HOMEBREW Digest #3249 Tue 15 February 2000

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	FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
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Contents:
  Capricious Mr Fouch ("Phil & Jill Yates")
  Re figuring out the degrees/gal/min of a herms (RobertJ)
  2nd Annual Palmetto State Brewers Open ("H. Dowda")
  Re: fermentap (Kurt Kiewel)
  Ethanol from glucose, sterols, oxygen (pt.1) ("Alan Meeker")
  Ethanol form glucose, sterols, oxygen (pt. 2) ("Alan Meeker")
  Magnetic stirrer question (Edward Seymour)
  CAP Questions/ bottle fur (Edward Seymour)
  Wyeast, Bottle fur ("Spies, Jay")
  Micheal Jackson World Beer Tour ("Eric R. Theiner")
  Pitching rates. ("Dr. Pivo")
  Best of Brooklyn 2000 ("George de Piro")

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---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 23:42:41 +1100 From: "Phil & Jill Yates" <yates at acenet.com.au> Subject: Capricious Mr Fouch I have to take my hat off to Mr Fouch, he lies dormant and quiet for months on end then strikes like an angry snake. Mind you, it has taken a fair bit of prodding to make him jump. Something about his Florida holiday has definitely got him hot and prickly. But who knows just what personality he may assume next. Ever since Ray Kruse told him his pumpkin lager could be sold as paint stripper, well he just hasn't been himself at all, whatever "himself" was. As for discussing Australian reptiles, when I mentioned to Eric I was in the habit of keeping Chelodina Longicolis about the house as pets, he refused to speak further on the matter. I am beginning to suspect it was Eric and not poor Ray who sent me this atrocious bottle of skunk odour. Cheers Phil Yates Ex Baron of Burradoo Return to table of contents
Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 08:34:22 -0500 From: RobertJ <pbsys at pbsbeer.com> Subject: Re figuring out the degrees/gal/min of a herms >From: J Daoust <thedaousts at ixpres.com> > >I just gave my new herms a try, and I think it did pretty good, I heated >4 gals. of water 35 degrees in 30 min. I came up with 4.64 degrees >/gal/min. I divided the 35 by 30 and got 1.16, then, multiplied by 4 >for the amount of water. Is that right? That's the calculation we use. Although I have not seen a lot of data from others, from what I have seen, I believe most homebuilt systems using the HLT as the heat source get about 10 deg/gal/min. Non HLT heat exchangers (electric heating chamber, counterflow chiller) vary greatly. PBS HERMS runs at 20-21 deg/gal/min (6.3 gal, 28 deg inc within 9 mins). However, a more practical calculation includes the addition of 19 lbs of grain to the above, giving 17.6 deg/gal min). Data can be found on our page Bob Precision Brewing Systems URL http://pbsbeer.com Manufacturer of 3 Vessel Brew Systems, HERMS(tm), SS Brew Kettles, SS hopback and the MAXIchiller Return to table of contents
Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 06:13:03 -0800 (PST) From: "H. Dowda" <hdowda at yahoo.com> Subject: 2nd Annual Palmetto State Brewers Open April 8, 2000, Columbia, SC. Entries close April 1, 2000. On-line entry, AHA/BJCP, $5/beer. http://www.sagecat.com/psbcomp2.htm __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com Return to table of contents
Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 08:52:47 -0600 From: kiewel at mail.chem.tamu.edu (Kurt Kiewel) Subject: Re: fermentap Will Randle wrote "..In addition to Kurt K.'s question, I was wondering how does the CO2 produced/evolved during fermentation escape from the inverted carboy?" I can answer this one but it brings another question to mind. The gasses escape through a racking cane tip that goes all the way up through the inverted carboy. I have thought of trying a Fermentap but one time during a normal fermentation the foam and break material clogged the bubbler. This clog resulted in a build-up of pressure and eventually the top blew the bubbler off with such force that I spent the entire day cleaning wort off the ceiling, walls, windows... With a Fermentap if the same were to happen I propose the pressure would build up enough to break the carboy with even more disastrous results. Comments? Kurt Kiewel Brewing in Texas. Return to table of contents
Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 10:11:20 -0500 From: "Alan Meeker" <ameeker at welchlink.welch.jhu.edu> Subject: Ethanol from glucose, sterols, oxygen (pt.1) Got bounced for length - will post in two parts... > >> basic information I > > >would like to ask you for is this: What is the formula for the breakdown > > >of glucose to etoh and co2 during anaerobic respiration. What are > > >sterols and how do they function in the yeast cell wall and where does > > >o2 function in making sterols. This is the most technical info I would > > >need. Thanks for all of your help. > ETHANOL FROM GLUCOSE: The overall equation for ethanol formation from glucose is: 1 Glucose (C6H12O6) ---------> 2 Ethanol (C2H5OH) + 2 CO2 This is performed anaerobically. The process shares the set of reactions called glycolysis (also called the Embden-Meyerhof pathway) with aerobic respiration. Glycolysis is a series of enzyme-catalyzed reactions that function to split molecules of glucose (a 6 carbon compound) into two molecules of pyruvic acid (a 3 carbon compound). During glycolysis a NET synthesis of 4 ATP molecules (Adenosine triphosphate) per glucose results. This ATP is used later for energy-requiring reactions in the cell. The point where pyruvic acid is formed is an important metabolic branchpoint in yeast. If oxygen is available the pyruvate will eventually be degraded completely to water and CO2 and yield a maximum amount of metabolic energy (net of 38 ATP molecules). This is a pretty efficient process, capturing 266 kcal in the form of ATP out of a possible 686 kcal of energy (the amount determined for the complete oxidation of glucose in calorimetry) thus, using aerobic respiration, we can capture 39% of the available energy with the remainder being released as heat. When we make beer we exclude oxygen during the bulk of the fermentation (the small amount of oxygen present initially in the wort is quickly used up by the yeast). Under these oxygen-free conditions the yeast convert the pyruvic acid made in glycolysis to ethanol. The process goes in two steps: Pyruvic acid (3 carbon compound) -------> acetaldehyde (2 carbon compound) + CO2 Acetaldehyde --------------> Ethanol (2 carbon compound) Now, you may notice that no more energy is being captured in this further processing of pyruvic acid so why is the yeast going to all this trouble???? It is because there is a key oxidation - reduction step in glycolysis. This step uses the compound NAD (Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide) reducing it with the addition of hydrogen to make NADH. Since there is only a limited amount of NAD in the cell, glycolysis would quickly come to a screeching halt once all this NAD was reduced to NADH. Without glycolysis the cell would not be generating any metabolic energy in the form of ATP and would then die so it is imperative that the yeast keep glycolysis running. Thus, the purpose of converting pyruvic acid to ethanol is simply to regenerate NAD from the NADH generated during glycolysis. An aside - our muscles do a similar thing during strenuous exercise when oxygen is limited and cannot keep up with the muscle's demand and need to generate energy. Here, the muscle also uses fermentation though in this case the end result is lactic acid rather than ethanol. Some bacteria also perform lactic acid fermentation and can thus "sour" beer. In all these cases the goal is the same - to regenerate NAD from NADH so that glycolysis can continue. -Alan Meeker Lazy Eight Brewery "Where the possibilities are infinite." Baltimore, MD Return to table of contents
Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 10:13:23 -0500 From: "Alan Meeker" <ameeker at welchlink.welch.jhu.edu> Subject: Ethanol form glucose, sterols, oxygen (pt. 2) > > basic information I > > would like to ask you for is this: What is the formula for the breakdown > > of glucose to etoh and co2 during anaerobic respiration. What are > > sterols and how do they function in the yeast cell wall and where does > > o2 function in making sterols. This is the most technical info I would > > need. Thanks for all of your help. STEROLS AND OXYGEN: Sterols are a subset of lipids - water insoluble molecules that play key architectural roles in cell membranes. Sterols are multi-ringed organic compounds that all share a common structure along the lines of cholesterol. The main sterol in yeast is called ergosterol. It plays an important part in the cell membrane; affecting such membrane properties as permeability, fluidity, and, through these or via direct effects, affect the functions of membrane-resident enzymes. The yeast can obtain it's sterol either pre-formed in the wort or can synthesize it from scratch. However, oxygen is required to synthesize sterols. Specifically, oxygen is used in two of the late steps in sterol synthesis at least one of which is involved in cyclization. This is one of the reasons yeast cannot grow indefinitely in the absence of oxygen. The other reason is that oxygen is required for the synthesis of certain unsaturated fatty acids - another subset of lipids important in membrane structure/function. Research has shown that if yeast are supplied with pre-formed ergosterol /and/ unsaturated fatty acids they can grow indefinitely without ever seeing any oxygen. As far as the cell wall goes - there is a difference between the cell wall and the cell membrane. All cells have cell membranes; these are made up of lipids and proteins and are where the bulk of the sterols and fatty acids (both saturated and