HOMEBREW Digest #1414 Tue 03 May 1994
Digest #1413
Digest #1415
FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
Rob Gardner, Digest Janitor
Contents:
The size of the homebrew market? (Julio Rojas)
Sweet Homebrewed Beverages (Monstrously Hazardous Citrus Fruit)
Spring Water ph/hardness (Mike_Christy_at_mozartpo)
Party pig and chlorine question. (taylor)
pH test strips (btalk)
Brewing software for Macintosh from Sierra:ftp? (Mark Evans)
SNPA summary (MS08653)
Re: False bottoms, again (Jim Busch)
Surplus bottles / sankey keg(s) wanted (Stuart Galt)
Bottling with honey (Guy Mason)
HELP - cheesy beer (Chuck Wettergreen)
H2S "problem" outcome / kit yeasts (Bill Sutton)
Dos/Windows for Beer (MELOTH MICHAEL S)
Split it up! My butt! (COYOTE)
ROOT BEER, ROOT BEER (Jim Doyle)
Tumbleweed Grille and Microbrewery (smtplink!guym)
Nut Adjuncts ("Little, David")
Re: Stainless Steel Welding (Dion Hollenbeck)
What's in Malt Extracts? (yeebot)
Questions about pH throughout the Brewing Process (cont.) (D.J.Arnone)
Re: Duster's In Lawton MI (andrewb6)
Rhizome basics--quick help (andrewb6)
Temperature control (Bob Jones)
Where Do You Ferment Ales? (wegeng.XKeys)
Uinta Brewing - SLC, UT (Robert Pryor)
spices (RONALD DWELLE)
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----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Mon, 2 May 94 03:50:04 CDT
From: whoboo at casbah.acns.nwu.edu (Julio Rojas)
Subject: The size of the homebrew market?
Hello Folks,
I just found this homebrew usergroup on the Internet and I'm hoping that
someone out there can help me quantify the size of the domestic(U.S.)
homebrew market.
I've already contacted the American Homebrewers Association, and they
were marginally helpful(telling me they had 22,000 current members). Yet
they weren't able to give me concrete info on the size of the market,
either in terms to total homebrewers or in terms of dollar revenue. I also
spoke to the Beer Institute in Washington, but they were no help.
Anybody out have suggestions concerning where I might be able to get that
type of information? I have received some of the market research results
that ZYMURGY conducts, but this hasn't helped me quantify the size of the
market. Especially the growth of "newbie" brewers. I've working on a graduate
school project and running out of time...hopefully someone out there on the
Net has some suggestions.
Thanks In Advance
Julio C Rojas
Kellogg Graduate School of Management
whoboo at casbash.acns.nwu.edu
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Date: Mon, 2 May 1994 21:09:30 +0930 (CST)
From: zoz at cs.adelaide.edu.au (Monstrously Hazardous Citrus Fruit)
Subject: Sweet Homebrewed Beverages
Hi - I was thinking of brewing a chocolate all-malt stout - something along
the lines of 3kg of dark malt extract and some unsweetened cocoa. However
I would like to have some sweetness in the bottled product. What's the best
way of achieving this result? The sweetness will have to survive some
months in the bottle, and I don't like the taste of artificial sweeteners
such as saccharin or nutrasweet (phenylalanine). What do you folks reckon?
- --
______ _____________ ______________________ ______
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/ \##/ \ /_______ / / _ ______ / / \##/ \
/____\/____\ / / / / \ \ / / /____\/____\
\####/\####/ / /____\ \_/ / / /_______ \####/\####/
\##/ \##/ / / / / \##/ \##/
\/____\/ /_____________________/ /____________/ \/____\/
zoz at cs.adelaide.edu.au
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Date: Mon, 02 May 94 08:33:00 EST
From: Mike_Christy_at_mozartpo at ccmailpc.ctron.com
Subject: Spring Water ph/hardness
Just a little experience Id like to share from this weekend.
My grains were happily mashing along and I thought Id just for the heck
of it check the ph and hardness of the spring water I used. I have to
buy it cause our water is so bad... anyway, the last time I tested the
supposed SW, it showed a ph of 6 and a hardness of over 200ppm, this was
last winter, and i thought great! At $.50 a gallon this will be great
for ales. (BTW I use two aquarium water test kits) To cut to the chase -
the new SW tests ph~8(alkaline) and hardness~50ppm(very soft). Much
different than the last batch.
So the moral of this little story is DONT assume your really getting
spring water of the same quality, or type this week as you did last
week. I basically bought tap water, da.
The only thing I could do was add crystals to the sparge water and hope
for the best.
- mike !Go Bs!
