HOMEBREW Digest #1116 Fri 09 April 1993

Digest #1115 Digest #1117


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


Contents:
  Yeast, Kegging (Jack Schmidling)
  boiling concentrates the wort (Tony Babinec)
  diastatic power of some malts (Tony Babinec)
  Help, I boiled away the hops (Markham R. Elliott)
  Re: Immersion cooler length (Tim Anderson)
  Request for decoction mashing help.... (Ford Prefect)
  Problems with tab characters (Chris Cook)
  Copper tubing sizes (Paul dArmond)
  Thanks for the decoction info. (/O=vmspfhou/S=dblewis/DD.SITE=JSCPROFS/)
  Questions ("Steve Kurka")
  Runaway Ferment... HELP!!! (Jim Bayer)
  Re: Eternal ferment/how long does CO2 last? (korz)
  Follow-up: Tower System (ATKINSON)
  Re: Enzyme potential (korz)
  kiwi wine (2)
  Vermont brews and brewpubs (Alan Christopher Braddock)
  Problem with initial SG value? (LYONS)
  Re: Heading Agent (Carl West)
  Re:miles of troooob (If wishes were cows)
  Rauchbier ("Tom Stolfi")
  Rauchbier (Tom Stolfi                                 wauts - cwe1iin)
  Decoction mashing vs Infusion Mashing (Pat Lasswell)
  Coriolis force (Ed Hitchcock)
  Re: chiller lenght (Carlo Fusco)
  boiling exploitation (David C Mackensen)
  Re: Wine and Oxidation (Kelly Jones)
  hard cider brewing (Bridget Cullinan)
  Lee Menegoni (George J Fix)
  Homebrew Digest #1115 (April 08, 1993) ("JSDAWS1 at PROFSSR")
  Givin' carboys a swirly (/O=vmspfhou/S=dblewis/DD.SITE=JSCPROFS/)

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---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 7 Apr 93 09:20 CDT From: arf at genesis.mcs.com (Jack Schmidling) Subject: Yeast, Kegging >From: Jim Busch <busch at daacdev1.stx.com> >There is an increased risk associated with "dipping" a loop into a slant repeatedly. I would advise restreaking to a single cell at least once a year. In theory it can last for years, but why risk it? If you are already culturing yeasts, then what is the extra plate and slant once a year to ensure clean yeast?.... I guess I am more concerned about the risk of making it sound so complicated that people are intimidated. For the person who has never done any of this before, the simpler the better and if he has to buy a new slant every year is still way ahead of buying new yeast for every batch. Turning that liquid yeast packet into ten or so slants directly would be my choice as the way to get one's feet wet. I think I tried to get to much into that "beginner's" article on yeast culture. The petri dish streaking can be ignored till the easy part becomes routine. >From: C05705DA at WUVMD.Wustl.Edu >Subject: silly question on kegging >Could anybody give me any insight on why NOT to carbonate a keg naturally, like in bottling, instead of using carbonated water and all the works needed to do kegging. Not sure what you mean by carbonated water but the two basic reasons most of us force carbonate are: 1. Although it improves with time, you can drink the beer within an hour of kegging. 2. It creates no additional sediment as natural carbonadion does. >From: "John L. Isenhour" <isenhour at lambic.fnal.gov> >Subject: Dry Ice carbonating in keg >I have to agree with Jim on this. You really should try this yourself and gather some empirical data before suggesting it to people who might not know better. All my kegs were full at the time and I just had to lay out the idea. I got the answer I was looking for and presume anyone who tried it would have sense enough to use a pressure gage and keep an eye on things. However, that is not what makes lawyer's rich and your point is well taken. ...........DISCLAIMER............. IF YOU PUT DRY ICE IN A CLOSED KEG, SUE GOD IF IT BLOWS UP. > I have a lot of experience with forced carbonation of water, wine, beer and soft drinks, and if you've ever tried gassing beer up to 50psi, you'll find that its difficult to even vent the pressure down to dispensing level without it blowing out your venting tube. Here we are going to disagree. You may be interested to know that I carbonate all my beer at 50 psi. Why? 1. My beer is always at basement temp. 2. I have found that some kegs don't seal properly at low pressure and must raised high enough to seal. This is actually why I quit naturally carbonating them. It seemed to take forever till I found out what was going on. 3. It's a lot faster. Having said all that, the important issue is the volume of CO2 absorbed not the pressure it is done at. One could use 500 psi if the keg would take it and get it done real quickly. The key is knowing when to quit. Here is the way I do it: I purge the keg several times to get all the air out then crank the pressure up to 50 psi and start shaking. The pressure drops in 10 lb leaps for several minutes. When it starts slowing down significantly, I turn off the CO2 and shake it down to about 30 psi and turn the gas back on. If it continues to flow while shaking, I continue to shake. If not, I turn off the gas and let it sit for awhile. If it has not dropped or I can not shake it down to dispensing pressure after an hour or so, I bleed of the pressure to 20 psi and call it done. For the record, I dispense through a cold plate with ice on it so my pressure is a little higher than normal but the bottom line is, I have no problem dispensing my beer (in fact I recently bought a Pilsner tap to