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   1. homegrown hops

      by jrodie, 12 years ago in Hopping

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      I just harvested from my cascade hop vines for the first time this year. I think I got enough for one real good dry hopping. Some of the hops near the top had turned completely brown but still smelled good. Is there any reason not to use these? Also now that the hops are picked should I cut the vines down at the ground and let them re-grow next year?
      
      thanks :drink:

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      I just used some hops growing wild here in Copenhagen. They seem noble in nature: spicy, lemony. But I used them in a tiny batch for bittering, assuming it was something like 3%AA, and as a finishing hop in an 80 Shilling ale.
      
      Use em!
      2 Replies
      13397 Views
      mer-man
      10 years ago
   2. Winning awards with BIAB

      by jrodie, 10 years ago in Intermediate Brewing

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      Recently won a red ribbon for a Strong Scottish Ale at the Kentucky State Fair.

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      Congrats jrodie!
      5 Replies
      9047 Views
      goulaigan
      10 years ago
   3. clear bottles

      by jrodie, 11 years ago in Bottling

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      I have some clear (corona) bottles I was thinking of bottling a hefeweizen in. Is it correct that the negative affect of light on beer comes from the interaction with hop oils? If so, would that mean that a lightly hopped beer like a hef, would be minimally affected by light?

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      UpDate:
      
      If it is a very sunny day, pour 3 clear glasses of your favorite Beer.
      Take Glasses 2 outside in the Sun, place one glass in a dark box or cover it with a light proof Cover, leave the second glass in the Sun, and put the third in a refrigerator.
      
      Wait 20 minutes..........
      
      Bring the cold brew outside, remove the Cover on the Second, and taste test the 3 glasses and see how heat and Light can affect Homebrew beer.
      
      Try this again, with your Favorite Mega-Swile, and see how Iso-Hops work.
      6 Replies
      16008 Views
      joshua
      11 years ago
   4. removing guages from regulator

      by jrodie, 11 years ago in Kegging

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      I was trying to replace the high gauge on my regulator, I was unsuccessful and in doing so broke my low pressure gauge. So I now have new low pressure and high pressure gauges, but still cannot get the broken ones off the regulator. Any advice out there on a technique, or tool used to get those SOBs off?
      
      Yes I know they are right threaded. ;)
      
      Thanks!

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      I reckon the reason why they are so hard to get off is that they almost certainly would have used liquid gas sealant. Use some of that as well for the new ones.
      
      Just looking at time of your last post and you probably already have the new ones on :).
      6 Replies
      16074 Views
      PistolPatch
      11 years ago
   5. washing yeast

      by jrodie, 11 years ago in Fermentation (Wort to Still Beer)

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      The recent threads on yeast starters, got me motivated to look in to washing yeast, something I have never done before. I watched a few youtube videos on it, and I have a basic plan. Any comments on it would be appreciated.
      
      1. Pour about a half gallon of freshly boiled water on to yeast cake right after transferring beer from primary( maybe the secondary would be better, to get less trub and more pure yeast).
      
      2. Swirl around the water and trub and pour into a bottling bucket.
      
      3. From the...

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      Thanks BDP...that is a really good idea, just make a bigger starter than you need.
      8 Replies
      12552 Views
      jrodie
      11 years ago
   6. brew in a bag being used at a "brew on premise"

      by jrodie, 11 years ago in Brew Day Stories and/or Pics

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      I was lucky enough to get a holiday job at a local homebrew supply store this season. The owner had just opened up a brew-on-premise, allowing people to brew beer using the stores equipment at the store. He was having the customers make extract kits, but after we talked for awhile, and I showed him this site and the biabacus, he did some experimenting and now is doing full on all-grain BIAB for the brew-on-premise. He uses an engine hoist (that was already in the shop and not being used), to...

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      Thanks for your interest but write lots only if you think others may be keen. Phew!!! I can do with a break from writing lots any time. Only two things to say...
      
