HOMEBREW Digest #654 Fri 07 June 1991

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


Contents:
  Blank Mail Note (wegeng)
  Hopped Dry Extract (Thomas Conner)
  Pgh Pubs (Michael Harlan Shea)
  Re: Mashing Crystal and Cara-Pils Malts? (Ken Giles)
  Light Struck beer. (S94TAYLO)
  Re: Homebrew Digest #652 (June 05, 1991) (Jean Hunter)
  UK beer festivals this summer (pmh)
  KC Brewpubs (Eric Rose)
  Clement Brewing Company (also, Chapterhouse in Ithaca, NY) (Dave Kohr)
  Mashing High Dextrin Content Malts (Mike Charlton)
  Leaping to the Defense of Iowa (MC2331S)
  Re: Thanks and a mead question. (Chris Shenton)
  Re: Acid Carboys (Chris Shenton)
  Papazian index (David Arnold)
  Use of sugar (dbreiden)
  Trouble with trub, crystal malt (Mike Peterson)
  Mashing Crystal and Cara-Pils Malts? (Brian Smithey)
  How to get "Bombed" on Homebrew. (resubmit from #646) (IOCONNOR)
  Homebrewers in Morgantown, WV? (STEPHENS)
  heretic again (Geoffrey Sherwood)
  the recipe book (David King)
  sunlight and beer (David King)
  two questions (Joe Uknalis)
  Priming with honey 
  Supplies in St. Louis (Rob)

Send submissions to homebrew%hpfcmi at hplabs.hp.com Send requests to homebrew-request%hpfcmi at hplabs.hp.com [Please do not send me requests for back issues] Archives are available from netlib at mthvax.cs.miami.edu
---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 6 Jun 1991 05:25:01 PDT From: wegeng at arisia.xerox.com Subject: Blank Mail Note >I'm starting a still mead which will probably require at >least a year of aging after bottling. Is it best to bottle this kind of >mead with caps, or corks. I bottle mine with corks, but I don`t think that it really matters. I`ve talked to the winemakers at a couple wineries about this, and they said that corks are used now days mostly because their customers associate corks with better wine. Crown caps are cheaper, and provide a better seal. I use corks for the same reason as the wineries - they look better. /Don Return to table of contents
Date: 06/06/91 From: Thomas Conner <SYSTCT%GSU.EDU at CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU> Subject: Hopped Dry Extract I am interested in trying Papazian's recipe for Quiddity Dutch Lager (p. 162 of Joy) but am unable to find Wunderbrau hopped dry malt extract crystals. I've tried my local shop as well as Great Fermentations. Any suggestions about other sources or possible substitutions? Thanks in advance. Tom Conner Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 91 10:39:12 -0400 (EDT) From: Michael Harlan Shea <ms7i+ at andrew.cmu.edu> Subject: Pgh Pubs I don't know why I don't know this information, but it occurred to me that I'm unaware of any brewpubs in the Pittsburgh (or Oakland/ Shadyside/Squrrel Hill) area. Are there any? Thank you kindly, and May your Armadillo never drink and drive, Michael Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 91 08:05:32 PDT From: keng at ic.MENTORG.COM (Ken Giles) Subject: Re: Mashing Crystal and Cara-Pils Malts? In HBD #653, Mark Rouleau says: > On the other hand, won't mashing convert all those dextrins > into simple sugars that yeast like? If so, what happens to the > rich mouth feel and sweetness that these malts are intended to > produce? Yes, mashing can convert the dextrins in crystal malt to simple sugars. But it won't convert the carmelized sugars, and that's part of the intended contribution of crystal malt, as well. So, what about mouth feel and sweetness? They must be controlled with mashing temperature, which can be adjusted to favor a dextrinous wort. Or, you can add the crystal after the mash, just like you would in an extract brew. kg. Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 91 11:47 EST From: <S94TAYLO%USUHSB.BITNET at CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU> Subject: Light Struck beer. The problem with UV exposure of beer is that a photoisomerization of certain hop components occurs, producing a "skunky" aroma. In some beers on some occasions, it is VERY distinct. The worst I've had it was with a fifth of Steinlager (have you had one yet?) from New Zealand. It is bottled in green glass, which doesn't absorb very much in the high frequency wavelength. Brown glass absorbs very well in this range. Finally, to answer the question that was asked in #653, most breweries DON'T protect their beer in green or clear bottles, and it IS susceptible to skunk. Miller Brewing Co. chemically converts their hop components so that they can no longer be converted into the skunky aromatic, while still retaining its hoppy character. Al Taylor Bethesda, Maryland Uniformed Services University School of Medicine Disclaimer (does anyone ever really read these disclaimers?): The views expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the views of this institution, the Department of Defense, or any other uptight medical student here or anywhere else. They are solely those of the author. Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 06 Jun 91 11:41:30 EDT From: Jean Hunter <MS3Y at CORNELLA.cit.cornell.edu> Subject: Re: Homebrew Digest #652 (June 05, 1991) On the subject of dry ice for beer carbonation I would like to post two comments that came in since HBD652. First, dry ice is not known for food-grade cleanliness, so anything carbonated with it should probably be consumed within a day or two to avoid the possibility of spoilage. Second, the formula I gave was for volumes CO2 at room temperature, 25 degrees C. If you want to calculate volumes at 0 degrees C you have to use 22.4 liters per mole, not the 24.4 that I gave. So, Al, did it work? --Jean Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 06 Jun 91 11:51:43 EDT From: pmh at media-lab.media.mit.edu Subject: UK beer festivals this summer I just got this info in from a friend in England - sorry, I don't have anything other than dates and places. For more info try CAMRA, 34 Alma Road, St. Albans, Herts AL1 3BW, UK At long last the boys have got around to sussing out prospective beer festivals this summer. The following might be of interest: June 21-22 Surrey June 26-29 Greenwich (London) June 28-29 Exeter (Devon) July 2-6 Chelmsford (Essex) July 10-14 Derby (Derbyshire) July 12-14 Ashton (Manchester) July 13-14 North-Sussex July 13-14 Woodcote (near Reading) July 18-20 Kent July 27-29 Wynchcombe (Cotswolds/Gloucestershire) Aug 13-17 London arena (the big one! - CAMRA GBBF) happy festing, ---- Paul Hubel - ------------------------------------ USQUE AD MORTEM BIBENDUM - ------------------------------------ Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 91 11:54:48 EDT From: Eric Rose <rose at aecom.yu.edu> Subject: KC Brewpubs Yeah, yeah, another "any brewpubs in X" posting. I'll be in Kansas City in August. Any brewpubs? Thanks in advance, Eric Rose Albert Einstein College o' Medicine - -- Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 91 12:24:57 -0400 From: drk at ll.mit.edu (Dave Kohr) Subject: Clement Brewing Company (also, Chapterhouse in Ithaca, NY) > Date: Tue, 4 Jun 91 16:31:23 EDT > From: srussell at snoopy.msc.cornell.edu (Stephen Russell) > Subject: NY, NJ, PA, CT brewclub members??? > > Greetings again! > > Our homebrew club (the Ithaca Brewer's Union) is organizing a trip to Vernon > Valley, NJ, the weekend of July 27-28. We will be there for "Germanfest", one > of their many summer activities, but of more importance for subscribers to this > digest, we will be getting a tour of the Clement Brewing Company (formerly the > Vernon Valley Brewing Co.) courtesy of owner James Clement. The brewery is > one of the few in the world that uses wooden casks for fermenting. > [...] > STEVE > > srussell at snoopy.msc.cornell.edu Is this James Clement the same one who (I believe) owns the Chapterhouse, and who briefly ran a brewpub near Syracuse University called "Clement's Brewpub" (which has since reverted to being "Hungry Charlie's")? I always try to visit the Chapterhouse whenever I'm in Ithaca, and I've been wondering about the "story" behind the Chapterhouse's origins and the owner's plans for expansion of his brewing enterprise. Also, how widely will the products of the Clement Brewing Company be distributed? And does anyone know the story behind the rise and fall of "Clement's Brewpub" in Syracuse? By the way, I'm glad to see that Michael Jackson has paid a visit to the Chapterhouse; a favorable entry for it in one of Jackson's books will make for excellent publicity for an otherwise (in my opinion) too little-known establishment. David R. Kohr M.I.T. Lincoln Laboratory Group 45 (Radars 'R' Us) email: drk at ll.mit.edu (preferred) or drk at athena.mit.edu phone: (617)981-0775 (work) or (617)527-3908 (home) Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 91 10:20:29 CST From: mike at ranger.bison.mb.ca (Mike Charlton) Subject: Mashing High Dextrin Content Malts I don't really have any proof for my explanation of why mashing crystal leaves dextrins, but I think it is fairly reasonable. Basically, the reason that the complex sugars are not reduced to more simple sugars is that the enzymes work at a certain rate. They convert starch into complex sugars and convert those complex sugars into simpler sugars. The typical mash leaves a certain amount of complex sugars in the wort simply due to the fact that the length of the mash was not long enough to convert all the complex sugars. That being the case, when we increase