Membership questions? Log in issues? Email info@brewersassociation.org

Author Topic: Virgin brewer!  (Read 1347 times)

Offline Lcplallan

  • 1st Kit
  • *
  • Posts: 7
Virgin brewer!
« on: May 13, 2015, 05:57:55 pm »
Hello all! As stated in my title I am a virgin to brewing. I just brewed my first batch (well, it's still in the fermentation process.) Luckily I was able to start under the tutelage of a friend that has done this before, so, hopefully our Pliny the elder won't turn out to be a skunk in a couple weeks.
Now that I have fully immersed my brain into this I have a few questions if anyone is willing to take the time and answer them for me.
1) what reactions/flavors/problems would you run into if you were to add a yeast to the mash during the cooking process? Would this just kill off the yeast and basically be a waste in money?
2) is there a point of to much hop? I love a hoppy beer so my brain tells me the more the better right? Is this true?

Thank you for your input and time. It's gratefully appreciated!
I'll be back more to pick your brains and hopefully some day return the favor!


And for a shameless plug,
Anyone who is in the Northern California region keep your eyes peeled for my cousins' beers in stores and on tap! Wildcard Brewing out of Redding, CA.


Thanks again!
Josh

Offline erockrph

  • I must live here
  • **********
  • Posts: 7788
  • Chepachet, RI
    • The Hop WHisperer
Re: Virgin brewer!
« Reply #1 on: May 13, 2015, 06:05:19 pm »
1) what reactions/flavors/problems would you run into if you were to add a yeast to the mash during the cooking process? Would this just kill off the yeast and basically be a waste in money?
2) is there a point of to much hop? I love a hoppy beer so my brain tells me the more the better right? Is this true?
1) Yes, you would simply kill the yeast. Yeast are living organisms and the flavors they produce are a byproduct of their metabolic processes. The yeast cells themselves have little (if any) effect on flavor.
2) It depends on the recipe and what you're shooting for. But 1 pound per gallon is too much hops for anything. Trust me, I tried :)

Welcome to the hobby and to the forum. Good luck on your first batch. You might want to start the second one right away to keep your pipeline of homebrew full.
Eric B.

Finally got around to starting a homebrewing blog: The Hop Whisperer

Offline Alewyfe

  • Brewer
  • ****
  • Posts: 493
  • Fighting for Truth, Justice & Home Brew
Re: Virgin brewer!
« Reply #2 on: May 13, 2015, 06:13:14 pm »
You answered your own question. Yes, temp would kill the yeast and it would be a waste of yeast and $$.

Too much hops is when you no longer like the results. Too much bittering hops can happen very easily. The beer will just be too bitter to be enjoyable. Flavor and aroma hops are different. You can really load up on those late addition and dry hops and probably not over do it if you like a really assertive hop flavor and aroma. I have run into situations where with leaf hops I've added so much hop material it soaks up way too much beer and my final volume for bottling or kegging is very low.

Keep track of your bittering addition and what it contributes to the IBUs of the beer. You'll learn to find the sweet spot for your palate, bearing in mind that a bigger beer can handle a lot more bittering than say a session pale ale. Then work on a late addition and dry hop schedule that gives you the hop emphasis that you want.

I know, probably not a very satisfactory answer, but there are no numbers to the taste game as we all like different results. Half the fun of brewing is in the tweaking. Keep good notes on what you do so you can make adjustments on subsequent batches.
Diane
Roseburg, Oregon
Member: Umpqua Valley Brewers Guild
             Cascade Brewers Society
             AHA

"Have no fear of perfection...you'll never reach it" ~Salvador Dali

"Growing old is mandatory. Growing up? Definitely optional!"

Offline hopfenundmalz

  • Global Moderator
  • I must live here
  • *****
  • Posts: 10678
  • Milford, MI
Re: Virgin brewer!
« Reply #3 on: May 13, 2015, 06:23:10 pm »
We all started with our first batch!

