Homebrewers - Whats in the fermenter?

[earnold25]

My actual calcs were 1.0115 and 1.0145.


Here we are 3 weeks to the day and my gravity reading is 1.020. Should I keep waiting? Doesn't look like much has been going on in the air lock for quite a while.

[b0rderman]

Did you use the WLP 500?
This yeast sounds pretty damned interesting.
Let us know how this turns out please.

I ended up using Wyeast 1214 because the shop had two (and I only had time for a 24hr starter), and I believe I'll get a little less banana with the 1214 as well but haven't really looked into that in detail.

I checked in on it this morning before work and the bubbling has slow, but is still very active IMO with a large bubble/second.

[BlackDog]

About a month ago I made a sour robust porter; a basic porter recipe except I added one gallon of wort I soured with acidulated malt. Earlier today I racked it over from primary to secondary, and decided toinnoculate it with some Brett. This should be a very traditional tasting porter when it's done next autumn. Traditionally porters were aged in oak casks and became "infected" with lacobacillus bacteria and wild brettanomyces yeast. It will be modestly sour, and have a "barnyard" aroma. I tasted the beer when I racked it, and it tastes great. I almost decided to just go straight to bottles and omit the Brett. Hopefully I won't be disappointed next fall.

HERE (http://www.cigarasylum.com/vb/showpost.php?p=1147038&postcount=443) is my original post if anyone is interested in the recipe.

[b0rderman]

awesome! Glad you updated us on this...very interesting

[kaisersozei]

Here we are 3 weeks to the day and my gravity reading is 1.020. Should I keep waiting? Doesn't look like much has been going on in the air lock for quite a while.

:hm

So here's what I would do. I would rack to a glass secondary and then watch it for a week. And by that, I mean actually eyeball it. Go all "beer whisperer" on it and see if it looks done. Anything bobbing around, or clumping on the top? Is it still as can be? Maybe float the hydrometer in there midweek to see if there's any movement. Then I'd bottle it and not worry.

I hestitate to say it's stuck, especially since you started at an OG that was 10 points higher than expected, and now you're only 6-8 points higher than the recipe. Just means you have a big bodied beer.

:2

[rack04]

As soon as all the parts for my mash tun arrive I will brew BierMuncher Centennial Blonde (http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f66/centennial-blonde-simple-4-all-grain-5-10-gall-42841/). I have it on good authority that this is a good light ale for summer drinking pleasure. Plus it costs $18.87 to brew 5 gallons of beer which equates to approximately $0.36 per 12 ounce beer.

[kaisersozei]

As soon as all the parts for my mash tun arrive I will brew BierMuncher Centennial Blonde (http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f66/centennial-blonde-simple-4-all-grain-5-10-gall-42841/). I have it on good authority that this is a good light ale for summer drinking pleasure. Plus it costs $18.87 to brew 5 gallons of beer which equates to approximately $0.36 per 12 ounce beer.

I have brewed this a number of times and can attest that it's a very good beer. icantbejon's wife loves it, and she's not much into homebrew. It's just as good if you leave out the Vienna malt, which I've done when I overlooked it in the recipe ;)

Bottled my light American ale test batch last night--tasted a little like a cross between Rolling Rock & Sam Adams ale. Not my favorite style, but it's experimental for some non-craft brew drinking friends.

Tonight I'm racking my Hopslam clone, adding the honey and salvaging the yeast. Had good, steady fermentation for almost a full week, I'm really pleased at how well the yeast performed considering I cultivated it from the bottle dregs! :noon

[St. Lou Stu]

Here we are 3 weeks to the day and my gravity reading is 1.020. Should I keep waiting? Doesn't look like much has been going on in the air lock for quite a while.

.020 isn't bad. Not ideal, but not bad, full bodies and a touch sweet. I like that.
If its still there(.020) by the time you read this and take another measurement, I'd call it good. It'll still be good beer. Did it get into the low 60's while fermenting?

[earnold25]

.020 isn't bad. Not ideal, but not bad, full bodies and a touch sweet. I like that.
If its still there(.020) by the time you read this and take another measurement, I'd call it good. It'll still be good beer. Did it get into the low 60's while fermenting?

sounds good. I was going to bottle anyway, but I found out I can't easily bottle straight from the primary with an autosiphon and a bottling wand. Looks like I need a bottling bucket or something similar.

Oh, I really doubt it got to the low 60's during fermenting. I'd guess 65 at the lowest but anything's possible. Unfortunately I wasn't able to watch it 24/7, even though I would have liked to :)

[rack04]

Bottled my Irish Red today. 3 weeks is gonna feel like forever with this one.

[BlackDog]

I just wrapped up brewing a partial mash pale ale. Nothing fancy. 4 lbs light DME, 3 lbs two row, one lb crystal malts. Magnum for bittering, Amarillo for flavor and aroma. Should have been about be about 45 ibu's, but I messed up my hop schedule so this will come in at about 36 ibu's. No biggie, should still be nice to drink. I'll also dry hop with the ounce of Amarillo I forgot to add. Pitched Safale US-05. OG was 1.052, planning for 1.012 FG.

[cricky101]

Sunday I bottled a cream ale and brewed a blood orange hefeweizen. Hoping that turns out because it smelled awesome, and the hydro sample tasted great, too.

I got the recipe off of homebrewtalk.com and the poster there said it came from "Extreme Homebrewing" by Sam Caglione. It was an extract and grains recipe.

This week I'm picking up the rest of the ingredients to do my first partial mash. It'll be a Bell's Two-Hearted clone I plan to brew this weekend.

[rack04]

Depending on what all I have to do this weekend I may find time to brew a dry stout. I'm thinking about trying the Ó Flannagáin Standard (http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f68/o-flannagain-standard-41072/).

[kaisersozei]

AHA's National Homebrew Competition

If anyone is interested, now is the time to register for this year's contest. More information:

http://www.homebrewersassociation.org/pages/competitions/national-homebrew-competition/competition-information

The last time I entered was more than 5 years ago, so I decided to submit a few of my recent beers to get some professional feedback and to see how they hold up to others in their style:

Winston's Lot (Imperial IPA)
Trappist Hollow (Belgian Specialty/Trappist Christmas ale)
Essence (Cream Ale)

My son is also entering as primary brewer on CohiBrew (Imperial IPA,) I'll be secondary.

Since a number of folks around CA have sampled these, I'll be sure to post my performance once the scores come back. Unless they suck ;)

[b0rderman]

Cool stuff Gerard, good luck.

Last night was bottling day for me...http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5014/5512804436_11cb4a7ff1.jpg

No, this one will not be going to AHA, HAHA! I don't have particularly high hopes for this batch, but a lot was learned that I applied to my second batch (a belgian trip that tastes quite promising). I guess I'll just wait and see. It will certainly be beer! Labels are coming off from now on.

Dunkelweiss PM and Chimay Grand Reserve AG half-batch up on deck for this weekend.

[Mikes]

Just kegged 10 gal of AHS Greenbelt IPA and 10 gal of a smoked creamy amber. This saturdays mega brew day will include 10 gal batch of mixed up ginger wheat and 10 gal of ?????.

[BeerAdvocate]

Just kegged 10 gal of AHS Greenbelt IPA and 10 gal of a smoked creamy amber. This saturdays mega brew day will include 10 gal batch of mixed up ginger wheat and 10 gal of ?????.

I just emptied a keg of GreenBelt. Its one great beer, you are going to love it. More of an IPA than a PaleAle. I will be making it again for sure!

[Mikes]

I just emptied a keg of GreenBelt. Its one great beer, you are going to love it. More of an IPA than a PaleAle. I will be making it again for sure!


Good news! This stuff smelled like a grapefruit bomb went off when we were kegging it. Out of the keg a week later not so much...;o( Still a great beer for sure just wonder where that great flavor/smell went? I think we should have waited 10 or so days before we dryhopped (we did our dryhopping in the primary this time). In other words all of that great smell bubbled out with the fermentation. We are kinda lazy brewers and have only used the carboys once lol. Looking into dryhopping in the kegs next with a hop bag tied to dental floss sticking out of the corney lid.

You know of any IPA Clones (extract) that are lighter in color @think pilsner color@ and a bit less bitter?

[Salvelinus]

http://i976.photobucket.com/albums/ae250/NEKvt/DSC_0001.jpg

Makings of an alt, and my recent hop score. I should be able to lager this thing in the basement for the next two months unless spring decides to come early in VT. Should have 5 gallons ready for a May camping trip in Maine.

Rant on...
Hops are $3 an ounce at my local homebrew supply, $48 a pound. What you see on the table is 2.5lbs of various hops, leaf and pellet that cost me $35 with shipping. I'd like to support my local but at some point I have to look elsewhere.
Rant off...

[b0rderman]

Racked my second batch, Belgian Trippel, to secondary tonight to free up a primary. Also whipped up a starter for the Dunkelweiss I'm doing this weekend. I'm freakin hooked, bad.

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5094/5516377993_2dbe0b23e0.jpghttp://farm6.static.flickr.com/5094/5516377993_2dbe0b23e0.jpg

[kaisersozei]

Rant on...
Hops are $3 an ounce at my local homebrew supply, $48 a pound. What you see on the table is 2.5lbs of various hops, leaf and pellet that cost me $35 with shipping. I'd like to support my local but at some point I have to look elsewhere.
Rant off...

I'm with you on this one. All of my hop purchases are internet these days--not only is the price better (even with shipping,) but so is the variety. My HBS carries a lot of stock, but they're all pellet and I prefer whole leaf or plug for the most part.

[cricky101]

I'm with you on this one. All of my hop purchases are internet these days--not only is the price better (even with shipping,) but so is the variety. My HBS carries a lot of stock, but they're all pellet and I prefer whole leaf or plug for the most part.

Bought a pound of centennial and a pound of amarillo online a couple of weeks back, too. They were only about $10/pound, and make brewing a IIPA a whole lot cheaper!

[ABNMP619]

OK, with all these awesome brews I have to be the dumby and ask; how do I start homebrewing? Is there a kit or anything out there and is there guide to brewing? Can someone help me? Thanks gang.

[Salvelinus]

http://www.howtobrew.com/

Read this, and if you are still interested get down to your local homebrew supply and purchase the supplies you need. Tell them what you want to brew, and that you are new and they should be able to set you up with a kit that includes what you absolutely need, and not the extra stuff that you will wind up buying later anyway.

[cricky101]

Going to try my first brew-in-a-bag method this weekend (which is my first all-grain, too). Anyone who has done it have any pointers?

It's a small batch - a 3-gallon Bell's Two-Hearted clone. I'm still doing stove-top and my boil maxes out at about 4.5 gallons.

[BlackDog]

I brewed this saison today. This may have been my smoothest brew day (evening) yet.

LB OZ
6 0 Pilsner Liquid Extract
1 5 Rahr White Wheat Malt
0 5 Munich Malt - 10L
0 5 Vienna Malt
0 4 Acidulated Malt
0 4 Biscuit Malt

1 oz German Tradition 60 mins 5.7 AA
1 oz Hallertauer 30 mins 3.7 AA

Wyeast 3711 French Saison pitched at 65*. (Built up a 2 liter starter on my stir plate over 4 days, cold crashed to pitch one concentrated liter.)

OG = 1.052, 22.6 IBU's, SRM = 5, plan FG = 1.010, plan ABV = 5.5%

I've now got 20 gallons of beer in various stages of fermentation. :D

[b0rderman]

20 gal? Nice Warren!

I brewed up my Deathbrewer Dunkelweiss partial mash...I only hit 1.042 :(

Hopefully my starter was robust enough to get this thing dried out so I can at least get high 4% abv....5% seems unlike, but we shall see. Used a wort chiller for the first time, loved it.

[rack04]

For those of you who buy bulk pellet hops how do you store them after opening the air tight package? I'm been thinking about buying a pound of cascade, east kent golding, and hallertau but I don't want them to go bad.

[BeerAdvocate]

For those of you who buy bulk pellet hops how do you store them after opening the air tight package? I'm been thinking about buying a pound of cascade, east kent golding, and hallertau but I don't want them to go bad.

I put them in a ziplock bag and put them in the Freezer

[cricky101]

I put them in a ziplock bag and put them in the Freezer

Me too, and try to get as much air out as possible. If I had a vacuum sealer I'd probably use that and maybe even seal them into small packs of a couple ounces each.

[BlackDog]

I've been keeping mine in a zip lock bag, and putting them into a canning jar, and then into the freezer.
Posted via Mobile Device

[kaisersozei]

Who worries about storage? You just need to brew more! :al :r






But seriously, a compressed ziploc baggie in the freezer should do the trick. They're pelletized, and already at a lesser chance of spoilage than, say, whole cones because of the resin that they're coated with. They'll keep in the refrigerator for a few months.