the level of complex sugars at the beginning of the mash (by adding crystal malt, etc.) that level is still present at the end of the mash (although, probably not derived from the crystal malt itself, since that would have been converted right away). Anyway, you can get a farily good idea of the dextrin content of your wort by closely inspecting your iodine test. Starch will turn iodine blue and simple sugars do not change the colour appreciatively. However, complex sugars will change the colour of iodine to a fairly dark brown. By inspecting the colour of the iodine test you can fairly easily get an idea about the fermentability of the wort and can adjust the length of time you spend mashing accordingly. Mike Charlton Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 91 12:23 CDT From: MC2331S at ACAD.DRAKE.EDU Subject: Leaping to the Defense of Iowa In 653 there were some comments made about the state of brewing in Iowa,so I guess I just have to add my 2s 6d worth. Fitzpatrick's, in IA City is an excellent place, which give us extract brewers great hope (he is an extract brewer). Dubuque Star brewery contract brews Zele Lemon Light (weird stuff, butit did win a gold medal at the GABF). Millstream brews an excellent amber (Schild Brau), a lager and a really good Wheat. Mark Castleman Big Bog Brewing Cooperative, DSM IA MC2331S at ACAD.DRAKE.EDU Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 91 13:33:53 EDT From: Chris Shenton <chris at asylum.gsfc.nasa.gov> Subject: Re: Thanks and a mead question. Dan> Is it best to bottle this kind of Dan> mead with caps, or corks. Since pressure isn't the issue, would corks be Dan> better to allow minimal oxygen transfer as in wine or should I use plain Dan> old crown caps and seal the mead away from the elements. I've used crown caps on large beer bottles, and plastic champagne style corks on -- oddly enough -- champagne bottles. Both worked just fine. Since I *thought* I was making a sparkling mead, I tied down the champagne corks with champagne-cork-wire-thingies: kind of a pain-in-the-ass to do, and unnecessary, cuz it came out still anyway. I'd guess caps would be easiest, but make sure they fit your bottles. Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 91 13:43:52 EDT From: Chris Shenton <chris at asylum.gsfc.nasa.gov> Subject: Re: Acid Carboys On Wed, 5 Jun 91 12:24:06 -0700, ez005426 at pollux.ucdavis.edu (Bret Olmsted) said: Bret> I am searching for a 6.7 gallon acid carboy. Bret> I was wondering if anybody knew of alternative places to buy these Bret> carboys. I live in the Bay Area and do not want to travel to far, Bret> really I would like to mail order it. I got mine from Colonel John, in Boulder, CO. I don't recall the address, but he advertises in Zymurgy (or call the information operator there). It was under $20 including shipping to DC. Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 06 Jun 91 14:39:39 EDT From: David Arnold <davida at syrinx.umd.edu> Subject: Papazian index I hadn't noticed this posted before, so I hope this isn't a repeat. If you buy a copy of Papazian's book now, you should get the index with it. Mine came on what looked like a xeroxed insert of about four pages. I haven't compared it to the Postscript version in the archives, but it's nice to know that we don't have to rely on the 'homegrown' version anymore (for new buyers). Of course, it's too late to help all those who bought it before... David Arnold Inet: davida at syrinx.umd.edu UUCP: uunet!syrinx.umd.edu!davida Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 06 Jun 91 15:42:37 -0500 From: dbreiden at mentor.cc.purdue.edu Subject: Use of sugar David Taylor (I think) asks what good and bad experience we've had with using sugar in our brews. Here's my bit: I've had mediocre experience, and striking experience. The mediocre stuff was beer that wasn't half bad, but not quite as good as what I make now. The best thing about homebrew is that one's first efforts are really good even if the recipes use a lot of sugar -- the freshness must compensate. One very stiking batch was a pale ale. My brew-partner and I used a fair amount of cane sugar in the batch. The stuff was awfull for quite a while. I think the yeast was partly to blame, but the stuff smelled and tasted almost like apple juice for a good 5 weeks. But once that went away, and it did, what remained was a clean, refreshing, beautiful beer. People have come forth and admitted to using sugar in their brews with good results. It just creates a beer with different characteristics -- and isn't that what homebrewing is all about? - --Danny Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 91 17:28:16 -0500 From: peterson at ddd.prepnet.com (Mike Peterson) Subject: Trouble with trub, crystal malt Hi. I've got a couple of questions for you gurus out in homebrew land. I am an intermediate extract/speciality grain brewer who has been making some tasty (IMHO) brews for a while but needs some pointers on technique so that I can completely RELAX! I am having a bit of trouble removing the trub and hop bits before adding my wort to the primary. I typically add 1/2 tsp. of Irish moss 15 minutes before the end of the boil to aid the hot break and cool the wort by placing my brew pot in a sink full of cold water. The funnel I use for transfering the wort to the carboy has a fine screen in it for catching particulate matter. Upon pouring the wort through the screen, the screen becomes immediately clogged and I spend 20-30 minutes transferring the wort as I must continually pause to scrape the the screen clean. Though I'm not worried, I am concerned about exposing my wort to the air for so long. I also find I am getting lower starting gravities because so much wort is caught up in the trub and hop bits. Is there a simple way around my problem? I am thinking of building a simple immersion wort chiller as I've seen dicussed in this digest, in the hope that more efficent cooling will precipitate trub better. I am also thinking of placing my hop pellets in a homemade hop bag made from some cheese cloth. Will this be alright? Does using a hop bag decrease hop utilization? Hop aroma? Enquiring minds want to know! On a different matter, does anybody know the approximate degrees Lovibond (sp?) rating of crystal malt. The stuff I have been using is making my beers darker than I like and I was wondering if I got a bad batch or something? Sorry if any of theses questions have been previously discussed. Thanks in advance for the advice. Mike Peterson Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 91 14:34:29 PDT From: smithey at esosun.css.gov (Brian Smithey) Subject: Mashing Crystal and Cara-Pils Malts? On Wed, 5 Jun 1991 11:12:21 EDT, Marc Rouleau <mer6g at fuggles.acc.Virginia.EDU> said: Marc> Dave Miller claims in TCHOHB that you should mash all special Marc> malts to extract everything from them. He says that the processes Marc> that produce crystal and dextrin malts do not convert all of the Marc> starch. Merely steeping them wastes potential extraction and, Marc> because of the unconverted starch in the boil, reduces the clarity Marc> of the beer. Marc> On the other hand, won't mashing convert all those dextrins Marc> into simple sugars that yeast like? If so, what happens to the Marc> rich mouth feel and sweetness that these malts are intended to Marc> produce? I got interested in this during the last discussion, and did some more reading on it. I should probably go back and read some more before I open my mouth (for fear of sticking my foot in it), but here goes ... I think there are a couple of things that keep you from converting "all those dextrins" into fermentable sugars. First of all, mash temperature will have a lot to do with how fermentable your wort is. A higher temperature mash will leave you with more unfermentables, as the enzymes are denatured by heat over time. I think the beta(?)-amylase (Papazian's "nibbler") stops working at a lower temperature, and I would think that this is the enzyme that makes most of the fermentables. (sorry if I've got alpha- and beta- amylase mixed up, go check Papazian). This is why a hotter mash will give you fewer fermentables, and a fuller bodied beer from the unfermentable dextrins. Also, (here's where I get hazy) I think there are dextrin configurations that alpha- and beta-amylase cannot break down. I think these "limit dextrins" are different for each of the enzymes. So while you're mashing, you've got a couple of things keeping it from going too far: some of the dextrins get in a configuration where the a- and/or b-amylase can't do anything to them, and the heat is destroying the capability of the enzymes to break down the dextrins that they CAN still work on. Brian - -- Brian Smithey / SAIC, Geophysics Division / San Diego CA smithey at esosun.css.gov - uunet!seismo!esosun!smithey Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 1991 18:52:31 EDT From: IOCONNOR at SUNRISE.ACS.SYR.EDU Subject: How to get "Bombed" on Homebrew. (resubmit from #646) OK, so you thought by my header, that I meant drunk when I said "bombed." Well I got you to read this. This weekend i got bombed by my own beer bottles. Luckily I wasn't there when it happened, but it could've been pretty bad. One bottle exploded in the case containers I keep my bottled brew in. So I cleaned all the bottleh. I rlla I wasn't home! A couple of weeks ago I asked about ending SG's