Messages

1081

Other Fermentables / Re: Melomel - low OG

« on: June 06, 2012, 08:17:34 AM »

What yeast are you using?  Typically a wine yeast (71B, D47 et:al) will ferment down 100 points.  You should end up with a semi-sweet if it finishes at 1.012.  If not, you can always backsweeten.  You will also get some sugar from the blackberries.  Watch the PH since you have added the lemon upfront.  It could drop too low and affect fermentation.

I'm using 71B. As far as the lemon goes, I only added zest to the fermenter. I held off on the juice for now for exactly the reason you mentioned. I was going to wait and use lemon juice if I need to adjust the acidity after fermentation. I think I'll wait on the honey and use it to backsweeten if needed. That will give me time to score some more of the honey I used in the mead (a killer local wildflower honey that has a fantastic cinnamon spice note), instead of just using the orange blossom honey I have on hand.

1082

Commercial Beer Reviews / Re: Found A Decent Laid Back Summer Beer

« on: June 06, 2012, 05:45:33 AM »

Their Sunset Wheat is easily the worst beer I've ever had, including every infected beer I've ever tasted.

+1

I take it you guys don't like Fruity Pebbles? That's exactly what the Sunset Wheat reminds me of. I'm not a huge fan, but it's not awful to me, and at least it's beer. I'd rather serve Sunset Wheat than wine coolers at a summer cookout.

1083

Other Fermentables / Melomel - low OG

« on: June 05, 2012, 09:30:58 PM »

I started my first mead last night (a Blackberry-Lemon melomel). My OG came in quite a bit lower than I was expecting. I was modeling this after a recipe that had a projected OG of 1.158, and I ended up at 1.120. According to the recipe, the FG should end up between 1.030 and 1.040. I am a little concerned that this will end up fermenting down way too dry. Should I add some more honey now while fermentation is just starting to ramp up, or am I better off waiting until fermentation is done and I rack it to secondary?

1084

Beer Recipes / Re: Hoppy Saison w/Brett

« on: June 05, 2012, 11:17:50 AM »

Are you using chocolate malt or chocolate?  If you are using the malt, I would think carafa would be a better choice, IMHO.

I actually wanted a bit of malt bitterness, so I was leaning towards chocolate malt or roasted barley. If that's going to be too abrasive with a dry, hoppy beer, maybe I'll go with something like Blackprinz or Midnight Wheat instead.

1085

Beer Recipes / Hoppy Saison w/Brett

« on: June 05, 2012, 10:26:37 AM »

I've been really liking a real dank hoppiness to my beers as of late. I've been kicking around the idea of a funky saison with a lot of dank hop character to it to go for a dank/funky/spicy combo. I'm kind of shooting for a bale of grass, sprinkled with pepper and coffee grounds, rolled up in a sweaty horse blanket and stored in a damp basement for a few months. And yes, this is appealing to me 

Process-wise, I'm thinking of doing an initial ferment with 3711 then racking to a secondary with Brett L for several months. I plan on doing a massive dry-hop just prior to bottling. I do want to get a significant amount of Brett funk, so I was toying with the idea of adding some lactose at the end of the boil to leave some food for the Brett after the saison yeast has done its part.

This is my first time trying something like this, so any feedback or suggestions are appreciated. Thanks!

Title: FunkinDank

Brew Method: Partial Mash
Style Name: Saison
Boil Time: 60 min
Batch Size: 3 gallons
Boil Size: 3.5 gallons
Efficiency: 70%

STATS:
Original Gravity: 1.065
Final Gravity: 1.013
IBU (tinseth): 33.76
SRM (morey): 15.23

FERMENTABLES:
3 lb - Dry Malt Extract - Extra Light (52.6%)
1.5 lb - Rye (26.3%)
0.2 lb - Dark Chocolate Malt(3.5%)
0.5 lb - Vienna (8.8%)
0.5 lb - Victory (8.8%)

HOPS:
0.1 oz - Columbus (AA 13.6) for 60 min, Type: Pellet, Use: Boil
0.2 oz - Columbus (AA 13.6) for 10 min, Type: Pellet, Use: Boil
0.2 oz - Apollo (AA 20) for 10 min, Type: Pellet, Use: Boil
0.2 oz - Nugget (AA 14) for 10 min, Type: Pellet, Use: Boil
0.2 oz - Simcoe (AA 12.2) for 10 min, Type: Leaf/Whole, Use: Boil
0.8 oz - Columbus (AA 13.6) for 7 days, Type: Pellet, Use: Dry Hop
0.8 oz - Apollo (AA 20) for 7 days, Type: Pellet, Use: Dry Hop
0.8 oz - Simcoe (AA 12.2) for 7 days, Type: Leaf/Whole, Use: Dry Hop
0.8 oz - Nugget (AA 14) for 7 days, Type: Pellet, Use: Dry Hop

