beer The FineExampl Homebrew Project

cheezydemon said:
Frozen 2 liters work well to keep a bath cool.
Click to expand...

I used to drop a frozen gallon in each morning and evening on the first couple of batches, but after crashing at a bro's house for a long weekend and letting this slide I figured it wasn't really worth the hassle. The beer ended up great. I find fermenting @ 74F gives you a pretty complete cycle in 10 days. Rack that to the c-keg, crank the CO2 to ~ 30psi, toss it in the fridge with the CO2 tank and in about two days (12 day total) you are ready to drink. Usually on the second day in the keg I'll crank the CO2 down to 7psi, hold off the temptation to start swilling and have the tasting on the 3rd day. In most cases this ends up being a perfect pour. Edit: I've only done ales... I don't have the capacity to lager the right way, but wish I did.
 
...Actually, Better Bottles work fine as secondaries, unless you are going 2 months or more in secondary.

GLASS SUCKS. That's all I will say.
 
cheezydemon said:
...

GLASS SUCKS. That's all I will say.
Click to expand...

Interesting, a brewer who poo-poo's glass. All I ferment in is glass. I have zero experience with better bottles. What was your terrible experience with glass?
 
: walks around chanting :

Glass is not ass! Glass is good!
Glass is not ass! Eat your food! (sorry, that's all I could think of to rhyme with this early in the morning)
 
imaguitargod said:
: walks around chanting :

Glass is not ass! Glass is good!
Glass is not ass! Eat your food! (sorry, that's all I could think of to rhyme with this early in the morning)
Click to expand...
i thoroughly agree with you. i'm in the market for glass, knowing full well that plastic is more or less disposable (still good for sani-buckets though). my theory was that i should start cheap and see how easy or hard it is and move from there. Kind of like a wet dry-run, if you get my meaning.

SO i've done some more research and i know i shitted on this recipe. I left the grain sock in FAR too long. All that i keep hearing however is that it's probably not a total loss and at the worst, it'll be a very heavy beer with a bit of astringency feel to it. That and also what was mentioned here in that time can heal even the worst bottle conditioned ale (sometimes). The taste i took of the wort prior to closing the lid wasn't awful. Normally i would panic, but i'm not going to with this. It was only a $37 recipe. I could redo that with not too much of a loss. Besides, if all i did was that one mistake, i can't call this a failure.

I need some recipes while i have your attention.

Wanted:
Hard Cider recipe
Wheat/Wit/Hefewiezen recipe
IPA recipe

Also, has anyone made a beer from nettles? I saw a few recipes and was curious how this would taste.

In my garden i have a selection of many many herbs from the obvious to the obscure. I'm eyeing up the chocolate mint, coriander (obviously), and such. What about dill or dill seed? Perhaps sage or basil?
 
Easy fellas!!

It is the experience of my fellow brewers, dropping carboys (empty or full) that causes me to poo poo glass.

I brew world class beers in Better bottles and Ale pails.

Glass is more costly in several respects. Not the least of which is to my back.

Glass is heavy, breakable, expensive, etc. No Joke.
 
cheezydemon said:
Easy fellas!!

It is the experience of my fellow brewers, dropping carboys (empty or full) that causes me to poo poo glass.

I brew world class beers in Better bottles and Ale pails.

Glass is more costly in several respects. Not the least of which is to my back.

Glass is heavy, breakable, expensive, etc. No Joke.
Click to expand...

Yep, but it's sooooooooo worth it :lol:
 
So i had this brilliant idea.

Can i make a brew using cheerios? I could add some to my grain sock or add them with my hops. According to Papazian the sky's the limit with additives. I could have the world's first Cheerio ale!
 
cheezydemon said:
.......How?
Click to expand...
Oxigen can't get to it to oxidise your beer, you can buy handles so it's not acward to carry and thus less back injuring work, much easier to clean, don't scratch like plastic does (get a scratch in your bucket, gotta chuck it, opens a large possability for bugs to get in), lasts a hell of a lot longer, can be found for cheap (craigslist), and just look cool :cool:
 
granted they look cool!

But with the faucet I have, and no rinse sanitizer, my buckets and bottles don't get scratched. Had them for years.

To each their own, but I have beers set back from 18 months ago. No oxidation.
 
Okay all you experienced brewers, one more question.

My fermenter has stopped burbling. It is actually silent and not doing anything. Am i correct in thinking it has completed the initial fermentation? I was planning to move to the secondary next wednesday, but figured any time after this wednesday wasn't unreasonable so long as the actively escaping gases had slowed. If this is done, i could theoretically bottle this next week?

So am i correct about this?

If so i will need to gather my empties pronto. i need 3 cases worth.
 
Secondary is no problem. Go ahead IMHO.

Bottling in a week is another matter.

A consistent hydrometer reading for 3 days, or 2 weeks in secondary with no airlock movement are the standards.

Early bottling can be dangerous at worst, and crappy at best.(bottle bombs or overcarbonated fizz water).

Patience is rewarded in brewing.
 
for sure. not trying to rush, but more trying to figure out how i'll get this done efficiently. i guess i'll figure out a way to take a reading tonight.
 
fineexampl said:
Okay all you experienced brewers, one more question.

My fermenter has stopped burbling. It is actually silent and not doing anything. Am i correct in thinking it has completed the initial fermentation? I was planning to move to the secondary next wednesday, but figured any time after this wednesday wasn't unreasonable so long as the actively escaping gases had slowed. If this is done, i could theoretically bottle this next week?

So am i correct about this?

If so i will need to gather my empties pronto. i need 3 cases worth.
Click to expand...

Air Lock activity is no indication of completed fermentation. Always go by your hydromitor readings.
 
So i took a hydrometer reading. i got a 1.010. I have to say it smells fantastic! i'm drinking the sample and, while warm, it's very pleasant and not unlike a Rocheforte in appearance and aroma. i'm kinda psyched for this now! :)
 
Before i closed everything up on fermenter i added the bushing i bought and put a proper airlock on it. Before i did that i gave the bucket a thorough but gentle wobble after reading about big beers and how sometimes the yeast needs to be coaxed. This is definitely NOT ready. It's back to burping.

So...using the hydrometer, am i correct in thinking that the only way to know it's done is several consistent readings? Either way, it's going into the secondary next week or this weekend. I expect it will be fine. I'm looking to crack bottles for July 4th.
 
Fine- your hydrometer is temp. sensitive. Most are calibrated to 60F, but check the info that came with your hydrometer. A sample of a different temperature will need some math. Several consistent readings at consistent temps will tell you when this brew is done. I guesstimate by watching the airlock. If it doesn't bubble for 3 mins or more I usually presume it's done.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top