      1. The sparging, using firstly plain water I imagine on the first batch and then that sweet liquor on the second batch and then the resulting sweet liquor on the third batch would have resulted in 'runnings' from the fourth batch that were probably exactly the same gravity as the runnings from the first batch. In other words,...
      12 Replies
      15380 Views
      PistolPatch
      11 years ago
   7. controlling temperature with a temp regulator

      by jrodie, 11 years ago in Fermentation (Wort to Still Beer)

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      I am writing to ask for advice/opinions on using a temperature controlled fermentation chamber. I have an old upright freezer and a Johnson thermostat, that I use to control the temperature. I have noticed that the wort is pretty resistant to changing temp as compared to the air in the chamber. If say I am attempting to maintain 62 degrees F on the thermometer attached to the fermenter, and the beer is currently showing 64 degrees F; I would need to drop the temperature of the chamber to 30...

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      Lots of great answers and thinking above. It's not an easy area for reasons you have already outlined above. Here's what I do but a few things first...
      
      1. We are all lucky enough to have a fridge and temp controller. Many brewers do not and produce good/great beer.
      2. There could actually be advantages that have not yet been researched in having a wort (just like a mash) fluctuate by a few degrees up and down during fermentation.
      
      In other words, perfect temperature control should not...
      17 Replies
      20040 Views
      PistolPatch
      11 years ago
   8. maybe an extract stout

      by jrodie, 12 years ago in Intermediate Brewing

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      I brewed my first biab a few years ago and was so impressed with the quality over extract I never looked back. I have never made an extract dark beer before though (plenty of biab stouts). Does anyone have any thoughts or opinions on brewing an extract stout over AG stout? I thought there might not be a big difference between the two and I could save myself sometime.

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      That's one feature of the old direct fire-heated copper kettles, still used at the Caledonian Brewery in Edinburgh. The very hot copper caramelised some of the wort to give a deeper colour, as well as the Maillard tasty stuff. UK breweries tended to use a fair amount of invert sugars in various colours and I'd guess doing your own caramelisation in the kettle would save a few shillings or groats as you wouldn't need to buy as much from the sugar merchants. Canny Scots.
      
      On topic my extract days...
      9 Replies
      11631 Views
      Beachbum
      12 years ago
   9. immersion pre-chiller

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      by jrodie, 14 years ago in Intermediate Brewing

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      Anyone ever use an immersion pre-chiller? With a standard immersion chiller in the summer time I can just barely get the wort down to 80 degrees after about an hour of chilling. I than pour the wort into the fermenter and let it chill in a fridge for a few more hours to get it down to the mid 60's pitching temp. I started using an immersion pre-chiller to help. It has not been helping very much though. Still can't get the wort below 80 degrees. Normally I let the hose go full open through the...

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      ...and at about 30 minutes from the end of boil add 12 frozen pet bottles of a Belgian beer you brewed 10 years ago and never drunk. Excellent Steve :lol: :lol: :lol:
      26 Replies
      28746 Views
      PistolPatch
      12 years ago
   10. When do YOU transfer/package?

       by jrodie, 12 years ago in Fermentation (Wort to Still Beer)

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       So,after the beer reaches final gravity I think it is common for people to let the beer sit for a while and let the yeast clean up after themselves . You often hear experienced home brewers saying things like, I don't use a schedule any more, I let the ale decide when it's ready . What I personally have been doing lately to decide when to move to the next step is to wait until the top of the fermenting beer looks completely glassy (no bubbles left on top at all). I don't use a secondary, I just...

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       What I personally have been doing lately to decide when to move to the next step is to wait until the top of the fermenting beer looks completely glassy ...The surface of the beer usually looks glassy after about 8-12 weeks. Hey there jr ;),
       
       Be very careful of what you read on forums. Letting the ale decide when it is ready, is probably about a s bad advice as it gets. For goodness sakes!
       