create foam) and the one thing no one has yet complained about is the carbonation level of my beer. >From: gummitch at techbook.com (Jeff Frane) >Subject: That Damned Maltmill >One real problem: the bolt holding the wooden handle on the crank seems to be threaded in such a way that it inevitably comes unscrewed while cranking. All MMs are shipped with one defect just to generate hateful commentary on the Digest to keep me humble. Seriously, this could be done my email but as there are 700 of them out there, you may not be the only one with this problem. The thread on the inside of the crank is bunged up with a special tool so that when the knob/handle is screwed in, it can only go so far before tightening in the thread. I may have been sipping when I did yours but you can mush up the end of the treaded hole a bit with a screwdriver and a hammer. Just be sure to do the right end (inside). >It also looks as though I'll need to put rubber feet on my bucket, so it doesn't slide and hop around while I'm cranking the mill. Doing it on the bucket looks a lot easier than it is and depending on the floor surface, it can be like wrestling with an aligator. I think most people eventually conclude that it works best clamped to a table with the business end hanging over the edge so the grain can fall into a bucket. Thanks for your humor. js Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 7 Apr 93 9:20:34 CDT From: tony at spss.com (Tony Babinec) Subject: boiling concentrates the wort Keep in mind that in all-grain brewing you collect sweet wort which is boiled down to 5 gallons typically. That is, one of the functions of boiling is to concentrate the wort. In a 90-minute or so boil, you'll be evaporating the water in the wort. As an example, a beer which would have SG of 1.050 at 5 gallons will give a gravity reading of 1.042 at 6 gallons and 1.036 at 7 gallons. At 7 gallons, the wort is dilute, and when boiled down to 5 gallons, the more or less same amount of sugars and stuff give the beer a gravity of 1.050. So, if you collect 7 gallons of wort and take a gravity reading of 1.036, you'll have a 1.050 beer provided you achieve a vigorous and sustained boil and boil the beer down to 5 gallons. One last point: the gravity reading done on the 7 gallon beer should either be done at 60 degrees F (typically) or should be adjusted for the temperature of the wort. An uncorrected gravity reading on hot wort will understate the specific gravity of the beer. Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 7 Apr 93 9:29:30 CDT From: tony at spss.com (Tony Babinec) Subject: diastatic power of some malts Here are some numbers on some of the DeWolf-Cosyns malts: Malt color diastatic power U.S 2-row (Schreier) 1.78L 131.0 Belgian pilsner 1.8 105 Belgian pale ale 3.2 60 Munich 7.8 50 Aromatic 25 29 Any of these malts is capable of conversion by itself, including the Aromatic. Notice that the Schreier has the highest diastatic power. Keep in mind that mega-brewers like to use adjuncts such as corn in their mash, and are therefore interested in a base malt with high diastatic power. The homebrewer can use any of these malts alone or in combination. A typical pale ale malt can be mashed alone and need not be mashed with a malt of higher diastatic power. Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 7 Apr 93 15:20:27 GMT From: u4imdmre at cpc41.cpc.usace.army.mil (Markham R. Elliott) Subject: Help, I boiled away the hops Hello again fellow brewers! I've returned with a deal you can't refuse....I will continue to call myself a novice until I've got 2 years of hands-on hombrew experience, but I get to continue to ask the dumb-s**t novice, extract-brewer questions. OK? Knew you couldn't pass it up. :-) I have been taking in all the advice I can read, and have taken much of it at face value, few questions asked, but alas, silly me, I should have known better without thinking things through. Case in point, then an urgent request for opinions. My beers have dramatically improved since that first fateful batch. Reduced, then eliminated the use of sugar. Then came the use of a secondary fermenter. Then the use of DME, and finally the failed attempt at using DME as a priming agent. Longer boils...longer boils...longer boils. No one reminded me that when using a hopped extract, the longer you boil, the more you remove what the hops were put in there for. No one to blame but myself, should have seen it coming. Knew better. Dealt with essential oils in Organic Chemistry those many years ago. Faithfully read the HBD daily, and see cautions about not boiling away the "hop nose", etc, etc. Now the plea for help. Should have guessed why everyone said "not bad, but not bitter enough". Now that I've screwed up another batch (now 3 days in the primary), is there a way to salvage what I'm sure will be another "bland", hop-lacking brew? The flavor of the past few batches has been ok; rich, sort of sweet, but kinda watery and again, missing a lot of what the hops were there for to begin with. I have read with increasing interest over the past couple of weeks about "dry hopping" in the secondary. Would me adding some high alpha hop pellets to the secondary be worth the try to put back in what I boiled away ? Any other suggestions (other than throwing it out) will be welcome. BTW, no more