Messages

16

All Grain Brewing / Re: Water Chemistry

« on: March 02, 2013, 05:42:59 AM »

Remember, you can't just add chloride and sulfate to your heart's desire.  At some point, you'll have a minerally beer on your hands.  I feel that keeping chloride to less than 100 ppm is always good and you can vary sulfate from 0 to around 300 ppm with no problem.  However when you really boost sulfate, chloride should be reduced well below 100 ppm.  If you want minerally beer flavor, boost chloride above 150 ppm and sulfate above 300 ppm.

However, what about calcium... if I add gypsum to my well water to get sulfates to 300ppm I end up with around 150ppm calcium.... is this going to be ok for an IPA?  my chlorides remain at 28ppm, which is what they are in the well water, giving a good 10:1 sulfate-to-chloride ratio

-red

17

Events / Re: NHC Direct links email

« on: February 26, 2013, 02:15:00 PM »

Ok I just got 3 more beers into NYC boom boom boom. something has been fixed!

18

Events / Re: NHC Direct links email

« on: February 26, 2013, 02:09:56 PM »

Well NYC has been stuck on 123 of 750 for quite a while so maybe no one is getting entries in.  I have one in NYC and I'd hate for it to sell out when I have a few more to enter and can't enter another region.

Still stuck on 123, and I am not able to sit around waiting for this to clear up...  would be nice if they would shut it down, reset it, and let us all have another go at when they are ready, even if it takes a week or so...

19

Events / Re: NHC Direct links email

« on: February 26, 2013, 01:28:50 PM »

NYC 109 registered already.  I managed to get 1 in so far.

just got 1 in NYC so far, it keeps asking me to log in again....

20

All Grain Brewing / Re: adding sulfate to my SNPA clone

« on: February 25, 2013, 08:23:44 AM »

Based recent trials I've done, I'd go even higher.  My preference would be at least 100 ppm for APA and 200+ for AIPA.

OK but as I push sulfates up toward 200ppm, my calcium goes up to 120 or so... is that a problem?

21

All Grain Brewing / adding sulfate to my SNPA clone

« on: February 25, 2013, 08:04:31 AM »

My water profile, which I've used for Pale Ale in the past, is as follows (all ppm): 56 Ca, 10 Mg, 15 Na, 7 SO4-S, 28 Cl, 172 bicarbonate, 141 Alkalinity.

I'm thinking about looking to get a little more sulfate crispness in there.  How about adding a few grams of gypsum to the  mash, which would get me 89 Ca, and 99 Sulfate (according to Kai's worksheet), while leaving everything else alone (of course it will reduce the RA a bit)...

Sound like a good idea, or not?

Also, would this be a good idea for an IPA and/or Rye IPA?

tx
red

22

Events / NHC entry registration - how fast does it fill up?

« on: February 23, 2013, 06:31:53 AM »

this may have been asked/answered elsewhere but I can't find it....   how fast do the slots fill up when the bell rings at 3pm EST next Tuesday?  do i have a day, or 6 hours, or only 1 hour???

FYI, I live in NY so would have to register in the NYC area?  or can I ship to say, Ohio or Atlanta if NYC fills up?

-red

23

All Grain Brewing / Re: where do you take mash pH?

« on: February 12, 2013, 06:51:33 AM »

So better than taking a sample out of the drain, would be to dip into the main mash?

24

All Grain Brewing / where do you take mash pH?

« on: February 12, 2013, 06:12:21 AM »

Just suddenly wondering where you guys get the mash sample that you are taking the pH of....  do you scoop off the top, or run some cloudy liquid out of the drain of your mash tun, or what?  And does it make a difference? 

FWIW I take a cloudy sample out of the mash drain about 10 minutes into the mash, and I have lately been getting within +/- .2 pH pts of what Martin's and Kai's worksheets predict....  but of course I always like to second-guess my SOP.

-red

25

Equipment and Software / Re: chilling a 30-gal batch

« on: January 29, 2013, 07:56:09 AM »

dean, do you have any clogging issue recirculating through the therminator when sanitizing?  how do you manage hops going through the plate chiller?

I am also wondering that... anyone using a plate chiller that can share filtering tips for pellet hops?

-red

26

Equipment and Software / Re: chilling a 30-gal batch

« on: January 25, 2013, 05:42:32 AM »

I brew 60-75 gallon batches and chill with a single therminator.  I recirculate until the output is at pitching temp, then run it to the fermenter.

What kind of pump? Basic March 809 or...?

27

Equipment and Software / chilling a 30-gal batch

« on: January 24, 2013, 08:06:27 PM »

Anyone here brew 1-bbl batches?  If so, how do you chill the wort...  large immersion chiller, or some kind of plate chiller?

If IC, what length and diameter is the coil? 

If plate chiller, any info on make, model, # of plates, and what pumps (if any) you use, would be appreciated.

thanks
red

28

Going Pro / Re: vendors / manufacturers

« on: January 20, 2013, 11:52:02 AM »

stout tanks? they have most of what you listed.

Anyone have first-hand experience with Stout's fermenters and brite tanks in the 1-bbl to 3-bbl range (or in any size, actually)? Their pricing (at least based on quotes I've been getting back from a few companies) is extremely competitive and attractive... does that means they are cutting corners???

-red

29

Ingredients / Re: boil volume question

« on: January 14, 2013, 11:07:42 AM »

That's what I plan to do.  Distilled water should work for being "as pure as possible", right?

thanks
red

That is the best, but going with RO is close enough.

It's actually easier for me to get distilled than RO.... so we're good...

30

Ingredients / Re: boil volume question

« on: January 14, 2013, 08:42:52 AM »

Red,

You have a unique case because of the excessive boil-off rate.  It sounds like you are mashing and sparging now with appropriate water volumes for normal brewing conditions and then adding water with low mineralization to make up for that high boil-off loss.  That makes sense, if I've understood this procedure properly. 

Yes you've understood exactly.

In your case, I would only add minerals based on the 'normal' mashing and sparging water volumes.  Those ions will be depleted or condensed based on whatever processes occur in the mashing.  I would add as pure a water as possible without any added minerals to the kettle to make up for those boil-off losses in excess of the more typical ~1 gal/hr rate that many homebrewers experience. 

That should get you somewhere back to par for the course. 

Enjoy!

That's what I plan to do.  Distilled water should work for being "as pure as possible", right?

thanks
red