[awsmith4]

OK, with all these awesome brews I have to be the dumby and ask; how do I start homebrewing? Is there a kit or anything out there and is there guide to brewing? Can someone help me? Thanks gang.

http://www.howtobrew.com/

Read this, and if you are still interested get down to your local homebrew supply and purchase the supplies you need. Tell them what you want to brew, and that you are new and they should be able to set you up with a kit that includes what you absolutely need, and not the extra stuff that you will wind up buying later anyway.

And you should be able to start for under ~$100. Then it gets addicting and you spend more :D

[ABNMP619]

Albert,
Just from reading all these posts I can see that this brew thing can get very expensive. But man I bet it is worth every penny. :)

[awsmith4]

Albert,
Just from reading all these posts I can see that this brew thing can get very expensive. But man I bet it is worth every penny. :)

I am very limited in my experience but I will say this; when you pour a beer enjoy your glass and LOVE the way it tastes and realize you made it, it is worth every penny.

[BeerAdvocate]

I am very limited in my experience but I will say this; when you pour a beer enjoy your glass and LOVE the way it tastes and realize you made it, it is worth every penny.

:tu:tpd::tu

And when OTHER people say "Wow, you made this!"

[BlackDog]

Albert,
Just from reading all these posts I can see that this brew thing can get very expensive. But man I bet it is worth every penny. :)

I honestly don't think that homebrewing is expensive at all. My initial set up was about $90. I've added another carboy and 2 more plastic fermenting buckets, but otherwise I'm brewing with the same basic outfit.

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/brewing-starter-kit.html

Oh, and I also bought a copper immersion chiller for about $45.

http://www.nybrewsupply.com/products/wort-chiller-copper-immersion.php#c3825

There's a few other odds and ends I've purchased, but overall I have under $250 invested in my gear, which I think isn't bad at all considering how much I've spent on other hobbies. ;)

The one thing I would recommend buying, but is not absolutely necessary, is a large kettle. I have a 5 gallon one and wish I had a larger one. At some point I will buy a 10 gallon kettle.

[kaisersozei]

Albert,
Just from reading all these posts I can see that this brew thing can get very expensive. But man I bet it is worth every penny. :)

Daryle, all things considered, it's not expensive at all. I don't even consider my equipment costs anymore, because I've been using most of the same stuff for the past 15 years. The supply cost for each 5 gallon/48 bottle batch (grains, hops, yeast) run me anywhere from $15-40 depending on the style. The more expensive batches are mostly for things like DIPAs, imperial stouts and barleywines--and retail versions of these go for $10/4pack. The economics are still in my favor!

I figure it's still much cheaper than golf or other hobbies, and I get a lot of satisfaction, as others have said.

[kaisersozei]

First dry hop infusion (Simcoe) went in to my Hopslam clone. SG = 1.020, so we're sitting right at 9% alcohol, thanks to the 1.5# of honey I added a few weeks ago. Tasted awesome.

Second dry hop infusion (Amarillo) goes in on Sunday, and I'll let it all sit for about a week until bottling. :noon

[awsmith4]

First dry hop infusion (Simcoe) went in to my Hopslam clone. SG = 1.020, so we're sitting right at 9% alcohol, thanks to the 1.5# of honey I added a few weeks ago. Tasted awesome.

Second dry hop infusion (Amarillo) goes in on Sunday, and I'll let it all sit for about a week until bottling. :noon

Sounds tasty :dr

[Mikes]

Where are you geting SImcoe hops. AHS says there is a worldwide shortage or something......?

[ODLS1]

Brewed an Imperial Stout on St. Patrick's Day. 1.150 going into the fermenter. Second runnings off it resulted in another Imperial Stout at 1.085, but at 5.5gal instead of 5. Wanted to boil longer to get 5 a higher gravity, but oh well. Interesting brewday that went surprisingly well. Big ole starter and O2 injection each day. Hope it ferments well.

[kaisersozei]

Where are you geting SImcoe hops. AHS says there is a worldwide shortage or something......?

I've read that they're in short supply because U.S. harvests were down last year. I don't buy in huge bulk, though, so I haven't had any problems getting Simcoe or Amarillo (both whole leaf & pellet.) These either came from my HBS or Midwest Supply. I've had them since December.

[St. Lou Stu]

Primary and secondary are finally both empty.
I bottled my RIS yesterday. It started at 1.125 and finished at 1.020 for a whopping 13.83% ABV.
My brewstand should be done this week. I'll post pics before and after powder coating.
After powder is down and baked, I'll just have to plumb it up and do some final wiring.

American Pils will be the test batch on the new rig:

Classic American Pilsner
Type: All Grain
Date: 3/20/2011
Batch Size: 5.50 gal
Brewer: Tim Lael
Boil Size: 7.00 gal
Boil Time: 60 min
Equipment: My All Grain
Brewhouse Efficiency: 80.00

Ingredients
Amount Item Type % or IBU
5.50 lb Brewers Malt 2-Row (Briess) (1.8 SRM) Grain 64.71 %
2.00 lb Maris Otter (Crisp) (4.0 SRM) Grain 23.53 %
1.00 lb Rice, Flaked (Briess) (1.0 SRM) Grain 11.76 %
0.50 oz Sterling [7.50 %] (60 min) Hops 13.2 IBU
0.50 oz Cascade [5.50 %] (20 min) Hops 5.3 IBU
0.50 oz Sterling [7.50 %] (15 min) Hops 6.5 IBU
1 Pkgs American Lager (White Labs #WLP840) Yeast-
Lager
Beer Profile
Est Original Gravity: 1.045 SG
Est Final Gravity: 1.010 SG
Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 4.62
Bitterness: 25.0 IBU
Est Color: 3.5 SRM

Notes
Created with BeerSmith

[cricky101]

I brewed a 3.5 gallon batch of a Bell's Two-Hearted clone yesterday. It was my first all-grain and I used a brew in a bag method on my stove.

Had some trouble with the mash, and hitting the correct gravities, but with the help of a little DME, it ended up pretty close.

It was bubbling away this morning while I was getting ready for work!

[b0rderman]

my first ~all-grain, although just a half batch, and I blew it!

Forgot the flaked wheat on the modified Chimay GR clone! WTF! Anyway, it was only 1/16th of the grain bill, but still...weak move. It was in a separate bag because I didn't run it through the mill at the shop. Went to grab my thief after the cool and there is a brown paper bag sitting there. Oh well, hit 1.070 OG and I don't think I'll mind drinkin it ;).

I'd like to try a slightly finer mill next time so I can really start settling in to some decent BIAB efficiencies.

[SeanGAR]

All grain batches right now:

Kegged: Northern Brown, British pale Ale, Honey Cream Ale. A 2 hearted clone is going down fast. A honey Altbier is about dead and a sangria made with wine we made in 2009 is up next.

Fermenting: Kriek (started last sunday). This will take ~18 months. At least 12 before I add the cherries.

Next: Oatmeal stout, Porter, another Cream Ale, another Kriek, and 10 gallon batches of Jamil's Robust Porter and my ersatz 2 hearted.

[kaisersozei]

First dry hop infusion (Simcoe) went in to my Hopslam clone. SG = 1.020, so we're sitting right at 9% alcohol, thanks to the 1.5# of honey I added a few weeks ago. Tasted awesome.

Second dry hop infusion (Amarillo) goes in on Sunday, and I'll let it all sit for about a week until bottling. :noon

Bottled this last night with a bit less priming sugar than I typically use (3.25 oz for 4.5 gallons.) Hoping to get the carbonation right, that should give me 2.2vol CO2. Beer weighed in at 1.020, so it's dead on with the recipe. Tasted pretty good, too :al :tu

[rack04]

I bottled my all-grain Centennial Blonde on Friday. I had a few homebrews before starting so I hope I didn't screw anything up. This weekend I will attempt a Blue Moon clone.

[awsmith4]

I bottled my all-grain Centennial Blonde on Friday. I had a few homebrews before starting so I hope I didn't screw anything up. This weekend I will attempt a Blue Moon clone.

I think we are going to try a wheat beer this weekend as well. We haven't settled on a recipe yet but I think it will probably a Bavarian style Hefe, fermented warm to get some banana esters :noon (just wanted to use the dancing nanner)

[Salvelinus]

185,000 BTU's of fun on the way to my house right now. Getting 7.5 gallons up to a boil on the stove took me about 2 hours. Hoping to have that down to about 30 minutes.

[rack04]

I just purchased a 40 quart stock pot to replace my 32 quart. The 32 quart served it's purpose but it was a little too close for comfort for full boils. Now I need to decide if I want to install a a weldless fitting with valve to drain the wort. I usually rack from the kettle so I leave behind as much cold break and hop particles as possible. The last batch I tried to whirlpool to get all the material to the center of the kettle but it didn't work as well as I wanted. For those of you who have a valve how do you avoid having all the material end up in your primary and what type of fitting do you use inside the kettle?

[BeerAdvocate]

I just placed an order with Austin Homebrew for 7 recipe kits.
Sunday is the last day for the $20 Anniversary kits!
Here is what I got:

Wit
ESB
Hefeweizen
IPA
Porter
Stout

[earnold25]

I just placed an order with Austin Homebrew for 7 recipe kits.
Sunday is the last day for the $20 Anniversary kits!


Thanks for the link! Just ordered 2. Not sure that I could make 7 in a month. :)

[BeerAdvocate]

Im hoping they will last me through the summer and I will brewing something special with the Stout & Porter to have for winter time.

[earnold25]

did you get the LME or all wheat?

[Tristan]

Primary and secondary are finally both empty.
I bottled my RIS yesterday. It started at 1.125 and finished at 1.020 for a whopping 13.83% ABV.
My brewstand should be done this week. I'll post pics before and after powder coating.
After powder is down and baked, I'll just have to plumb it up and do some final wiring.

American Pils will be the test batch on the new rig:

Classic American Pilsner
Type: All Grain
Date: 3/20/2011
Batch Size: 5.50 gal
Brewer: Tim Lael
Boil Size: 7.00 gal
Boil Time: 60 min
Equipment: My All Grain
Brewhouse Efficiency: 80.00

Ingredients
Amount Item Type % or IBU
5.50 lb Brewers Malt 2-Row (Briess) (1.8 SRM) Grain 64.71 %
2.00 lb Maris Otter (Crisp) (4.0 SRM) Grain 23.53 %
1.00 lb Rice, Flaked (Briess) (1.0 SRM) Grain 11.76 %
0.50 oz Sterling [7.50 %] (60 min) Hops 13.2 IBU
0.50 oz Cascade [5.50 %] (20 min) Hops 5.3 IBU
0.50 oz Sterling [7.50 %] (15 min) Hops 6.5 IBU
1 Pkgs American Lager (White Labs #WLP840) Yeast-
Lager
Beer Profile
Est Original Gravity: 1.045 SG
Est Final Gravity: 1.010 SG
Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 4.62
Bitterness: 25.0 IBU
Est Color: 3.5 SRM

Notes
Created with BeerSmith

Nice job on your RIS attenuation! Looking at your CAP recipe, where's the 6 row brother? I'd take half of that 2-row and sub 6-row and then sub Pilsner malt for the other half. :banger 6 Row really adds another dimension! Also, I'd save the MO for an English beer. When CAPs were brewed back in the day they didn't have any fancy malts! Also, I like corn a whole hell of a lot; I tried Rice and it's not for me. Just my 2 cents.

Also, if you like noble hops, Perle for bittering and Saaz/Tettnang for flavor/aroma is an awful nice combination :D If you want super classic pre-prohibition and like cat piss flavor try cluster hops LOL.

[St. Lou Stu]

Nice job on your RIS attenuation! Looking at your CAP recipe, where's the 6 row brother? I'd take half of that 2-row and sub 6-row and then sub Pilsner malt for the other half. :banger 6 Row really adds another dimension! Also, I'd save the MO for an English beer. When CAPs were brewed back in the day they didn't have any fancy malts! Also, I like corn a whole hell of a lot; I tried Rice and it's not for me. Just my 2 cents.

Also, if you like noble hops, Perle for bittering and Saaz/Tettnang for flavor/aroma is an awful nice combination :D If you want super classic pre-prohibition and like cat piss flavor try cluster hops LOL.


Yeah... that great attenuation made a fairly hot beer. We'll see what time does on that.

I will take your advice on the Pils... for the second batch. I wanted to stray just a bit on the first batch since it will be for my BMC friend that helped me build the stand. I want him to see that beer can have flavor and be simple. I think I will go with the Perle, Saaz/Tettnang on both batches though. Nice idea... I'll keep my cascades for IPA and AIPAs. They really don't have a place here. And the corn... I am still 50/50 on that... what do you see as an advantage compared to rice? I do rice 'cause its easy, but I guess corn would be just as if not easier. Do you still cereal mash it?

[Tristan]

Yeah... that great attenuation made a fairly hot beer. We'll see what time does on that.

