Intermediate Brewing

1. using multiple yeast cultures

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   First post by aussiebeerslave, 14 years ago

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   hey fellas,
   
   i've read a few references to adding a second yeast culture during the fermenting. I used a second culture to restart a suspected dead fermentation. The beer was so good that between my mates and i it lasted about 2 minutes flat.
   
   Your thoughts, pros cons.
   
   Beerslave.

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   wine/champagne strains take over when the funguys get tired. my menter uses wl099 when SWAt is needed... but it is able to really dry out.
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   Last post by mordantly
   14 years ago
2. Brewing water

   2 Replies 4637 Views

   First post by zilwaukee_pete, 15 years ago

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   Good evening all. Just a quick question. My tap water has a very high chlorine content that just cant be boiled out. This leaves a slight background taste. Because of this I downloaded a excel spreadsheet called Bru'n Water. Has anybody tried this w/ biab yet. I plan on using distilled water and adding minerals,and salts etc as called for in this brewing spread sheet to get proper water for the style I will be brewing. It is set up for a conventional all grain process not biab.Here is the link...

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   Hi there Pete,
   
   I like hashie's idea above - solid and simple.
   
   Another simple method of getting rid of chlorine is to use Camden tablets.
   
   The third way, using distilled water and adding 'adjustments', always makes me think of the word, 'artificial'. Something inside me tells me that 'unstripped' water has something good about it even despite the additives. I am probably wrong and am just lucky to have decent water where I am ;).
   
   I'd imagine Bru'n Water would work for BIAB. On the water...
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   Last post by PistolPatch
   15 years ago
3. Excellent BIAB Video

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   First post by Beachbum, 15 years ago

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   I don't frequent YouTube much but came across this lady's excellent pair of videos. It's refreshing to see different brewers' takes on BIAB and what really got me excited was the use of a SS rack and colander for draining, as opposed to a skyhook and draining the bag - I think I'll try this out, it looks so easy and logical.
   
   Recommended viewing:

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   Sorry to hear about your new kegs PP, what a PITA.
   
   Have you considered getting a cooper to make you some nice oak barrels? LOL! Fingers crossed they get this sorted quickly - took them eight weeks to give me the replacements :roll:.
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   Last post by PistolPatch
   15 years ago
4. brew with a strainer

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   First post by jrodie, 15 years ago

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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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   Last post by stux
   15 years ago
5. Over Efficient???

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   First post by the_mc, 15 years ago

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   Hi Gang,
   
   I was hoping you could help with this one. I brewed an APA this weekend and everything went great. Hit my mash temp of 154 for the full 60min. Boil went well(90 min). Plopped it all in the fermenter and hit my in fermenter volume of 22ltrs............great! Until....I took the OG reading. This beer was supposed to be 1.066 but the reading was 1.088!!!! I calibrated my Hydrometer and it is right on the money. Is there such thing as being way to over effiecient?
   
   I have a new grain...

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   Thanks for that info Ralph - you are the man!
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   Last post by PistolPatch
   15 years ago
6. Recipe All Grain Bi-Winning Pilsener. BIAB

   24 Replies 29302 Views

   First post by EoinMag, 15 years ago

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   14kg Weyermanns Pilsener malt
   145g Saaz @ 90 mins
   50g Saaz @ 60 mins
   50g Saaz @ 30 mins
   To 23.5 IBU
   
   I ended up with 55l of 1.050 wort.
   
   This is my first ever Pils.
   
   I treated the water with CRS and DLS to get the levels just right.
   I got the hardness down to about 20ppm CaCO3 and increased the Calcium to about 110 ppm as per instructions elsewhere.
   
   I had to add back 10l of water which I had reduced the hardness of, I didn't bother to add the salts as it was post mash. This was because I...

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   Oh to your other question, the Germans use lactic acid or acid malt to acidify their mashes. Sorry I neglected to mention that in the earlier post. So lactic would appear to be the one to go for. That said, I believe that CRS is a mix of hyrochoric and Sulphuric acids from what I have heard.
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   Last post by EoinMag
   15 years ago
7. Hop weights

   9 Replies 11220 Views

   First post by BobtheBrewer, 15 years ago

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   I currently weigh my hop additions on a digital scale which measures in 2 gram increments. It isn't that accurate either, as sometimes when I put the container back on the scale it measures -.2g. I have been trying to find something which will measure in 0.1 gram increments. Obviously it doesn't need to go above 500 grams max. I have seen a lot of mini scales on ebay but the pan size is very small eg 76 x 65 mm. I suppose I could always fit a plastic cup on something like that but was hoping to...