Return to table of contents
Date: Mon, 2 May 94 09:23:12 EDT
From: taylor at e5sf.hweng.syr.ge.com (taylor)
Subject: Party pig and chlorine question.
Can anyone give me any info using a Party Pig. I got one for my birthday and
I'm wondering how well it works. Can anyone give me tips on how to use it.
One question I have do you let the beer carbonate in the pig on the shelf
first or just put beer in it and chill, age and drink? Yes I know you have to
buy a new bag each time you use it. Any feedback from users would be nice.
One more question what is the recipe for using chlorine for sanitizing.
I use B-Bright and the directions say I can't use the suff that's in
B-Bright to clean the pig, so I need to use chlorine to clean it.
Thanks Todd.......
Return to table of contents
Date: Mon, 02 May 94 09:30:41 EDT
From: btalk at aol.com
Subject: pH test strips
Does any one really use these damn things?
I have just started mashing and find it impossible to make sense of these
strips. Since I'm not confident with the readings, I haven't treated my water
at all. (I got 28 point extraction on my first mash w/ 2/3 wheat)
My buddy, who still remembers the chemistry I've forgotten, says the test
strips are next to worthless because they are only about 30% accurate.
Feedback anyone?
Bob Talkiewicz, Binghamton, NY <btalk at aol.com>
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Date: Mon, 2 May 1994 08:37:09 -600 (CDT)
From: Mark Evans <evanms at lcac1.loras.edu>
Subject: Brewing software for Macintosh from Sierra:ftp?
Could anyone enlighten me as to which of the listed brew software programs
at Sierra.Stanford.Edu will run on the Macintosh system. I tried
downloading one with a binhex suffix but the thing just sat their like a
flat beer on a July aftenoon. Perhaps I'm doing something wrong. (note: I
have a variety of decompression programs.) I work on a Mac LCII with
system seven. I don't even know if these programs are of any help--I have
a very efficient and journalistically colorful brew log. Still I wouldn't
mind checking out the high tech beer software. Is this whole thing an
IBM/dos dominated scene? Please help.
TIA
Mark EVans. mashing on the Upper Mississippi.
<evanms at lcac1.loras.edu>
Dubuque, Iowa
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Date: 02 May 94 09:22:44
From: MS08653 at MSBG.med.ge.com
Subject: SNPA summary
From: "MICHAEL L. TEED"<MS08653 at MSBG>
Dist: INTERNET
int homebrew at hpfcmi.fc.hp.com
Thanks to all for their rapid responses. To summarize: it appears that it is ei
ther A) I didnt look hard enough for the dregs, or B) it appears that the quant
ity of dregs varies somewhere between just a haze at the bottom of the bottle a
nd noticeably visible dregs at the bottom. Yes, dregs have been sighted east of
the Ol' Missisippi. So that only leaves one question ( thought there was only
one to start.. ) Why the inconsistency from a brewery that is not noted for suc
h?
Michael Teed MS08653 at MSBG.med.ge.com GE Medical Systems - CT manufacturing
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Date: Mon, 2 May 1994 10:44:05 -0400 (EDT)
From: Jim Busch <busch at daacdev1.stx.com>
Subject: Re: False bottoms, again
Jack writes:
> Subject: FALSE BOTTOMS
>
>
> >From: Jim Busch <busch at daacdev1.stx.com>
> >Subject: Re: IM and the EasySparger
>
> >So, did you follow the advise to rehydrate it in advance of brewing?
>
> No, but not to be a crank, just didn't seem to make much sense as it sits in
> the hot wort for several hours before the chiller is even turned.
I think you ignoring the reasons to rehydrate the IM. Lets review....
Hydrate: A chemical compound that contains water combined in a definite ratio,
the water being retained or regarded as being retained in its molecular state.
American Heritage Dictionary, 1981.
Seems to me rather obvious that different chemical reactions are going to
occur when adding water to a solute as opposed to adding wort containing
all kinds of things (and at a vastly different pH) to the same solute. Not
to mention the effects of different temperatures as they relate to
chemical equilibriums. Temperature, pH and water can be powerful catalysts.
> >Wow, sounds like an excellent argument for the SS perforated sheet false
> bottom, but I guess you need to deal with dinosaur vendors.....
>
> Just for the record, I received mail this morning from readers who routinely
> use IM with EM's and have no trouble, so I am not sure where we are at.
Omission of blatent advertisement of common HW store parts.....
>
> >Seriously, I think what Jack has discovered is yet another reason why
> counterflow chillers are better than immersion, trub removal. By combining
> both the hot and cold trub, and by optimizing your trub precipitation, you
> have overwhelmed the ability of your little home brewery to adequately
> remove the trub.
>
> I really do not understand what you are saying here... like, whose on first?
I thought it was patently obvious. IM = more trub. EM != good trub removal.
