are much more drinkable now! I was getting scared there for a second.
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General Homebrew Discussion / Re: Green Beer Question
« on: February 12, 2013, 12:03:31 AM »That's part of the "clean up" post attenuative phase. It can last longer depending on yeast health, beer strength and how cool the overall fermentation temp was. One way to combat this is to raise the temp of the beer several degrees towards the end of this stage. Another is to wait more days if you have less control over ferm temps.
To me it really doesn't taste like apple but like raw pumpkin- which I think is absolutely disgusting in beer.
I agree, but will it clear up in the bottle? Or, will it only clear up in the primary?