I will take your advice on the Pils... for the second batch. I wanted to stray just a bit on the first batch since it will be for my BMC friend that helped me build the stand. I want him to see that beer can have flavor and be simple. I think I will go with the Perle, Saaz/Tettnang on both batches though. Nice idea... I'll keep my cascades for IPA and AIPAs. They really don't have a place here. And the corn... I am still 50/50 on that... what do you see as an advantage compared to rice? I do rice 'cause its easy, but I guess corn would be just as if not easier. Do you still cereal mash it?

To me Rice adds a bit of "insipid" to the flavor profile. I just didn't care for it personally. I used Flaked Maize (Corn) and there is no cereal mash needed. Just through it in with the rest of your malt in the mash! I find corn gives a nice delicate sweetness at about 18% of the grist. Rice is more neutral, but I'm usually not a "neutral" kind of guy :banger

[kaisersozei]

AHA's National Homebrew Competition

If anyone is interested, now is the time to register for this year's contest. More information:

http://www.homebrewersassociation.org/pages/competitions/national-homebrew-competition/competition-information

The last time I entered was more than 5 years ago, so I decided to submit a few of my recent beers to get some professional feedback and to see how they hold up to others in their style:

Winston's Lot (Imperial IPA)
Trappist Hollow (Belgian Specialty/Trappist Christmas ale)
Essence (Cream Ale)

My son is also entering as primary brewer on CohiBrew (Imperial IPA,) I'll be secondary.

Since a number of folks around CA have sampled these, I'll be sure to post my performance once the scores come back. Unless they suck ;)

Well, got my regional round scores back today. The Imperial IPAs both scored 36/50--which is great especially for my son's first beer--and the Cream Ale 31/50. Judges said that Winston's Lot could have done much better in a different category, but it had lost some of its hop aroma so it didn't fit the style. It got high scores in the "flavor" and "overall" components, though. I didn't have much hope for the Cream Ale, just wanted to see how it did.

The Belgian Specialty ale, however, took First Place in its category and advances to the Nationals final round in San Diego! :noon Not sure how many beers it competed against, but there were over 750 total entries in my region. The judges comments were all very high and extremely positive, so I'm super excited about this. :banger I've given away almost all of this beer since it was my Christmas gift to friends & co-workers, but I fortunately have just enough to enter into finals. It will definitely be an annual tradition around Castle Hollow Brewery ;)

Thought I'd share the good news with my fellow HBOTLs!

[Matt-N-Ga]

That's awesome...Congratulations. :banger

Good luck in the next round. :tu

[Blindjimme]

Congratulations Gerard. You should be proud, that is a very good showing. I'll be happy if my first batch this summer is drinkable :tu

[ODLS1]

Congrats! I wanted to enter a bunch in NHC but at $14 per beer... no thanks. I plan to enter a bunch in a couple local comps, one being the state fair.

[awsmith4]

Congrats Gerard!

[b0rderman]

Hell yea!! A big congrats to you!

I brewed up a 'kitchen sink' stout last night...started as an outmeal-milk stout...I then added some honey and chocolate malts for unknown reasons and ended up 15pts. higher in OG @ 1.076. Very interested to see how this experiment turns out...a honey-chocolate-outmeal-milk stout....shoot, forgot the coffee! ;)

[Salvelinus]

Hell yea!! A big congrats to you!

I brewed up a 'kitchen sink' stout last night...started as an outmeal-milk stout...I then added some honey and chocolate malts for unknown reasons and ended up 15pts. higher in OG @ 1.076. Very interested to see how this experiment turns out...a honey-chocolate-outmeal-milk stout....shoot, forgot the coffee! ;)

Add it into the secondary :tu

And congrats Gerard, that is quite the homebrewing accomplishment!

[BeerAdvocate]

I transferred my Belgian Tripel to secondary & pitched a Belgian blonde onto the yeast cake

[kaisersozei]

Thanks for all the positive remarks guys, I'll let you know how it advances! :chr

[rack04]

I will either be brewing a dry stout or irish red this weekend. This will be my 3rd all grain brew and 1st with my new brew kettle and temperature controlled fermentation freezer.

[Salvelinus]

Just bottled a saison, moved an IPA into secondary, and purchased a stainless fittings kit to convert my cooler into a mash tun. Tired of crappy brew in a bag efficiencies.

[ODLS1]

My Monolith Imperial Stout, 16.3% abv, will be kegged up tomorrow! I can't wait. This beer is AMAZING. Fresh it gives Dark Lord, my favorite beer, a run for it's money. It was pretty great, then I added vanilla beans and it took it to a whole new level. This is all from tasting it from the fermenter too. I'm sure carbonation and age will only improve it... I can only hope.

[BeerAdvocate]

Im making a stout today where I will add Dark Rum, Vanilla beans and oak cubes to secondary.

[St. Lou Stu]

Brewed up an all grain California Common today.
Hit all my numbers perfectly.
We'll see how it turns out. My LHBS didn't have WLP 810, so I went with Safelager S-23 dry yeast and made a 1.5l starter.
I'm going to ferment it at 60 degrees for a few weeks, or until it is done.
The recipe:

BeerSmith Recipe Printout - http://www.beersmith.com
Recipe: Cleveland Steam
Brewer: Tim Lael
Asst Brewer: Rollo Tubbs
Style: California Common Beer
TYPE: All Grain
Taste:

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Batch Size: 5.50 gal
Boil Size: 7.00 gal
Estimated OG: 1.054 SG
Estimated Color: 8.5 SRM
Estimated IBU: 38.4 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 75.00 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amount Item Type % or IBU
10.00 lb Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 90.91 %
0.50 lb Caramel Malt - 40L (Briess) (40.0 SRM) Grain 4.55 %
0.50 lb Caramel Malt - 60L (Briess) (60.0 SRM) Grain 4.55 %
1.00 oz Northern Brewer [10.00 %] (45 min) Hops 30.2 IBU
0.50 oz Northern Brewer [10.00 %] (15 min) Hops 8.2 IBU
0.50 oz Northern Brewer [10.00 %] (0 min) (Aroma Hops -
1.00 items Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 15.0 min) Misc
1 Pkgs SafLager West European Lager (DCL Yeast #SYeast-Lager


Mash Schedule: Single Infusion, Medium Body
Total Grain Weight: 11.00 lb
----------------------------
Single Infusion, Medium Body
Step Time Name Description Step Temp
60 min Mash In Add 13.75 qt of water at 170.0 F 154.0 F
10 min Mash Out Add 7.70 qt of water at 198.4 F 168.0 F


Notes:
------
Steep aroma hop addition for 10 minutes while whirlpooling prior to starting chiller flow

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[kaisersozei]

My fermenters are all empty, but I just bottled a disastrous SN Torpedo clone this weekend. Pretty much everything that could go wrong, did go wrong with this beer. 10# of malt and I couldn't reach target mash temperature, ended up adding twice as much water as I wanted, the manifold got clogged, the sparge was difficult, I boiled off more liquid than I wanted, overshot my SG by about 10 points, the primary fermentation was so vigorous that I blew off the airlock and got foamy yeast all over the laundry room, for some reason I thought dryhopping with whole cones was a good idea, ended up bottling a whopping 3.5 gallons from an original 6 gallon boil, and I was trying to create a blended yeast strain (Bell's Hopslam + WL001) but forgot to salvage some of the yeast. In twenty years, I have never had such a challenging brew.

On the positive side, it tasted pretty good going into the bottle, so we'll see what a little time does.

Shipped off my last 3 bottles of the Trappist Christmas ale to the final round of the NHC competition yesterday. Hoping for the best!

[gvarsity]

Did my first brew in several years. It was a partial mash Imperial Blonde Ale kit. It is happily bubbling away in the basement. I forgot how much fun and the sense of pride there is from making your own beer. Here is hoping it tastes good.

[rack04]

I bottled an irish red about a week ago and will be bottling a dry stout tomorrow. If everything works out I will be brewing a kolsch on Saturday. I have my 1 liter yeast starter in the fridge getting ready to decant and then I will add another 1 liter of fresh wort to step up the yeast counts.

[cricky101]

I bottled an irish red about a week ago and will be bottling a dry stout tomorrow. If everything works out I will be brewing a kolsch on Saturday. I have my 1 liter yeast starter in the fridge getting ready to decant and then I will add another 1 liter of fresh wort to step up the yeast counts.

Nice! I'm brewing a partial-mash Irish red tomorrow on my day off

[rack04]

Nice! I'm brewing a partial-mash Irish red tomorrow on my day off

I'm real excited to try it. The sample that I tasted while bottling was fantastic. To bad I have already promised to give 1/2 away.

[Salvelinus]

Bottled my IPA. Sitting on the porch in the rain smoking an ELO, drinking a homebrew, and watching a pale ale boil. Simple batch

10lbs two row
12oz crystal 90 for color
0.5oz of columbus at 60, 10, and 1

going to pitch it on the yeast cake from the IPA and bottle in a week I hope. This will probably be the last of my summer beers, wanted something simple to fill out the summer drinking list. Time to move on to the longer aging winter stuff.

[kaisersozei]

The first batch of "NuptiAle", a pretty basic, nondescript American ale (OG 1.045, 4% ABV, 22 IBU with Centennial + Cascade) that my boss is having me brew to serve at his daughter's wedding in September, is sitting quietly in the secondary. I have 2 more batches to brew to get the proper quantity for 120 people. Good thing it ferments quick & clean.

[BeerAdvocate]

Today I kegged a Coffee Vanilla Porter and brewed an Imperial Stout for winter

[St. Lou Stu]

Got two in the fermenter right now.... both will be served at Shack.
Last Sunday I brewed up a California Common (a newer revision of the recipe a few posts up) and today was a nice little Session hop bomb.

Today's Session beer:

BeerSmith Recipe Printout - http://www.beersmith.com
Recipe: American Session
Brewer: Tim Lael
Asst Brewer: 8 million mosquitoes
Style: American Pale Ale
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (0.0)

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Batch Size: 5.50 gal
Boil Size: 7.33 gal
Estimated OG: 1.040 SG
Estimated Color: 5.5 SRM
Estimated IBU: 46.9 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 75.00 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amount Item Type % or IBU
5.25 lb Brewers Malt 2-Row (Briess) (1.8 SRM) Grain 65.63 %
1.75 lb Maris Otter (Crisp) (4.0 SRM) Grain 21.88 %
1.00 lb Caramel Malt - 20L (Briess) (20.0 SRM) Grain 12.50 %
1.00 oz Cascade [5.50 %] (Dry Hop 5 days) Hops -
1.00 oz Cascade [5.50 %] (60 min) Hops 18.1 IBU
1.00 oz Centennial [11.00 %] (Dry Hop 5 days) Hops -
0.50 oz Cascade [5.50 %] (20 min) Hops 5.5 IBU
0.50 oz Cascade [5.50 %] (10 min) Hops 3.3 IBU
1.50 oz Centennial [11.00 %] (0 min) Hops -
1.00 items Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 15.0 min) Misc
1 Pkgs English Ale (White Labs #WLP002) Yeast-Ale
1.00 oz Centennial [10.00 %] (90 min) (Mash Hop) Hops 7.8 IBU
0.50 oz Centennial [10.00 %] (5 min) Hops 3.6 IBU
2.00 oz Cascade [5.50 %] (90 min) (Mash Hop) Hops 8.6 IBU


Mash Schedule: Single Infusion, Light Body
Total Grain Weight: 8.00 lb
----------------------------
Single Infusion, Light Body
Step Time Name Description Step Temp
75 min Mash In Add 10.00 qt of water at 160.7 F 148.0 F
10 min Mash Out Add 6.40 qt of water at 205.1 F 168.0 F


Notes:
------
Whirlpool 1.5oz Centennial at flameout before starting chill water.
Dry hop 1oz Cascade 1oz Centennial for 5 days as active fermentation subsides

Brew adjustment:
Added 2 quarts extra to mash to account for hop absorbtion

Strike water @ 162 hit mash at 148.5

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[rack04]

Today I kegged a Coffee Vanilla Porter and brewed an Imperial Stout for winter

Did you add the vanilla to the boil or secondary? I'm interested in making a chocolate vanilla robust porter for the winter but I'm having a hard time deciding on beans/extract and when to add.

[BeerAdvocate]

I always add to secondary. Actually this time I used some high quality vanilla extract and just put a tablespoon in the keg and racked my beer on top of that.
I usually use whole vanilla beans that I split down the middle, scrap out the insides and soak everything in vodka for a day. Then I just dump it all into secondary.

[Salvelinus]

Put a marris otter/simcoe smash over a starter from the dregs of a DFH Squall. Friend put an amber in the basement on Sunday. Add the lambic and I'm sitting 15 gallons of goodies in the basement. Peanuts for some, but my personal best.