>
> > If you had used a false bottom as a hop back, the surface
> area available to help seperate the hot trub would have kept most of the
> hot trub in the kettle.
>
> Again, if I used a false bottom and which chiller?
Either, albeit i am suggesting a counterflow. A immersion even strengthens
my point, you are adding 1/3rd more trub when you use immersion, since
both the hot and cold trub are in the same kettle. More break necessitates
more surface area to prevent clogging.
>
> I am at a loss as to how to respond to this but maybe that was your goal.
> But you know I will give it a try anyway.
Some things in the universe are constants.
>
> If I used a false bottom and the process I described, there is a chance that
> the fb may not have clogged and therefore prove to be better than an EM for
> IM. My guess is that it may well have clogged anyway and can't imagine doing
> a 2 hour boil with a false bottom in place.
Not two hours, just 90 minutes :-) Lets review, open area for FBs: great,
open area for EM, small. Or in other terms, how many tiny perf sheet holes
fit into one EM?
>
> Now, if we switch to a counterflow chiller, there is no need for the false
> bottom because we can simply suck all the crud through the chiller and let it
> settle out later. Furthermore, with a cf chiller, the EM may well have
> worked anyway.
Woooowwww, Nelly! No, no ,no. Regardless of the chiller methods, practical
brewers remove the hot trub in the kettle. You dont want this stuff sitting
around on your wort any longer than possible. Its the cold trub that can
be racked off or left as is. Not too mention that without a FB, the hops
would horribly clog any counterflow chiller. FBs are great hop backs, they
work just fine in a boiling kettle, and they offer the advantage of helping
in trub removal. The only "problem" is to remember to put the FB in prior
to the first hop addition. BTW, I cant see why anyone would want to hang
around or come back in the morning just to rack wort off of trub that could
easily be left in the kettle, this hobby is enough work as it is.
>
> So as I see it, you have made a tentative argument for one or the other but
> not necessarily both and a judiciously placed syphon would have solved all
> the problems in the first place.
Syphon? What about the EM? I thought this is what you posted, a clogged EM.
>
>I would also be interested in knowing how many people use their false bottoms
> in their brew kettle.
I sure do. Great hop backs. Just use the brew paddle to help sink the
bottom when you are moving it from the lauter tun into the kettle (after
cleaning it of course).
Jim Busch
"DE HOPPEDUIVEL DRINKT MET ZWIER 'T GEZONDE BLOND HOPPEBIER!"
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Date: Mon, 2 May 1994 07:43:54 -0800 (PDT)
From: sag at atreides.ca.boeing.com (Stuart Galt)
Subject: Surplus bottles / sankey keg(s) wanted
Sorry about the distribution of this, if you are not in the Seattle, Wa
area this may be of limited intrest.
I have an excess of bottles (ie many cases) mostly 22oz Japanese imports
and a few 12oz bottle cases that I (and my wife too :-) want out of the house.
If you can use them let me know.
I am looking for some sankey kegs to use as kegs (I am not going to turn them
into pots). Size does not really matter, 5gal, 1/4-1/2 bbl are all fine.
Any leads local or otherwise would be greatly apreciated.
thanks in advance
stuart galt <sag at atreides.ca.boeing.com> | #include <standard/disclaim.h>
boeing computer services seattle washington | I don't know what they say,
(206) 544-0991 or home (206) 361-0190 | they don't know what I say...
Return to table of contents
Date: Mon, 2 May 1994 10:52:13 +22305931 (EDT)
From: gam at beluga.must.com (Guy Mason)
Subject: Bottling with honey
Greetings Fellow Brewers:
I am a relatively new brewer and would appreciate any advice about bottling
with honey, in TNJoHB it says to use 1/2 cup of honey for 5 gals. of brew.
My last batch, bottled with corn sugar, was over-carbonated and I'd like to
try honey. Of course if the most popular response is "Don't be stupid
use malt!" I will graciously bow to popular opinion. ;)
Thanks in advance for the advice!
_ _
O O
/---------------------------uuu--U--uuu---------------------------\
| Guy Mason Relax, don't |
| MUST Software International worry have a |
| E-mail : gam at must.com homebrew! |
\-----------------------------------------------------------------/
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Date: Mon, 2 May 94 08:01:00 -0600
From: chuck.wettergreen at aquila.com (Chuck Wettergreen)
Subject: HELP - cheesy beer
Yesterday (5/1) I brewed an all-grain pale ale. In 20+ years of
brewing I have *never* seen the likes of this.
The recipe (5 gal) was simply 8 pounds of pale ale and 1 pound of
crystal, 32 IBU's, OG 1.062. The only difference from my standard
recipe was that the pale ale was Belgian vs. the usual English.
