HOMEBREW Digest #1393 Fri 08 April 1994

Digest #1392 Digest #1394


	FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
		Rob Gardner, Digest Janitor


Contents:
  Re: Modifying a Gott/Rubbermaid 5 gallon cooler ("Mark B. Alston")
  Author's query (Bill)
  Brewing Academies (Martin Lodahl)
  Where do you buy agar? (David Knight)
  Pure-Seal (TM) Bottle Caps (David Knight)
  Re: JS, IM, EX, etc. (Jim Busch)
  Raspberry Porter (David Brewer)
  Extract vs all-grain and other stories. (Ash Baker)
  Combustability Test (BIO)" <tillman at chuma.cas.usf.edu>
  MEMO (Maribeth_Raines)
  SUMMARY: Modifying Gott/Rubbermaid 5 gallon cooler (Jay Lonner)
  Slander and Ridicule: All Grainers Rule! (COYOTE)
  A plea for peace (David Draper)
  Irish moss, going through the fridge, and coffee beer (Kinney Baughman)
  Raspberry Stout (Tom Leith MIR/ERL 362-6965)
  Sparging / Blowoff tubes (708) 938-3184" <HANSEN.MICHAEL at igate.abbott.com>
  Whatney's Red Barrel Recipe (ewcorco)
  Effect of decreasing mash temp (Robert Schultz)
  Growing hoops (Aaron Morris)
  successful cream ale (RONALD DWELLE)
  Re: Kill Jack Schmidling? (Allan Rubinoff)
  Fridge control (Bob_McIlvaine)
  Brewing Education/RE:Danny Dumps (John Oberpriller x7937)
  Hop Roots ("Daniel R. Sidebottom")

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---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 6 Apr 94 13:37:51 MDT From: "Mark B. Alston" <c-amb at math.utah.edu> Subject: Re: Modifying a Gott/Rubbermaid 5 gallon cooler This is almost exactly what I have done. I used a drilled stopper (3 1/2 I think) and put a piece of racking crane through the hole. The inside is connected to my false bottom (Phils) and the outside is connected to the hose. The only suggesting I would make is to put the stopper on the inside so that any pressure against it holds it in and doesn't push it out. For my sparger I simple removed the push button part of the spout (you can pull it out from the inside) and put a #1 (I think) solid rubber stopper in the depression left on the front. By cutting a slit through the part where the spout connects to the button part you can slide some 3/8 inch tubing onto the spout. Put a hose clamp on the hose and you are ready to go. So far this has worked great for 10 brews. Good luck, Mark Alston (Boy there are a lot of Marks around here!!!) Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 07 Apr 1994 14:49:01 -0500 From: Bill at cvumail.cvu.cssd.k12.vt.us Subject: Author's query For a revision of my book MAKING BEER (Knopf 1983) I would appreciate hearing any homebrewer's suggestions for changes in text or emphasis. Thanks William Mares. Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 6 Apr 1994 13:06:28 -0700 (PDT) From: malodah at pbgueuze.scrm2700.PacBell.COM (Martin Lodahl) Subject: Brewing Academies In HOMEBREW Digest #1391, one yeebot at aol.com asked: > By chance, would there be any graduates of either the UC Davis or Seibel > schools of brewing on the HBD? Am I missing any other US schools? And would > you be willing to share your experiences and advice with a guy who'd like to > get a "proper" brewing education? I received literature from both schools but > it failed to mention what any of their graduates are doing these days. (IMO, > a neccessary data point.) My personal preferences (if it even matters) lie > towards Belgian style beers. I promise to edit and re-post for all you other > future Brewmeisters if I get a response. I'm not a graduate of either, but have taken classes from both, and the first question that occurs to me is, why? Do you wish to learn more about brewing, by which I mean actually making excellent beer, or is it more the intellectual challenge of brewing science, or do you plan to seek employment in the small-scale brewing industry, or is your life's ambition to work for A-B? I doubt that last, if you like Belgian beers, but if it is, Davis is the place for you, though I've been told that A-B hasn't hired a Davis grad in three years. If on the other hand you want to be the brewer in a highly-regarded brewpub or micro, and formulate interesting and flavorful recipes, Siebel will serve you better, IMHO. Confidence in Davis graduates as full-charge brewers appears to be eroding, though some have done quite well. I agree altogether with your point that a school should be judged by its graduates. Both programs are run by people with long-term connections to the brewing industry, though Siebel's program includes folks like Joe Power and Dave Radzanowsky (spelling quite approximate) who've worked in breweries as brewers most of their adult lives, while Davis' Dr. Michael Lewis has more of an academic background. In all cases their experience is most solidly rooted in the "American light lager" tradition, but my strong impression is that the Siebel folks have made the more succesful adaptation to the changing face of American brewing. HBD old-timers who know my writing style will recognize an unusual restraint in what I've said here; I actually feel very strongly about this, and could easily find myself making statements I'd be hard-pressed to defend later. If possible, take some sort of short seminar from each institution, and I think you'll be able to evaluate their overall program. = Martin Lodahl Systems Analyst, Capacity Planning, Pacific*Bell = = malodah at pacbell.com Sacramento, CA USA 916.972.4821 = = If it's good for ancient Druids runnin' nekkid through the wuids, = = Drinkin' strange