unsaturated) occur. The cell membrane encloses the cell acting as a barrier between the cell and the environment. A primary function of the cell membrane is to regulate the traffic of compounds between the cell interior and exterior. In addition to the cell membrane, free-living cells such as yeast and bacteria also have a cell wall which lies outside of the cell membrane. This is necessary because the environment these organisms find themselves in are unregulated in terms of the amount of water present (osmolarity). Water is able to cross cell membranes freely and if there is a lot of water outside the cell it will rush inside greatly increasing the hydrostatic pressure causing the cell to blow up like a balloon. If the imbalance is too great the cell will actually burst. We humans don't have a problem with this since our bodies regulate our cells' environment so that they are not osmotically challenged. In contrast, when yeast find themselves surrounded by water the water enters the cell causing it to swell but the cell wall restricts the swelling. The cell wall is made up of a tough meshwork of polysaccharides and proteins, lipids don't play much of a role here. Here's a simple model: imagine putting a water balloon in a small basket. The balloon represents the cell membrane while the basket represents the cell wall. If you fill the balloon with water it expands till it's continued expansion is restricted by the basket. The cell wall also serves to protect the yeast cell from physical damage. A few things to note here: 1) Once the oxygen is used up in the beginning of the fermentation no more sterols or UFAs will be synthesized by the yeast. Thus, the total amount of sterols present at this point will now be meted out among all the yeast progeny during the subsequent growth of the yeast population. The result is that a yeast population starting with a maximum amount of sterol will be limited to dividing about 4-5 times. This is why your yeast starter should be grown with plenty of oxygen exposure to ensure that they are maximally charged with sterols and UFAs. Also, it should also be obvious that even if your starter /is/ well oxygenated, if it is too small it may not be able to grow to a sufficient density to conduct a rapid and complete fermentation. Of course, this will depend to some extent on the degree of oxygenation of the wort as well as on the amounts of UFAs and sterols present in the wort. Since glucose inhibits aerobic respiration it appears that much of the oxygen absorbed by the yeast early in the fermentation is probably being used for lipid synthesis 2) UFAs are not precursor compounds for the synthesis of sterols. UFAs and sterols are made in distinct pathways so, contrary to what some think, providing UFAs or having UFAs around from the malt will NOT contribute directly to sterol synthesis. However, it may provide the cell indirect help in that if the cell can obtain its UFAs from the wort then oxygen that would have been used for UFA synthesis can be used instead for sterol synthesis. 3) Since sterols and UFAs play key roles in membrane structure/function, if these compounds become limiting the yeast may be stressed in a number of ways exhibiting temperature, alcohol and osmotic sensitivities as well as deficiencies in nutrient transport across the membrane. All of these can cause problems for our beer fermentations including stuck ferments and an increased tendency for autolysis. -Alan Meeker Lazy Eight Brewery "Where the possibilities are infinite." Baltimore, MD Return to table of contents
Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 07:15:34 -0800 (PST) From: Edward Seymour <eseymour at yahoo.com> Subject: Magnetic stirrer question Someone a few weeks back gave a heads up on magnetic stirrers under $20.00 on ebay. I was hi bidder the day before this post, when all of a sudden all of the bids jumped up over $65.00. Things have settled and I was able to purchase one for $16.50 plus shipping and handling (see, not only is Jack charging for S&H, but so is the general public) ; ) http://cgi.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=256917026 My question to the digest is, now that I have one, what the #$! at do I do with it? I heard it told (or read it in the HBD) that I can make starters that are reported to have 10 times more yeast cells with a stirrer, but how is this done? Do I just make a starter as usual, put in a stir bar and make a nice gentle motion on the surface, or do I put it on high and make a tornado? Are there any books on the subject (with lots of BIG pictures) for the science illiterate? Someone last fall was willing to write such a book if there was a need. Did they start? Do they need someone to test their process? Another thing, I would like to start culturing my own yeast. How do I do this? What other equipment should I buy (is there a kit)? Will I need an Autoclave, or will something like this do? http://cgi.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=257151470 I just purchased a microscope on ebay can I use this for cell count? (http://cgi.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=244285359) There is a small community college in my area that offers classes in science. What type of class should I take? All these questions, not enough beer. Regards, Ed Seymour, Hamden, CT "I thought that when you said 'you would be happy with a MALTMILL', all of this would end" Beverly Seymour, patient wife. http://geocities.com/eseymour/brewery.html __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com Return to table of contents
Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 07:43:37 -0800 (PST) From: Edward Seymour <eseymour at yahoo.com> Subject: CAP Questions/ bottle fur Back in December Jeff Rennier was kind enough to Post his rendition of a Clasic American Pilsner using percentages of the grain bill. I asked the local homebrew store if they carried the corn meal that Jeff recommends, but the only corn product that he carried was flaked maize (sales employee, owner was not there). I made this brew using the flaked maize and Noonans' three step method of decoction. After lautering I found a gray crust on the top of the spent grains. It looked like gun powder. What was that stuff? It was only 1/8 of an inch thick, but it covered the top of the spent grains. Everything else with the beer was fine (smell, color, taste, etc). I've made pilsners before using the three step decoction, and none of that stuff showed up. ================================ I never had the pleasure of having this fur in any of my beer that I have made. If the culprit is static, has anybody tried using Static Guard on a bottle? It works on my wife's skirt. : ) Regards, Ed Seymour, Hamden, CT Head brewer, bottle washer. http://geocities.com/eseymour/brewery.html __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com Return to table of contents
Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 14:08:10 -0500 From: "Spies, Jay" <Spies at dhcd.state.md.us> Subject: Wyeast, Bottle fur All - Some comments have floated on the HBD concerning Mike Maceyka's post about finding cocci floating about in several smak paks of Wyeast that he streaked and scoped out (including, I assume, someone from Wyeast). As he is in the middle of preparing for defense of his Ph.D. thesis in Molecular Biology, I thought I'd chime in (he's in my brew club). Fred Scheer in particular had some comments. Yes, Wyeast does a great service to the brewing community by providing a good variety of yeast strains to the brewing public. So do a lot of other companies. When examining the yeast that prompted him to write the article, Mike was as surprised as anyone to find the level of contamination that he did. It wasn't a witch hunt. Additionally, he did his work in a bio lab at Hopkins, not in some musty cellar, so before others point fingers in his direction, perhaps they should simply ask him to quantify his methodology. He *didn't* say that Wyeast products are inferior, nor did he make any direct accusations about any *intention* on the part of Wyeast to put these critters in their yeast packets. He also said that N=1 for his "test". He and Alan Meeker maintain our club's yeast bank (which puts Wyeast to shame, IMO), and was streaking and scoping for his own quality control purposes. He found what he found. For me, the ball is in Wyeast's court... If Wyeast is found to have contaminated smak-paks, I want to hear about it. The fact that they have a lot of experts on their staff doesn't necessarily guarantee a quality product. The Government has a lot of experts on their staff too... Perhaps they need to re-evaluate their QC. I would certainly hate to hear that it *was* intentional (though I doubt we would ever hear that). As for the statement that we should "stay to homebrew discussions" - Um...I thought this *was* a homebrew discussion. If Wyeast wants to keep our business, they will need to ensure that they have a quality product. Same applies to any business in the world. If it is shown that they don't, or can't, or won't, then I'll go elsewhere. As for the bottle fur discussion, I yanked a few of my long-term storage Belgians, and yep, there was the fur. Strangely enough, the fur was all on one side. Stranger still, careful analysis and GPS plotting revealed that they were all oriented toward Rennerian (0,0). Perhaps the yeasties are all longing to go back to their true home at the center of the brewing universe, but keep *DOH!* smacking into that pesky bottle wall... Jay Spies Wishful Thinking Basement Brewery Baltimore, MD Return to table of contents
Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 11:19:25 -0800 From: "Eric R. Theiner" <logic at skantech.com> Subject: Micheal Jackson World Beer Tour Rich asks about experiences with the subject organization. All I know is that you'll have problems if you join in North Carolina. We have some of those stupid beer laws that are found all around the country, one of which is the 6% alcohol cap. I don't know exactly which laws are to blame, but since joining in May, I have received only 3 shipments. Legal problems are the reasons cited to me when I call or e-mail to see what's going on. Return to table of contents
Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 21:35:30 +0100 From: "Dr. Pivo" <dp at pivo.w.se> Subject: Pitching rates. It was asked by Tim Sigafoose: > Are > there reasons other than healthy fermentations why one would be > concerned with pitching rates? There are three possible correct answers to this question: a) Increased esters. b) Encouragement of the production of higher alcohols. and... c) Nobody knows. And the correct answer is...... "c". If you search the archives, you will find that there is an "exact" reccomendation of pitching rates and number of generation turnovers. You will also find that "nobody has done anything about finding out if these numbers are relevant." If you are looking to make "Budweiser", then I think that this is advice well worth heading. If you are looking to make your "best beer", it is probably well worth ignoring. My own solution was a serrindipodous combination of underpitching, and lower than reccommended temperatures.... made the smoothest and richest beer I've yet tasted. Since then I've consistantly split my ferments, and proved to myself many times that the "minimum daily requirement" is the result of industrial brewing who has reinforced its belief in itself. That this forum continually cites the information disseminated from an industry where we all know where it is heading (tasteless, and lasts forever), is a sad comment indeed. One would think that "Homebrewers" would be more interested in creating something that "perhaps had a short shelf life, but was brilliant in it's day(s)", but that seems not the case. If you are considering pitching rates in general, I would say, if you're a bit behind on your hygiene, a healthy pitching rate is a good way to protect against infection.... if you are looking for good beer you'll just have to play with it (one yeast strain.... lots of 'spurments"). I am always scepitcle of the reporter who says: "Last week I brewed a Belgium wit, and English Bitter, a Czech Pilsner, and a Stout.... and they were all great!" With good reason these particular beers usually stop becoming available at there nation's borders... it takes an extreme familiarity of style, and attention to detail. A life time is probably enough to learn two styles correctly.... in North Amerika they become "experts" on about two styles a week.... if failing to match someone else's evaluation, then there's is "more authentic". ooh boy. If you visit a "traditional brewery" (there's not that many left) you will be surprised at two things: 1) How variant there methods are form that that is reccomended here. 2) How bloody brilliant there beer is. If I was going to make a reccomendation, I would pick out Nuwarelia in Sri Lanka, where they haven't changed a brick since the British left.... it sure don't travel, but on site might remind you why you wanted to become a homebrewer. A closer to hand example for the Yanks might be "Belize". They haven't been able to afford to change anything, and you might see the value in that. Elsewise you might listen to the industrial dogma that is spouted here, that is .... how should I put this delicately.... yes, diplomatically.... "crap" Dr. Pivo Return to table of contents
Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 17:01:23 -0500 From: "George de Piro" <gdepiro at fcc.net> Subject: Best of Brooklyn 2000 Hi all, This is the final announcement for the third annual ***BEST OF BROOKLYN HOMEBREW COMPETITION*** The *Malted Barley Appreciation Society* and *Brooklyn Brewery* are once again joining forces to bring you one heck of a homebrew contest! The event will be held on Sat., Feb. 26, 2000 at the Brooklyn Brewery (79 North 11th Street in Brooklyn, NY). Entries must be received by Friday, Feb. 18. Check our website for a drop-off point near you. The Best of Show prize this year is a custom-made Brooklyn Brewery leather jacket (valued at $400!). Aside from the standard BJCP categories, there is our unique "First time entrants" category and Experimental category which encourages the entry of historical recreations. Check out our website at http://hbd.org/mbas/bob2000.html for details! We need judges and stewards!!! You can register electronically at the above website or contact me for more info! Good luck and have fun! George de Piro C.H. Evans Brewing Company at the Albany Pump Station (518)447-9000 http://evansale.com (under construction) Malted Barley Appreciation Society Homebrew Club http://hbd.org/mbas Return to table of contents
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