After chilling I racked to a santized carboy, sealed and let stand
for a couple of hours for the hot and cold break to settle out, my
standard proceedure. After two hours the break had fallen out and I
racked off of it. I pitched the yeast and aerated. The yeast was
Wyeast 1056, a fresh pack, in 1 quart of 1.040 starter, at high
krausen.
I aerated by pouring back and forth between two carboys through a
funnel, shaking each carboy vigorously when they were 1/4 full. The
only departure from my usually overzealous sanitation routine was
that I aerated the wort at the location where I had ground the
grain. I attached a blowoff tube, covered the the carboy, and left
with a 4" cap of foam on top of the wort.
I returned about four hours later expecting to find full active
fermentation in effect. The blowoff tube was blowing CO2, but when I
uncovered the carboy there was no cap of foam. There was only a
thin (approximately 1/4") layer of "cheesy" brown looking stuff on
top. When I looker closer I remember thinking, "My God, there's a
mother growing in my beer!." By *mother* I refer to the growth
that you sometimes find in vinegar. Hanging under this cheesy layer
was a convoluted growth, almost flower-like, growing down from the
cap. It was about 1.5" long and about an inch in diameter. There must
have been a lot more of these because when I swirled the carboy the
cap and growths broke up into about a million pea-sized pieces of
curd that swirled all through my precious beer.
Half of these pieces re-formed a cap on top of the wort and half
fell to the bottom. This stuff looks like cheese curd. It looks like
the stuff you see when you pour lemon juice in milk.
There were no abnormal smells. There was no yeast floculant.
This morning I looked at it again. Normal fermentation. Capped by 3"
of foam with the cheesy stuff on top. Smells ok, minimal
floculation. Blowing CO2, about once every 3 seconds, out a 1 1/4"
blowoff tube.
Ok folks, what is it? Could it be a "spontaneous" brettanomyces
innoculation caused by aerating where I ground my grain? If it is,
what's it going to be, considering the grains, hop levels, and most
of all, the yeast used? Does anyone KNOW what this is?
TIA,
Chuck
Chuck.Wettergreen at Aquila.com
* RM 1.3 00946 * If idiots could fly, the White House would be an airport.
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Date: Mon, 2 May 94 11:23:32 EDT
From: Bill Sutton <wrs at hpuerca.atl.hp.com>
Subject: H2S "problem" outcome / kit yeasts
Some weeks ago I posted a question about the strong H2S smell I got from
the Glenbrew Secret Brewer's Yeast. I took my May Beer to its destination
celebration on Saturday night, and ...
It was simply the best beer I've ever made, and well in the top 10 beers
I've ever had!
It was beautifully clear (no chill haze!), head retention to die for
(we left one to settle and the head was still thick 15 minutes later, at
which point we couldn't stand the wait any longer and drank it), pleasant
hop aroma and a hint of apple taste (expected due to the addition of that
traditional spring herb woodruff), and a very light mouthfeel (which is
what I was shooting for) ...
OK, so it was only my 3rd batch, the first made with non-kit yeast, and I'm
easily impressed, but it certainly met all my expectations.
I changed a number of things in my brewing process, so I'm posting the recipe
and method just so I can comment on the changes I made and the worries I had.
1 can Alexander's Sun Country Pale extract (3.3 lb, I think)
2 oz Willamette hops
3 lb clover honey
1 cup dried woodruff
water to 5 gallons
Boil extract, honey and 1 oz hop pellets 45 minutes. TURN OFF HEAT (new
method for me, see below), add remaining hops and woodruff. Steep for 15
minutes. Temperature at end of steep ~180 degrees F.
Rehydrate Glenbrew Secret Brewer's yeast in 2 cups wort. Chilled wort by
immersing brewpot in cold water - 85 degrees F after 30 minutes. OG 1.042.
Pitched yeast when foam formed on starter. Primary fermentation 1 week
in plastic bucket. SG at end of primary - 1.008. Racked to glass carboy
for secondary, 2 weeks. FG - 1.003. Primed with 3/4 cup brewer's sugar.
Worries:
1) Primary fermentation created a STRONG H2S smell that dissipated
after 3 days. Little smell when racked to secondary. Worried me
enough that I posted to the HBD. I was told RDWHAHB.
2) Tasting at rack to secondary revealed an almost overpowering
sweetness from the woodruff (and I had thought 1 cup for 5 gallons
wouldn't be enough!). Taste at bottling was still strong, but it
had mellowed somewhat.
3) I had bottled with sugar rather than malt extract this time, because
I wanted the beer to be very light and springlike. After the beer was
in the bottle for 2 weeks I tasted it - there was the "classic"
sugar-primed cider feel - uh oh! It was a little confusing, because
woodruff does have an apple-like flavor, so I didn't quite panic.