       Imagine if a commercial or micro-brewery said that? It's just ridiculous. And 8-12 weeks is way too long...
       6 Replies
       8923 Views
       PistolPatch
       12 years ago
   11. weird low effeciency day

       by jrodie, 12 years ago in Intermediate Brewing

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       So I was trying to make an imperial stout the other day and only got somewhere inbetween 50-55% effeciency. I have been pretty consistent with 70-80% effeciency for sometime now, so I am a little confused what I did wrong.
       
       Here is some stats on the day.
       
       Grain Bill:
       15 pounds two row
       .5 roasted barley
       .5 chocolate
       .5 pounds english black malt
       .5 pounds english medium crystal
       Mashed in with 8 Gallons of water at 152 F
       90 minute mash time. It was very cold outside so my mash temperature did drop...

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       jrodie, I know you haven't seen MS's post above as yet but I think it is spot on.
       
       I think that MS assumed that you were using the BIABacus but... So I was trying to make an imperial stout the other day and only got somewhere inbetween 50-55% effeciency. I have been pretty consistent with 70-80% effeciency for sometime now... and a look through your past posts makes me think that you, like a lot of brewers, are using some commercial software or other software you stumbled upon on the net and...
       6 Replies
       7628 Views
       PistolPatch
       12 years ago
   12. Leaving in yest in fermenter

       by jrodie, 13 years ago in Fermentation (Wort to Still Beer)

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       First Hi!, Haven't been on here in awhile.
       
       I have a pale ale that is ready to be kegged anytime. My plan was to keg it and throw a fresh batch of wort on top of the yeast. However I will not have time this week to brew. Do you think I could keg the pale ale and than leave the yeast in my fermenter, and just put the fermenter back in my fermenting fridge (which I could dial to freezing temps if I wanted), and leave it there for a week until I am ready to brew and put fresh wort on the yeast?

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       Thanks guys ... PP you're right I do need to get the ale in the keg it's been empty since March :'(... Bob please let us know how the beer in the week old yeast cake turns out.
       3 Replies
       5285 Views
       jrodie
       13 years ago
   13. possible infection

       by jrodie, 13 years ago in Intermediate Brewing

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       i recently made a gratzer ale using wyeast 1007. Tastes great but after about 6 says of cold crashing at 34F the beer is still very hazy. I think it could be a wild yeast infection. If so is the beer still safe to drink. I am attaching a pic.

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       I read reviews on wyeast 1007 saying they were able to get clear beers out of it. Then I read that cloudy beers can be caused by wild yeast so that is what prompted the question. I guess there is no real problem though if it tastes good.
       9 Replies
       9844 Views
       jrodie
       13 years ago
   14. yeast experiment

       by jrodie, 14 years ago in Intermediate Brewing

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       I want to do a taste experiment with 4 different yeast strains. My plan for now is to do a simple 5 gallon SMASH recipe and than pour a little over a gallon into four different fermentors, putting a different yeast smack pack into each fermentor. Is there any reason why this won't work? Also should I pour the whole smack pack into each fermentor, or would I be better off pouring half the pack in each fermentor to avoid over pitching?

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       I agree it well get pricey. I don't have a group of brewing buddies though to do it with. I am just not a fan of some of the smells I get from yeast sometimes and I want to bail down that one yeast that is for me once and for all. Maybe I can make another full 5 gallon beer on top of the winner.
       4 Replies
       6106 Views
       jrodie
       14 years ago
   15. Re-using Starsan

       by jrodie, 15 years ago in Cleaning and Sanitisation

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       How many times or for how long can Starsan be re-used? Could you make a 5 gallon batch and keep dunking brewing equipment in it over and over again to sanitize them? Would it eventually expire or be used up?

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       I wouldn't bother trying to re-use starsan either, you use such a small amount, it lasts for ages.
       
       I make up 5 litres on kegging day. This sanitises my keg, bottles, all other equipment and the fermenter ready for the next brew.
       5ml makes 5 litres, 1 litre of starsan is going to last more than a year, cheap as chips.
       