[kaisersozei]

Did you add the vanilla to the boil or secondary? I'm interested in making a chocolate vanilla robust porter for the winter but I'm having a hard time deciding on beans/extract and when to add.

I've always put the extract in the bottling bucket with the priming sugar. As Travis says, secondary might work just as well--you may even get better distribution, but I've never had problems with the bottling method. If you're using beans, definitely in the secondary.

[cricky101]

It's a brewing weekend for me. Two partial mashes. One double chocolate stout in the fermenter yesterday and an Irish red ale going right now.

[Devanmc]

mmm beer, didnt know this was here. Ive got a honey brown kolsch and a summer blonde for shack in the fermentor right now. the summer moves to secondary tomorrow.

[St. Lou Stu]

mmm beer, didnt know this was here. Ive got a honey brown kolsch and a summer blonde for shack in the fermentor right now. the summer moves to secondary tomorrow.

Nice.
I moved two over to secondary this weekend.

One is a Session IPA, the other a California Common.
Both will be kegged in time for Shack!

Tomorrow I'm going to brew a Kolsch. It should be a cool day compared to what we've had. Forecast only calls for 95 degrees.

[Devanmc]

Nice.
I moved two over to secondary this weekend.

One is a Session IPA, the other a California Common.
Both will be kegged in time for Shack!

Tomorrow I'm going to brew a Kolsch. It should be a cool day compared to what we've had. Forecast only calls for 95 degrees.

so your bringing home brew kegs to shack as well? 5gl cornies im guessing?

if so, how do you plan on serving? we might be able to combine our serving stuff for the weekend. Im in the processes of PMing Da Klugs about the CO2 side of things. :sh

[St. Lou Stu]

so your bringing home brew kegs to shack as well? 5gl cornies im guessing?

if so, how do you plan on serving? we might be able to combine our serving stuff for the weekend. Im in the processes of PMing Da Klugs about the CO2 side of things. :sh

I'll bring a full 2.5 pound cylinder, plus, we will have a paintball cylinder that we can run up to Walmart to refill if needed.
I'll be bringing 2 2-tap jockey boxes so we'll have four taps going at any given time.
Do you have a ball lock or pin lock setup?

[Devanmc]

ball lock, how many kegs will you have hooked up? if i might be able to hook my 2 kegs up to that. As itll work much better then a bucket of ice.

I was planning on bringing a 20oz CO2 as well. Plus my #20 as backup.

[St. Lou Stu]

ball lock, how many kegs will you have hooked up? if i might be able to hook my 2 kegs up to that. As itll work much better then a bucket of ice.

I was planning on bringing a 20oz CO2 as well. Plus my #20 as backup.

I'm only bringing 2 kegs. Tristan is also going to bring one or two that I know of.
You are more than welcome to use the boxes.
We'll just make sure that it is hooked up so that we don't have the same stuff on tap.
Only exception would be that Tristan and I both brewed a session IPA... I'd like to tap those at the same time to do a side-by-side.

[Devanmc]

sounds fine to me. Ill bring enough to keep my beer cold in-case i cant hook up to the box. I planned on using large buckets and ice, should work pretty well. If needed.

do you have a manifold to split the CO2 multiple ways? That way we can use just 1 tank. If not i can look at borrowing/getting one. :sh

where will be able to chain/tie up the tanks so they dont fall?

[St. Lou Stu]

sounds fine to me.

do you can a manifold to split the CO2 multiple ways? That way we can use just 1 tank.

I'll bring an 8-way manifold too. I forgot about that.

Besides beer, I'm bringing:
1 - #2.5 CO2 tank
1 - Dual regulator
1 - 8 way manifold
2 - 2 tap jockey boxes
1 - half barrel ice tub
assorted tools for regulators, poppets, hose clamps, spare liquid and gas line...
bungees for tanks...

[Devanmc]

I'll bring an 8-way manifold too. I forgot about that.

Besides beer, I'm bringing:
1 - #2.5 CO2 tank
1 - Dual regulator
1 - 8 way manifold
2 - 2 tap jockey boxes
1 - half barrel ice tub
assorted tools for regulators, poppets, hose clamps, spare liquid and gas line......

awesome. ill bring my equipment just for backups then. :tu

we will have a place to chain up the tanks from falling and being damaged though right? cuz i dont want to leave my#20 in the car on its side all weekend.

[St. Lou Stu]

awesome. ill bring my equipment just for backups then. :tu

we will have a place to chain up the tanks from falling and being damaged though right? cuz i dont want to leave my#20 in the car on its side all weekend.

Yeah, if we don't tie 'em to a table, I'm sure we could stash them in the shed away from trouble! ;)

[Devanmc]

perfect. im gunna bring a some chain :tu

[Devanmc]

if you think of anything youd like me to bring. just LMK

[Matt-N-Ga]

Awsmith4 and I transferred his Birthday brew into the secondary earlier last week. It's a clone of Kate The Great. We are letting it sit on Port soaked Oak chips.

We also transferred our own concoction off the second runnings of the KAte the Great mash. We added into primary, Coffee beans, Vanilla beans and chocolate. It sits alone in secondary with no additions.

[St. Lou Stu]

Brewed up a Kolsch today.
At a little more than 3 hours in the fermentor, I can already see bubbling and krausen developing! Yay for starters!


3 out of 4 have something in them now:
Kolsch - Fresh into the fermentor today
Session IPA - On the dry hops (four more days)
California Common - Chilling (Ready to keg, looking for time)

[kaisersozei]

Transferred all my batches of "NuptiAle," a session ale my boss is serving at his daughter's wedding, into secondaries before leaving for vacation. While I'm here at the beach, dreaming up what to brew when I get back :hm Thinking about getting my 2011 Christmas beer going--working up a sweet stout recipe using some Lindt's chocolate (99% cocoa) I bought for my wife but she didn't like. Can't let it go to waste!

[BeerAdvocate]

I brewed a Watermelon wheat and a Bourbon Barrel Porter this weekend.
I am still trying to decide what Bourbon to use with the Porter. Im kind of thinking about using the new Jack Daniels Honey.

[awsmith4]

I brewed a Watermelon wheat and a Bourbon Barrel Porter this weekend.
I am still trying to decide what Bourbon to use with the Porter. Im kind of thinking about using the new Jack Daniels Honey.

Just FYI, Jack is not a bourbon but that doesn't mean it won't be good. If you like the taste of it then use it. Matt and I used 1792 in ours because it was the only bottle in one of our collections we didn't mind sacrificing. It turned out pretty good.

[b0rderman]

Brewed up the AG Centennial Blonde from HBT this weekend. Used Maris Otter as my base for the first time, and bumped the IBUs ever so slightly. I wanted something a bit 'chewyer' than what the original recipe had going on. I've got an ounce of citra for dry hopping...never met a citra dry hop I didn't like, but also never have tried it with MO...:sh

[Salvelinus]

Brewed up the AG Centennial Blonde from HBT this weekend. Used Maris Otter as my base for the first time, and bumped the IBUs ever so slightly. I wanted something a bit 'chewyer' than what the original recipe had going on. I've got an ounce of citra for dry hopping...never met a citra dry hop I didn't like, but also never have tried it with MO...:sh

I just made a marris/simcoe smash that tasted great going into bottles. So did the last pale i made with only two row though :2

[kaisersozei]

Question for you guys:

When the hop aroma fades from an Imperial IPA, what does the beer become? An old ale? Barleywine?

I have two beers that have been in the bottle for 6+ months or so--both started life as an IIPA, but have lost some of their initial aromas and are more malty on the nose now. Details--

#1 = 1.087 OG, 75 IBU, 9% ABV, Centennial/Citra/Simcoe/Amarillo
#2 = 1.084 OG, 101 IBU, 8.5% ABV, Amarillo/Nugget/Simcoe/Warrior

Thinking about entering a couple upcoming contests. I know taste would probably dictate your decisions, just wondering what you would choose "on paper." Thanks!

[awsmith4]

Question for you guys:

When the hop aroma fades from an Imperial IPA, what does the beer become? An old ale? Barleywine?

I have two beers that have been in the bottle for 6+ months or so--both started life as an IIPA, but have lost some of their initial aromas and are more malty on the nose now. Details--

#1 = 1.087 OG, 75 IBU, 9% ABV, Centennial/Citra/Simcoe/Amarillo
#2 = 1.084 OG, 101 IBU, 8.5% ABV, Amarillo/Nugget/Simcoe/Warrior

Thinking about entering a couple upcoming contests. I know taste would probably dictate your decisions, just wondering what you would choose "on paper." Thanks!

I have thought that a few DIPAs I've aged tastes like Barleywine. However is American Strong Ale a category? Its kind of a catch all if I remember correctly.

[kaisersozei]

I have thought that a few DIPAs I've aged tastes like Barleywine. However is American Strong Ale a category? Its kind of a catch all if I remember correctly.

Old Ale is 19A & Barleywine is 19B. I guess I'm asking more about the flavor differences between those two styles, what I should be looking at to put the beer in the right category. Some competitions will lump all the sub categories into the same flight.

[Salvelinus]

Double batch today. Belgian strong that I didn't sparge. Added 5 pounds of pearl into the mash tun and ran off a second batch. The belgian is already bubbling after adding a big starter of wyeasts rochefort strain. The second is cooling now but will be getting a starter from DFH squall dregs.

Anyone used the squall dregs? My last batch with the yeast went from 1.055 to 1.005 and was still bubbling every two minutes when I bottled. Needless to say I added less priming sugar than I normally would.

[jonumberone]

Hey guys.
Just getting started, and my first batch is bubbling away.
I already got a ton of help from Albert and Tim, but I don't want to be burdensome.
I have a few questions and I was wondering if anybody can help.

I plan on doing 2 more 5 gallon extract batches tomorrow.
How much water should I start with.
My first batch I started with 5 but finished with a bit under 4 gallons of wort.
I thought about adding water after the fact but didn't want to screw up, so I left it alone.

another question.
The other day I unpacked my 5 gallon carboy from the box.
It bears a striking resemblance to an empty 5 gallon water jug.
I have access to plenty of these jugs, about 25 a week to choose from.
Could I use them as a disposable secondary?

Thanks in advance fellas! :tu

[kaisersozei]

Hey guys.
Just getting started, and my first batch is bubbling away.
I already got a ton of help from Albert and Tim, but I don't want to be burdensome.
I have a few questions and I was wondering if anybody can help.

I plan on doing 2 more 5 gallon extract batches tomorrow.
How much water should I start with.
My first batch I started with 5 but finished with a bit under 4 gallons of wort.
I thought about adding water after the fact but didn't want to screw up, so I left it alone.

another question.
The other day I unpacked my 5 gallon carboy from the box.
It bears a striking resemblance to an empty 5 gallon water jug.
I have access to plenty of these jugs, about 25 a week to choose from.
Could I use them as a disposable secondary?

Thanks in advance fellas! :tu

Dom, always happy to help another homebrewer, so you wouldn't be a burden at all. Feel free to ask away!

For water, it sounds like you're doing full-volume boils. In order to end up with 5 gallons after a 60 minute boil, I usually start with about 6 gallons of water. Once you transfer the wort from your kettle to the fermenter, you can also top off with enough distilled or spring water to bring the total to 5 gallons. I usually start with more than 5 gallons in the primary anyway, since you'll lose some volume to trub when you transfer.

There's been a lot of debate about using those Poland Springs type jugs as a fermenter. I think most of the issues were around the #7 jugs--typically, people said if you were using #1 or #2 plastic, it was better than the #7. Had to do with O2 permeability or the acidic beer causing some kind of chemical reaction that would affect the outcome. I think some manufacturers are now making PET carboys, which are supposed to be better. In any case, if you're using them as disposables for just one batch, I wouldn't think you'd have many problems. Just make sure they're clean.

What did you brew for your first batch, and what are you planning?

[jonumberone]

Thanks Gerard! :tu

I'll check the bottles and see what # plastic they are.
And yes, I would only use them for one batch and toss them.

My first batch I made an amber ale
Here's the recipe I used
http://www.brewapp.com/recipefiles/RONS%20AMBER%20-%205%20GAL.pdf

I want to do a Porter or stout and perhaps a brown ale.
I will talk with my local home brew store and see what they recommend.
Some of the porter recipes I looked at use Lager yeast and they told me not to attempt a lager until Oct or Nov.

Many thanks!
I hope to be a regular here! :tu

[b0rderman]

I'm a new home brewer myself. Don't worry about adding water to your post-boil wort to bring it up to 5 gallons. As long as the water is sanitary and you followed your recipe directions, it shouldn't be a problem. My first all-grain recipe I was nervous I didn't hit my SG so I did not add the extra gallon to my wort...but now that I know my efficiency I can adjust my brewing so that I can top off without issue.

Welcome to home brewing...it's fun as hell

[St. Lou Stu]

Got a starter going now for a 12 gal batch of Bavarian Hefeweizen on Sunday.