I went back upstairs, poured myself an IPA, and hoped.
Changes in my process:
1) If boiling releases all the hop aromas, why do we add finshing hops
during the boil (I know, there's always dry hopping, but I'm
taking this one step at a time). With all the discussion in the
digest about steeping specialty grains rather than boiling them,
I thought "why not steep my specialty herbs?" I think it worked out
EXTREMELY well, so I will keep experimenting with it.
2) I actively chilled my wort. No high-tech method or speed chill here,
and since I pour my wort through a strainer to the primary, the cold
break settling wasn't really going to be helpful anyway. However,
it certainly made things a lot faster (I used to just let the wort
sit for an hour or so.)
3) I racked to secondary more out of necessity than desire, as I was
going to be out of town for 2 weeks after the first week of
fermentation. After the strong H2S from the primary, I had no
desire to leave the beer on the trub any longer than I had to.
I don't know, but I think this was the prime contributor to the
clarity of the beer (sediment wise). I am now a firm believer in
the secondary!
The other change brings me to the second topic. I had always used the kit
yeast before, and this was the first time I used a purchased yeast. After
bottling this batch, I made a yorkshire bitter with the kit yeast and
once again seemed to have lackluster fermentation (this time stopping at
an SG of 1.022!). Why are the kit yeasts (I say kit yeast, but it is just
the standard M&F dry yeast) so lousy?
I like using dry yeast, it is much more convenient and easier to pitch.
Are there any other good dry yeasts I should check into? I have the yeast
of Zymurgy, but time has passed since then.
I wanted to post this as a "thank you" to the hbd for the advice I've
gotten (both directly and indirectly).
Bill Sutton wrs at atl.hp.com "So many songs - so little beer!"
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Date: Mon, 2 May 1994 09:29:05 -0600 (MDT)
From: MELOTH MICHAEL S <meloth at spot.Colorado.EDU>
Subject: Dos/Windows for Beer
Over the past few days I have been trying to ftp programs listed in the
homebrew directory. Some I can get to transfer and others I cannot. Of
those transfered and decoded, I canot seem to get the to run.
Question: Does anyone out there in homebrew land have some shareware beer
programs (e.g., calculating extract and H20 ratios for O.G., calculating
kind and % of hops for bittering, etc.)? If so, reply directly to my
address below.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Michael S. Meloth Phone: 303-492-5204
University of Colorado FAX: 303-492-7090
Campus Box 249 Internet: meloth at spot.colorado.edu
Boulder, CO 80309
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
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Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 10:50:34 -0600 (MDT)
From: COYOTE <SLK6P at cc.usu.edu>
Subject: Split it up! My butt!
***
Joan (who I haven't seen much of here) has called for the HBD to be split
into two digests: One for extract one for all-grain, so she doesn't have
to read so much. (sorry, I don't mean to flame here, just rubbed me wrong).
Ok: so...where do we put irish moss discussions? Are brewpub requests to
be split into extract vs allgrain brewpub requests? How about cookers?
Suppliers who sell only extracts, vs only all grain suppliers?
Where does the cross-over equipment go?
Basically: There's no way that's gonna happen. Some extracters might never
make the so-worth-while- move to allgrain if they didn't have people like
me around harrassing/ antagonizing them into it. Plus where would those
debates take place?! Theres FAR too much common ground to cover, plus
it's just not practical. I'd want to see what the extracters where trying>
to pass off, so they could be kept honest, and correct! Plus I'd want to
participate in the on going all-grain gadget quest!
An Honest suggestion: Try REC.CRAFTS.BREWING where you can more easily
read one message at a time, plus have access to HBD when you want.
If you don't have access to NEWS we...what can I say....but....ts.
Just my 2c on the thought. Your opinion may, and will vary. But I'd be
willing to wager the free maltmill that Jack's gonna send me (right arf!!! :)
that I'm right about this one.
*** Oh reminded me of the Pilsner Pour from Jacks video. That was COOL.
A whole glass of foam, which did not subside. I can sort of do that even
w/o the special tap, but I had to fiddle with my pressures.... :)
***
PS: Just got some Shutlz-Instant (R) Insect spray made with botanical
pyrethins
made from chrysanthemum flowers. Supposed to be safe to apply up to the
day of harvest for veggies. Claimed to be effective against all kinds of
beasties- including but NOT limited to Red-spider mites!
Also on the organic front: Lady bugs can work wonders, plus Murphys Oil Soap
furniture polish is said to work well.