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   Best move you can ever make (apart from getting a bag) is to get accurate scales. I went a bit upmarket and bought mine from a proper kitchen shop, they weigh up to 5k in 1g increments but have a big stainless steel bowl so I use them for weighing spec grains, not just hops.
   They really came into their own yesterday, I'd just received 3 bags of hops, kilo, from a Victorian hop supplier and they arrived 15 minutes before I had to be out of the door to head into Brisbane to meet Ralph who went...
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   Last post by Beachbum
   15 years ago
8. Temp inside and outside grain bag

   9 Replies 10818 Views

   First post by GrainWaterYeast, 15 years ago

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   I use a fine nylon mesh grain bag and have noticed that there is a difference in wort temperature inside the bag versus outside the bag. For example, when I'm mashing and I take a temperature reading with my thermometer of the wort inside the BIAB bag, it might read 65°C, BUT when I pull a section of my BIAB bag free from the rim of my pot and check the temp of the wort in the in-between space (i.e., in the space between the bag and the side of the pot), the temp will read a few degrees...

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   Hashie - I see where you're coming from and can appreciate the logic. I guess my concern isn't so much is my beer going to turn out okay but, rather, am I hurting my efficiency? If the layer of grain closest to the wall of the bag is getting overheated by the water outside the bag, does that mean that those grains are all pooped out and not giving me the good stuff anymore? But - hey - even if it does mean a loss in efficiency, it can't be more than a couple of points.
   
   Stux - I use a nylon...
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   Last post by GrainWaterYeast
   15 years ago
9. Mash and boil times

   6 Replies 8001 Views

   First post by Ivesy, 15 years ago

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   When I first started biab i was doing a 60 minute mash and 60 min boil but now the norm seems to be 90 and 90. What does the extra half hour do? Is it just about getting more points out of your grain or something else I have missed?

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   So glad that was it Ivesey. You'll have to give everything after the kettle a good pull apart now as well to be safe - eg keg dip tubes etc.
   
   A stainless steel ball valve will make no difference though. What happens with ball-valves is that the ball is actually inside a square if that makes sense. So, there is always liquid left on the valve. Opening and closing the ball-valve several times while running will help a bit but you are really only diluting the wort trapped inside. One good trick is...
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   Last post by PistolPatch
   15 years ago
10. Why is my APA dark brown/black?

    5 Replies 8251 Views

    First post by BobtheBrewer, 15 years ago

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    This has got me puzzled. Grain bill
    4500g BB Ale Malt
    450g Munich 1
    400g TF Pale Crystal
    100g Weyermann Choc Wheat
    Mash was and hour and 55 mins. I had everything timed right, went to the physio who was running 30 mins late, and then he left me with a heat treatment and forgot about me.
    Could the extra time of the mash, which only dropped 1.3 degrees over all that time, have caused the darkness, or did I use too much Choc Wheat? The beer is quite nice, a bit like a JSAA but not as bitter.

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    I noticed when adding the grain that it seemed darker than usual. I ended up with a great beer, good head, I'm still trying to decide what it tastes like but I'd better hurry because I think there is about one more pint in the keg. I'm going to give caramalt a go instead of the TF light crystal and see how that goes. Thanks for the tip on the bittering.
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    Last post by BobtheBrewer
    15 years ago
11. Sugar and the Calculator

    10 Replies 12876 Views

    First post by the_mc, 15 years ago

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    Hopefully this is not a repost as I did a search but could not locate the info.
    
    How does the calculator incorporate surgar? for example I have a Saison that I want make where sugar is about 8% of the grain bill. Do I just add it to the Grain bill tab? Seems like that would be incorrect because you would not neet the extra water as you are not extracting the sugar....
    
    Any thoughts?

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    Better adding adjuncts/sugars at the end of the boil, not only does it upset the IBU calcs it stuffs the %efficiency calc.
    
    So the End of Boil sample should be taken before any adjuncts/sugars are added so the brewhouse efficiency can be calculated.
    
