Messages

1

General Homebrew Discussion / calculation ppm?

« on: February 04, 2019, 03:10:08 PM »

Do you use grams per milliliter of solution?

Thanks in advance for your help.

2

All Grain Brewing / Re: About the filter in the grain brewing

« on: January 29, 2019, 01:29:30 PM »

Muslin bag is an effective, inexpensive alternative.

I've used the muslin bags with pellets and still get a lot of hop debris in the kettle. I don't know if it is because I occasionally hit it or somehow squeeze it while stirring the boiling wort.  I still get good beer though.

+1 on the hop debris and good beer.  It just doesn't matter unless it's plugging a plate chiller or other equipment.

3

All Grain Brewing / Re: Boil Kettle lid (screen)

« on: January 28, 2019, 03:18:58 PM »

Regarding stuff falling into the brew pot, one of the periodical cicada hatches did provide a historical name for one of my brews.

I named it 8th Plague Stout.

To my surprise, I was able to keep them out of the pot although there were several close calls,

4

Yeast and Fermentation / Re: More new genetics, different angle

« on: January 22, 2019, 01:24:45 PM »

I like a clean, neutral yeast so I use US05 and buy a new packet for each beer. 

I mostly brew American brown ales, porters and stouts and prefer low to medium hop rates.  I have liked the occasional saison I've tasted and have brewed one with disappointing results due to an error I made in the recipe.

5

Yeast and Fermentation / Re: More new genetics, different angle

« on: January 21, 2019, 07:49:23 PM »

I didn't mention in my post that I'm a home brewer.  I do appreciate the advice of all the guys and gals that brew for a living and accumulate experiences and knowledge at a faster rate than most of us.

6

Yeast and Fermentation / Re: More new genetics, different angle

« on: January 21, 2019, 03:10:28 PM »

Sound practice.  And this is really, I guess, just an explanation of the mechanism of behavior we already observed.  Also it underscores the need to store yeast in its own beer and not rinse, I think.  It shows how yeast are adapted to expect a repeated cycle of feeding on the same nutrient medium, even if they don't know what the interval will be.   Disruption of that cycle by introducing them into an unanticipated environment is something they can't sustain,  I gather.  Once they think they're at the start of the cycle, they're committed, and have no plan B.

Sent from my SM-J727V using Tapatalk

In discussing this an important distinction needs to be made between the domesticated strains of yeast we use in brewing and wild-type strains.

Robert makes the point that "yeast are adapted to a repeated cycle of feeding on the same nutrient even if they don't know what that interval will be."

That is due to  brewers' rigorous artificial selection of those strains that offer the best results under a regimen of  "a repeated cycle of feeding on the same nutrient even if they don't know what that interval will be."

Wild yeast don't get that luxury.  They must be able to survive under unstable conditions. 

It's an axiom of evolution, that portions of the genetic code that are unused, frequently become degraded over time.  And DNA begets RNA during translation into proteins and enzymes. With organisms like yeast that can reproduce exponentially under ideal conditions, that impairment may happen more quickly as compared to organisms like mammals that have slower reproduction.

Brewers have selected strains that do very well under the conditions we impose on them, but are genetic "weaklings" in combating the varied conditions that wild yeast face.

Compared to the total cost of brewing including both the other ingredients and my time, my choice is to always buy new yeast.

7

Zymurgy / Just "Don't Do It"

« on: January 11, 2019, 03:37:05 PM »

The type on the article on Northern Brown Ale on page 33 in the Jan-Feb issue is illegible in my copy because the printer attempted to reverse type out of a medium yellow background. 

I've tried four times to read it and have given up each time.

FYI, alert students should learn about the perils of reversing type out of light backgrounds in their beginning graphic arts for printing class.

8

Ingredients / Re: Flavors of Grain

« on: January 11, 2019, 02:51:05 PM »

I add several grams of gypsum and calcium chloride to my mash water for brown to dark beers.  Would a steep test for the grains give accurate results without treating the water used to do the steeping?

9

Equipment and Software / Re: Inkbird ITC-310T question

« on: December 19, 2018, 08:42:31 PM »

Thanks for your help.  The directions were "crap".

10

All Grain Brewing / Re: About the filter in the grain brewing

« on: December 19, 2018, 08:31:49 PM »

Muslin bag is an effective, inexpensive alternative.

I've used the muslin bags with pellets and still get a lot of hop debris in the kettle. I don't know if it is because I occasionally hit it or somehow squeeze it while stirring the boiling wort.  I still get good beer though.

11

General Homebrew Discussion / Re: Warm BMC

« on: December 19, 2018, 04:15:08 PM »

I agree that warming up beer changes the taste perception.

What astounds me is that the mass market breweries can still sell the vast quantities of their "swill."

I go to a local casino that has a nice bar with 20 or so craft beers on tap.  About nine out of 10 guys or gals will order a Bud, Bud Light, or Coors Lite in a can for $4.50 and for a buck more they could have a real draft beer with great taste.

Guess I'm just prejudiced for good flavor and variety!

12

Equipment and Software / Inkbird ITC-310T question

« on: December 15, 2018, 02:37:29 PM »

Just got the controller and I am trying to set it up.  I have the temp set in Celsius and would like to switch to Fahrenheit.

How do you switch between the various functions?  I've tried to press SET again and the up and down arrows and can't seem to get beyond the temp setting.

I suppose I could work in C, but I'd like to know what the settings are on the other functions.

Thanks in advance for your help.

13

All Grain Brewing / Re: Low efficiency short term solution?

« on: December 14, 2018, 02:13:53 PM »

My short term solution is to add more grain.

I used to try and get high efficiency. Now I don't stress over it. I'm about 65-70% now, and I don't lose any sleep.

+1

I get 71% repeatedly and I'm happy with it.

14

General Homebrew Discussion / Re: Idaho 7 hops—wow onion/garlic

« on: November 25, 2018, 04:49:29 PM »

A different beverage but still onion and garlic flavor .  .  .

We got milk from my uncle's cows when I was a kid. In the spring months, the cows would eat wild onions and the taste of garlic would carry over into their milk. Pasteurizing would make ti safe to drink, but did nothing to remove that taste.

15

All Grain Brewing / Low IBU brews

« on: November 05, 2018, 11:22:11 PM »

I've been wondering lately how some beers, mostly porters and stouts, sometimes have IBU ratings of 10 or even less and are still not too sweet?

Is that achieved by increasing the amount of black roasted malt?

Thanks in advance for your replies.