hopped kits for this kid, gonna take another step toward what many seem to feel is the only way to brew. Noch einmal, bitte!! Mark - ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Markham R. Elliott u4imdmre at cpc41.cpc.usace.army.mil Information Technology Laboratory (601) 634-2921 Waterways Experiment Station Vicksburg, Mississippi USA - ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 7 Apr 93 08:27:37 PDT From: tima at wv.MENTORG.COM (Tim Anderson) Subject: Re: Immersion cooler length I made a change to my immersion chiller that made a noticeable difference. Like many others I made mine by attaching hose fittings to 25 ft of 3/8 in. copper tubing and coiling it into a helix (like a fat spring) which I just set into the boiling wort. While waiting for the magic occur, I entertained myself by probing various parts of the wort with my thermometer. There were huge temperature differences. The top middle was the hottest by far. Well, it seemed to me that the chiller is doing the most good where the wort is hottest, so for the next batch I recoiled the tubing into a spiral (like the burner on an electric range). I suspend this maybe an inch below the surface of the wort. Since I use a big wide canning kettle, there's lots of room. Chilling is much faster. I can stand there and watch the cold break material form and fall between the coils to the bottom. In fact I have to stand there, because I haven't found a way to suspend it other than by holding it. Admittedly a pain, but the faster chilling is easily worth it. tim "My two favorite beer styles are Cold and Warm." Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 7 Apr 93 08:29:17 -0700 From: sag5004 at yak.ca.boeing.com (Ford Prefect) Subject: Request for decoction mashing help.... Sorry about posting this to the whole world, but... with all the recent talk about decoction mashing, I am a bit interested in giving it a try. a) What books/article/whatever should I read to figure out how it is done? b) Is there anyone in the Seattle area that is willing to come over and help/show/whatever brew a batch. I seem to be entering my busy season with an up coming wedding and the picnic season aproaching :-) thanks stuart galt boeing computer services sag5004 at yak.boeing.com bellvue washington (206) 865-3764 or home (206) 361-0190 #include <standard/disclaim.h> I don't know what they say, they don't know what I say... Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 7 Apr 1993 15:47:01 GMT From: "UARS::COOK" at CDHF1.GSFC.NASA.GOV (Chris Cook) Subject: Problems with tab characters Sorry to waste bandwidth with small stuff, but I have to mention about people's use of tabs. Please remember that your tab stops may not be mine. In HBD 1113, for example, Jeff Frane included big tables of recipies, using lots of tabs. Well, his tabs don't match mine, and I had to work on his table extensively to make it readable. This is the case with almost everyone's articles that use tabs, signatures, etc. This is rather like the problem with articles over 80 columns wide. They look good to the sender, but suffer in translation. Chris Cook Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 7 Apr 1993 08:44:09 -0700 (PDT) From: Paul dArmond <paulf at henson.cc.wwu.edu> Subject: Copper tubing sizes Since it looks like we may be in for more interesting explorations of thermohydrodynamics (wort chillers), please be aware that there is a lot of potential for confusion about pipe (hard) and tubing (soft) sizes. Soft copper tubing, like we use in most of our chillers, is usually measured, sold and fitted by o.d. (outside diameter). Hard pipe, that has threaded or soldered fittings is measured by i.d. (inside diameter). To add to the confusion, soft tubing used in refrigeration is sometimes measured one way and sometimes another. Also, many chain stores use both i.d. and o.d. for soft tubing. This may be a marketing ploy to get hapless do-it-yourselfers to purchase the wrong fittings to clutter up their junk drawers :-) Rounding sizes to nearest 1/8", for soft copper tubing: O.D. = I.D. 1/4" 1/8" 3/8" 1/4" 1/2" 3/8" Now *I've* probably added to the confusion, Paul. Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 7 Apr 93 08:55 PDT From: /O=vmspfhou/S=dblewis/DD.SITE=JSCPROFS/ at NASAmail.nasa.gov Subject: Thanks for the decoction info. ***************************** PROFS Note ***************************** From: DBLEWIS --VMSPFHOU Date and time 04/07/93 10:56:34 To: POSTMAN --NASAMAIL FROM: Dennis B. Lewis <InterNet:dblewis at jscprofs.nasa.gov> SUBJECT: Thanks for the decoction info. Thanks to all who posted info on decoction mashing. I made an American pilsener last weekend (my first attempt at an all grain) and got pretty mediocre extraction--21ppg using temp-controlled mashing on Klages malt. I'll try the same recipe (tastes good from the fermenter) using a decoction mash and post the taste test results (it may take a month). Anyway, someone wrote that some of the big breweries like Pilsener Urquell still use decoction mashing. How on earth do they remove the grains from the mash tun? They must have to boil hundreds of pounds of grain. Anybody taken a tour? Dennis B. Lewis (713) 483-9145 ** NASA/JSC/DH65 Payload Ops Homebrew, The Final Frontier. Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 7 Apr 93 10:55:16 MDT From: "Steve Kurka" <kurka at bmcw.com> Subject: Questions I have a few questions: This may be an uninsignificant question, but so what: I would like to upgrade to a glass carboy soon, but don't know whether to go with a 5 gallon or 6.5-7 gallon carboy. What are the advantages of each size? ( Ex: - no blowoff tubes needed to large sizes - no blowoff tubes on large size to blowoff stuff (but what stuff?)) Does anyone have more info on sulfites not killing bacteria? Does anyone have simple ideas on cheap filtration methods? I would also like to thank all who sent me lists of San Fransisco brewpubs recently, the trip was a success (good beer). Thanks, Steve kurka at bmcw.com Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 7 Apr 1993 13:06:31 -0500 (CDT) From: brewmstr at genesis.mcs.com (Jim Bayer) Subject: Runaway Ferment... HELP!!! I've been brewing for about 2 years now and just did my first all-grain batch 2 weeks ago. Until now I've never seen a ferment go so strongly and so long. My grain bill is as follows: 6lb 2 row Klages 2lb Special Roast 1lb German Light crystal 1lb Cara-pils I used Wyeast Irish Ale (forget the number), Northern Brewer, Cascade and Hallertau hops. Since it was my first all-grain batch, I expected it to take me longer, and it did. My sparge ran about 2.5 hours (trouble with the Listermann system) and I ended up with some (very little) grain in the brewpot. The edges of the false bottom did not seal very well for me. I tasted the outut from the sparge and it seemed ok. I boiled it for about 1.5 hours and added the Irish moss 10 minutes before turning off the heat. I used a submersion chiller for the first time and got the temp down to about 65^F in 20 minutes. I pitched the yeast (no starter alas) and waited. As a preamble, I should say I cleaned and soaked everything I used, spoon, primary bucket, hoses, etc. in bleach solution. I made it a little too strong (used about 1 to 1.5 cups to 5 gallons) so I rinsed everything before use. I soaked it all for 15 to 30 minutes before the rinse. I filled the primary, stirred vigorously for aeration and pitched, closed the lid, sealed it tight and set up the air lock. After 3 days of fermenting (took 36 hrs to start), I raked to the secondary and thought it would finish in a few days. To my surprise, it went to full kreausen AGAIN and is still giving me 1 blip per second after 10 days. I checked it last night and the secondary is still at full boil. Am I infected? Is it the yeast? What is going on?? I did notice that the wort was REALLY REALLY SWEET. Never tasted one so sweet before. could it be the yeast are still feasting? OG was 1.040 Any input will be greatly appreciated Jim brewmstr at genesis.mcs.com Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 7 Apr 93 13:54 CDT From: korz at iepubj.att.com Subject: Re: Eternal ferment/how long does CO2 last? Kirk writes: >A few weeks ago, I asked you what you thought about my 'nonstop fermentation' >and the concensus was that I should not throw the stuff out but check the >airlock and the S.G. I won't print the recipe again. Suffice to say it's >an extract brew with half a pound of maple syrup and 2 oz of apricot >flavoring intended for wines, and Edme dry yeast. > >Update: now after eight weeks, it ain't over. The airlock is still giving >a feeble 'glug' once every 70 seconds. The color got noticeably darker. >No off flavors to suggest contamination. Specific gravity down to about 1.009 >(I think). Recently, I had, what appeared to be headed for a record-breaking ferment. It was a simple 1048 English Ale using Wyeast #1028 "London Ale." Well, the problem started when I got married. No, don't get me wrong, my wife is wonderful and very supportive of my brewing and related endeavors. However, when she got a look at one of our gas bills, she suggested we lower our thermostat, from 72F to 68F. I agreed. I started my batch as ususal with a 500ml starter and pitched the 70F starter into well-aerated, 70F wort. I put it in the fermentation room just like I used to and proceeded to not worry. Well, I had forgotten about my wife's cost-saving measures and failed to look at the 9" diameter thermometer in the fermentation room. It said 61F! Two days and no kraeusen. That's when the temperature dawned on me. I brought the fementer up into the study (68F), closed the shades and covered the fermenter with a couple of dark brown plastic garbage bags to prevent light damage. The next morning, although the fermentation had started, I still thought it was too bright in there and closed the door. Guess what, the closet is not insulated and the temperature dropped to 60F by that evening. Fermentation back to a standstill. I opened the door and put some cardboard around the fermenter. 10 days later, it was still fermenting slowly at about 30 seconds between glubs. 20 days from the start of the ferment, it had gotten down to a minute between glubs, so I added the dryhops (1oz of Goldings plugs). 10 days of dryhopping, still 1 glub/min. 14 days of dryhopping, still 1 glub/min. Hmmm? Is this yeast brain-damaged or what? Then, I thought, perhaps a lot of the yeast had gone dormant thanks to the cold and had not awakened from simply warming the wort. I rocked the carboy around-and-around to swirl the yeast up from the bottom. Naturally, lots of CO2 started escaping through the blowoff tube. 8 hours later, the ferment was going at a good pace, perhaps 1 glub per 30 seconds. 