John- The Coyote- Wyllie Oooouweeeeeeee
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Date: Sun, 1 May 1994 10:03:21 -0700
From: Jim Doyle <jgdoyle at uci.edu>
Subject: ROOT BEER, ROOT BEER
I would like to ask once again for root beer recipes. I know they have
been posted previously, but if I read the index at sierra correctly, the
"thread" program is for dos computers...and alas (I never thought I'd say
this) my Mac won't do it. Maybe somebody can use it for me and tell me the
issues which have recipes in them. I can get those from archive.
There is interest...I have received at least a dozen messages along the
lines of "Please forward the recipes you get...". I have received only one
recipe (thanks Troy Downing) which I will forward to those with baited
breath, but as there seems to be quite an interest, I would like more so I
can forward them all at once. For now, anyhow, I guess I can be the
root-beer-recipe-dealing-dude from CA.
P.S. anybody got left-over or used kegging supplies for sale? I know I can
get most of the stuff cheap from many mail order places, but why not
recycle what we've already got?
--
Jim Doyle
P.S. Purchasing Office
Ph. (714) 856-6047
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Date: Mon, 02 May 94 10:55:18 MDT
From: exabyte!smtplink!guym at uunet.UU.NET
Subject: Tumbleweed Grille and Microbrewery
While moving our office from Orlando to Charlotte over the weekend, my
partner in beer hunting and I had the chance to run up to Boone, NC to
Kinney Baughman's establishment. Unfortunately, Kinney was not in but
we didn't let that stop us from enjoying the place. The Southwestern
menu was extensive and the food was great. Great atmosphere too! Oh
yes, the beer. VERY good. I had the Porter, the Gold Ale, and the Steam
beer - all of which were quite good. I found the Porter a bit sweeter than
what I was used to (Anchor, Sierra Nevada, Yuengling) but still good. The
joint was jumping as they say and people were lined up outside to get a
seat (Saturday evening). Hell, I even bought a T-Shirt. To Kinney I say
"Great Job, Great Place!" and to the HBD at large I highly recommend the
trip to Boone if you are even remotely in the area. It's a beautiful drive
up into the Smokies to get there. I will most definitely become a regular.
Hope to catch you in next time Kinney!
--
Guy McConnell -- Exabyte Corp. -- guym at exabyte.com
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Date: Mon, 02 May 94 13:36:00 PDT
From: "Little, David" <davidl at div317.t185.saic.com>
Subject: Nut Adjuncts
I want to start playing with some of my recipes by adding different adjuncts
to the secondary. Does anyone have any experience with adding different
kinds of nuts? I can get very good pecans and peanuts but before adding them
to a batch, I thought I'd ask here. Will the oils in the nuts hurt the
carbonation? How about head retention? My though would be to dry roast some
pecans and add them to a brown ale.
David Little
Internet: david.little-1 at cpmx.saic.com
CIS: 72133,1056
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Date: Mon, 2 May 1994 10:46:00 -0700
From: Richard B. Webb <rbw1271 at appenine.ca.boeing.com>
Subject: Wasted space & partioning the digest
I think that we might be missing the point on the question
of breaking the HBD into parts to customize the information
for the different levels of experience or technique.
The real sectioning of the HBD should be around the
Brew Information / Non-Brew Information fault line.
You may know what I mean. It seems that a lot of the
text that I receive via the HBD has very little to do
with beer, and a lot to do with the egos of the persons
sending it.
You said this about me. That's not what I meant, and you
know it. Your mamma is one too. Don't talk about my mamma
like that you %^*&*^^&*%)(*&())(*&%$%^&* (Tm) and so on. It gets
so tedious.
It's too bad that there can't be some sort of text
recognition program that scores the posts for some
sort of content quota. If the score leans towards the
informational side, it gets allowed into the HBD. If it's
just a continuation of a seven year mutual flame session,
it gets redirected towards the person who is intended
to be flamed, and spares the rest of us from having to
sit in on your arguements. If you want to have some sort
of fight over the net, do so privately. I don't mind
debate, but a lot of this stuff is simply juvenile.
There. That is as much space as I feel like wasting.
The problem with complaining about the signal to noise
ratio is that the complaint only serves to increase
the noise content of the signal. Damn...
Rich Webb
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Date: Mon, 2 May 94 11:28:49 PDT
From: hollen at megatek.com (Dion Hollenbeck)
Subject: Re: Stainless Steel Welding
>>>>> "Terri" == Terri Terfinko <terfintt at ttown.apci.com> writes:
Terri> I am building a brew kettle from a stainless steel keg. I
Terri> have never brazed or welded stainless and would like some
Terri> advice. I will be attaching a brass nipple through a half inch
Terri> hole to install the valve assembly at the bottom of the keg. I
Terri> have experimented with soldering brass to stainless and to my
Terri> surprise, it stuck. I was told that silver solder was the best
Terri> way to fuse the connection. Will a butane torch create enough
Terri> heat to work with silver solder? Any advice on welding
Terri> temperatures, techniques, materials would be appreciated.