fermented fluids, it's good enough for me! (Unk.) = Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 6 Apr 94 16:07:31 EDT From: David Knight <dknight at ren.iterated.com> Subject: Where do you buy agar? I've recently gotten hold of a bunch of test tubes and I'd like to start culturing yeast. I read the yeast FAQ and have all of the equipment and ingredients that I should need *except* for agar. My question is: Where do you buy agar? I've called several huge local grocery stores and asked about it, but no one has ever heard of it before. I've also checked in the gelatin section of several stores but still no luck. The (admittedly small) oriental sections of these supermarkets have no agar either. If necessary I'll head for the ethnic part of town and try some oriental supermarkets, but I doubt that I'd recognize agar even if it was standing right in front of me, and if they do have it would it be labelled 'agar' in english? By the way, I'm located in the Atlanta 'burbs. Thanks in advance, -Dave Knight dknight at ren.iterated.com Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 6 Apr 94 16:17:58 EDT From: David Knight <dknight at ren.iterated.com> Subject: Pure-Seal (TM) Bottle Caps I just purchased some Pure-Seal bottle caps and was wondering what is the preferred way of sanitizing them. I thought I'd read somewhere that they lose their effectiveness if they contact water, but I can't find the source anymore. Also, does anyone know what "makes them work"? Do they work at all normal temperature ranges or should the bottles be stored at some "optimal" temperature? Thanks in advance. -Dave Knight dknight at ren.iterated.com Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 6 Apr 1994 17:33:59 -0400 (EDT) From: Jim Busch <busch at daacdev1.stx.com> Subject: Re: JS, IM, EX, etc. Jeff writes about IM: > > And to beat the Irish Moss horse to death: I've used it with and without > protein rests and I've used it with a reasonably wide variety of malts. > In the quantities that George Fix suggested and that I've passed along, > there have been astonishing increases in clarity and NO (that is ZERO) > problems with head retention. That's ZERO, Al. I just saw what appeared to me be the exact same IM sold by supply stores in my local CO-OP, in several gallon jars, for next to nothing prices. Is this the same stuff? It sure looked the same. BTW, I gave up IM long ago, but it does take a few weeks for my beers to clear, but I blame this primarily on residual yeast. Maybe its time to try again. > From: braddw at rounder.rounder.com > Subject: Barleywine?!? > > I was looking for a recipe (grain or extract for 5 gals) that would > approximate that of the Old Knucklehead. Pale malt (M&F is a good choice, but domestic 2 row works) for a OG of 1.094+ , about 20 lbs for 5 gals. Depending on how dark you like your BWs, 1 lb Caramel/crystal malt. More if you like real sweet BWs. Some brewers add a touch of chocolate malt. Mash at 144F for 20 min, raise to 152 to convert, mash off at 168-172. Recirc, then draw off sweet wort, replacing with a small (1-2 gallons) amount of sparge water. You basically only want the "first runnings" of the mash. (If you have a second boiler, continue to lauter for a "small beer"). Boil 90-120 minutes. Add 2 oz Centennial and 1 oz of Cascade at 60 min to end of boil. Add 2 oz Cascade at 30 min, and finish with 2 oz of Cascade (this assumes you like west coast ales/cascades, goldings is also a great choice, but more costly). Chill, *AERIATE* as much as possible. Pitch the dregs of a 1 GALLON liquid starter of American Ale yeast (British yeast is another option). Hope that it ferments down. Rack after 10-14 days, let sit in secondary until the FG is down (this is a wild card). If you bottle condition, add fresh yeast and sugar at bottling time. > Also, has anyone out there ever brewed with apples? The thought of an > apple-cinnamon lager entices me, especially since I live next to an > Orchard! Nope! JS writes: > Subject: DEATH THREATS > > "Town water departments are notorious for playing with the water. > That translates into wildly variable extraction efficiencies." > > To repeat the question: how do changes in the water translate into wildly > variable extraction efficiencies? Sounds like back to ol research books, Jack. Check out the part on the effects of Calcium ions on pH and extract, not to mention kettle break. While your at it, look at dissolved solids and carbonates. Oh, and check out the good range of values that was posted in the last HBD. And also note the effects of mineral concentrations on hop flavor/perceptions, and overall character of the finished beer. Lets see, what is the difference between Munich water and Burton-on-Trent, I never can rememeber..... > > > > Sure. There are methods for dealing with each one of these situations. > The main point is that you can't take your water for granted. Water tests > every day are an essential part of the commercial brewing process if you > care at all about product consistency. Actually, in practice this is a main reason that brewing salts are added to the tun and/or kettle, it removes the testing headaches. And about the suggestion to just buy someone else's beer: just what variety do you expect to find in the more remote areas of NC? And at $65-80 a keg, the cost difference per glass is great. ($130 for 4 BBl, thats 130 for 8 1/2BBl kegs, or a savings of .........). > Subject: Brewing Schools > > By chance, would there be any graduates