24 hours after swirling, the glubs were 2.5 minutes apart -- ready to bottle! I came up with this thought to rouse the yeast from what I've read about yeast rousing used in some very strong beers (Thomas Hardy's may be one, I'm not sure). Next time a ferment is taking longer than you expected, try rousing the yeast (without aeration, of course -- I just swirled my airlocked carboy). ******************** Chris writes: >On another note, how long should I expect my 20lb CO2 tank to last? I got >it last summer and have made at least 10 batches of beer since then. I >also use it to push the sterilizer out of the keg when cleaning it. The >pressure gauge for the high side hasn't really moved. I have a 20# tank, but it hasn't run out yet since I got the leaks fixed. The first filling only lasted perhaps 10 kegs, but the second is well over 20 and still going. It's very important to change that washer between the valve and the regulator with each filling -- it's a common source for leaks. Regarding the high-pressure side gauge, I'll stick my neck out and say I think it's useless. It won't begin to drop till all the liquid CO2 has run out and has turned to gas. Then it will drop to zero in one or two days. That's not my idea of warning you that it's about to run out! I plan to weigh my tank the next time it runs out and use it's weight as an approximation for when I should go get it refilled. It should weigh, well... 20# more when full (for a "20#" tank). Al. Return to table of contents
Date: 07 Apr 1993 15:48:10 -0500 (CDT) From: ATKINSON at vaxb.acs.unt.edu Subject: Follow-up: Tower System I promised a posting of comments made on the Tower System, and am glad to do so! Thanks to everyone who showed interest. My initial impression is that the Tower System is a good idea because there were no flames. However, it may be because of the limited experience that people have with this system. I'm still putting my system together (working on limited funds, you know) and will let everyone know what I think after its up and running and the little kinks have been worked out. So some of the replies: 1. Stuart Galt suggested that I build a welded steel rack with wheels to house the tower so that it could be moved around for brewing and storage. Sound like a great idea, but since I have a hammer and saw, but not a welder, I built my rack out of 2 by 4's and 3/4 inch plywood. I used Simpson Strong-Tie (TM) connectors to make sure that there was plenty of strength to hold 10 gallons of hot sparge water and mash (if you haven't seen these connectors, they are great for building work tables and shelves - ask your hardware store about them). Also, by planning for my glass 6.5 gallon fermentor to sit on the ground and allowing the kettle to gravity drain into it, the mash/lauter tun to drain into the kettle, and the hot water tank to drain into the mash/lauter tun, I designed the rack so that nothing with hot water ever has to be lifted (other than pumping from the kettle up to the hot water tank). Thus, my rack has a working surface 45 inches above the ground for the mash/lauter tun to sit on, and a shelf 20 inches higher (a total of 65 inches above the ground) for the hot water tank to sit on. This allows me to slide the mash/lauter tun underneath the hot water tank when I'm not brewing so that I've got a work bench. However, since my mash/lauter tun in 16" tall (a 58 quart Igloo cooler), and it sits on top of a 45" high shelf, it is a too tall for even my 6'2" body to work with. Therefore, I built a 10" platform that I can stand on when stirring the mash. This platform simply slides underneath the rack when not in use. My rack, from the side, looks something like the sketch below. 60" ------ The rack is designed so | | that when I'm not brewing | | everything (kettle, burner, -------------- 45" coolers, etc. slides over | | | to the left hand side, and | | | I have a work bench on the | --------- right hand side. | | | | | | -------------- | | | 2. Rich Lenihan had several comments and suggestions. a. Rich suggested that I pub a rolled screen/tube inside the kettle (like the EasyMasher (TM)) to filter out hops and trub. An excellent idea that I have included. b. Rich also was concerned about heat loss along the way, and that perhaps by preheating the system prior to mashing, this problem might be eliminated. I checked with several people and using a picnic cooler for the hot water tank will hold the temperature to less than a couple of degrees heat loss over the few hours necessary. Thus, preheating should probably not be necessary. Also, Rich reminded me that Papazian has a grain bill/water temperature/water volume chart so that I can use that for a guideline. I looked, and sure enough, it will be usefull! 