16
Commercial Beer Reviews / Re: Ten Barrel Brewing
« on: April 08, 2013, 09:47:55 am »
12 breweries! Yes, I'll have to plan a trip.
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17
Equipment and Software / Re: hop screen
« on: April 08, 2013, 09:46:03 am »I use a SS 300 micron filter. Works really well !
I just ordered the boil and dry-hop filter! Thanks for the idea.
18
Commercial Beer Reviews / Ten Barrel Brewing
« on: April 07, 2013, 07:19:55 pm »
I just spent a couple of days on the Oregon coast, and as I usually do, went to the local grocer looking for beers Ihave not tried. I bought two from Ten Barrel Brewing (from Portland I think): an IPA and a Black Ale. Both were conspicuously good. I hope to try more soon.
19
Ingredients / Muddled hop bitterness
« on: April 05, 2013, 11:12:50 am »
So I've tried a couple of commercial IPAs recently that has me asking a question. Some IPAs have a very focused or narrow or clear sort of bitterness. Others are broad, muddled, imprecise.
What is this a function of? Hop variety? Too many hop varieties in one beer? Yeast? fermentation?
What is this a function of? Hop variety? Too many hop varieties in one beer? Yeast? fermentation?
20
Kegging and Bottling / Re: Kegerator Issues - Dump Cup!
« on: April 03, 2013, 10:56:11 am »
I use a fan like this: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Kegerator-Beer-Tower-Cooler-Tap-Cooler-Fan-Kit-compatible-with-Danby-other-/130871467613?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item1e788c1e5d
It is a lot cheaper than the above mentioned solution and works just fine.
It is a lot cheaper than the above mentioned solution and works just fine.
21
Equipment and Software / Re: Best chiller for summer brewing
« on: April 02, 2013, 06:27:10 am »As an alternative to buying ice you can let your wort chill in your fermentation chamber overnight. I've done this literally hundreds on times with no ill effects. It's kinda nice not to have to worry with aerating and pitching till the next am.
This is what I do. With my tap water temps, it is fairly easy to get the wort into the 70's with my little plate chiller--which will surely stop any DMS from forming. On a typical brewday I am done early enough, and the wort cools quickly enough in my kegerator-fermentation chamber, that I oxygenate and pitch the yeast right before I go to bed.
If I try to get the wort down to pitching temp coming out of the plate chiller, the wort is just a trickle. Like the OP said, the last 10 degrees is the problem.
22
General Homebrew Discussion / Re: Craft beer sociology
« on: April 01, 2013, 06:16:35 pm »If the zombies come, I will malt my own and probably skip kiln. Maybe roast a bit for variety. But post ZA beer will be pretty low tech. When the propane runs out will have to boil over a wood fire too.
"Freedom is temporary unless you are also Brave!" - Patriot
And we better like sour beers! Regular, pure yeast will become very scarce.
23
Equipment and Software / Re: Brewing Calculators / Software
« on: April 01, 2013, 09:37:37 am »
Beersmith and Brun' Water.
24
Beer Recipes / Re: Check my recipe?
« on: March 30, 2013, 08:47:41 am »
Interesting 'Recipe Drift' happening here. It had been a long time since I input the recipe into Beersmith, and had forgotten the source. So last night I was musing over the latest iteration of it and thought, "I'll check Brewing Classic Styles to see how it compares."
Well as it turns out that is where it originally came from. Duh!
Here is the recipe straight from the book:
7 lbs British Pale Ale malt
1 lb. Crystal 80
10 oz. Crystal 120
8 oz. Special Roast (50L)
6 oz. Pale Chocolate (200L)
4 oz. Carafa Special II (430 L)
So my first thought was to sub out the Pale Ale malt for Maris Otter (nuttier)
Then sub the Carafa for BlackPrinz (Carafa not available at my LHBS)
From there I changed some amounts, asked for your input...
Apparently I'm my own worst enemy.
Well as it turns out that is where it originally came from. Duh!