of either the UC Davis or Seibel > schools of brewing on the HBD? Am I missing any other US schools? And would > you be willing to share your experiences and advice with a guy who'd like to > get a "proper" brewing education? I received literature from both schools but > it failed to mention what any of their graduates are doing these days. I have not attended either, but have heard much better reviews from Seibel graduates. Also, FWIW, Seibel runs ads boasting the number of medals won by thier grads in the GABF. I will tell you that it helps to have pro brewing experience to get into Seibel. Good brewing, Jim Busch Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 6 Apr 94 15:58:27 -0700 From: David Brewer <dbrewer at eastlake.nwest.mccaw.com> Subject: Raspberry Porter I made a batch of cranberry amber ale that turned out pretty darn good, imho. What I did was crush the berries to break the skin (which is not needed if the berries were previously frozen), and put them in at the same time as the yeast, and left them in for about 2 days during primary fermentation. I am as well, a fairly new brewer, but I have been a Brewer all my life. -Dave Date: Mon, 4 Apr 1994 16:20:29 -0400 From: l-snyder at mskcc.org (Lawrence Snyder) Subject: Raspberry Porter I am at the present time a relatively new (~ 6 months) extract brewer and was recently in Steamboat Springs CO and had the good fortune to try an amazingly good raspberry wheat beer in a brewpub called Heavenly Daze (also the name of a pretty good ski run on the mountain). They also had a really nice porter which had a beautiful aftertaste somewhere in between coffee and chocolate. But what I thought was particularly tasty and worthy of duplication was the brew obtained by mixing the two. A raspberry porter! I'd really appreciate it if someone who's had experience at brewing with fruit could send me some info on the subject as Papazian and Miller have me confused as to when to add the fruit / extract. Is it best to use whole fruit? What about risk of infection? Do you boil with the wort, steep, or just add it into the primary? Also I remember a couple of issues ago on the HBD someone talking about not adding the fruit directly in the primary fermentation as the initial CO2 surge will scrub out the aroma. Thanks in advance for any info. Larry Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 06 Apr 94 19:52:56 EDT From: Ash Baker <3AVHB at QUCDN.QUEENSU.CA> Subject: Extract vs all-grain and other stories. My $0.02 on The Controversy: Some brewpubs brew with extract because they can't use anything else. The Kingston Brewing Company has a matchbox-sized brewhouse with a kettle, two fermenters, and four vessels, and just enough extra space for two brewers to move around in. The reason it's not full-grain is because there is literally no room to put a mash tun in there. Actually, if you ever get the chance, visit it (34 Clarence St, Kingston, Ontario) (usual disclaimers &c, &c). It's amazing the beers they get out of equipment that is, frankly, less than perfect (kettle "fired" by a big, ugly, electric heating element immersed in the boil, and so forth). The point is, for some breweries there is no alternative to extract brewing (as far as I know, that is... Can anyone suggest a way to mash in a 180 imperial gallon kettle, that will later be used for the boil, with a hatch on the top, and a whacking big electric heating element protruding into the kettle about eight inches from the bottom?) - -------------------------- On the question of alcohol contents -- I was always let to understand that the typical Budmilloor had 4% by weight, 5% by volume. - -------------------------- The patron saint of beer and brewers is Saint Arnold -- unfortunately there are two of them. One came from Oudenaarde, in Belgium,and is said to have successfully entreated God to make more beer (thereby quelling a monastic mutiny) after an abbey brewery, and all its store, were destroyed. The other Saint Arnold was also Belgian, and was the Bishop of Soissons. According to Michael Jackson "he is said to have ended a plague by immersing his crucifix into a brew-kettle and persuading the people to drink only beer." Also, Saint Veronus is considered the patron of lambic brewers. - -------------------------- Surely, to a bit of lactic fermantation going, it is only necessary to introduce some lactobacilli? An easy source of the little critters is a tub of live-culture, unflavoured yogourt. Just drop a fingerful into the wort, I would have thought... That's all! If anyone has any suggestions about the mashing questions up there it's probably best to send private e-mail. I'll summarise and post after about a week. Ash Baker <3avhb at qucdn.queensu.ca> Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario. Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 6 Apr 1994 21:52:40 -0400 (EDT) From: "Tim Tillman (BIO)" <tillman at chuma.cas.usf.edu> Subject: Combustability Test Jack, I'm willing to be a test subject. My fire insurance is paid up. :) EXTRACT! EXTRACT! EXTRACT! There, I've said it. Now on to better things. Jack, despite the flames you receive, you are a valuble member of the HBD. I for one appreciate your candor and ability to think and to discuss important issues of this great hobby. I posted this to the general forum because I wanted to be sure EVERYONE got it. Tim Tillman tillman at chuma.cas.usf.edu and still on GEnie m.tillman1.genie.geis.com Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 6 Apr 94 19:10:53 PDT From: raines at radonc.ucla.edu (Maribeth_Raines) Subject: MEMO In regards to the current discussion on Irish Moss. I would like to add that IM works better if you rehydrate for at least 15 minutes prior to adding it to the boil. This seems to be a little known fact in some homebrewing circles. Also Brewers Resource sells a treated IM supposedly used by the big breweries. It's listed as Kettle Coagulant in the catalog. Out of curiosity one day I asked Jeff about this stuff. He said not many homebrewers use it but the big boys do. Anyway I tried it on our last all grain brew (30 gal of a 1.082 maibock, triple decoction!) and it worked great! It looks more like bentonite than IM to me; and you have to rehydrate it in warm water before adding to the boil. It smelled so bad I was hesitant to use it but with the clarity of this beer speaks for itself. I probably won't use anything else. On another note there was a recent post on how to determine the alcohol content of non-alcoholic beers. I found a food analysis kit that specifically determines ethanol. It's actually made for determining alcohol levels in beer, regular and non-acoholic! Unfortunately you need a UV spectrophotometer for detection. Since I am interested in brewing some non-alcoholic beers and have a UV spec in my lab, I purchased a kit. E-mail me privately if you want more info on this (and please leave me your e-mail address so I can e-mail you back!). Oh I almost forgot, I'm off to San Francisco this weekend and next week for the Cancer Research meetings, so I may not get back to you right away. Happy Brewing! Maribeth Raines raines at radonc.ucla.edu Return to table of contents
Date: 06 Apr 1994 21:42:03 -0800 (PST) From: Jay Lonner <8635660 at NESSIE.CC.WWU.EDU> Subject: SUMMARY: Modifying Gott/Rubbermaid 5 gallon cooler Hi, In this morning's HBD I asked a question about replacing the stock spout in a 5 gallon cooler with a piece of 3/8" copper tubing. I mentioned that I was thinking of ramming the tubing into a stopper, and the stopper into the hole left by removing the spout. I have gotten an overwhelming (20+) number of replies and suggestions on this topic. What a great response! Makes me feel like we brewers are one great big happy non-dysfunctional family. Anyway, here are some of the solutions mentioned: - -- go with the stopper idea, but put the stopper in from the inside so that water/mash pressure keeps it in (most popular suggestion) - -- use the above with a good silicon food-grade sealant - -- don't remove the existing spout and drill a new hole for the tubing - -- remove the push-button plunger part of the spigot assembly, plug up the hole where the button went, and attach tubing to the spout part - -- pick up miscellaneous gaskets, washers, tubing, compression fittings, and a faucet from a hardware store (probably the coolest but most involved solution) - -- remove the push-button plunger part of the spigot assembly and just ram the tubing through there I ended up going for a variation on the last suggestion. The tubing wouldn't slide in easily -- the cavity left by removing the plunger wasn't quite big enough -- so I drilled it out with a 3/8" bit, which enlarged it just enough. Now I can slide my tubing in relatively easily (there's still considerable friction) and if it leaks I can always reinstall with a little bit of silicone sealer. I like this option because it is cheap, simple (I'm big into simple, I drive a '68 Bug), and utilizes the gaskets and fittings that came with the cooler, which should result in less leak potential. For those who are curious, I am using one of these coolers to house a Phil's Phalse Bottom and another cooler to hold sparge water. Sorry for the long message but I got a lot of good ideas and thought it was only fair to the group and to those that responded to share them all (or at least most of them -- I may have forgotten some). Jay. Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 06 Apr 1994 23:17:40 -0600 (MDT) From: COYOTE <SLK6P at cc.usu.edu> Subject: Slander and Ridicule: All Grainers Rule! I couldn't help myself. Forgive my aggressions to follow: PETER J VOELKER <pv120859 at hvcc.edu> is "tired of Zima bashing." He states he called them, they said it's "essentially beer that they filter EVERYTHING out of before carbonating." he continues...he "likes it! It's a nice refreshing summer party drink. [He's] not ALWAYS in the mood for beer. So let's just let the stuff be. WE know it's not a malt bev." * If you're not in the mood for beer, make- and drink MEAD! Besides- they DO condone it as a malt beverage, as are wine coolers. Not beer, but malt based nevertheless. He continues to describe how he...."brewed a batch of EXTRACT beer just as [he] usually does, except this time my mini kegs...[bulged] " *{can't get a REAL keg- can ya?!