3. Bob Hodge suggested that instead of two manifolds in the mash/lauter tun, that only the lower one be used, and that mash water can be introduced from the bottom (underletting) like a recent thread had suggested. I like this idea, and will implement it, but I still will need the upper manifold for sparging. A few people had questions about what I was going to use for high temperature hose, what kind of fittings I was going to use, etc. I mentioned Grainger's and McMaster's supply catalogs for sources. Finally, this post was originally to the Home Brew Digest, and not rec.crafts.brewing. So now, I am posting both the original and this follow-up post to rec.crafts.brewing to see if there are any other suggestions. Thanks to all for the ideas! Sam Atkinson  Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 7 Apr 93 16:35 CDT From: korz at iepubj.att.com Subject: Re: Enzyme potential Thomas writes: >Does anybody know of the enzyme potential of Belgian 2-row pale >ale malt from Dewolf-Cosyns? Would I need to mash with some >Klages to get quicker conversion? Thanks in advance. Sure, it's 60 degrees Lintner. I don't think you would get much of a increase in conversion -- you certainly would not *NEED* to add anything. By the way, Klages hasn't been grown in the US for (I believe) two seasons -- Harrington is what most (all?) of the brewing barley growers are producing. If your supplier is advertising Klages, either they don't know what they are selling or are selling very old malt. Al. Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 7 Apr 1993 14:49 MST From: 2 <A317-475 at lab.bus.utah.edu> Subject: kiwi wine Here is an experimental recipe I came across and it actually worked. This is for all you wine lovers. This recipe need not be followed exactly and even if you do I doubt you'll get the same result twice. Get a 1 gallon jug, empty milk jugs work great. Be sure to clean it good otherwise you'll end up with vinegar, not wine. Clean the jug with a tablespoon of bleach and 3 cups water. Swish it around for a few minutes. Take about 2 1/2 lbs. of fresh kiwi and put it through a juicer. If you don't have a juicer just smash it up and use the pulp and all. In this case you'll need to avoid the lower 1/3 of your wine when you drain the wine from the container. Put the kiwi juice, or pulp, into the container. Add 2-3 cups of sugar and 1 tablespoon of yeast. fill the jug almost full with distilled water. Regular water will work but it increases the chance of having a bacteria which will produce vinegar. Cover container lightly, it must be able to "breathe" but not have stuff fall into it. Leave sit in a semi-cool place and wait a)1 month for harsh wine, or b)2-3 months for a smooth wine your freinds will love you for!!!!! Any questions about kiwi wine a317-475 at edu-utah-bus-lab Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 7 Apr 1993 18:04:32 -0400 From: Alan Christopher Braddock <braddock at wam.umd.edu> Subject: Vermont brews and brewpubs Hi there, homebrewers. Another brewing/email neophyte here with a query out of left field. Any answers would be greatly appreciated. I'm planning a trip to Burlington, Vermont in early June and I'd love to know where to eat and what to wash it down with. I only know about Catamount (it is Catamount, isn't it?), but if anyone can suggest a brewpub or two, I'd be grateful. It doesn't have to be in Burlington -- it's a small state and I don't mind doing the Euell Gibbons thing, stalking the wild fermenter, etc. Alan Braddock BRADDOCK at WAM.UMD.EDU (in Baltimore) Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 7 Apr 93 16:34 EST From: LYONS at adc3.adc.ray.com Subject: Problem with initial SG value? >Mashed in 2 gallons of distilled water at ~154 for 1.25 hours at which time >the iodine test was negative. The pH of mash was around 5.2. Used a Zapap >type lauter tun with grain bag. Recirculated about 0.5 gallons. Used >distilled water for sparging. Placed a pie plate on top of grain bed and >added water at about 165. Also mashed out at 170. Sparged till gravity was >1.008 .Ph of run off was still around 5.5. Collected about 7 gallons of >wort. Gravity after boiling down to about 6 gallons was only 1.028. Where >did I go wrong? I'm not sure you did anything wrong. SG is a function of temperature. So if you read an SG of 1.028 at 212F, that would be equivalent to an SG of 1.068 at 60F (which sounds great to me). Its common practice to record the temperature and SG simultaneously, and then correct the SG for a temperature of 60F (actually I normalize to 59F). Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 7 Apr 93 17:08:25 EDT From: eisen at kopf.HQ.Ileaf.COM (Carl West) Subject: Re: Heading Agent Phil relates: >My local homebrew shop also sells small packets of off-white >"heading agent." I didn't ask the manufacturer's name, but I >did ask about the contents: "ground bark of the gum acacia >tree" I was told. Close. It is probably gum arabic, the dried sap of the acacia plant, not the bark itself. It's used as a thickening agent, to seal envelopes, and hold stamps on. Carl WISL,BM. Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 07 Apr 93 19:30:33 CDT From: If wishes were cows at iastate.edu, Subject: Re:miles of troooob >From HBD#1114 Steve Rowell ponders, >I brewed a scotch ale last night, and noticed today a curious thing. >On the bottom of the carboy lies a thick (4-5 inches) layer of trub. Other stuff deleted >For those out there interested in this mystery: >I used pellets not whole hops and partial mash with >3#syrup/3#dry extract and 1#munich/1#crystal/ 1/2# roasted. >Any comments/ helpful words of wisdom? I beleive, and I am only guessing, it was the pellet hops, I used those in a cotton hop bag, and received a huge mess for my trouble. No the bag didnt break when it swelled. I funneled into the primary through a "fine" screen, which quickly clogged. John Bartleson Return to table of contents