       Should actually be 7.5ml for 5L
       
       I use 4.5ml for 3L
       15 Replies
       31802 Views
       stux
       14 years ago
   16. Adding oxygen to wort

       by jrodie, 14 years ago in Fermentation (Wort to Still Beer)

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       Can adding pure o2 to the wort before pitching increase lag times, since the yeast has more oxygen to multiply with before starting on the sugar?

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       Just a quick history on why I made the OP. I thought I was getting some off flavors from the fermentation. So I tried using oxygen not to shorten my lag times but to get a cleaner yeast flavor. On this I thought it was a great success. Curiously though I noticed longer lag times. Not sure why but it must have been because of some other factor (like fermentation temp).
       19 Replies
       20842 Views
       jrodie
       14 years ago
   17. good bag material

       by jrodie, 14 years ago in BIABrewer.info and BIAB for New Members

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       This is a voile curtain I found at Target. I made a brew bag out of it and it as been working well. Although it is already sewn and embroidered to be a curtain the voile is less than what you would spend on a raw sheet of voile at many places. :headhit:

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       Be careful with that 4.99 curtain. If I remember right it is not cotton and will melt a soon as you get it even close to the stove.
       12 Replies
       13130 Views
       jrodie
       14 years ago
   18. mash out and efficiency

       by jrodie, 14 years ago in Intermediate Brewing

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       I am writing this post to just to share my experience. When I first started BIAB I found myself getting 75% efficiency. Than I started pouring the wort through a strainer on the way into the fermenter, and found I was getting 60% efficiency. I just figured that was a more accurate representation of what I was getting since I was straining out some of the extra debris.
       
       I decided that I wanted to try experimenting a little to increase my efficiency. Last week I did two brews a pale ale and a...

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       Ok Dan, I'll jump in to your questions.
       
       First of all, I don't sparge and never have. Personally, when there is a brew kettle large enough to contain the full volume of liquor and grain, without overflowing, a sparge is not needed.
       
       I always mashout, the main reason why is to add the specialty malts at this stage, giving better mash results and enhanced flavours from the spec grains. This has been discussed in this thread .
       
       It's my opinion that a mashout will almost always result in a better...
       21 Replies
       18086 Views
       hashie
       14 years ago
   19. Green Apple Smell

       by jrodie, 14 years ago in Beer Appreciation (incl. Fault Identification)

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       I brewed a Black IPA awhile back with US-05 that had a strong green apple smell appear after kegging it. After some research I found that the beer was green and should have been allowed to sit in the fermentor for a few more weeks. I had never experienced this before and was surprised it was an issue since it was one of my first times to use a fermentation fridge and keep the beer fermenting in the low 60s. I recently brewed a pale ale with white labs 001 that had the same smell just not quite...

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       Re: Starter question:
       
       If you reserve a bit of wort from your brew session and use it to make the starter, I would say that the benefit is strictly financial.
       
       +1 thughes
       
       If you have a favorite yeast that seems to treat you right than just reuse the yeast cake. I have pitched two bags of yeast for a lager and it came out fine. I reused that lager yeast three times or so and I came out ahead financially. Numerous healthy yeast make good beer. Weak and to few yeast struggle and make bad beer....
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       21227 Views
       BobBrews
       14 years ago
   20. Lager Pitching Problems

       by jrodie, 14 years ago in Fermentation (Wort to Still Beer)

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       I brewed my second lager about 36 hours ago. I had an OG of 1.045. I thought I could get away with pitching two smack packs of wyeast Budvar without making a starter, but there are still zero signs of fermentation. Except for maybe that the fermentor is a few degrees warmer than the ambient temperature in the fermentation chamber. I thought about pitching another smack pack but my local homebrew store is closed for restocking for the next few days and I will be away from home for two weeks...