} ... Get a REAL regulator, then we'll talk! "Could my yeast (dried) ....blah blah... (I've done about 20 batches so far)." SO: Pete, slap, ya have a desire to drink ZIMA eh? You actually LIKE it! You brew...EXTRACT...and use DRY YEAST...and MINI KEGS...Hmmmm Hope you're not looking for respect! Slam- slander-spit. 20 batches my left testicle! (I'd like to see a WOMAN say THAT!) So...have you considered the possibility of a CONTAMINANT- a wild yeast perhaps. Infecting your brew and chewing on additional complexes- sugars left untouched be REAL BEER YEAST! Euuey. (best jewish accent) Of COURSE you KNOW that all-grain beers are far superiour to extract beers- especially when using DRY YEAST. Wait- don't tell me, its Red Star right?! Do you think ZIMA is actually an all-grain beer! I'll bet you do! :) Honestly- I was reading this- and couldn't resist. Tongue- is SERIOUSLY in cheek here! ( I guess, but he DOES LIKE Zima????) To add to the debate...I'm a several YEAR all-grainer, but have friends who are still extracters. Some of whom brew beers that are even ALMOST as good as my best attempts. Then again, their average beer is better than my worst contaminated ferment! Technique is as important as ingredients. One of my personal feelings- on behalf of all-grainers around the globe is... that making an excellent all-grain beer is a statement. Of creativity, ability and know-how that cannot be extended in the same manner to an extract beer. Extracters depend HEAVILY on the quality of the base extract used. Technique/cleanliness weigh heavily in the argument, but to be truly responsible for the content, and quality of a homebrewed beer requires knowing what ingredients truly went into that ferment! IMHO. I'm biased! In the same manner- the sourdough -french bread I made last night I can claim to be my own creation, because I started the starter, and doughed it up with my own two hands. It wasn't a ready made- "pop it in the oven" bread mix- preproportioned with idiot proof directions to follow! Ok- so I didn't grind the flour myself, I like to keep my grinder set for cracking! Not flouring...but there is a genuine sense of personal creativity that is found by "going all grain". Knowing EXACTLY what went in a brew. I would sincerely encourage any extract brewer to at least experiment with specialy grains and enjoy the true meaning of MALT beverage! You will notice a difference in both quality and a growing understanding. Andy Pastuzak sez "All grain in my household would involve me setting up house in my basement and using an entire Saturday to make my beer "better." I'm not willing to make that kind of commitment to my brew. I don't know if I ever will be. There is no other hobby that I have that requires me to use 8 hours or so at a shot without being able to stop." Mashing requires a whole hour or more. Time to run the kids out to the park, or as I propose- shuffle the laundry around on a sat afternoon. There are several other "breaks" I allow for- to do shopping, etc etc etc. In addition- I make 10-15 gal in 6 hours- all grain, for about $20-$30. Also- I have been proposing to my wife-to-be that I cook dinner in a dutch oven on my 2 burner "Coyote Cooker"- no tm! (camp stove) while brewing. Seems like a pretty productive saturday afternoon to me! I can probably squeeze in some vacuuming and weeding while I'm at it! It may be six hours, but it is NOT continual "standing over the stove" time. You can do other stuff! Before I get slammed for bashing here- please understand I've had a few Maibocks before I entered the info-highway (so tap me! You Bloody Bastards!!!) and am still celebrating April Fools Day- the day I got engaged... No really! So it isn't actually May yet. The stronger half is dry-hopped and lagering! I too am tired of hearing Zima- and Ice beer bashing. But I do have a genuine feeling about the all-grain vs. extract debate and saw an opportunity for slander and ridicule. Ok- so "Jack syndrome" may hit us all! While I'm on the subject of Mr. Schmidling's H2O... I'd just like to input my 2c, to say that a city as large and great at Chicago is a lot more likely to have consistent water quality- similar to the fact that Miller and Bud can make the SAME tasteless swill from grain, rice, corn, and water collected all over the great united states without any noticable difference in quality. A finger that is most commonly pointed at the small brewer- suffering from quality control problems. Where-as in a small town, such as my own and others frequented by several net-brewers we know, we may suffer seasonal as well as daily- weekly alterations in the quality of water we receive. I guess I all just depends on where you are and how you do it! The point is- essentially- pH WILL affect extraction. Control is possible with proper monitoring. The overall quality of a brew will change with water content- hence why Burton on Trent brews the infamous beers they do! Many Excellent beers attribute a great deal the the quality of water used! Just a slanderous/ bousterous/ ramble / babble from the Coyote. I've been quiet for a number of days. Felt I was entitled to waste some bw! |\ |\| \/| \-\-\- John (The Coyote) Wyllie SLK6P at cc.usu.edu -/-/-/ \ | Originally in Logan, soon to be Smithfield (utah. shhhhhh) ---- Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 15:38:43 +1000 (EST) From: David Draper <ddraper at laurel.ocs.mq.edu.au> Subject: A plea for peace Please folks, let's quit the extract-vs-allgrain exchange. It has degraded into a "no it isn't!" "yes it is!" - like thing that, quite frankly, is no fun to watch. No extract brewer is likely to be able to convince an accomplished allgrainer, ie one who has made the jump to allgrain speed successfully, that they're doing too much work for not enough reward. No allgrainer is going to be able to convince an accomplished extract brewer that what they make isn't worth the bother. Those who do allgrain enjoy the control and access to subtle influence that is largely unavailable to the extract-or, at the cost of extra effort and having to know more about what one is doing. The extractors