Date: 07 Apr 1993 13:00:13 GMT From: "Tom Stolfi" <ceco!CWEMAIL!WAUTS at uunet.UU.NET> Subject: Rauchbier Date: 04/05/93 From: Tom Stolfi wauts - cwe1iin Subject: Rauchbier - ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Hello all, I am going to make a one gallon mini-batch of rauchbier for this summer. Rather than smoke some malt I was considering using the "LIQUID SMOKE" available in the grocery stores. Has anyone used this? If so, how much did you use and at what point in the process did you add it. I am planning a light amber beer with OG around 1.050 and hopping with Tett or Saaz. Any helpful comments or recipes would be greatly appreciated. Thanks. Tom Stolfi wauts at cwemail.ceco.ceco.com Commonwealth Edison Co Waukegan, IL Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 8 Apr 93 02:30:59 PDT From: Pat Lasswell <patl at microsoft.com> Subject: Decoction mashing vs Infusion Mashing My brew-partner and I have done a side-by-side comparison of identical brews, one decoction mashed and the other step-infusion mashed. The differences were slight. The main difference was notably more malt aroma in the decoction-mashed beer. One of our club refers to decoction mashed beers as tasting "wet". I know what he is noticing, but I do not have vocabulary to describe such a suble effect. Ars Zymurgia Pat Lasswell patl at microsoft.com Redmond, WA Return to table of contents
Date: 08 Apr 1993 11:01:45 -0300 From: Ed Hitchcock <ECH at ac.dal.ca> Subject: Coriolis force Karl Sweitzer writes: >I have found that the best vortex drains are formed when you swirl the bottle >or carboy in a counterclockwise direction (when viewed from above, in the >northern hemisphere of our spaceship earth). The reason is the coriolis >acceleration vector caused by the counterclockwise rotation of the earth. >When you rotate the bottle in the same direction as the earth rotation >the coriolis acceleration vectors constructively add, forming a greater >force on the liquid molecules. The coriolis acceleration vector tends >to force the liquid to the outside of the rotation circle leaving room >in the middle of the bottle for air to enter and replace the exiting liquid. >This air path is more efficient than "gurgleing" air entering the bottle as >periodic bubbles. (note, for those of you in the southern hemisphere, rotate >the bottle in the clockwise direction. For those at the equator, rotate in >either direction.) Some say that the coriolis accel. vector makes pigs tails >curl (no kidding!). I have seen pictures of pigs from Equador with straight >tails! To this I can but say: Horse poop. The coriolois force on the liquid in a carboy 30cm or so in diameter is virtually nil. Swirl it any way you please, there will be no difference. The friction of the side of the jug is far greater than any coriolis effects on the water. As for the pigs, they can poop too. ed ------------ Ed Hitchcock *-----------------------* Dept of Anatomy and Neurobiology | | Dalhousie University | JUST BREW IT | Halifax, Nova Scotia | | ech at ac.dal.ca *-----------------------* Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 8 Apr 1993 10:10 EST From: Carlo Fusco <G1400023 at NICKEL.LAURENTIAN.CA> Subject: Re: chiller lenght Hello everyone, I am here to back up some of John's claims. I also use a 15 ft chiller. It is 3/4 inch diameter, the water is 38F, and it will chill 5 gallons in 20-25 min. It is true about the chilling effect slowing down as the wort approches the chilling water temperature. But, by then I am already below 70F and I am ready to pitch my yeast. >From Northern Ontario where water is found in abundance and wort chiller materials are expensive. Carlo Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 8 Apr 1993 10:19:23 -0400 (EDT) From: David C Mackensen <cygnus at unh.edu> Subject: boiling exploitation Hi, How much does boiling change the malt... i.e. I know that you should boil the malt for a little bit to sanitize it, but... what if I were just to have plain water in my boil with the hops and then add the malt into said boil long enough to sanitize it at the end... of course adding the appropriate irish moss or whatever...then cool and pitch like normal... would this affect the taste of my bier (mackensen extra stout:) )? thanks, -chris - --. - -- Chris Mackensen (dcm2 at kepler.unh.edu or puck at unh.edu) Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 8 Apr 93 08:32:27 -0600 From: Kelly Jones <k-jones at ee.utah.edu> Subject: Re: Wine and Oxidation In HBD #1113, Jack Scmidling says: >We all know what evils to expect of beer that gets oxidized after fermenting >and the need for quiet racking and transfer. However, wine drinkers also >know that good red wine needs to "breathe", which of course is, a snob word >for oxidize. >I have also seen several references to the fact that one of the reasons for >racking wine at regular intervals is to promote oxidation. Clearly, we have >a conflict here and my Fall Wine is now in the aging stage and it would be >nice to know if I should intentionally splash it around while racking or use >the usual beer cautions. First, there is a difference (if only semantically) between breathing, which