It often gets better as we learn.

Ask questions here, as you see you can get answers in a good way.
Jeff Rankert
AHA Lifetime Member
BJCP National
Ann Arbor Brewers Guild
Home-brewing, not just a hobby, it is a lifestyle!

Offline tankie

  • 1st Kit
  • *
  • Posts: 2
Re: Virgin brewer!
« Reply #4 on: May 13, 2015, 06:27:48 pm »
Welcome to the hobby! The answers given in your post arevery good answers but I would like to add that this hobby is unique in thats about what you want and your preferences.............Learn as much as you can and have a blast................ this can be an intoxicating hobby..............fiqueritivly and literaly if were not carefull! Tank

Offline Lcplallan

  • 1st Kit
  • *
  • Posts: 7
Re: Virgin brewer!
« Reply #5 on: May 13, 2015, 09:52:32 pm »
Thank you so very much for the info!
We are moving the wort (that's what it is called even during fermentation correct?) into the secondary fermentation tank tomorrow and going to get ready to brew our next batch very shortly after.
We are also getting our parts/price list together to build a gravity feed whole grain system using a keg for our boil pot and 2 ten gallon water coolers for the mash and wort pots. So, with that said, who's made those mistakes in building that they would love to share so we can avoid them?

Again, thank you a bunch for your time and knowledge. I'll be cruising around the site some more when I have some more down time to hopefully answer more of my questions.

Offline Slowbrew

  • I spend way too much time on the AHA forum
  • ********
  • Posts: 2857
  • The Slowly Losing IT Brewery in Urbandale, IA
Re: Virgin brewer!
« Reply #6 on: May 14, 2015, 05:28:50 am »
Technically, it is wort up until you add yeast.  After the yeast is in it is considered beer, even if it is just starting.  I wouldn't nit-pic normally but you asked.   ;D

Welcome to the obsession and as said before, ask any questions you need help with.  We all started out at the same point and are happy to help.

Paul
Where the heck are we going?  And what's with this hand basket?

Offline morticaixavier

  • I must live here
  • **********
  • Posts: 7781
  • Underhill VT
    • The Best Artist in the WORLD!!!!!
Re: Virgin brewer!
« Reply #7 on: May 14, 2015, 06:48:29 am »
Thank you so very much for the info!
We are moving the wort (that's what it is called even during fermentation correct?) into the secondary fermentation tank tomorrow and going to get ready to brew our next batch very shortly after.
We are also getting our parts/price list together to build a gravity feed whole grain system using a keg for our boil pot and 2 ten gallon water coolers for the mash and wort pots. So, with that said, who's made those mistakes in building that they would love to share so we can avoid them?

Again, thank you a bunch for your time and knowledge. I'll be cruising around the site some more when I have some more down time to hopefully answer more of my questions.

welcome indeed. jumping right in with both feet. a couple points:

Don't move this beer to secondary until you are sure it's done fermenting. the beer will tell you this not the calendar. Normally I'd say skip the secondary but, IIRC, Russian River does remove the beer from yeast before dry hopping so go for it. Just be sure it's really done fermenting first by taking two readings a few days apart. if the gravity is stable you should be all good.

On the three tier system, MAKE SURE THAT KEG IS NOT STOLEN! if you've got a buddy in the industry he might have already beaten this into you but those kegs are expensive. way more expensive than the deposit from the package store. If you know it is clean and you can source another one I would get two kegs and one cooler so you can heat strike/sparge water in place instead of lifting heavy hot water from your keggle up to you liqour tank. I would also personally recommend a coleman extreme over a round beverage cooler. I"ve not used the round ones but I've heard that they don't hold heat as well and the big 70 qt can hold a lot of mash.

But mostly MAKE SURE THAT KEG IS NOT STOLEN
"Creativity is the residue of wasted time"
-A Einstein

"errors are [...] the portals of discovery"
- J Joyce