    Yes, them too :)
    
    I think we now have a protocol for using sugars with the calculator ;)
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    Last post by stux
    15 years ago
12. Strike Temperature Problems

    14 Replies 15142 Views

    First post by bagman, 15 years ago

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    With 2 BIAB brews under my belt. A American Hefe (which is in the keg force carbing now) and a Honey Brown Ale, that is in ferm cooler, i've noticed one thing.
    
    On my rig, if I use one of the calcs for strike water temp, I'm to high, basically when I add and stir my grain i am not losing that much heat. First batch, I was shooting for 152*, I mashed in a 160, and hit 158* and had to stir and stir to get it down to 154*, I was at 152* in 30 minutes and it held for the remainder of the mash....

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    This is something I missed somehow during the beta testing - there was actually a lot of stuff to keep track of, many posts/emails etc and things rapidly accelerated towards the release date. We only adjusted the weights and specific gravities of the tuns on Build 40 so this is something I missed.
    
    The solution needs to be done in the equipment profile so I think the best solution for now is as stux mentions of setting the specific heat to zero. That looks to be working well. I'll ask Brad to...
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    Last post by Pat
    15 years ago
13. Clear wort gone cloudy in keg?

    11 Replies 14122 Views

    First post by Ivesy, 15 years ago

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    Done the lcba recipe a couple of weeks back. It's been in the keg for nearly a week now. On first test after forced carb ( rolling method ) the beer was nice and clear and tasted good. Now some 3 or 4 days later it has gone very cloudy and seems a whole different beer, tastes not too bad but just hasn't got that nice clean, crisp look it had while fermenting and once it was first kegged. We do a standard biab 90 minutes and 90 minutes, no sparge, no removal of cold or hot breaks and I used the...

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    I have to admit that I'm very very fussy about clear beer, I can't get on with the idea that beer should be cloudy/hazy when it's out of style, it drives me crazy. But then it's a case of horses for courses I suppose.
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    Last post by EoinMag
    15 years ago
14. BIAB and AG Cherry Broken

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    First post by outbreak, 16 years ago

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    Just finished the boil on my first AG and BIAB.
    
    American Pale Ale
    
    Grain
    Marris Otter 2.5kg
    Joe White Trad Ale 1kg
    Weyermann Munich 1 1kg
    Pale Wheat .3kg
    Light Crystal .2kg
    
    Expected 1.046OG
    66 Degree Mash
    
    Hops
    Chinook 20g @ 60
    Amarillo 30g @ 20
    Cascade 15g @ Flameout
    
    Hit Mash Temp!
    Got Good efficiency into the kettle 80%
    
    Eveything has gone well, I am just waiting for the trub to settle and then into the nochill cube it goes.......
    
    Will update pics and more info later....

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    Just checking in to say that I haven't forgotten the forum and I am still representing the bag! Even though I have been working crazy hours I have been brewing like a mad man! I find brewing beer a good stress reducer (or maybe thats drinking beer!).
    
    I have brewed...
    
    A Rye IPA with Rye making up around 20% of the grain bill. This beer is tasting great and has a pronounced hop flavour/aroma as I have been using the method from AHB where I draw 3l of wort from the cube boil it up and do my...
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    Last post by outbreak
    15 years ago
15. SMaSH, Maris Otter and Fuggles.

    19 Replies 20761 Views

    First post by EoinMag, 15 years ago

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    I had a friend over last night who does kit brews who wanted to experience an all-grain brew for the first time and I was delighted to have a willing brew partner for a change and to showcase BIAB.
    
    I knocked up a very simple recipe as I've lost my beersmith on what was my Windows PC and have Ubuntu on there now and ran Qbrew instead, it's very basic compared to Beersmith, but it was sufficient to make a recipe.
    
    What I ended up with was about as easy as it gets.
    
    11KG Maris Otter
    
    180g of...

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    Well I'm glad I've inspired a few people to try this out, I have to get back on track with my plans to do it shortly too. I need to get me some more base bulk malts. Weyermann Pils and some MO again, I have a huge amount of hops from a bulk buy and I need to start working through them.
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    Last post by EoinMag
    15 years ago
16. black ipa

    28 Replies 31074 Views

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    First post by jrodie, 15 years ago

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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...
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    Last post by BobBrews
    15 years ago
17. Some thoughts on BIAB

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    First post by brewmcq, 15 years ago

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    Now that I have a few BiaB's under my belt, I feel compelled to make some notes on my process (which is still evolving), and perhaps ponder aloud some of my failings and successes.
    