refers to the exposure of wine to air immediately before consuming, and aging, which is done either in bulk or in bottle, but before uncorking. As to breathing: There is no general agreement on why (or even whether!) breathing is beneficial. Some feel it releases the aroma of the wine, or helps dispel volatile compounds (such as SO2) which may mask aroma and flavor. Others feel it is desirable to oxidize a certain portion of the phenols (e.g., tannins), especially if the wine is big and young. As far as aging goes, oxidation is definitely involved. However, slow, controlled oxidation is what we want, as it tends to oxidize metallic ions, phenols, etc., improving the wine. It is generally believed that too rapid oxidation (as may result from splashing, etc) will tend to oxidize other components instead, such as alcohols, leading to undesirable byproducts such as aldehydes, etc. Remember that as a home winemaker, your wine is already getting much more oxygen than commercial wines, due to the much higher surface area/volume ratio present in small scale operations. IMHO, your wine will be oxidized enough just by such things as airspace in your carboy or bottle, normal exposure to air during gentle racking, etc. Any intentional splashing may be overkill. Disclaimer: Little is really known (or agreed upon) about the mechanism of oxidation, aging, breathing, etc. In the end, your own experience and evaluations will have to guide you. Hope this helps, Kelly Jones <k-jones at ee.utah.edu> *** I make my own beer AND wine --- I'm crosstraining!! *** Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 08 Apr 93 10:31:55 EDT From: Bridget Cullinan <BCULLIN at american.edu> Subject: hard cider brewing Dear Homebrewers: Having once lived in the south of England and fell in love with English cider ( hard cider), I want to find out if anyone else out there has tried to brew thei r own. I'm looking for good recipes for "dry" English-style cider, not the swe et overly-carbonated [I think] stuff like the Vermont Woodchuck cider. So, if anyone is interested in the idea, I can offer a few suggestions, but so far I h ave stuck to brewing from a Boots Country Cider kit -- which is very good, by t he way, but only available in England. Please send any info to me at BCULLIN at auvm.american.edu. Thanks. Bridget Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 8 Apr 93 09:23:20 -0500 From: gjfix at utamat.uta.edu (George J Fix) Subject: Lee Menegoni Lee> I got your e-mail, and sent you my answers to your questions. I got a response from nectech that lee=a.=menegoni at nectech.com was not a good address. Do you have another one? George Fix Return to table of contents
Date: 08 Apr 1993 07:50:07 PST From: "JSDAWS1 at PROFSSR" <JSDAWS1 at PB1.PacBell.COM> Subject: Homebrew Digest #1115 (April 08, 1993) *** Reply to note of 04/08/93 00:21 Subject: Homebrew Digest #1115 (April 08, 1993) I've seen several posts re; dry-hopping. I always get krauesen in the 2ndary when dry-hopping and have come to accept it as normal. I've also taken to using hop plugs. They provide the advantage of pellets in terms of convenience and of whole hops in that I seem to get better aroma from them (as I seem to with whole hops) with none of that ubiquitous green sludge clogging the carboy neck. Only problem is, they're slightly too large to fit thru the neck so I end up cutting them in half with a steak knife. I put them in a boiled hop bag with marbles. This usually prevents it from rising to the top and clogging things up. On another topic... keg-conditioning, I always keg-condition my beer, and by trial end error, have found that 1/2 the normal priming sugar recomended for bottling works best. | If it's good for ancient druids runnin naked thru the woods | | drinkin strange fermented fluids then it's good enough for me. | | JACK DAWSON - JSDAWS1 - 415 545-0299 - CUSTOMER BILLING (BG) | Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 8 Apr 93 07:58 PDT From: /O=vmspfhou/S=dblewis/DD.SITE=JSCPROFS/ at NASAmail.nasa.gov Subject: Givin' carboys a swirly ***************************** PROFS Note ***************************** From: DBLEWIS --VMSPFHOU Date and time 04/08/93 09:59:07 To: POSTMAN --NASAMAIL FROM: Dennis B. Lewis <InterNet:dblewis at jscprofs.nasa.gov> SUBJECT: Givin' carboys a swirly From: Karl A. Sweitzer >I have found that the best vortex drains are formed when you swirl the >bottle or carboy in a counterclockwise direction (when viewed from above, in >the northern hemisphere of our spaceship earth). OK, I haven't tried this but, I assume that when you start swirling the water in the carboy, that the carboy is already inverted (and over the sink/lawn). If you get up a good swirl and then try to invert the carboy, you would really goof up your swirl when the carboy gets horizontal. Plus the rotational inertia of 3+ gallons of water spinning fast enough to hug the sides would be impressive when you tried to flip it around.I think it just needed to be said. *** Physics disclaimer *** It has been years since my last physics course. I wasn't there, I wasn't drinking, and it's not my fault. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. Dennis B. Lewis (713) 483-9145 ** NASA/JSC/DH65 Payload Ops Homebrew, The Final Frontier. Return to table of contents
End of HOMEBREW Digest #1116, 04/09/93