Regarding brass and SS together, there have been discussions about the
electrolytic actions here before, and I refer you to those. Strongly
suggest using a SS nipple. It is no harder to solder SS to SS than
brass to SS.
Regarding soldering SS to anything, yes, silver solder is what you
want to use. Yes, a butane torch is *plenty* hot, in fact, you want
to carefully watch to not get it too hot. Use good flux meant for
silver solder. Be extremely careful to have all surfaces extremely
clean. Do not use steel wire brushes of any kind, nor any abrasives
which have previously been used on steel. Apply flux liberally. Use
as little heat as possible to just barely melt the solder. Once the
solder flows remove the heat immediately and cool the area with wet
rags immediately. If you think the solder is not flowing correctly
because you are not applying enough heat, and you apply more heat, 95%
of the time you will be completely wrong. Improper flowing is most
usually due to having improperly cleaned, improperly fluxed, or
overheating causing oxidation.
WARNING!! Prolonged heating or overheating of SS will cause severe
embrittlement to occur. You can literally shatter SS with hammer tap
if it has been overheated.
Dion Hollenbeck (619)675-4000x2814 Email: hollen at megatek.com
Staff Software Engineer Megatek Corporation, San Diego, California
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Date: Mon, 02 May 94 14:56:41 EDT
From: yeebot at aol.com
Subject: What's in Malt Extracts?
Perhaps Malt extract producers are unwilling to disclose the contents of
their extracts because...
***MALT EXTRACT IS MADE OF PEOPLE!!!!***
Perfect for my new batch of Soylent Amber. ;-)
Thanx for the bandwidth.
Mike
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Date: Mon, 2 May 94 15:15:24 EDT
From: dja at ohm.att.com (D.J.Arnone)
Subject: Questions about pH throughout the Brewing Process (cont.)
Hello Again!!!
I want to thank all who responded. Unforunately, I did not get your
responses before I left for the weekend but I did manage to get through
it all.
I have not read all of your responses, but a quick browsing as indicated
the Dave Miller book "The Complete Handbook of Homebrewing". I did
manage to pick this up before the weekend (on the suggestion of the
local brewshop) but I could only implement what I was reading on the
fly. I will need to sit down review all the responses and post results
on the HBD.
When I have results from the brewing process this past weekend, I will
also share these with everyone on the HBD. I did try to correct
(minimally) the pH of my water, but hesitated to do too much for fear
of messing with something I really don't understand well enough. I
hope the recipe works - an Apple Honey Ale. At least it smells great
throught the water trap.
I'm really grateful for the number of responses - Thanks!
Dave Arnone
dja at ohm.att.com
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Date: Mon, 02 May 94 15:21:33 EDT
From: andrewb6 at aol.com
Subject: Re: Duster's In Lawton MI
In #1413, Ulick Stafford mentioned a brewpub called Duster's in Lawton, MI.
You're right that Dusters doesn't sell food, but they will let you bring food
in (at least at the moment). So order your favorite pizza, and dring
microbrew while you wait for it to arrive.
I was there a couple of weeks ago (I live just south of Kalamazoo) and must
admit I didn't care too much for the wheat beer. They have since added a
root beer, which by all accounts is just great.
I really hope they make it, but from a business stand point I have my doubts.
They have limited seating (about 12 - 14 tables as I recall) and I can't see
them making money without serving food. It's easy to tie up a table for a
couple of hours for only $25 and the cover charge ($3 each). They're just
far enough outside the city to make people think twice about driving all that
way just for a beer. They don't help matters either by not naming they're
beers. When I went there we were informed they had three beers, wheat, red and
brown--hardly inspiring.
I know, I know, everyone's a critic! Their biggest plusses--a really cute
town, and a beautiful brick building, with copper-topped tables and fixtures.
The jazz was good too. If anyone is interested, their number is (616)
624-3771. (standard disclaimer, blah, blah, blah)
By the way, the bar/resturaunt across the street is called Big T's, does
indeed have 180 or so beers, and some great food.
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Date: Mon, 02 May 94 15:21:43 EDT
From: andrewb6 at aol.com
Subject: Rhizome basics--quick help
I need a quick crash course in plaxnting hops. Just the first few weeks of
preparation and care--after that I'll have the books I need.
First off: I know it's late to be planting hops here in southwest Michigan.
I wanted to plant hops last year, but didn't have the space. I gave up on
the idea this year to for the same reason. The other day the (soon-to-be)
inlaws told me I'm welcome to plant them behind their new building, so I'm
ready to go.