of 1026 for an extract ale. I used M&F premium to make this brew, and I added only crystal and spray malt to it. My friend said that it tried to ferment more in the bottle, and this caused them to explode. I waited almost twoavstpermti. hAny help would be appreciated. If anyone wants this recipe to take revenge on someone, email me. Kieran IOCONNOR at SUNRISE (bitnet) IOCONNOR at SUNRISE.ACS.SYR.EDU (internet) Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 91 16:30 PST From: STEPHENS at CMS1.llnl.gov Subject: Homebrewers in Morgantown, WV? I'm moving to Morgantown, WV in about a month. Any homebrewers there? How about homebrew supplies and homebrew groups? (Direct email response is fine.) One other note: I, too, did not receive #646. Has anyone sent it to the archives yet? (It wasn't there on 6/6.) Also, maybe someone could post it to rec.food.drink on usenet. Thanks in advance. Jimmy Stephens (stephens at cms1.llnl.gov or stephens at tq5000.llnl.gov) Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 91 07:53:10 PDT From: sherwood at adobe.com (Geoffrey Sherwood) Subject: heretic again Dave Taylor wonders: - >I am wondering how the commercials can use sugar and produce light but >clean tasting, relatively high alcohol beers, when if I use sugar I >often get estery cider flavours that cause me to tip the batch out. In particular he wonders about how the can use cane sugar. My bet: they don't. I bet they use corn sugar (or corn syrup, which I believe contains the same sugar). This mailing list has a strong phobia about using sugar in homebrew. I don't. I use it in every batch and I never get cidery flavors. I owe this to two things: NEVER USE CANE SUGAR (or beet sugar) because this contains sucrose which is only partially fermentable. A friend made his first batch using sucrose -- very cidery. Corn sugar is dextrose (which I believe is just a commercial name for glucose) which is fully fermentable. Ferment cool. I ferment at about 60 degrees F. I did notice some very off tastes when I fermented at 80F. Chest freezers with Hunter AirStats do wonders! CAVEAT: I can only speak for extract/adjunct brewing, but I really don't see why mashing would be any different with respect to sugar. geoff sherwood Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 1991 20:28:19 CDT From: PENMAN at CPDFO1.TAMU.EDU SUBSCRIBE HOMEBREW Bob Penman Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 1991 11:43:49 EDT From: hplabs!ames!rutgers!zoo.toronto.edu!eci386!drk (David King) Subject: the recipe book Has anyone in the Toronto/Ontario region picked up the recipe book? If so could you let me know and I'll arrange to have a copy (only one :-) forwarded. Thanks. - -- Dave King (drk at eci386.UUCP) I'd rather have a bottle in front of me than a frontal lobotomy Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 1991 12:14:10 EDT From: hplabs!ames!rutgers!zoo.toronto.edu!eci386!drk (David King) Subject: sunlight and beer > From: rmm at apollo.hp.com > Subject: sunlight and beer > > I have a question... When does sunlight stop threatening beer? When the beer is in yur belly :-) - -- Dave King (drk at eci386.UUCP) I'd rather have a bottle in front of me than a frontal lobotomy Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 06 Jun 91 23:38:05 EDT From: Joe Uknalis <UKNALIS at VTVM1.CC.VT.EDU> Subject: two questions Has anyone ever seen a definition for "quonchologus" (p.38 CJOHB)??? It's not in OED, suprise. I haven't looked but is there anything on GEnie similar to the homebrew network?? Thanks, Joe (GEnie -- J.Uknalis) Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 91 18:18:22 CST From: < at hpfcla.fc.hp.com, at cdp.igc.org:pals at inland.com> Subject: Priming with honey If I prime with honey, how much do I use to be equivalent to, say, 3/4 cup of corn sugar? My first guess would be about 1/2 cup, but does anybody know? Randy Pals pals at inland.com Return to table of contents
Date: Fri, 07 Jun 91 00:32:22 CST From: Rob <C08926RC at WUVMD.Wustl.Edu> Subject: Supplies in St. Louis Here's another supply store for you, this one in St. Louis. St. Louis Wine & Beermaking 7352 Manchester Suite 100 Maplewood, MO 63143 (314)644-4664 Representative prices: Used soda kegs - $25.00 Rotokeg/Rotosphere - 65.00 Grolsch bottles, case - 8.00 Munton & Fison Hopped - 12.49 Saaz Hops Pellets, 1/2 oz. - 1.39 They seem to have a wide selection of other extracts, hops (pellets and fresh), wine grape concentrates, and equipment. They accept MC & Visa, all orders shipped UPS - minimum s & h fee of 2.50. Rob Return to table of contents
End of HOMEBREW Digest #654, 06/07/91 ************************************* -------
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