    Before I get started, I am not a true BiaB'er. I've taken aspects that I like from the BiaB method and have applied to to my own brewing style. I also do a few other things wrong as well, but for the most part, it works out well for me.
    
    Starting with equipment... I'm in the process of obtaining a 1/2 bbl stainless...

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    Thanks for your words, Pistol.
    
    So to answer the question Why am I doing this? is simple: I honestly enjoy the experimentation, the tinkering of methods and processes to create my own beer... the reason I want to create my own beer is for 1) a great deal of personal satisfaction; 2) so I know EXACTLY what I am drinking; and 3) I may decide to go pro someday.. when I'm independently wealthy, that is. :-)
    
    My justification for using the current method that I am is quite simple: I use the MLT so I...
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    Last post by brewmcq
    15 years ago
18. Directing people to BIAB without causing a problem.

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    First post by jrodie, 15 years ago

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    I got a question for you guys on tact.
    Earlier this week a guy on Northernbrewer.com asked about BIAB and was met with some really good comments and also some not very nice comments. And a conversation that was somewhat heated and really felt condescending towards BIAB followed.
    
    Than today there is a guy on there asking about an AG recipe and saying how he would need a bigger pot and grain bag to steep the grains in. (sounds like BIAB right?) The responses were all along the lines of him being...

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    You'll end up making a do it yourself Braumeister :lol:
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    Last post by Beachbum
    15 years ago
19. Am i a bad BIAB'er ?

    7 Replies 9638 Views

    First post by maheel, 15 years ago

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    this is mostly about what ends up in my no-chill cube and fermentor
    i take cleaning and temp control seriously i am up to about BIAB brew 7...
    
    today i did a pilsner , mostly a cheap experiment as i had some SAZZ in the freezer from some other experiments
    
    this is my normal procedure
    boil for 70 mins
    chuck in my hops (i use a hop sock) as per schedule
    at flame out i hook on my silicone hose to the ball valve and run the whole lot into the cube
    i didn't use Irish moss, i didn't whirlpool...

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    I'm not too picky when dumping it into the cube, but I run it through a sieve while pouring into the fermenter. Works for me.
    
    Which is clever as you get to filter out the hot *and* cold break then.
    
    The cold break forms in the cube, not in the kettle ;)
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    Last post by stux
    15 years ago
20. Question about kettle size and grain

    4 Replies 7245 Views

    First post by bellywasher, 15 years ago

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    Hi all, I have a newbie question. I have a 22.71 liter pot ( 6 gallon ) kettle. I don't have the dimensions bit it's a stainless steel stock pot style kettle. What most u.s brewers use. I want to get inti Biab but don't have the money for a bigger kettle. What is a good estimate for the maximum amount of grain that I could fit into the kettle for a batch and max gravity without overflowing the pot and making a huge mess. I can always augment wit extract to bring up the gravity . Hope u guys can...

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    Getting into a bit of OT territory here, but thanks jonesy- really appreciate that you've found the Maxi-BIAB guide helpful, that's what I was hoping for as it was evolving. :thumbs:
    If you'll pardon the indulgence, a big thumbs up too for the site's owner, contributors, moderators and members who are doing all this for nothing- we have our moments, however hearing of brewers who are happy with what they're getting out of it just makes the whole shebang so worthwhile, yes? :clap: !
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    Last post by Ralph
    15 years ago
21. Yeast starters & re-using yeast - Help

    16 Replies 20818 Views

    First post by redlegger, 16 years ago

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    Hey everyone
    
    My LHBS is...well..lets just say... crap!
    So i order in my dried yeast, but this gets quite annoying as its $4 per packet + $4 postage. I could order in bulk, but i would like to be a little more self sufficient.
    
    I also want to move to liquid yeast as i have read that its a really good way to improve my beers.
    
    So.. what im asking is, how do other members use their yeast? Create a starter from the Liquid yeast? Then Re-use the yeast cake after fermentation is finished?
    
    I have...