enjoy quite good beer for less effort, and are able to learn about brewing without as much risk (ie if the batch goes bad, you're out only a couple hours work), at the cost of probably not being able to brew really great beer as often as an allgrainer could. We all have "other lives" to lead outside brewing, and we all must decide what works best for us. Each technique has much to offer its users. I've been brewing for about two years, extract so far. I fully intend to move over to allgrain eventually. However, I do not yet feel that I know enough about how the many interacting factors work to want to make the investment of time, money, and the goodwill of my wife to try it. I have learned a great deal about brewing from this forum and from rec.crafts.brewing, and as much of this comes from comments of allgrainers as from fellow extractors. Surely there are allgrainers who have learned from extractors as well. We all have things to learn and teach, and it helps no one for some to say one technique is too much work while another camp says the product of the other technique is doomed to inferiority. Finally, I have been around here on the net for only a couple of years, and I know there are those who've been around a lot longer, but it *does* seem that Jack S. gets jumped on rather more enthusiastically for strongly-held opinions than do others of equally strong conviction--either agreeing with js or not. I can conceive of this recent ext-vs-a.g. exchange never having gotten very vituperative, nor lasting as many articles, had someone else made comments of a thrust similar to Jack's response to Kinney's writings. I find this puzzling. Thanks for indulging me in my call for a return to interbrewer amity. Cheers, Dave in Sydney - -- ****************************************************************************** David S. Draper School of Earth Sciences, Macquarie University ddraper at laurel.ocs.mq.edu.au NSW 2109 Sydney, Australia Fax: +61-2-805-8428 Voice: +61-2-805-8347 Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 07 Apr 1994 08:33:38 -0400 (EDT) From: Kinney Baughman <BAUGHMANKR at conrad.appstate.edu> Subject: Irish moss, going through the fridge, and coffee beer Jeff and JC talked about Irish Moss and when to add it: One of George's tips to me when I was writing my last article for Zymurgy was to rehydrate the Irish moss *the day before the brew*. We have a couple of beers underway at the brewery now in which we remembered to do that. :-) I'm trying to determine how big a difference it makes. I know we had a golden ale last month that was hands down clearer than anything we have brewed so far. As the beergods would have it, though, we failed to note if it was one of the beers in which we had rehydrated the IM that far in advance. Bill asks about drilling through the side of a refrigerator and JC says: >they make taps with various length shafts I tried using shafts the first time I modified a refrigerator and I've blown out several kegs of CO2 when the fittings started leaking. The second time around I drilled holes through the sides of the refrigerator and fitted the holes with rubber grommets. Put a little vaseline on the CO2 lines and slide them through. Airtight, the fittings don't sweat or leak, and they're a helluvalot cheaper. Oh, yes. If you go through the door of the refrigerator, you'll turn the taps on sometime when you close the door. So you'll want to consider going through the side. Having said that, taps on the door look appropriate and make an immediate impression on anyone entering your kitchen for the first time. :-) Finally, Dave asks about adding coffee beans to the mash: You won't get any coffee flavor putting the beans in the mash. Wait until you bottle and pour a freshly brewed, slightly strong, pot of coffee in with the beer when it's in the bottling bucket. You'll have to play with the measurements. I've used 1-2 oz. of coffee to a pint of beer to good effect. Cheers ya'll, - -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Kinney Baughman | Beer is my business and baughmankr at conrad.appstate.edu | I'm late for work. - -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 08:36:29 -0500 From: trl at photos.wustl.edu (Tom Leith MIR/ERL 362-6965) Subject: Raspberry Stout On the topic of fruit-flavored beers -- two other brewers in my Club, Ginger Wotring and Tom Finan, and I brewed a Raspberry Imperial Stout a couple months back. Tom has dubbed it "Triple Threat", and printed cool Three Stooges lables for the bottles. I'm not sure which of us is Moe. Anyhow, I bought raspberry flavoring from our local homebrew supply shop, and its this stuff I want to tell you-all about. The flavoring is absolutely clear, and comes in a 4 ounce bottle. I used a whole bottle in my share (3-1/2 gallons) of the brew. The supplier told me the flavoring is extracted from genuine raspberries by a process called "carbon dioxide distillation". I'm not sure just what this means, but no organic solvents are used to make the extract, so its all "natural" and quite pure. But here's the catch: This stuff is absolutely without flavor!!!! There is no gustatory sensation at all, its all olfactory. The aroma is dead-on raspberry, and strong too. When you pour a beer into your glass, you smell the raspberries just fine. But there's no raspberry flavor to back it up. I suspect the way you're supposed to use this kind of extract is to make a syrup of sugar and citric acid, and dump-in the raspberry smell. That would probably be pretty convincing. But I can't reccommend you use it in your beer. Another brewer in our Club is making a raspberry flavored beer using a red syrupy flavoring obtained from St. Patrick's down in Austin. If I get a chance to taste this, I'll report on it. But I suspect I'll want to use frozen raspberries next time. And a 1-1/2" blowoff tube... t Return to table of contents