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       Lagers normally have extended lag phases. Nature of the yeast ;)
       
       But at a guess I'd say your yeast was 'damaged' or not fresh. Why it pays to always make a starter even if it's just to prove a yeast
       3 Replies
       5464 Views
       stux
       14 years ago
   21. very cloudy beer

       by jrodie, 14 years ago in Intermediate Brewing

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       I brewed this beer last week :
       
       I used the Wyeast Northwest ale yeast fermented between 66-68 degrees for 5 days. I transferred it into a carboy to dry hop. The weird part is the beer looks very cloudy almost white.
       
       I was thinking maybe I transferred it before fermentation was complete I never did take a gravity reading, but the air lock had stopped bubbling and there was no more krausen.
       
       Also my aluminum kettle is starting to turn white on the inside. I assumed this was normal, but then...

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       ...The weird part is the beer looks very cloudy almost white. This could also be an infection jr. Grab a sample from your fermenter and have a sniff and then maybe a taste. Maybe take a pic of your wort in the hydrometer tube and post it up?
       
       Fingers crossed :peace:
       PP
       
       P.S. Also, just had a quick look at your original recipe and noticed that they didn't give you the AA% of the hops. Who would know what it is :scratch:. This is mainly a problem with the earlier additions. For example, the 60...
       7 Replies
       8313 Views
       PistolPatch
       14 years ago
   22. brew with a strainer

       by jrodie, 15 years ago in Intermediate Brewing

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       As we speak I have grain mashing in my bag/kettle. One of the sides of the bag came loose and a descent chunk of grain fell into the pot. My plan is to take the bag out when I am done mashing and set it aside in a bucket. Than I am going to pour the wort through my strainer into another pot. Maybe even re-strain back through to the original brew kettle to catch all of the grain that fell out of the kettle. That got me thinking. What if i just didn't use a bag at all, heated up the water,...

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       First time I tried (and failed miserably) to do a partial mash 10 years ago was with multiple pots and a strainer. That sucked.
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       5367 Views
       stux
       15 years ago
   23. summit hop recipe

       by jrodie, 15 years ago in BIAB Recipes

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       So I just lucked out and was given 4 ounces of summit hops. Any one got a good summit hop recipe?

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       Summit Hops
       
       Summit is a recently-released high-alpha (17 to 19% AAU) hop variety. It is a dwarf variety grown on a low trellis system. Because the low trellis is not machine harvestable, these hops are gently picked by hand in the field and are, assumably, less damaged by the harvesting process. Chumulone levels are low at 25-28% of alpha. Summit is said to have strong orange and tangerine citrus notes in its flavor, making it ideal for brewing American style IPAs (especially IIPAs) and Pale...
       1 Replies
       4096 Views
       hashie
       15 years ago
   24. fermentation chamber

       by jrodie, 15 years ago in Fermentation (Wort to Still Beer)

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       Is it possible to use a chest freezer to ferment ales, or would it get too cold even with a thermostat attached to it?
       
       thanks :drink:

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       I use a small chest freezer year round for ales and lagers. Fridgemate temperature controller has setting allowance for both cooling & heating, though not at the same time.
       
       In Canberra's winter I use a ten-litre water tray with an aquarium heater connected to the Fridgemate. Freezer disconnected from mains.
       
       Cheers...
       1 Replies
       4371 Views
       thylacine
       15 years ago
   25. black ipa

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       by jrodie, 15 years ago in Intermediate Brewing

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       Anyone know of a good recipe for a black ipa?
       
       thanks in advance

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       I use a standard plastic siphon. I have always had trouble keeping the siphon opening just above the trub in the cube. Rubber bands, clamps and other various contraptions. If it did seem to hold it correctly I would always have problems when I pushed in the piston to start the siphoning. It would move the tip into the trub or the plastic hose would come out of the fermentation bucket!
       
       I have changed my way of doing this now and it works OK (for me)! I now just put something under one edge of...
       28 Replies
       31003 Views
       BobBrews
       15 years ago

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