[b0rderman]

How big is the start for a 12 gal batch? And what all went into it?

[St. Lou Stu]

How big is the start for a 12 gal batch? And what all went into it?

It's actually a two-step starter... I made a 1.75 liter and will decant it tomorrow and make a 2 liter out of that.
All-in-all, it's only one package of yeast and 8 oz. of wheat DME for the first step and 8 oz. of wheat DME for the second step.
The first step is ~2.25 quarts of water and the second ~2.5 quarts. Bring to a boil, add DME, boil for 15 minutes, cool, add yeast.

Otherwise, 'they' say you can do a one-step 3.5 liter starter for this particular size and starting gravity of a batch.

They being a combination of sources... Chris White, and Jamil Z. among my most trusted.

[jonumberone]

I read through this thread twice.
It really reads like Chinese to a noob like me!

I guess it will all come with time! :tu

[kaisersozei]

Brewed up a robust porter this weekend, currently sitting in the primary, happily bubbling away. Hoping to make this my Christmas beer, it uses a few ounces of high-grade Lindt chocolate and will be blended with some Sumatra coffee in the secondary. Recipe in case you are interested:

4# 2-row
8oz crystal 60L
6oz chocolate malt
4oz roasted barley 300L
Single step infusion mash at 150-156, 45 minutes. Sparged, brought volume up to 6.5 gallons & started cooking.

Made some late addition malt extracts at 30 minutes:
2# LME
1# amber DME
1# dark DME
8oz maltodextrin

Hop Schedule
1.0 oz Willamette (4.8%) 60min
½ oz Willamette 45min
½ oz Willamette 30min
¼ oz Willamette 10min

At 5 minutes left in the boil, I added some melted Lindt’s dark chocolate: 1½ oz 99% cocoa + 3½ oz 90% cocoa. Cooled the wort, strained, skimmed some fat that was coagulating, pitched about a pint of Irish Ale yeast at 72dg. Temp slowly dropped over 12 hours to about 68. Fermentation has been steady since Monday morning. I’ll rack to secondary for a few weeks, and then a few days before bottling, I’ll add 24oz of cold-pressed, triple filtered coffee.

The sample I pulled before pitching had a nice chocolatey flavor and a good hop balance, but was pretty oily from the chocolate. I’m hoping the maltodextrin & crystal will help with head retention. We’ll see. Smells great while it’s bubbling away.

OG 1.063, 40 IBUs, target FG = 1.016

[b0rderman]

Sounds delicious...

So...I gotta ask...anyone ever mess with a pumpkin/rumpkin/spiced sort of brew before?

[cricky101]

Another question for the brewers:

I've got a chocolate stout in primary and was thinking of adding a little bourbon and toasted oak chips.

I love Founder's KBS (and I know this won't be as "imperial" as that) but is it possible to add bourbon and oak in secondary to get, maybe, a KBS-lite beer in the end?

My concern is that since it's a relatively standard ABV stout (partial mash kit), it won't stand up to the addition of bourbon and oak ...

I did order some medium-toast American oak chips a while back, and have a secondary open to use, but would need to pick up some bourbon.

Any advice whether this is doable or not?

[cricky101]

Sounds delicious...

So...I gotta ask...anyone ever mess with a pumpkin/rumpkin/spiced sort of brew before?

I just ordered a pumpkin ale kit from Midwest Supplies to try. My girlfriend really wanted a pumpkin beer for fall/winter.

I picked up some extra 6-row and read to mash the pumpkin with a couple of pounds before starting the boil process. Also, I'm going to "roast" the pumpkin ahead of time in the oven to add a little caramelized flavor to it.

[Mikes]

Got 10 gal of AHS Citra Pale Ale in the primary now. Will keg on Sunday on dry hop with 1 more oz of citra in each of the kegs ;o) The fermenting closet smells like a hop bomb went off lol (6 oz of citra went into the boil)

I love AHB Pumpkin kit. We brew 10 gal of it every fall season. It doesn't last too long thats for sure.

[b0rderman]

Good to know guys...thanks

[b0rderman]

5 gallon cider batch going...very simple. Apple juice, brown sugar and honey. Will be splitting the batch up a few ways to do some experimental infusions and different carbonating techniques once it dries out.

[Salvelinus]

Breakfast stout- Founders clone with liberties taken to result in a lower gravity brew. Wound up hitting 1.084
10.0lb American Two-row Pale
1.25lb Flaked Oats
0.75lb American Chocolate
0.5lb Roasted Barley
0.37lb Crystal 120L
0.37lb Black Patent Malt
0.3lb Coffee @5minutes
0.25lb Bakers Chocolate @15minutes
0.75oz Columbus @60minutes
1.0oz Willamette @15minutes

Also brewed an Old Foghorn clone that had an OG of 1.128. That ones going down for a loooooong nap.

Anyone using hopville as a recipe calculator? If so I'm brewing under the same screen-name.

[jonumberone]

So I bottled my first batch the other night.
Not sure if this is what it is supposed to look like when I opened the fermenter?

http://i867.photobucket.com/albums/ab234/jonumberone/cigar/462aaf9a.jpg

I didn't expect to see so much crud floating on the top.
My first batch yielded 37 bottles.
I dumped about 1/2 a gallon plus down the sink.
I was too nervous about getting the gunk on the bottom of the bucket in my beer.
I think until I get the hang of the auto siphon, I will use a secondary.
I figure it will allow me to get more of the beer from the bucket.
If I get some gunk in the secondary, it will settle before I siphon to the bottling bucket.

Tasting the beer, it was a little bitter on the finish.
Not too bitter, just more than I was expecting.
I'm sure once it's cold and carbed it will be better.

I currently have a Baltic Porter fermenting in another bucket for a week.
http://www.brewapp.com/recipefiles/SMOOTH%20PORTER%20-%205%20GAL.pdf



I also managed to snag 2 - 23 liter glass carboys from amazon.
$30 free shipping.
Can I ferment in these or are they just for clearing?

[Blak Smyth]

Congrats Dom on your first batch! Is this the one I think it is?
Keep the pics coming, I hope to get into brewing by next year.

I didn't expect the bucket to look like that either, glad you posted this pic before I found it in my bucket and thought I screwed something up.

[jonumberone]

glad you posted this pic before I found it in my bucket and thought I screwed something up.

Just because I posted a pic, doesn't mean I didn't screw up! ;)
Waiting to hear back from some of the experts here!
I did expect crud on the sides of the bucket, just not floating on top.

[Blak Smyth]

Just because I posted a pic, doesn't mean I didn't screw up! ;)
Waiting to hear back from some of the experts here!
I did expect crud on the sides of the bucket, just not floating on top.

Oh I see. Chime in experts I'm dying here!:sh

[BeerAdvocate]

Dom, It looks completly normal. Congrats on your first brew!
Here is a great tutorial on bottling, that makes things alot easier

http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f35/bottling-tips-homebrewer-94812/

To get the most beer out of your bottling bucket, you can go to the hardware store and buy a threaded PVC elbow that screws onto the inside of your spigot. Here is a pic

http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/new-bottlers-old-bottlers-needing-better-way-191323/

Let me know if you have any questions. I bottled about 6 batches before I switched to kegging.

[jonumberone]

Thanks, Travis!
I got most of the beer out of the bucket, it was the fermenter that I dumped the excess out of.
I still will grab the elbow.
Thanks for the link!
I already mentioned Kegging equipment to my wife for Christmas. :D

[BeerAdvocate]

When you put your siphon in the fermenter be sure that it doesnt touch the very bottom. Keep it about an inch from the bottom. When the level starts getting low, tilt your bucket while still keeping the siphon from the bottom.
You should look into upgrading to a glass carboy or even the plastic "Better Bottles".
I hated using buckets. I have brewed close to a 100 batches and have only got 1 infection and that was with a bucket. The smallest scratch will harbor an infection.
Sanitize, Sanitize, Sanitize!!!!

Best place for kegging Equipment is: www.kegconnection.com

[jonumberone]

Like I said, I was terrified of getting that gunk into my bottling bucket.
Didn't even think to tilt the bucket. :td
At least I won't make the same mistake twice!

I have 1 - 5 gallon better bottle and now 2 - 23 liter glass carboys.
Can I ferment in them or should I get 6.5 gallon carboys?

Thanks again

[CigarSquid]

I would use the 6.5. More room for when it bubbles.

[Killian]

Hey Dom, another little trick is to prop one side of your fermenter up with a wedge, book, something of that nature. You can then put the bottom of your auto siphon on the high side of the bucket. Everything will settle to opposite side and you will be good to go!:tu
By the way, did you use a hop sock? Sometimes that will help with most of the "sludge".

[BeerAdvocate]

Like I said, I was terrified of getting that gunk into my bottling bucket.
Didn't even think to tilt the bucket. :td
At least I won't make the same mistake twice!

I have 1 - 5 gallon better bottle and now 2 - 23 liter glass carboys.
Can I ferment in them or should I get 6.5 gallon carboys?

Thanks again

You can ferment in the 5gallon but you will need to put a blowoff tube on the airlock. Its just a plastic tube that goes onto the post of the airlock and runs into an empty jug or growler filled with sanitzer.
I only use 6.5 gallon carboys for fermenting and 5 gallon for secondary aging.

[kaisersozei]

You can ferment in the 5gallon but you will need to put a blowoff tube on the airlock. Its just a plastic tube that goes onto the post of the airlock and runs into an empty jug or growler filled with sanitzer.
I only use 6.5 gallon carboys for fermenting and 5 gallon for secondary aging.

+1

Dom, congrats on the first brew :banger The bucket looks normal, and I'll suggest that the bitterness may have been from the hops still floating around? Your krausen (that crud around the rim & floating) appears green--mine is usually brownish, so I'm just wondering if you filtered it all out after brewing, or if you dry hopped while the primary was still bubbling away?

[jonumberone]

Thanks, Gerard!
You are the second person to comment on the green, and I'm a bit lost.
The hops that the homebrew store gave me were little green pellets that resembled rabbit poop.
I tossed the poop directly into the boil.
I did not use a bag, nor did I filter anything.
What went into the boil went into the bucket, minus the sock of grains I steeped before I boiled.
Should I have done something different.
The directions that came with the recipe, or the other 2 I brewed since then, made no mention of additional steps.
Did I miss something?

Fwiw the brew is a perfect amber ale color, no hint of green in it.

[b0rderman]

This cider is drying right out...the champange yeast is still chomping away. I am going to need a low gravity range hydrometer I think...unless there are any tricks to using my ~.090 one?

[cricky101]

Thanks, Gerard!
You are the second person to comment on the green, and I'm a bit lost.
The hops that the homebrew store gave me were little green pellets that resembled rabbit poop.
I tossed the poop directly into the boil.
I did not use a bag, nor did I filter anything.
What went into the boil went into the bucket, minus the sock of grains I steeped before I boiled.
Should I have done something different.
The directions that came with the recipe, or the other 2 I brewed since then, made no mention of additional steps.
Did I miss something?

Fwiw the brew is a perfect amber ale color, no hint of green in it.

I've left the hop material behind in the brew kettle and dumped it all in the fermenter, too. They all have turned out fine.

[kaisersozei]

Thanks, Gerard!
You are the second person to comment on the green, and I'm a bit lost.
The hops that the homebrew store gave me were little green pellets that resembled rabbit poop.
I tossed the poop directly into the boil.
I did not use a bag, nor did I filter anything.
What went into the boil went into the bucket, minus the sock of grains I steeped before I boiled.
Should I have done something different.
The directions that came with the recipe, or the other 2 I brewed since then, made no mention of additional steps.
Did I miss something?

Fwiw the brew is a perfect amber ale color, no hint of green in it.

Okay, that's what I expected happened. I always filter my wort from the brew kettle going to the primary, I find it makes transferring the beer easier if they're not around to clog the racking cane/autosiphon. But there's nothing wrong with leaving them in, I'm sure your beer will be fine!

[jonumberone]

I've left the hop material behind in the brew kettle and dumped it all in the fermenter, too. They all have turned out fine.

Okay, that's what I expected happened. I always filter my wort from the brew kettle going to the primary, I find it makes transferring the beer easier if they're not around to clog the racking cane/autosiphon. But there's nothing wrong with leaving them in, I'm sure your beer will be fine!

Thanks fellas! :banger

[CigarSquid]

Nothing yet... Just ordered a Pumpkin Ale for the upcoming holidays.

[BeerAdvocate]

I just transferred a Big Porter to secondary with 2ounces of oak cubes.
I am trying to decide what kind of bourbon to add. I am thinking about changing it up a bit and using some Evan Williams Honey!