MASH STEPS:
1) Infusion, Temp: 157 F, Time: 60 min

YEAST:
Wyeast - French Saison 3711
Starter: No
Form: Liquid
Attenuation (avg): 80%
Flocculation: Low
Optimum Temperature: 65 F - 77 F
Additional Yeast: Brett L

1086

All Things Food / Re: Hops in a smoker water pan

« on: June 05, 2012, 09:56:10 AM »

I think as long as the hops are in water and the bottom of the pan isn't directly on the coals, then you should be fine. I'm thinking that whole leaf hops would be best for this application since they will float on top. It has potential since most of the hop oils flash off by the mid 150's F. I'm just wondering how much hops you will need to use to see some results.

1087

The Pub / Re: song title game

« on: June 05, 2012, 09:43:47 AM »

The Small Hours - Holocaust

1088

Ingredients / Re: Cherries

« on: June 05, 2012, 07:06:19 AM »

The Mennonite stores around me start taking orders for Rainiers in July, and I believe they got them late August last year.

I got some Rainiers recently at my local supermarket, but they were pretty bland. I'm pretty sure they were from Cali. The Rainiers that are around in the mid-to-late summer are worth the wait.

1089

Commercial Beer Reviews / Re: Pabst Blue Ribbon

« on: June 05, 2012, 05:58:59 AM »

I've been a fan of PBR since before the whole "trailer trash chic"/hipster movement grabbed a hold of it. I do appreciate that it has become more widely available in bars/clubs/restaurants, but I can't say that it exactly lives up to all the recent buzz around it. I definitely like it a hell of a lot better than most BMC fare, and it is always welcome in my fridge, but I'll take just about any craft lager/pilsner over PBR any day.

1090

All Things Food / Re: Growing food - The Garden Thread

« on: June 04, 2012, 07:44:55 PM »

Does anyone know of effective organic means to keep grasshoppers away? Some jerk-bug has been munching on my already-sad-looking basil.

At least they have good taste!

I believe a pyrethrin based spray would work well and be food-safe. Available everywhere.

Pyrethrins are indeed allowable in an OMRI-listed organic pesticide, but I personally try to keep away from them because they do pose some toxicity concerns that I'm trying to avoid. But everyone has to make that call for themselves, and it sure beats the non-organic options.

I use Neem oil on my fruits and veggies. It works OK, but not great. It also needs to be reapplied every 4 or 5 days (or after a rain), so YMMV. I haven't had much of an issue with grasshoppers, so I don't know how effective Neem is on them specifically, but it's pretty much an all-piurpose insect treatment so it should work just as well on them as things like bean beetles, Japanese beetles, etc.

1091

The Pub / Re: song title game

« on: June 03, 2012, 08:03:24 PM »

Size Queen - Kyuss

1092

Commercial Beer Reviews / Re: Stone Brewing POLL

« on: June 03, 2012, 08:01:10 PM »

I love the oaked AB, but it is insanely oaky - nothing subtle about it at all. Still, it reminds me of hunting up in timber country, so the flavor really brings a vivid memory to mind for me.

Oh, and their bottles work great for homebrew. 

Does PBW strip off screen printing? 

1093

Kegging and Bottling / Re: Altitude and beer transport

« on: June 03, 2012, 11:34:49 AM »

Im thinking that as long as the beer remains sealed in a pressurized vessel (i.e., a beer bottle) then changes in external pressure won't have any significant effect on the contents of the bottle.

1094

Beer Recipes / Re: The Kitchen Sink

« on: June 02, 2012, 08:24:19 PM »

I'd agree with your idea, the Dark Rye India Pale but I would use 1056 instead.

So what do you taste with summit? I get the onion/garlic/brothy flavor...

To me, Summit is like an amped-up Columbus with a brighter citrus note (like tangerines).

1095

The Pub / Re: Just sayin

« on: June 02, 2012, 05:31:33 PM »

Riddle me this theoman...  Gueuze?

Aw, snap. Ya got me. Of course, the explanation is that it's not a word of Dutch origin.

Not trying for a gotcha, truly interested in knowing the correct pronunciation.  I know the beer,  I'd to be able to call it something besides "yum!"

Yeah, I've heard it called "Gays" and "Jews". Frankly, I could care less what it's orientation and heritage are, it's just as tasty regardless.