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    Oldish post but different method.
    I smack a pack and when swollen up fill 3X30ml vials and stick them in the fridge. Remaining 30 ml straight into starter up to @ 1.5 L. This way get 4 goes out of 1 pack with virgin yeast each time. Easy to work out starter size from wyeast as 30 ml is the size/# of yeast cells as their propagator packs.
    
    sean
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    Last post by sean
    15 years ago
22. 5th brew, NEW gear

    9 Replies 10890 Views

    First post by sean, 15 years ago

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    Went for a drive up to Ross' (my LHBS) on Friday and picked up one of his new BIAB bags and a crown urn (+ some kegs etc :lol: )
    
    Did doc smurto's GA yesterday as per recipe on AHB , ended up with 22L into fermenter @ 1.045 instead of 20 L @1.047 so pretty happy. Tipped out about 2.7 L trub and put into cube for no chill.
    
    Bit of a panic as only had the remains ( 4g ) US05 so added that and a 12g packet of nottingham to water to rehydrate, hope it turns out OK. Had meant to get some more yeast...

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    In FV for 11 days. Temp at start was 16C, held 2 days then up to 18-19 by end. 24 hr in fridge(still in FV)Filtered and kegged. no finings, only whirfloc @ boil. Crystal clear and bright. Not as hoppy as my extract version (probably the yeast as US05 in all extract versions.)My partner said she couldn't detect any chaulkiness and she has a pretty good palate. Will try again in couple of days and reassess.
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    Last post by sean
    15 years ago
23. aging a belgians

    4 Replies 5663 Views

    First post by jrodie, 15 years ago

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    I brewed a strong golden belgian ale and ended up with an OG of around 1.075 I forget what the FG ended up being.
    
    I tasted after just a month of fermentation and one week in the bottles and it tastes REALLY good to me. I know people say to age belgians for the best flavor. But this beer tastes good now. What kind of flavor changes should I expect with age?
    Would I get less of all that belgian fruity yeast taste, as the beer mellows ? Because if so I don't think I want it to age it.

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    I have a reasonable stock to choose from, so I tend to 'vary my diet'. Sometimes I get the taste for one particular brew, so focus too much attention on that. Even if I am desperate to drink the last few bottles, I will put some away to see how they mature. Then I get on and brew another lot and drink accordingly.
    
    It doesn't always work but then I am only human :scratch:
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    Last post by Beer O'Clock
    15 years ago
24. BIAB number 5

    7 Replies 9245 Views

    First post by oz11, 15 years ago

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    Going to have brew day tomorrow to use up some bits and pieces.
    The malt bill will be something like:
    91% Pale Malt
    3.5% Crystal
    3.5% Munich
    2% CaraAmber
    
    Hops will be
    Northdown (8.7% AA) and
    Challenger (7.6%AA) 60min boil for bittering
    
    Northdown late hops at 15 min.
    
    Yeast S04.
    
    The style/ingredients is based loosely on Badger Dorset best bitter (munich and caraamber not in the original recipe).
    
    Mini-BIAB looking for about 10 or 11L into bottles, at an OG of 1041 and IBU about 28 which is a...

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    Tried a first taster of this today from a bottle...it's pretty good, very drinkable looking forward to the rest!
    
    Also have done a 6th brew, based on Hall and Woodhouse Tanglefoot.
    
    Grain bill was MO Pale malt(82%) and white sugar (18%).
    Hops Challenger and Northdown for bittering, and Northdown at 15min.
    
    After 4 days in FV I chucked in about 12g Northdown as a dry hop to use up the rest of the pack.
    
    Conditioning now in bottles and an easy key. OG was 1049 and FG 1009 so pretty much what I...
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    Last post by oz11
    15 years ago
25. re using yeast cake

    14 Replies 14130 Views

    First post by jrodie, 15 years ago

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    Looking for advice on reusing a yeast cake.
    
    My plan was to make a moderate pale ale with Wyeast 1056 and than pour the wort from a huge IPA directly onto the yeast cake of the pale ale.
    
    Now that I have the pale ale fermenting I am wondering if just throwing the wort for the big IPA directly on the yeast cake is really a good idea.
    
    Here on some stats: The Pale Ale came out to an OG of 1.058 just under the suggested maximum for one pack without a starter. The IPA will have an OG of...

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    It's a bad idea to overpitch to this level.
    You will get a beer that is not what it could have been had you pitched at the right level.
    
    Firstly you need to obviously use a new fermenter and just take the mrmalty approved amount of yeast sludge from the previous brew and pitch it on the new one.
    
    If you use too much it is massively overpitching and causes issues with the body of the beer and also stops any yeast growth which is automatically going to produce less esters.
    
    I could continue but...
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    Last post by EoinMag
    15 years ago