Here is the recipe straight from the book:
7 lbs British Pale Ale malt
1 lb. Crystal 80
10 oz. Crystal 120
8 oz. Special Roast (50L)
6 oz. Pale Chocolate (200L)
4 oz. Carafa Special II (430 L)
So my first thought was to sub out the Pale Ale malt for Maris Otter (nuttier)
Then sub the Carafa for BlackPrinz (Carafa not available at my LHBS)
From there I changed some amounts, asked for your input...
Apparently I'm my own worst enemy.
25
General Homebrew Discussion / Re: Craft beer sociology
« on: March 29, 2013, 08:40:53 am »
I believe one of the many factors driving the growth of craft beer is now that, legality aside, there are actually 17 year old kids trying/stealing their Dad's craft beer, instead of their Dad's BMC, as in my youth. In other words, there are kids that, by the time they're old enough to buy beer, have been exposed to beer styles and good beer. Every good liquor store I go into has a line of barely 21 guys buying good beer. Certainly not the case in the past.
[/quote]
I've noticed the same thing. Yakima isn't really a college town, but 30 minutes North in Ellensburg there is Central Washington U. Near campus is a store called Happy's that has probably 400 different beers from all over the world. And one of the most popular pubs brags 100 different beers. Imagine when these kids get to be 40-50.
[/quote]
I've noticed the same thing. Yakima isn't really a college town, but 30 minutes North in Ellensburg there is Central Washington U. Near campus is a store called Happy's that has probably 400 different beers from all over the world. And one of the most popular pubs brags 100 different beers. Imagine when these kids get to be 40-50.
26
Beer Recipes / Re: Check my recipe?
« on: March 28, 2013, 04:58:01 pm »
First, Thank you for all of your inputs. As it turns out I have some more time than I originally thought. It looks like brewing this will be about 2 weeks out. BUT, I have made some changes (see below). I left the Honey malt in for two reasons: I have not used it before, and sweet really turns on my taste buds. So I want this beer to be sweet but balanced with the malts and hopefully the nuttiness.
So my justification for each grain is:
MO: base
Crystal 80: nuttiness, caramel, sweetness
BlackPrinz: color
Pale Choc.: nuttiness
Honey Malt: sweetness, nuttiness
Nuthouse Brown
Southern English Brown Ale
Type: All Grain Date: 2/24/2013
Batch Size (fermenter): 5.50 gal Brewer: Steve Harrison
Boil Size: 7.50 gal Asst Brewer:
Boil Time: 60 min Equipment: A My 5 gallon
End of Boil Volume 6.50 gal Brewhouse Efficiency: 75.00 %
Final Bottling Volume: 5.50 gal Est Mash Efficiency 85.2 %
Fermentation: Ale, Single Stage Taste Rating(out of 50): 30.0
Ingredients
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
6 lbs Pale Malt, Maris Otter (3.0 SRM) Grain 1 72.7 %
12.0 oz BlackPrinz Malt (500.0 SRM) Grain 2 9.1 %
12.0 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt - 80L (80.0 SRM) Grain 3 9.1 %
8.0 oz Pale Chocolate Malt (200.0 SRM) Grain 4 6.1 %
4.0 oz Honey Malt (25.0 SRM) Grain 5 3.0 %
1.00 oz Styrian Goldings [5.40 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 6 21.3 IBUs
1.0 pkg British Ale (White Labs #WLP005) [35.49 ml] Yeast 7 -
So my justification for each grain is:
MO: base
Crystal 80: nuttiness, caramel, sweetness
BlackPrinz: color
Pale Choc.: nuttiness
Honey Malt: sweetness, nuttiness
Nuthouse Brown
Southern English Brown Ale
Type: All Grain Date: 2/24/2013
Batch Size (fermenter): 5.50 gal Brewer: Steve Harrison
Boil Size: 7.50 gal Asst Brewer:
Boil Time: 60 min Equipment: A My 5 gallon
End of Boil Volume 6.50 gal Brewhouse Efficiency: 75.00 %
Final Bottling Volume: 5.50 gal Est Mash Efficiency 85.2 %
Fermentation: Ale, Single Stage Taste Rating(out of 50): 30.0
Ingredients
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
6 lbs Pale Malt, Maris Otter (3.0 SRM) Grain 1 72.7 %
12.0 oz BlackPrinz Malt (500.0 SRM) Grain 2 9.1 %
12.0 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt - 80L (80.0 SRM) Grain 3 9.1 %
8.0 oz Pale Chocolate Malt (200.0 SRM) Grain 4 6.1 %
4.0 oz Honey Malt (25.0 SRM) Grain 5 3.0 %
1.00 oz Styrian Goldings [5.40 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 6 21.3 IBUs
1.0 pkg British Ale (White Labs #WLP005) [35.49 ml] Yeast 7 -
27
General Homebrew Discussion / Craft beer sociology
« on: March 28, 2013, 12:58:13 pm »
I am a very amateur sociologist. In other words I love thinking about it, but I know very little...