[kaisersozei]

Brewed up a DIPA yesterday, pitched with one of my last batches of Hopslam yeast. Used a burst hop technique with Simcoe, Amarillo & Citra, got around 85 IBUs. My efficiency on the mash was only about 60% :( so OG was a bit light at 1.071. Will add some honey to the primary after a few days.

[b0rderman]

sounds like yummmmmm

[jonumberone]

I enjoyed my first bottles of homebrew while watching football yesterday!
Perhaps too many, as I passed out before the Jet game! :al
I found the first 3 overly bitter on the finish, after that it didn't matter, and the rest went down smooth.

I decided to call myself the "Nail The Whale Brewery", to honor the loving embrace of all the fat chicks beer has lead me to.
I also made labels for my bottles, and had a buddy design a logo for me.
What do you guys think?

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6132/6035837933_4b38e68ac5.jpg

http://i867.photobucket.com/albums/ab234/jonumberone/cigar/dc8ead8b.jpg?t=1315406810

[b0rderman]

ha that's awesome! and congrats!

Citra Otter Blonde went into bottles this weekend...I'm very excited for this one, it's my best tasting brew out of the carboy so far.

Half of my super dry cider goes on peaches later this week.

[Blak Smyth]

http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcR2OU6VdQYWip0dTkvndiq3LpMv9NsXU oZhHX3b-hAM3gzIpQ8p

[Mikes]

10 gal of bombshell blonde
10 gal of jester king commercial suicide

The citra pale ale that came out and was kegged was by far the best beer I have ever made...were talking out of 200gal here. Great kit from AHS!

[CigarSquid]

What is AHS?

[CigarSquid]

I'm waiting for my pumpkin ale to show up.. Prolly start it this weekend.

[cricky101]

What is AHS?

Austin Homebrew Supply.

I'm going to see about a chest freezer on craigslist after work to turn into a keezer. I'm sick of bottling and the girlfriend says all the gear can be an early birthday present.

I'm thinking four kegs to start ... :D

[BeerAdvocate]

I have posted this before but here is a pic of my kegerator from a small dorm fridge that I bought off of Craigslist for $50. It holds 2 5gal kegs.
Best thing I ever did. I cant imagine ever bottling again!

[rack04]

Austin Homebrew Supply.

I'm going to see about a chest freezer on craigslist after work to turn into a keezer. I'm sick of bottling and the girlfriend says all the gear can be an early birthday present.

I'm thinking four kegs to start ... :D

I haven't looked back since I started kegging.

[kenstogie]

Cider is in there now. Crashing it now, later today I add the brown sugar, non fermentable sugar and add the Champagne yeast.

[mhailey]

I just bottled my first batch of home brew, a Fat Tire clone. I tasted it when I was filling the bottles and for a flat, warm beer, it tasted good. I now have a batch of Maple Nut Brown Ale in the fermenter which I just cooked up tonight. I'm looking forward to trying the beer once it carbonates and refrigerated. I can see why people do this. This is a ton of fun.

Matt

[Trace63]

Have some cider fermenting now, brewing some saison next

[cricky101]

I haven't looked back since I started kegging.

I picked up 3 ball lock kegs, dual gauge regulator and 5lb co2 tank from a guy on craigslist for $75 earlier this week. Still need a fridge or freezer, but I'm getting close! :banger

[landhoney]

Bottled some Porter last night, added some Wild Turkey to the last gallon in the bottling bucket - the flat sample tasted delicious, can't wait for this one to be ready :dr

[rack04]

I picked up 3 ball lock kegs, dual gauge regulator and 5lb co2 tank from a guy on craigslist for $75 earlier this week. Still need a fridge or freezer, but I'm getting close! :banger

Good find! I scored a 7 cf chest freezer on craigslist for $50 when I got started. It was and still is in great shape. I built a temp controller to compliment the freezer.

About to kick a keg of american brown ale and my blond ale is cold crashing before racking to keg.

[Salvelinus]

About to kick a keg of american brown ale and my blond ale is cold crashing before racking to keg.

Question about cold crashing. How do you do it? As fast as possible? Over a couple of days? I just set up a fridge that can hold a carboy, and rigged up a temp controller. I've been over-reading about yeast. I'm a dork and like the science aspect of the living thing that's making my booze for me. It sounds like there is some evidence that you risk pushing esters out of the yeast if you cold crash too fast. Is this something that might happen but just isn't an issue like hot side aeration, or is it something you take into account for and crash slowly (oxymoron).

Dark IPA I'm calling Hoppy Halloween in the fermentation chamber right now, Brown ale into my first keg (so much easier than bottling) last week, and a simcoe/chinook IPA that got dry hops 4 days ago about ready to go into my second keg. Just had the first bottle of a Founders breakfast stout clone yesterday, delicious, but I haven't ever had the original so I can't say whether I cloned it well.

[rack04]

Question about cold crashing. How do you do it? As fast as possible? Over a couple of days? I just set up a fridge that can hold a carboy, and rigged up a temp controller. I've been over-reading about yeast. I'm a dork and like the science aspect of the living thing that's making my booze for me. It sounds like there is some evidence that you risk pushing esters out of the yeast if you cold crash too fast. Is this something that might happen but just isn't an issue like hot side aeration, or is it something you take into account for and crash slowly (oxymoron).

Dark IPA I'm calling Hoppy Halloween in the fermentation chamber right now, Brown ale into my first keg (so much easier than bottling) last week, and a simcoe/chinook IPA that got dry hops 4 days ago about ready to go into my second keg. Just had the first bottle of a Founders breakfast stout clone yesterday, delicious, but I haven't ever had the original so I can't say whether I cloned it well.

I will cold crash at 38 degrees F for 2 days prior to kegging. It usually takes about 3-4 hours for my wort temp to drop from 65 degrees F to 38 degrees F. I feel this helps settle all of the solid particles and provide a clearer beer.

[Mikes]

10 gal pumpkin ale (9 lbs of baked pumpkin in this one)
10 gal of citra pale ale (blew thru the other 10 like it was nothing lol)

[Salvelinus]

I will cold crash at 38 degrees F for 2 days prior to kegging. It usually takes about 3-4 hours for my wort temp to drop from 65 degrees F to 38 degrees F. I feel this helps settle all of the solid particles and provide a clearer beer.

Quick drop. I think I can achieve that pretty well in my fridge. Giving it a shot with the next batch to hit the keg.

Recipe for that Citra Pale? Trying to get my hands on a pound of Citra in a couple of days.

[Mikes]

Quick drop. I think I can achieve that pretty well in my fridge. Giving it a shot with the next batch to hit the keg.

Recipe for that Citra Pale? Trying to get my hands on a pound of Citra in a couple of days.


I will post it up asap. I do mini-mash kits....so if you do AG you might have to convert it. Also do a dry hop that the recipe does not call for ;o).

[rack04]

Quick drop. I think I can achieve that pretty well in my fridge. Giving it a shot with the next batch to hit the keg.

Recipe for that Citra Pale? Trying to get my hands on a pound of Citra in a couple of days.

Beware of suck back from the airlock or blowoff. Dropping temp creates a vacuum and for those people who have an elevated blowoff this could create a siphon. I use a S-style airlock and I noticed last night that the sanitizer solution froze before the wort reached 38 degrees.

[cricky101]

Good find! I scored a 7 cf chest freezer on craigslist for $50 when I got started. It was and still is in great shape. I built a temp controller to compliment the freezer.

About to kick a keg of american brown ale and my blond ale is cold crashing before racking to keg.

I found a floor-model 7cf freezer at Menard's for $90 on Saturday and was psyched! I had a couple rebates from prior purchases so it only ran me about $50.

Then I got home, plugged it in for 36 hours, and it never got cold. It was returned last night. Back to the search :td

[rack04]

I found a floor-model 7cf freezer at Menard's for $90 on Saturday and was psyched! I had a couple rebates from prior purchases so it only ran me about $50.

Then I got home, plugged it in for 36 hours, and it never got cold. It was returned last night. Back to the search :td

Around here they are few and far between now that deer season in underway.

[Mikes]

Beware of suck back from the airlock or blowoff. Dropping temp creates a vacuum and for those people who have an elevated blowoff this could create a siphon. I use a S-style airlock and I noticed last night that the sanitizer solution froze before the wort reached 38 degrees.

How bout using vodka and not the san solution so there is no worries about freezing? ;o)

[rack04]

How bout using vodka and not the san solution so there is no worries about freezing? ;o)

I don't usually have vodka on hand but I'm not too worried because once the wort reaches the temperature set point the freezer turns off and the sanitizer thaws.

[CigarSquid]

Just put the Pumpkin Ale in the fermeter. I was slacking on this one.. I am hoping to have it ready by Thanksgiving.

[lou2row]

Have a dunkel ready to bottle. Next up is an irish stout that I am going to try to "breakfast stout" it up.

[Mikes]

Frigidaire 14.8 Cu. Ft. Chest Freezer (Color: White) ENERGY STAR on sale at lowes for $364. My brew bro has the same one. Holds 8 corney kegs and a small co2 tank. Now that I have the old inside fridge in the garage for fermentation I might as well build a keezer next to it....right? ;o)

[Salvelinus]

Just put a pale ale hopped with chinook and simcoe into a keg. Awesome citrusy aroma. I'd drink it all right now if I hadn't brewed it with a pal that needs to at least get a chance to taste it :D

[Mikes]

Quick drop. I think I can achieve that pretty well in my fridge. Giving it a shot with the next batch to hit the keg.

Recipe for that Citra Pale? Trying to get my hands on a pound of Citra in a couple of days.

Better late than never. Went over today to keg and remembered to pick up the recipe sheet:

Mini mash:

1/2 lb Crystal 75L Malt
2 Lb 2-Row Malt
1/2 Lb Munich Malt
1/2 Lb Cara Pils Malt

You know the drill...155 deg for 45 min then sparge with 170 deg water. Approx 1 qt of sparge water for every 2 Lb of grain

5 Lb of Extra Pale ALe Extract

Bittering hops 1 oz Citra 60 min

Flavor hops 1 oz Citra 15 min

Aroma hops 1 oz Citra 5 min

White Labs California Ale V 051 or Weast American AleII (I use WL)

Final Gravity should be appx 1.013

I dry hop after the primary in the keg with another 1 oz of Citra. This time one keg had the pellet Citra the other had 1 oz of whole leaf Simco hops. We will see what a difference it makes ;o). One thing is for sure the whole leaf hops float like a mother....I thought I used enough marbles to weig them down but it was only enough to make the hop bag look like a bobber lmao.

[RWhisenand]

Started drinking a porter we brewed about three monthe ago. Now that it has some age one it it is flat out wonderful!

[Trace63]

Just brewed an IPA with Galaxy,citra,centenneial,chinook,and columbus

[Salvelinus]

Better late than never. Went over today to keg and remembered to pick up the recipe sheet:

Mini mash:

1/2 lb Crystal 75L Malt
2 Lb 2-Row Malt
1/2 Lb Munich Malt
1/2 Lb Cara Pils Malt

You know the drill...155 deg for 45 min then sparge with 170 deg water. Approx 1 qt of sparge water for every 2 Lb of grain

5 Lb of Extra Pale ALe Extract

Bittering hops 1 oz Citra 60 min

Flavor hops 1 oz Citra 15 min

Aroma hops 1 oz Citra 5 min

White Labs California Ale V 051 or Weast American AleII (I use WL)

Final Gravity should be appx 1.013

I dry hop after the primary in the keg with another 1 oz of Citra. This time one keg had the pellet Citra the other had 1 oz of whole leaf Simco hops. We will see what a difference it makes ;o). One thing is for sure the whole leaf hops float like a mother....I thought I used enough marbles to weig them down but it was only enough to make the hop bag look like a bobber lmao.

Thanks! My pound of citra should be in this week. Some citra single hops are definitely in the works.

[BeerAdvocate]

Brewing an Irish Stout tonight, that I am going to let age for a few months before I tap the keg!

[kaisersozei]

Brewed up a DIPA yesterday, pitched with one of my last batches of Hopslam yeast. Used a burst hop technique with Simcoe, Amarillo & Citra, got around 85 IBUs. My efficiency on the mash was only about 60% :( so OG was a bit light at 1.071. Will add some honey to the primary after a few days.

That Bell's yeast is a beast. I put a pound of honey in the secondary which boosted the OG to about 1.078, and it was 1.016 when I bottled on Sunday. I had dry-hopped with a 75/25 Citra/Simcoe mix--smelled & tasted great, now the waiting begins.

Have three recipes ready to go, just trying to determine which start next: a belgian stout, a brown ale, and a SMSH experiment using my homegrown hops that I will split into 3 batches, using a different yeast with each batch.