Date: 07 Apr 1994 08:14:00 -0600 (CST) From: "Michael D. Hansen (708) 938-3184" <HANSEN.MICHAEL at igate.abbott.com> Subject: Sparging / Blowoff tubes Hey All, Brian J. Cecil, you've done it now! You mentioned that *word*! :-) Stephen Hudson writes about sparging into the fermenter with cold water in it after a boiling a partial mash recipe. IMO, sparging is an unfortunate choice of words by Papazian. What he means is to simply pour the wort through a strainer to remove hops junk and hotbreak so they wont go into the fermenter. No hot water is involved. There is a picture of him pouring wort through a strainer into his carboy in his book somewhere in the beginners section so you can see exactly what the technique is. (Sorry I can't tell you exactly the page # since I am at work and don't keep my beer books here!). Of course, straining the wort before pouring into a fermenter is appropriate for partial mash, all-grain, and (gulp) extract. As the person who brewed the raspberry stout mentions, his 3/8" blowoff tube became clogged with raspberry goo. 3/8" is way too small for a blowoff tube. You should use a 1 1/4" blowoff tube that fits snugly inside the neck of your carboy. After the brew is done spewing you can put the rubber carboy cap on with an airlock. Brew on my friends, Mike Hansen (HANSENMD at RANDB.ABBOTT.COM) Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 7 Apr 94 10:00:06 -0400 From: ewcorco at erenj.com Subject: Whatney's Red Barrel Recipe Greetings! I'm new to the list so please excuse me if this question has been answered before - does anyone have a recipe which comes close to Whatney's Red Barrel Ale? I'd like to brew it from mash if possible. Thanks in advance for any advice. Ned Corcoran ewcorco at erenj.com Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 07 Apr 1994 08:46:28 -0600 (CST) From: Robert Schultz <Robert.Schultz at usask.ca> Subject: Effect of decreasing mash temp Most of what I have read recently has cautioned against a decreasing mash temp. but has not clarified what the effect(s) will be. I typically kettle mash, bringing the temp up to a specified point, turn off my heat source, insulate and cover the kettle and then _relax_. Typical temperature drops are about 1C per hour. What effect will this have? The last batch I did was in my garage and the temp drop was about 9C per hour and I was forced to reheat to hold a mash temp. What will this do? Also, there was a thread some time ago about a temperature compensated ph meter with a temperature readout for under $60. I think I want one of these now, but can find the thread.... Anyone still have it? Rob ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~ Robert.Schultz at usask.ca, Senior Research Analyst, University of Saskatchewan ~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~ "I'm going off half-cocked? I'm going off half-cocked? ... ~ ~ Well, Mother was right - You can't argue with a shotgun." - Gary Larson ~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 07 Apr 94 10:50:31 EDT From: Aaron Morris <SYSAM at ALBANY.ALBANY.EDU> Subject: Growing hoops It's hard to give advice on growing hoops without knowing what kind of hoops you want to grow. For instance, hula hoops prefer tropical climates such as Southern California and Hawaii. They have been known to flourish in other climes and spread like wild fire through the United States in the late fifties and early sixties, but due to a lack of continued interest, hula hoops have pretty much died out and are fairly hard to find these days. Possible sources for roots may be garage sales or the Whammo Corporation. More commonly found varieties include sewing and embroidery hoops which can be found almost anywhere that grass grows. Check crafts or sewing shops (Singer is a sure bet). Another common variety is the barrel hoop (check your local blacksmith). Harder varieties to find include skirt hoops (which can be found at antique shops if you're lucky) and magical hoops, which can be found at speciality supply shops, but I can never figure out how they work. Finally, you can find gardening hoops in some of the finer garden supply magazines. Gardening hoops can be especially useful in supporting your hops! DISCLAIMER: This is a joke, no flames please. Spare me the hoopla! Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 07 Apr 94 10:59:05 EST From: dweller at GVSU.EDU (RONALD DWELLE) Subject: successful cream ale A couple months ago, I asked for suggestions on making an American "Cream Ale." From all the responses, I developed the following receipe: Spring Buds Cream Ale (5 gallons) Grains: 7 pounds Schreir Brewer's Malt 2 row 1.5 pounds caramel pils 1 pound pale ale Step mash (American 2-row method, 135x then 165x then mashout) American Ale Yeast (Yeast Lab A02) 1/2 ounce Perle each, at 60 min, 30 min, and finish 1 ounce Willamette, dry hopped 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon ascorbic Primed with 1.5 quarts gyle from the boil. The beer is 2-weeks in the bottle now, and quite nice, though quite a bit hoppier than commercial cream ale (that's okay with me). To try to replicate something like "Little Kings," I'd probably reduce the hops a lot. Cheers Ron Dwelle (dweller at gvsu.edu) Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 08:07:21 -0700 From: Richard B. Webb <rbw1271 at appenine.ca.boeing.com> Subject: brewing with coffe Dave in Bloomington asks about brewing with coffee. I cannot speak from experience on the subject, but I wonder about one point. I wonder if the oils that would be leeched from the coffee grounds would become a problem for cleaning? As an alternative, Larry Riffenberick, proprieter of Larry's Brewing in Kent Washington does not drink coffee (that I know of), but he does drink something that tastes like coffee. (No funny business with chives here!) I believe his recipe calls for 2 parts light crystal malt, and 1 part roasted barley. He throws this into his drip coffee maker just like coffee, although the quantities may not be equal to coffee. Adjust to taste. With all of the bickering about this and that, there certainly seems to be enough flame around to heat up this kind of brew. It also has no caffeine, which also may make for less aggrivation, agitation, and strife here on the HBD. Rich Webb Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 7 Apr 94 12:17:08 EDT From: Allan Rubinoff <rubinoff at BBN.COM> Subject: Re: Kill Jack Schmidling? Glenn (GANDE at SLIMS.ATTMAIL.COM) writes: >Why does everyone jump all over Jack Schmidling? I've been reading and >posting to the HBD for 2 years now and whenever he say's ANYTHING, a >zillion posts are made to dispute his comments. I don't always agree >with his statements, but that's because I have a different belief on >how something is done. The posts I've seen recently (and there's been a >few) are getting so petty as to argue syntax, who said what, etc. When I first started reading HBD, I wondered about this as well. Now that I've been reading for a few months, I think I do understand. The problem with Jack's posts is that they leave no room for disagreement. Jack doesn't seem to understand that there is more than one "right" way to do things. The tone of his posts says "I know the truth. If you disagree with me, it's only evidence of how benighted you are." Kind of like accusing someone of having a drinking problem, and if they disagree, claiming their disagreement is a sign of denial and further proof of the problem. Notice that Jack's posts often contain insulting comments that are almost guaranteed to elicit heated responses. A while back he referred to extract brewers as "lazy." Now he implies that Kinney's beers are "mediocre," even though he's never tried them. I also notice that when people respond angrily to Jack's posts, he claims that they misunderstood him. The exchange about Tumbleweed is a good example of this. First Jack suggested that extract beers were inherently mediocre. Then he backed off, saying that his point was that whatever the results, the reason for using extract is that it's easier than all-grain. This is disingenuous, to say the least. If you go back to his original post, it's clear that he was claiming that it's pointless for a brewpub to brew from extract, because the beer won't be good enough to justify the effort. I'm tired of the endless disputes, too, but I think most of the responsibility lies with Jack. I'm especially tired of the sneers at extract brewers, and the smug assertions that the easymasher is the solution to all problems. This is brewing, for God's sake, not moral philosophy. Let's try to keep some things in perspective. -Allan Rubinoff <rubinoff at bbn.com> Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 07 Apr 94 12:28:34 EST From: Bob_McIlvaine at keyfile.com Subject: Fridge control A very economical fridge temperature controller can be made from and LM324, an opto-coupled triac, and a power triac. It includes, a time delay circuit using a 555 to prevent quick cycling on the compressor. You can replace the opto/triac combo with a solid state relay if you like. This guy doesn't have fancy displays so you need to calibrate it with your own thermometer. It also doen't have the range limitations that the Hunter stats have. For details, send me private email at: mac at mv.mv.com Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 7 Apr 94 18:33:47 MET DST From: John Oberpriller x7937 <s12int::l375bbk at alcatel.be> Subject: Brewing Education/RE:Danny Dumps A few days back I posted a question about becoming a brewmaster. No one responded.( But then my email connection is unreliable at best. ) Since then I've seen mentions in HBD for a program at UC Davis and an Institute in Chicago. If anyone has any info it would be greatly appreciated. Please post answer to HBD as my mail connection seems to be one way now. Danny, funny story. However, did you get the date wrong or is this some feeble cut at Tumbleweed?? Thanks, John Oberpriller Stuttgart, Germany Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 07 Apr 1994 12:30:26 -0500 (EST) From: "Daniel R. Sidebottom" <SIDEBODR at SCOBVA.COBLESKILL.EDU> Subject: Hop Roots Hello again, In a previous message I had asked where I could find Hoop roots. What I meant to say was "HOP ROOTS". I would like to start to grow my own Hops. Thank you Dan Daniel R. Sidebottom Coordinator of Computer Services Phone: (518)234-5258 Decnet: scobva::sidebodr Bitnet: sidebodr at snycobva Internet: sidebodr at scobva.cobleskill.edu Return to table of contents
End of HOMEBREW Digest #1393, 04/08/94