Messages

16

Kegging and Bottling / Re: Help contaminated my Tank

« on: January 09, 2010, 04:57:22 AM »

You say I can remove the valve with out screwing the tank up? Thanks for the advice.

I certainly wouldn't recommend you doing that yourself unless you have the proper training.
Also keep in mind that if you do do this, you'll need to have the tank purged before refilling.

17

All Grain Brewing / Re: Stabilzer and Mineral Additions

« on: January 09, 2010, 04:35:36 AM »

Yeah Denny, you're right, there are really several related issues here regarding the mineral additions:

-At what point in the brewing process should they be added (sparge water, mash water, or boil):  Assuming we start with RO water, it sounds like one should add some minerals (calcium) to the sparge water to lower the pH.  

Some brewers salts won't just disolve into plain water so you would probably need to actually acidify the sparge water with latic or similar acid vs adding salts, if that is what you need to do.

18

All Grain Brewing / Re: Alpha Amylase

« on: December 01, 2009, 04:00:05 PM »

I use promash and had reset my default to tinseth years ago.

Btw, I tried the carbonation level in a keg I had lagering.
All the world of difference. It tastes like a crisp German
lager it was meant to be.

I'll try increasing the carbonation level on the others.

19

All Grain Brewing / Re: Alpha Amylase

« on: November 29, 2009, 08:30:51 AM »

Thanks guys, I'll look into the water situation before next brew day.

20

The Pub / Re: Hockey night!

« on: November 29, 2009, 08:26:37 AM »

  Just got home from a Pens game. Was so stoked I had to tell someone. Pittsburgh downed the Rangers 8-3! Evgeni Malkin pulled off a hat trick, and played the second best game of his career! It was awesome to be there, and be part of it. Attendance was just over 17,000. The 131st sell out game in a row. Was very cool to go to one last game in the old Igloo, before next season.
  Thank you for listening. Now back to your beer.

I thought it was Sid the Kid who got the hat trick.

21

All Grain Brewing / Re: Alpha Amylase

« on: November 28, 2009, 10:11:09 AM »

Kai, I don't think I have trouble with my attenuation. They don't taste sweet or full
like an ale would.. just that it don't have the bite of a german lager.

 Major, my hops are fresh and I really don't want to add more calcium than I already do.
I add 1 tsp per mash for my 5 gallon tun.

That is also the reason I don't try a step infusion. Tun size is a bit restricted.
I may have to try an decoction.

Thanks guys, I have a few things to try now. The carbonation, I'll try on the lager I have lagering now.
The salts/decoction will have to wait until next week, if I get a chance to brew then. Perhaps on a future
brew I'll also up the bitter hops additions to see if that makes a difference.

22

All Grain Brewing / Re: Alpha Amylase

« on: November 28, 2009, 08:57:38 AM »

Perhaps i'm asking too much out of my equipment.

I have a real soft water profile  sulfate = 0mgl, calcium 3.7 mgl, magnisium .55 mgl, sodium 5.4 mgl, bicarbonate 5.5 mgl, hardness as CaCo3 11.5 mgl, chloride 12 mgl for my last water profile request from the city.

Carbonation is perhaps a bit low. I should bump up the level and try that.

It isn't that they taste clean, it's just they don't finish to what I perceive as a crisp beer, nearly devoid of an aftertaste.

23

All Grain Brewing / Re: Alpha Amylase

« on: November 28, 2009, 06:30:42 AM »

Well I do areate slow and move my wand around the wort as I'm doing it. I get a good fermentation as I pitch either a decanted gallon starter, or a yeast slurry ( lots there ) or 20 g of rehydrated climatized dry yeast
As I stated in oy OP, I climatize my yeast to about 45f and pitch it into wort at 48f. I get short lag times < 12 hours, and fermentation in done watching the strip on my fermenter which will show between 48f and 50f. Ambient temp inside my fridge will vary between 44f and 50f.

I did forget to mention that I do a diacetyl rest by bringing it up to ambient room temperture ( 62f ) and leave it until it is completly finished fermenting. I know that a diacetyl rest isn't always nesessary, but understand that it also don't hurt to do one.

I'm getting ready to do a lager using a gallon starter of WY 2206 to see what difference this yeast will do, but that will be next week.

24

All Grain Brewing / Alpha Amylase

« on: November 28, 2009, 06:05:41 AM »

Background... I'm having trouble getting the true crisp taste in my pilsners.
My general recipie is as follows.

100% pilsner malt
Hopping to 25 IBUs  (light pils style)
WY2042, S-189, or W34/70 ( take your pick ) I do use enough yeast, and pitch yeast at 45f aprox.
into wort at 48f with as much trub removed prior to pitching.

Mash at 149f for 90 minutes, boil for 90 minutes
I use my soft tap water treated with campton.
My mash ph is between 5.2 and 5.5 using 1 tsp of gypsum in the mash
I batch sparge and single infuse
Aerate using pure O2 and a stone for 1 minute.

I ferment at 50f until done, anywhere from 2 weeks to 3 weeks usually, and then rack
into a corny for lagering at 34f for a minimum of a month, but usually 2 months.
I usually go from an OG of 1045 - 1050 to a Fg of 1010 to 1012

I have read that using alpha amylase will dry out a brew more leaving it more " crisp ".
What will using alpha amylase really do to my brew if I use it?

And would dropping my mash temp down to 147f do the same as the alpha amylase?

I haven't bothered to check my mash for conversion lately as in all the batches I did, I only once
had a positive reaction to the iodine, and that may have been husk reacting to the iodine.

Thanks.

25

Yeast and Fermentation / Re: Lager Fermentation

« on: November 23, 2009, 03:45:56 PM »

I have been ravking off the trub for so long now, it is part of my process. Weather or not any flavour is affected by removing it, I'll keep on trucking.

26

Kegging and Bottling / Re: Firestone Keg & Plastic Dip Tube

« on: November 17, 2009, 01:14:15 PM »

And another way to do it is here http://hbd.org/uchima/kegging/kegadvent.html

27

Ingredients / Re: NZ SAAZ

« on: November 14, 2009, 07:48:19 AM »

At 8 %, I would think that it would be a bit harsher tasting than the true czech Saaz.
I don't even think it would be considered Noble.

In the mean time, I have no concrete info at hand to support this theory.

28

Kegging and Bottling / Re: Lagering in bottles?

« on: November 14, 2009, 07:38:26 AM »

I haven't heard of lagering it that way, as most people use the bulk lagering system.
I imagine it would be ok, but more bulky to do it that way vs using a carboy or keg.

You would have to keep temps up to let the priming sugar carbonate the brew before
settling down to lagering temps though.

29

Kegging and Bottling / Re: Firestone Keg & Plastic Dip Tube

« on: November 14, 2009, 07:33:40 AM »

When I got my firestone kegs, I found a place in Ca that had parts. I got a few extra
in dip tubes, so I wouldn't have to worry about finding them later. I'm in the process
of trying to find a local source of posts, poppits and lids as the local Pepsi bottler
here are still using corny kegs. They are in the process of changing over to the
newer way of dispensing.
I just haven't had the luck of getting to the scrap dealer when they have a load of kegs
so I could get some cheap parts.

30

General Homebrew Discussion / Re: Bottlers do you pour the priming trub when serving?

« on: November 14, 2009, 07:17:16 AM »

I leave it unless it is a Heffe or a Wit. It goes with the idea of when in Rome...