[landhoney]

Bottled a funky batch of Saison last night (yeast was Whitelabs Platinum American Farmhouse - Saison yeast and Brett) that had two kinds of wine soaked oak cubes added (Madeira and a variety called Linae) as well as Rhubarb for a little hint of sour/fruit. I don't generally add so much "crap" to my beers at once but I just bottled a great plain batch of Saison a few weeks ago, so I thought "why not?". It actually tastes very good at bottling, we'll see once its cold and 'carbed. :tu

[cricky101]

I picked up three Perlick faucets/shanks for the yet-to-be-built keezer. Now I just need a freezer/fridge and I'll be ready for three kegs on-tap and one on-deck.

Haven't worked out the recipe yet, but I've got a bunch of Amarillo hops to use up, so it'll be some kind of IPA. I like Rogue's Yellow Snow, which I think is all-Amarillo, so it should be tasty.

[Mikes]

Where did you buy your keezer parts. I have the opposite problem. Just picked up a new 14. something horizontal freezer @ lowes. Now I need the parts. THinking about all stainless parts and perlicks but damn son **** adds up fast! Looking forward to your research to see if I looked at those places online already.

Btw are you mounting the collar to the lid or the base?

Mikes

[BeerAdvocate]

Where did you buy your keezer parts. I have the opposite problem. Just picked up a new 14. something horizontal freezer @ lowes. Now I need the parts. THinking about all stainless parts and perlicks but damn son **** adds up fast! Looking forward to your research to see if I looked at those places online already.

Btw are you mounting the collar to the lid or the base?

Mikes

kegconnection.com has the best prices & customer service

[deadrise]

any help here guys is appreciated noob brewer thread (http://www.cigarasylum.com/vb/showthread.php?t=50087)

[cricky101]

Where did you buy your keezer parts. I have the opposite problem. Just picked up a new 14. something horizontal freezer @ lowes. Now I need the parts. THinking about all stainless parts and perlicks but damn son **** adds up fast! Looking forward to your research to see if I looked at those places online already.

Btw are you mounting the collar to the lid or the base?

Mikes

I've bought stuff all over the place, over the span of a few months. I wanted to go all stainless, too, but the cost was too much for me.

- Got kegs, tank and regulator on Craig's List;

- disconnects, tubing, new O-rings and other smaller items from Northern Brewer (at their retail store);

- I went with the chrome, front-sealing perlicks from ritebrew.com for $17.50 each.They're the 525PC. I've got a couple buddies who each have them said they're working great. The front-sealing was the biggest thing for me, so they don't gunk-up as quickly as the generic ones;

- I got a secondary regulator (http://www.beveragefactory.com/draftbeer/regulator/secondary/T1683ST_three_product_secondary_regulator.shtml) from Beverage Factory.

I haven't decided on the collar yet. I've seen it where the collar is hinged with the factory hinges to the base, and then the freezer lid is hinged (with new hinges) to the top of the collar. I think I'll explore that method. That way you can tip the collar assembly up to switch kegs (so you don't have to lift them over the collar), but can just lift the lid to mess with connections, tubing, etc ...

[Mikey202]

Nut brown Ale that my buddy and I added some pumpkin to the wort, is fermenting now. Basic can kit, dry yeast.

Doing a Imperial Nut Brown Ale tonight, using White Labs English ale yeast. This is a partial mash kit.

[Mikey202]

yeast blew the stopper and water valve of the carboy of the Imperial Nut Brown Ale.:banger

Went to my buddies house and set up an overflow tube/ water valve on the carboy. Think I'll name it Nitro INBA. :D

[Salvelinus]

yeast blew the stopper and water valve of the carboy of the Imperial Nut Brown Ale.:banger

Went to my buddies house and set up an overflow tube/ water valve on the carboy. Think I'll name it Nitro INBA. :D

And that is why my fermentors sit in the basement stand up shower! I've had some good ones, but I can always just turn the shower on to clean up.

[Mikey202]

And that is why my fermentors sit in the basement stand up shower! I've had some good ones, but I can always just turn the shower on to clean up.

Yep.. it was in the shower.:tu

[Salvelinus]

Just pitched yeast into 12 gallons of fresh pressed cider. Not sure what I am going to do with the two carboys of it yet. Probably some brown sugar and cinnamon in one, but I might get odd with the other one. Some tart cherry and dme perhaps...

[Mikes]

Keezer is almost done ;o) Putting the paint on the collar. Got some whiteboard paint for the front 1x10 where the taps are going to go so I can just write under them what style of beer is gonna come out. Then to remount the lid and wait on beer parts to come in. Not a bad way to spend a day and a half......

[Mikey202]

Just pitched yeast into 12 gallons of fresh pressed cider. Not sure what I am going to do with the two carboys of it yet. Probably some brown sugar and cinnamon in one, but I might get odd with the other one. Some tart cherry and dme perhaps...

After it's done fermenting put it outside and remove the ice, it will make Apple Jack.

[kaisersozei]

Decided to brew a simple American Brown at the second annual Winston's Homebrew Herf & Chili Cookoff this past Sunday. Currently bubbling away at about 66 degrees, much lower than I've used for the Bell's yeast before.

http://hopville.com/recipe/934849/american-brown-ale-recipes/winstons-maduro-brown-ale

[BeerAdvocate]

I am brewing a milk stout today. I plan on adding 4oz of cocoa nibs to secondary for a Chocolate Milk Stout :chr

[Salvelinus]

Just got a keggle. Inaugural brew in it is going to be a wee heavy. I know it is going to be harder, but I'll probably still manage to boil over in this kettle too...

[SteelCityBoy]

I will be doing a dark lager Sunday morning. Haven't brewed for about 3 or 4 months and needed to scratch the itch. For anyone that has tried Sam Adams Black Lager then you will know what I am going for. I figure it would be nice come around Christmas to enjoy a nice dark, smooth, malty lager. I will post a few pics too for yins to check out! :D

[kaisersozei]

Brewed a stout yesterday that I pitched with Belgian Ale yeast (W550) last night. I'll probably ferment a little on the cool side, just because ambient temp in my brew closet is about 66. Depending on how it turns out, I may add some lactose at bottling to turn this into a sweet stout.

[BeerAdvocate]

I didnt brew this weekend. But I did defrost the kegerator and replaced the beer lines.
I need to get my CO2 filled today then I will be hooking up new kegs of American Rye Ale and a Rum Barrel Stout.

[Salvelinus]

Went with an APA hopped with citra, amarillo, and centennial instead of the wee heavy. Nice to be able to do ten gallons. Going to dry hop half and leave the other alone.

Anyone made hard cider before? Just poured my first one off the keg. It was from a 5 gallon batch, one pound brown sugar, and 32oz of all natural tart cherry juice. It tastes great, but it smells terrible. Is that normal for a cider?

[Mikey202]

Bottling the IBA tonight.

[cricky101]

Kegged an all-amarillo IPA over the weekend and took the first glass last night. It still needs more time to carb, but tastes nice. I really like the flavor of Amarillo hops. I think I had 8 ounces in this 5-gallon batch, between the boil and dry-hopping.

[kaisersozei]

Kegged an all-amarillo IPA over the weekend and took the first glass last night. It still needs more time to carb, but tastes nice. I really like the flavor of Amarillo hops. I think I had 8 ounces in this 5-gallon batch, between the boil and dry-hopping.

Holy crap, that's a lot of hops! I agree, I love Amarillo as an IPA hop although it's hard to find at times. I'm really partial to a Centennial/Amarillo/Citra mix, one of my favorites.

[cricky101]

Holy crap, that's a lot of hops! I agree, I love Amarillo as an IPA hop although it's hard to find at times. I'm really partial to a Centennial/Amarillo/Citra mix, one of my favorites.

I had a bunch of Amarillo I bought in bulk in the freezer, and since they're a relatively low AA, it took quite a bit to get to the bitterness I wanted. Had I been purchasing all of them at once, I would DEFINITELY have used less of a higher AA hop to get the IBUs and used the Amarillo only for the flavor/aroma late in the boil.

But I like it :D

[Mikes]

I just did back to back 10 gal batches of an all citra apa/ipa and love it. was thinking baout moving on to another type of all hop ipa but not sure which one. Sounds like the Amirillo and or Centennial/Amarillo/Citra mix might be a winner. I am assuming that the c/a/c mix is in the order of hop additions kaiser?

Yall done any other all 1 type of hops ipa or apas?

I just kegged yesterday 10 gal of AHS Oatmeal Stout and 10 gal of Kicked up blue moon clone. Have a gas leak in the new keezer i have to get sealed up today....and more co2 in the tank ;o(

[cricky101]

I just did back to back 10 gal batches of an all citra apa/ipa and love it. was thinking baout moving on to another type of all hop ipa but not sure which one. Sounds like the Amirillo and or Centennial/Amarillo/Citra mix might be a winner. I am assuming that the c/a/c mix is in the order of hop additions kaiser?

Yall done any other all 1 type of hops ipa or apas?

I just kegged yesterday 10 gal of AHS Oatmeal Stout and 10 gal of Kicked up blue moon clone. Have a gas leak in the new keezer i have to get sealed up today....and more co2 in the tank ;o(

I made an all-centennial IPA which was really good. I think Bell's Two-Hearted is all-centennial too. Can't go wrong with that.

[kaisersozei]

I just did back to back 10 gal batches of an all citra apa/ipa and love it. was thinking baout moving on to another type of all hop ipa but not sure which one. Sounds like the Amirillo and or Centennial/Amarillo/Citra mix might be a winner. I am assuming that the c/a/c mix is in the order of hop additions kaiser?


Yes, I would do Centennial as bittering, and then alternate amarillo & citra as late additions, and then dry hop with either all amarillo or all citra. I also like using a burst hop technique with these, but that requires more hops & $$


Yall done any other all 1 type of hops ipa or apas?


I have an all-Cascades planned using this year's homegrown crop. It's actually a Single Malt Single Hop recipe using all Marris Otter.

I made an all-centennial IPA which was really good. I think Bell's Two-Hearted is all-centennial too. Can't go wrong with that.

Yes, THA is all Centennial

[Mikes]

Thanks Kaiser....

Update on my air leak....After spraying all 8 fittings on the dist air bar and the regulator on the tank I found nothing...yet I was still leaking gas. So I took all of the gas outlets to the popits on the kegs. Unscrewed the air dist block and took the whole damn thing tank and all upstairs and placed it in a full bathtub. STILL NO LEAKS! I was like wtf? Gave up for a bit and then came back later and reconnected the gas setup. All of a sudden some of the soap solution spray I had used earlier dripped ontop of the corney kegs by the pressure relief valve and was bubbling away....Well I sprayed the other 6 kegs and found yet another faulty pressure relief valve! OMG, So sick of these pos refurbed kegs.

So I went on AHS website and saw that if I wanted to rebuild my kegs it would cost roughly 45$ to replace everything but the shell. A brand new keg is $120. Refurb kegs that we got were 50$ (not on their site anymore). So 95$ for a completely rebuilt 'old' keg....as apposed to $120 for a new one. That 50$ price tag for a refurb sure seems nice at first but it seems like the old adage you get what you pay for in the end.

I'm thinking I should have not bought the 7 kegs I have...but should have slowly bought new units? What are yalls thoughts on this? I don't mind doing the work to make the old kegs 'new'. And can just replace what needs replacing when the time comes as far as parts. Or just replace everything all at once on the kegs as they are emptied. What would you do? What have you done?

Just frustrated.

[BeerAdvocate]

I have bought 6 refurb. kegs from www.kegconnection.com and they all have worked great for years. Kegconnection replaces all the seals and even sends replacement seals.
All are tested before sent and they run around $35 for the "B" grade kegs.
B grade just means tiny dents and a little loose rubber.
Wait for around Black Friday and they are $25 ea.
I have been very happy will all my purchases from kegconnection

[cricky101]

I have bought 6 refurb. kegs from www.kegconnection.com and they all have worked great for years. Kegconnection replaces all the seals and even sends replacement seals.
All are tested before sent and they run around $35 for the "B" grade kegs.
B grade just means tiny dents and a little loose rubber.
Wait for around Black Friday and they are $25 ea.
I have been very happy will all my purchases from kegconnection

I just bought (got them Monday) two of the $35 "B" grade kegs from kegconnection. One is missing half of a handle, and the other one has loose rubber all-around, but some gorilla glue should take care of that just fine. They're a little banged up, but I don't care what they look like as long as they hold presure.

They both arrived pressurized and came with replacement O-rings too.

[SteelCityBoy]

Here is my recently brewed black lager that is 24 hours into fermentation. It will be a while till ready as I intend to fully lager this brew.

http://i1133.photobucket.com/albums/m595/khannaman/Blacklager.jpg

[rack04]

Cold crashing a Belgian Pale Ale that was brewed at my clubs last brewday. Hopefully I'll get it on gas in a couple days. Next weekend (time permitting) I will brew an all centennial IPA.

[Ion_Warp_Drive]

unfortunately, nothing at the moment. Last brew was a pumpkin ale. Next up an Imperial stout.

