Homebrewers - Whats in the fermenter?

[awsmith4]

Originally Posted by 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!

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]

Originally Posted by awsmith4

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!

[kaisersozei]

Originally Posted by 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!

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!

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/R...%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!

[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]

Originally Posted by b0rderman

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!

[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]

Originally Posted by b0rderman

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?



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/S...%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?