I bought some rhizomes this afternoon at the local brewery and supply store
(Kalamazoo Brewing Company), but they didn't have any of the books on growing
hops.
If anyone can give any advice here it would be much appreciated. In
particular:
1. Do I need anything to bring these guys back to life (Nugget and Fuggles).
2. How do I prepare and fertilize the ground, and how deep do I plant them.
3. Rooting powder? Plant horizontal or vertical?
4. Any other details that will tide me over until I order the books I need.
Which books are the best?
I know some of the information has been discussed in recent months, so in the
interest of bandwith, private e-mail is preferred. I will post a summary if
requested.
As always: Thanks in advance.
Andy Baird ...so little time, so much to brew...
andrewb6 at aol.com
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Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 12:37:45 +0900
From: bjones at novax.llnl.gov (Bob Jones)
Subject: Temperature control
Thanks to all that replied to my request for sources of Hunter Airstats.
After thinking a while about temperature control, I decided I would build
another temp controller similar to the one I have been using on another
frig. This controller is made up of a Honeywell temperature control with a
range of -30 to 90 def f. It has a setable temperature differential and a
single pole double throw switch. One contract is closed on temperature rise
and the other is closed on temperature fall. With the addition of another
single pole double throw toggle switch and a heater it is possible to build
a controller that will control heat in the winter and cold in the summer. I
use a 650watt glo coil heater and place it in the frig. The thermostat costs
about $30 at Graingers and the heater about $6. The schematic is pretty
simple, but I ain't too good at ascii graphics.
In my opinion, the requirement to control the temperature up or down in very
important. It is true that fermentation is exothermic, however it has been
my experience that the heat generated is inaddequate to maintain the
fermentation to the desired temperature all the time, especially in the winter.
Thanks again for all the suggestions on sources for the Airstat, seems the
general concensus was to look hard and consistantly at Home Depots. They are
there to be had.
Bob Jones
bjones at novax.llnl.gov
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Date: Mon, 2 May 1994 06:24:54 PDT
From: wegeng.XKeys at xerox.com
Subject: Where Do You Ferment Ales?
I`m curious about the environments where homebrewers ferment their beers,
particularly ales. I`m particularly interested in how much effort goes into
controlling temperature, exposure to light, and other environmental factors.
I got to thinking about this over the weekend, when I realized that the air
temperature in my basement was a bit too cold for the ale yeast that I intended
to pitch in a brown ale that I had just finished boiling. I ended up placing
the fermenters in my upstairs bathroom, where the temperatures are better for
the yeast, but the wort will be exposed to more sun light. A quick review of
my brewing library revealed very little on this topic.
/Don
wegeng.xkeys at xerox.com
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Date: Mon, 2 May 1994 13:55:49 -0600 (MDT)
From: Robert Pryor <Robert.Pryor at m.cc.utah.edu>
Subject: Uinta Brewing - SLC, UT
COYOTE requested a review of Uinta so here is one.
It is actually not a brewpub but a brewery. They distribute their beer to
several local bars, pubs and clubs. They do have growlers to go at the
brewery (389 W. 1700 S.) and at $5.00 a fill (1/2 gal) it is a good deal
in these parts. The growler jug itself is $3.00 and refillable. They will
fill other growlers (eg: Squater's, Red Rock) but prefer to fill their own.
They are brewing 3 beers right now: extra pale ale, porter and
hefe-weizen. They are very decent brews and all quite hoppy - even the
hefe-weizen. I would have prefered less hops in it but it was only their
first batch. They are planing another wheat beer but it will be filtered.
I'll keep you posted.
Robert.Pryor at m.cc.utah.edu
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Date: Mon, 02 May 94 11:43:47 EST
From: dweller at GVSU.EDU (RONALD DWELLE)
Subject: spices
Just saw my first copy of the yuppierag _Beer, The Magazine_.
Not as good as HBD, but some interesting stuff.
One article had a sidebar which listed all sorts of spices
that have been (commonly?) used in beer, such as allspice,
pepper, bay leaves, coriander, etc. etc. but no details.
What quantities are we talking here? A dash? An ounce? A
pound? I inquire seriously, cause I'd like to try some, but am
fresh from my first attempt at spruce beer, from fresh spruce
parts. Gaaaaak! Pfftfptft! Puuuuuuuuuuuuuko! Bllaaaaapgklaaaaak!
Anyway, won't have to buy any pinesol for 10 years.
Does some book somewhere have spice-brewing info? Anyone with
live experience?
Ron Dwelle (dweller at gvsu.edu)
Here's to the girl I love--
I wish that she were nigh;
If drinking beer would bring her here,
I'd drink the damn place dry.
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End of HOMEBREW Digest #1414, 05/03/94