[Salvelinus]

Yall done any other all 1 type of hops ipa or apas?


I did an all Columbus APA this year that I really liked. Simple grain bill of marris otter and little C60 to back it up.

I did two batches of a marris otter/simcoe SMASH that was good, but it took a big flavor leap for me when I added some chinook to the hop schedule.

Kegging my Citra/Amarillo/Centennial APA today. Did 20, 5, and dry hop additions, each addition was 0.5oz Citra, 0.5oz Amarillo, and 0.25oz Centennial.

Brewing a black lager from a friends recipe today. It took second at a local home brew contest so I guess it's my fault if it winds up tasting like hell.

[cricky101]

I brewed a couple recipes from homebrewtalk.com. A belgian wit and a cream ale with corn and rice adjuncts.

I'm preparing for a party my girlfriend and I are planning and want plenty of beer on tap the crowd will like. I thought the light cream ale and Belgian wit (Blue Moon-ish) would work well. I plan to have a cream stout and a hoppy IPA on tap, too. Along with the contents of the liquor cabinet, hopefully I'll have everyone covered!

[goomer]

I plan on brewing up a batch of brown ale this saturday.

[rack04]

I brewed a couple recipes from homebrewtalk.com. A belgian wit and a cream ale with corn and rice adjuncts.

I'm preparing for a party my girlfriend and I are planning and want plenty of beer on tap the crowd will like. I thought the light cream ale and Belgian wit (Blue Moon-ish) would work well. I plan to have a cream stout and a hoppy IPA on tap, too. Along with the contents of the liquor cabinet, hopefully I'll have everyone covered!

Did you brew the cream of three crops? I just kicked a keg of it and it was fantastic. My efficiency was a lot higher than I plan and I had great attenuation. Therefore, it had a pretty high ABV. :chr

My two keg brewing system is almost complete. I'm still acquiring all the fittings for the HLT (i.e. sight glass, ball valve, center pickup, thermometer) but the BK is compete. Next I have to figure out if I'm going full blown with the single tier double burner stand with pump or two individual burners and heavy lifting.

[kaisersozei]

I have an all-Cascades planned using this year's homegrown crop. It's actually a Single Malt Single Hop recipe using all Marris Otter.


Finally got around to brewing this up on Sunday. Got about 80% efficiency out of the Marris Otter mash, and I was pleased to use my entire crop of Cascades to put the IBU's right around 45. Split into two fermenters, one with Burton Ale yeast and the other with California V--both bubbling away happily at about 68⁰. My fermentation closet is kinda smelly, not sure which one of those yeasts is throwing off the sulphur.

[cricky101]

Did you brew the cream of three crops? I just kicked a keg of it and it was fantastic. My efficiency was a lot higher than I plan and I had great attenuation. Therefore, it had a pretty high ABV. :chr ...

Yep. It's the cream of three crops. It's my first time using corn and rice, but it sounds like a tasty one!

The co2 tank on my keezer kicked last night, so it's off to Northern Brewer on my lunch break today for an exchange. I really need to get a second tank to have on hand.

[rack04]

Yep. It's the cream of three crops. It's my first time using corn and rice, but it sounds like a tasty one!

The co2 tank on my keezer kicked last night, so it's off to Northern Brewer on my lunch break today for an exchange. I really need to get a second tank to have on hand.

I recently bought a spare that I keep full. I bought it at a fire protection store. They were able to take replace the valve on a fire extinguisher with a beverage valve, hydro test, and fill for under $50.

[kenstogie]

so I hate bottleing. what other options are there? I am thinking just bigger bottles would be ok because then it would be less bottleing and that's ok. SUGGESTIONS?


BTW I have a dunkelwiezen and a brown ale in the fermenter.

[rack04]

so I hate bottleing. what other options are there? I am thinking just bigger bottles would be ok because then it would be less bottleing and that's ok. SUGGESTIONS?


BTW I have a dunkelwiezen and a brown ale in the fermenter.

Kegging.


<---- 1,000th post

[Boz]

Kegging.


<---- 1,000th post


I have nothing useful to add to this thread expect to say, Congrats on 1k :tu

[kenstogie]

Kegging.


<---- 1,000th post

Kegging is good choice but not very portable, plus it would require extra gear, correct?

[BeerAdvocate]

I strictly bottled using 22oz bottles until I went to kegging.
Kegging your beer is the best thing you will ever do when brewing!!!!!!!!

[cricky101]

I ordered some Falconer's Flight hops today for a future pale ale or IPA. Never tried them before. Anyone used them or know of a commercial beer that uses them I may be able to find? The descriptions I've found make them sound really tasty.

[mmblz]

Brewed once years ago, hoping to try again sometime in the next year.

How useful is a built in spigot and thermometer on the brew pot? Seems like it would definitely be nice but I'm guessing far from essential?

How important is a wort chiller?

[CigarSquid]

Wort chiller... I wouldn't say it is important.. but VERY VERY HANDY.

I still do not own one, and every time I brew, I kick myself in the ass saying, next time I am buying one... Cuts the time WAY down.

[kaisersozei]

I ordered some Falconer's Flight hops today for a future pale ale or IPA. Never tried them before. Anyone used them or know of a commercial beer that uses them I may be able to find? The descriptions I've found make them sound really tasty.

It's a pelletized blend of American NW hops, that includes Citra, Simcoe, Sorachi Ace, Columbus & Cascades, iirc. The only commercial use I've found is from Maui Brewing, they did a limited release IPA earlier this year.

Brewed once years ago, hoping to try again sometime in the next year.

How useful is a built in spigot and thermometer on the brew pot? Seems like it would definitely be nice but I'm guessing far from essential?

How important is a wort chiller?

Do it! :tu

A spigot & thermometer are very useful for your hot liquor tank if you are doing an all-grain batch--in that process, you have to heat the mash/sparge water to a certain temperature and then add it to the grains. Since many homebrewers use a gravity-fed system, where the HLT sits higher than the mash tun, the spigot comes in handy. On the other hand, I've been brewing for 20 years and don't have a spigot on my brewpot, so you can definitely do without. Once I get old & weak, lifting 5-6 gallons of liquid to dump it into the fermenter might be a challenge, but until then I get by.

http://www.brewersfriend.com/2011/02/13/hot-liquor-tank-for-all-grain-brewing/

On the other hand, I love my wortchiller. All of my brew sessions are full 6 or 7 gallon boils, so getting that volume of liquid to cool down quickly to avoid contamination would be impossible without the wortchiller. If you are only doing a partial boil with an extract batch, you can probably get by with using an ice bath or adding cold water to the fermenter before dumping in the wort. A full boil gives you better hop utilization, meaning you won't need as much in the boil so your ingredients are cheaper, too. I would definitely spring for a wortchilller! :2

Good luck!

[hammondc]

Can you guys recommend a good IPA/Double IPA kit? Mini Mash would be great as I am not ready to make the jump to full grain (yet). I am considering the Furious IPA from Midwest.

[hammondc]

It is THIS (http://www.midwestsupplies.com/ferocious-ipa.html) kit. One question for you guys. One of the options is 'Crush Grains?'. What does this mean? Is this to have them crush the grains before they ship to me?

[rack04]

It is THIS (http://www.midwestsupplies.com/ferocious-ipa.html) kit. One question for you guys. One of the options is 'Crush Grains?'. What does this mean? Is this to have them crush the grains before they ship to me?

Yes, that option is to have the grains crushed at the store prior to shipping. If you don't have a mill then you will need the grains to be crushed.

[hammondc]

Decided to go with a Stone Arrogant Bastard clone from Austin Homebrew. Hoping to fire it up Friday.

[replicant_argent]

I am getting set up to do my first (solo) homebrew, and then into a corny keg for the kegerator.
While I have brewed with friends about 6 or 8 times, this will be a good experiment.
http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/sh2b-single-hopped-best-bitter-extract-kit.html

[LostAbbott]

I ordered some Falconer's Flight hops today for a future pale ale or IPA. Never tried them before. Anyone used them or know of a commercial beer that uses them I may be able to find? The descriptions I've found make them sound really tasty.

Maritime Pacific here in Seattle uses those hops a lot and they make a fall beer that exclusively. Uses them.
Posted via Mobile Device

[hammondc]

I am getting set up to do my first (solo) homebrew, and then into a corny keg for the kegerator.
While I have brewed with friends about 6 or 8 times, this will be a good experiment.
http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/sh2b-single-hopped-best-bitter-extract-kit.html

Good luck with it. I will be starting my 2nd brew. A few more under my belt and I will start kegging it.

[replicant_argent]

Good luck with it. I will be starting my 2nd brew. A few more under my belt and I will start kegging it.

I find bottling a pain in the butt. Sanitation is key, and when you figure that with kegging you have (besides all the common elements) ONE container vs. 45-50 to sanitize.. no brainer for me.

[rack04]

I picked up some Falconers Flight and Zythos. Haven't formulated a recipe yet but I'm excited to sample them.

[replicant_argent]

I had to grab a pound of amber spraymalt that wasn't in the kit I got the other day and decided to pick this up to get going as a 6 week beer while the first one is finished and consumed.
From the descriptions, it looks to be pretty far up my tastebud alley.
http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/brewing/recipe-kits/black-ipa-extract-kit.html

[Salvelinus]

Made a dark IPA that was ready in time for halloween. Grain bill looked similar, but my hops were entirely different. Love the style as a winter IPA. Mine's almost gone, I could do a similar hop lineup but I'd have to substitute the cascades.

My wee heavy's been pushing through the blowoff tube for 5 days now. Kind of unreal, but i screwed up the water volumes and wound up with a lot more in the carboy than I'd typically like to see. At least I planned for it...

[replicant_argent]

Well, 15 hours after the boil, I have a nice foamy cap in the fermenter on the Single Hop Best Bitter. The fermenter is in my utility room, and it is just a bit above 60-62 in there, but the yeast looks happy enough, as I was ready to move it to a slightly warmer location if it got a slow start. The Fuggle hops smell pretty damn amazing.

[hammondc]

Sounds good!!!!! I am stoked to get my brew on this Friday. Ended up with the Surly Furious clone afterall.

[replicant_argent]

Sounds good!!!!! I am stoked to get my brew on this Friday. Ended up with the Surly Furious clone afterall.

Furious is one of my favorite beers. Huge grapefruit finish on it, which sounds odd, but I find delicious.
Northern Brewer has some "Pro Kits" (mfr. supplied and blessed recipes) which I may play with some day. I have a buddy who loves the Smoke, as I do, and it may be a great way to surprise him with a few growlers.
http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/brewing/recipe-kits/pro-series/surly-brewing-co
I noticed they were out of stock on the Furious kit.

[hammondc]

Mine is called Furious IPA. It is from Midwest brewing and was developed with the folks at Surly. I agree on the big grapefruit finish. The Lagunitas Holiday Ale is the same way. Like biting into a grapefruit. I'd like to add something to sweeten this one up a little. Any ideas?

[kaisersozei]

Mine is called Furious IPA. It is from Midwest brewing and was developed with the folks at Surly. I agree on the big grapefruit finish. The Lagunitas Holiday Ale is the same way. Like biting into a grapefruit. I'd like to add something to sweeten this one up a little. Any ideas?

Double the crystal malt, and split the Warrior infusion into 1/2oz for 60, 1/2oz for 45. That will cut down on the overall IBUs without affecting the hop flavor/aroma, and the crystal will give you additional sweetness. If you're really looking to change it up, you can also substitute the dry yeast that comes with the kit for something that's a bit less attenuative, which is going to leave more maltiness in the beer. Maybe White Labs #002 English Ale, instead of the #007 Dry English Ale it suggests.

[cobra03]

Ive been lurking around this tread for awhile. Ive been wanting to delve into home brewing and just found out by accident mind you that my wife bought me a start up home brewing kit for Christmas. Freakin sweet. love that woman!! I may be on here asking a few questions as im a newb to this. Looks like theres alot of pros on here to gain info from.

[cricky101]

Ive been lurking around this tread for awhile. Ive been wanting to delve into home brewing and just found out by accident mind you that my wife bought me a start up home brewing kit for Christmas. Freakin sweet. love that woman!! I may be on here asking a few questions as im a newb to this. Looks like theres alot of pros on here to gain info from.

Awesome! It's really a lot of fun.

I accidentally stumbled across the wort chiller my girlfriend got for me for Christmas. So now I want to wait to brew any more until after Christmas and I can use it!

[cobra03]

Awesome! It's really a lot of fun.

I accidentally stumbled across the wort chiller my girlfriend got for me for Christmas. So now I want to wait to brew any more until after Christmas and I can use it!

lol i was alerted to it when my wife got a letter from Mr.Beer. i dont think its a super fancy set up but that fine she went out on her own and got it which is awesome. Plus it seems pretty good to just get my feet wet and see if i want to slide farther down another slope.