Recent Posts

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General Homebrew Discussion / Re: NHC finals/ entries shipped via FedEx not being delivered but returned to sender

« Last post by theDarkSide on Today at 03:14:05 PM »

 Please do NOT try to shame FedEx in public forums as this may backfire.

Too late...I've been shaming them for years

Never had an issue with UPS.  Create label at home, bring into work and drop with the other packages for the daily pickup.

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Yeast and Fermentation / Re: Kraeusen Layer on Starter

« Last post by Richard on Today at 03:09:25 PM »

Is it normal to NOT have a kraeusen layer in the starter?  And is there an explanation?

Resurrecting an old thread. I have been reading the book "Yeast" and perhaps now have an explanation. I don't re-use yeast, so all my single-stage starters are from lab-grown yeast and all my two-stage starters are from  yeast grown on DME. I rarely see any foam on my single-stage starters but usually see quite a bit on my second stages. My hypothesis is that the lab-grown yeast (at least from White Labs and Wyeast) are missing some key ingredient needed to make persistent krausen. I use yeast nutrient so the missing ingredient isn't a simple one. By the second stage they have had an opportunity to get lots of good stuff from the DME of the first stage and can make healthy karusen. Of course the yeast strain will have a big effect, too.

Does anyone have experience that contradicts this hypothesis?

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General Homebrew Discussion / Re: NHC finals/ entries shipped via FedEx not being delivered but returned to sender

« Last post by HighVoltageMan! on Today at 02:36:11 PM »

I got burned on this one too. If you look at FedEx and UPS, they have similar restrictions. So technically you can get burned by both. It would be nice to find a permanent fix to this, but I'm not too sure it would be very easy, if even possible.

It's not the end of the world, but it still kinda sucks.

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Ingredients / Re: Cascade vs. Galaxy

« Last post by Mardoo on Today at 12:10:45 PM »

Galaxy is one that divides opinions here in Australia. It’s also a hop that some people’s palates interpret totally differently to others. Me, I taste diesel whenever Galaxy is in a beer. Yark.

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Yeast and Fermentation / Re: Pressure Fermentation at last

« Last post by ynotbrusum on Today at 12:54:32 AM »

I am enjoying a Helles that I brewed on May 25, fermented at 50F and 12 PSI, racked on June 10.  As you reported on your results, it has a very clean, yet malty profile.  I see this as a very viable approach with lager beers.  S-189 yeast (Hurliman Strain) was used and re-pitched into 2 batches brewed on June 15 (yesterday).  I will report back on this first repitch with S-189 as it completes.  With the quick turns of these beers, I am facing storage shortage issues!

Great to hear it's working so well!  So, what was your procedure for racking the beer and harvesting the yeast -- was it all done under pressure, etc.?

Just spunded at 1.014.  Closed loop for racking with a touch of CO2 to push it to the keg through the keg out post then left at room temp for a couple days to d-rest and carb further, then cold crashed with CO2 hooked up.  Opened fermenter on next brew day to harvest yeast and clean and sanitize.  Racked chilled wort onto repitch of a half cake and splashed it around as it filled.

So do I understand, no slow decompression of the fermenter -- other than the drop accompanying cooling -- before popping the lid and harvesting?  I've been worried about exploding yeast with a sudden pressure drop.  If I understand correctly, and your repitch goes off well, then that's another important detail filled in.  It has occurred to me that opening a bottle is analogous, and that leaves live, viable yeast.

Yea, nothing special on the decompression, other than PRV pulled a few times over the course of the brewday.

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Commercial Beer Reviews / Re: Stale beer direct from brewery

« Last post by Richard on Today at 12:32:41 AM »

Fort Bragg, CA. I think there are only 2 breweries there, so you can probably figure it out.

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Yeast and Fermentation / Re: Pressure Fermentation at last

« Last post by mainebrewer on June 16, 2019, 08:29:00 PM »

For those of us using ProMash, it also has a utility that will calculate the required PSI at various temps necessary to reach a desired volume of CO2.

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General Homebrew Discussion / Re: NHC finals/ entries shipped via FedEx not being delivered but returned to sender

« Last post by johnny_mo on June 16, 2019, 08:14:49 PM »

Please refer to the email sent out to entrants yesterday afternoon regarding FedEx shipments.
We are currently doing our best to resolve the situation and put alternatives in place to relieve the issue as much as possible. As of right now, there hasn’t been a ruling from the FedEx center in Seekonk, MA, as to allowing the shipments through based on the phone calls yesterday. We are talking with their management team tomorrow morning first thing and will send an update out then. We find it more useful to have these negotiations between our organization and FedEx to explain the purpose of the shipments and the event.
This issue is currently affecting ground shipments, not 2/3 day shipping or overnight shipping.
As of now, if you have your entries rejected and returned, we will accommodate re-shipment as best as possible up to the judging on Thursday, June 27. We understand that many of you shipped last week only to find your packages rejected and returned, with the packages containing your last bottles. If you have extra bottles, or have not shipped, please consider using a different carrier and, if able, ship 2 or 3 day shipping.
We deeply regret the current situation, and are doing our best to resolve the situation this year, and putting plans in place for future years.

Sincerely,
John Moorhead
NHC Director

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Yeast and Fermentation / Re: Pressure Fermentation at last

« Last post by Robert on June 16, 2019, 07:25:36 PM »

I'm having trouble finding the website I downloaded this from, but you should be able to right click and save a copy from this post.

Thanks.  Don't know why I didn't think to look sooner, but (of course) Brewer's Friend has a calculator that will figure pressure for ANY temperature and desired v/v CO2.   

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Ingredients / Re: Cascade vs. Galaxy

« Last post by Robert on June 16, 2019, 06:25:28 PM »

If my cat peed on my hops, I probably wouldn't call it "interesting."  (I'm just glad she can't read this and get any ideas.)  But I both can detect the "cat pee" note in some hops, and also like it in the right situation (but not always.)    Look forward to your assessment.