Anyway, I was musing this morning as I was driving around, about an ongoing discussion point: The craft beer brewery movement, and its stopping/contracting/ point.
So I am interested in actual demonstrable dynamics that have fueled this change from the macro-brew to the micro-brew in an effort to better understand when the pace will slow, stop or reverse, and why.
A few of these dynamics that I think are fueling the move are:
*the cultural shift away from brand loyalty (i.e. my dad was a Ford guy - I've owned 6 different brands)
*the shift toward local sourcing of food (i.e. the "Know your farmer's name" bumper sticker)
*the new social phenomenon largely brought on by the internet: Affinity Groups. (I'm a beer guy - therefore I know beer in its various forms and makers)
*the homebrewing movement. Nobody is going to just brew BMC clones!
*the Baby Boomer-and-beyond value: "Just give us the best, we'll figure out how to pay for it."
On the other side of the coin, the biggest (IMO) barrier to the craft beer movement is the 'no-nonsense,' utilitarian mindset that many men have: "Just give me a beer! I don't need any of that froo-froo crap!
On this note I have had a bartender say to me: "Oh yeah you're that guy that likes the fancy beer." I thought: "You're an idiot." at the very same time I felt a small desire to communicate my masculinity to him. Oh, and by fancy beer he meant Fat Tire which just happened to be the beer they had which had the most flavor
Then of course there is cost.
So those are my thoughts, what would you add?
Anyway, I was musing this morning as I was driving around, about an ongoing discussion point: The craft beer brewery movement, and its stopping/contracting/ point.
So I am interested in actual demonstrable dynamics that have fueled this change from the macro-brew to the micro-brew in an effort to better understand when the pace will slow, stop or reverse, and why.
A few of these dynamics that I think are fueling the move are:
*the cultural shift away from brand loyalty (i.e. my dad was a Ford guy - I've owned 6 different brands)
*the shift toward local sourcing of food (i.e. the "Know your farmer's name" bumper sticker)
*the new social phenomenon largely brought on by the internet: Affinity Groups. (I'm a beer guy - therefore I know beer in its various forms and makers)
*the homebrewing movement. Nobody is going to just brew BMC clones!
*the Baby Boomer-and-beyond value: "Just give us the best, we'll figure out how to pay for it."
On the other side of the coin, the biggest (IMO) barrier to the craft beer movement is the 'no-nonsense,' utilitarian mindset that many men have: "Just give me a beer! I don't need any of that froo-froo crap!
On this note I have had a bartender say to me: "Oh yeah you're that guy that likes the fancy beer." I thought: "You're an idiot." at the very same time I felt a small desire to communicate my masculinity to him. Oh, and by fancy beer he meant Fat Tire which just happened to be the beer they had which had the most flavor
Then of course there is cost.
So those are my thoughts, what would you add?
29
Ingredients / BLackprinz malt in Brun' Water
« on: March 27, 2013, 01:37:13 pm »
Well I finally took the plunge and moved from the EZ Water spreadsheet to Brun' Water. It is clearly more complete.
I am wondering about Blackprinz Malt since it is 'bitterless' malt. I added it in as a roast malt @ 500 L, but since it is bitterless, will it be calculated as adding more acidity to the mash than it actually does? If so, should I categorize it as base malt or what?
I am wondering about Blackprinz Malt since it is 'bitterless' malt. I added it in as a roast malt @ 500 L, but since it is bitterless, will it be calculated as adding more acidity to the mash than it actually does? If so, should I categorize it as base malt or what?