HOMEBREW Digest #1810 Thu 17 August 1995
Digest #1809
Digest #1811
FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
Rob Gardner, Digest Janitor
Contents:
Malt/Sugar Entries for SUDS (Kirk Fleming / Metro Technologies)
5 gallon fermenter and 2.5 gallon batch (Oystein Reiersen)
Beer Hunting Web Page (Timothy J. Dalton - Ein Prosit der Gemutlichkeit)
Another Chilling Data Point (Russ Brodeur)
B-Brite Alternative? (Fred Hardy)
Corn Question (John Shearer)
Brewing position (kit.anderson)
Brewing position (kit.anderson)
Correction/SG and Plato Equations/Wort Dilution (Kirk R Fleming)
8/11 Immersion Chilling Nickel ("Palmer.John")
Re: Your Post (Douglas R. Jones)
more on SG/T corrections (Christopher R. Vyhnal)
Crowd Pleaser Ale (kpnadai)
Chillin' Tales (kpnadai)
Dead Hunter Airstat Fix ("Lee A. Menegoni")
Braided tubing ("Lee A. Menegoni")
Pitching Temps and affects (James_Busch_at_lablan)
Dilution Theory made Simple? ("Palmer.John")
Beer Trivia? (GubGuy)
siphons and carboys (David Taylor)
Iodophor and other ramblings... (Christopher P. Weirup)
more siphoning (Rob Emenecker)
RE Bullets, cooling to pitch temps (Tim_Fields_at_Relay__Tech__Vienna)
Michigan and Ontario suggestions? (uswlsrap)
High pitching temps. (Kenneth K Goodrow)
Alcoholic Lemonade (Mario Robaina)
Hazelnut extract in Nut Brown Ale ("Michael R. Swan")
Slow cooling = DMS??? (Harralson, Kirk)
BrewPubs in Myrtle Beach, SC (TRoat)
craft beer (Eamonn McKernan)
Immersion chill data / Mashout & extraction (Dave Draper)
WIT! or W-I-T ? (Russell Mast)
H2O2 and bubblers and foam OH MY! (Bill Johns)
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----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Tue, 15 Aug 1995 23:37:01 -0600 (MDT)
From: Kirk Fleming / Metro Technologies <flemingk at usa.net>
Subject: Malt/Sugar Entries for SUDS
I think there's a need for a clearing house of data for the SUDS
malt/sugar database--it would sure be helpful to have good data
regarding yields and color contributions for a number of products
not provided in the software. Examples include blackstrap molasses,
black treacle, flaked maize, etc.
Now that I think of it, I suppose Mike Taylor is that clearinghouse.
He may not like the idea, but it makes sense to me. Maybe there is
already a more complete compiled database and I'm just out of the loop?
Well, I've mentioned three sugar sources for which I'd like to get
good data, I'm confident other brewers have some more. If the
experts can recommend procedures to get the data empirically, I'd
be happy to do it for some of these items. I'm having trouble thinking
of an acceptable method for getting the ppg and SRM for black treacle,
for example, and an acceptable technique for adjuncts is even more
elusive.
Kirk R Fleming / Colorado Springs / flemingk at usa.net
"...I wish their time would go by fast, but somehow they
manage to make it last." The Ramones (on politicians)
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 16 Aug 95 11:28 WEST
From: ore at bibsent.no (Oystein Reiersen)
Subject: 5 gallon fermenter and 2.5 gallon batch
I made my second batch yesterday out of an Ironmaster Stout Kit. I've been
warned about adding sugar, so I halved the water instead. The final gravity
was slightly above 1.050. The airlock was very busy this morning. So far so
good.
Today I'm worrying about the extra amount of air in the 5 gallon plastic
fermenter. On the other hand - I've heard about open fermenters. Can anyone
enlighten me on the consequences of this?
I'll appreciate any advice for my next batch. I love Guinness, so I'm
definitively after something dark and bitter. The problem is that I have
trouble getting malt extracts here in Norway - I seem to be stuck with these
kits. Anyone have any advice on combinating kits into drinkable beer?
- -----------------------------------------------------------------
=D8ystein Reiersen,Biblioteksentralen(The Norwegian Library Bureau)
Tel: +47 22 08 34 17 Fax: +47 22 19 64 43 Email: ore at bibsent.no
- -----------------------------------------------------------------
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 16 Aug 95 07:46:48 EDT
From: Timothy J. Dalton - Ein Prosit der Gemutlichkeit <dalton at subpac.enet.dec.com>
Subject: Beer Hunting Web Page
Ok, I'm finally ready to announce its' existance:
A web page devoted to beer hunting around the world, with a very heavy
emphasis on Belgium.
Check it out and let me know if you have any suggestions,
or any articles for inclusion.
I know the first suggestion: more photos. If I ever get around to scanning
in any of my photos, I'll take care of that one.
Tim
http://www.tiac.net/users/tjd/bier/bier.html
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 16 Aug 95 08:23:57 -0400
From: r-brodeur at ds.mc.ti.com (Russ Brodeur)
Subject: Another Chilling Data Point
FWIW, I have been using an immersion chiller consisting of a 60' coil of
3/8" OD copper (1/4"L?) to cool 10+ gal in my keg from boiling to ~ 65 F in
15 - 20 min. No joke! Of course, this feat requires constant stirring of
the wort and cold tap water (50 F). Unfortunately, I no longer live in an
area where I have 50 F tap water, but I can still cool within a half hour
_without_ stirring using this chilller and my 55 - 60 F water. Yes, the
wort does stratify if I don't stir it.
My only complaint would be the waste of water, but this can be minimized by
using recirculated ice-water. It may also speed chilling.
TTFN
Russ Brodeur (r-brodeur at ds.mc.ti.com)
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 16 Aug 1995 08:33:56 -0400 (EDT)
From: Fred Hardy <fcmbh at access.digex.net>
Subject: B-Brite Alternative?
I read Don's post, and fully agree with his observation that dishwashing
detergent (powder) has the same chemical composition as B-Brite. I do not
necessarily agree the CVS is a discount drug store, since it seems to me
they have little of either (discounts or drugs).
ALL (brand name) dishwashing powder is one of the cheapest on any shelf, has
the same ingredients listed as B-Brite, has no perfume, and seems to
work. I can not attest to the specific proportions of ingredients, but
I have been using ALL for several years with no sanitation problem, so I
believe it works. It also costs a fraction of the cost of B-Brite, and
does not foam.
BTW, do rinse after immersion in detergent.
Wassail, Fred
==============================================================================
We must invent the future, else it will | <Fred Hardy>
happen to us and we will not like it. |
[Stafford Beer, "Platform for Change"] | email: fcmbh at access.digex.net
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Date: Wed, 16 Aug 1995 09:18:50 -0400
From: jds at equinox.shaysnet.com (John Shearer)
Subject: Corn Question
Greetings to the collective,
(Actually, this is for the people that have been talking lately about using
corn in brewing - but anyone can answer.)
I read the post from last week concerning using unmodified corn as an
adjunct. I too live in corn country, unfortunately 99% of the corn is of
the cow feed variety.
My questions:
1) What kinds of corn should (or should not) be used - sweet, sugar, cow,
indian?
2) What is the preparation? (cut from the cob and used fresh? dried somehow?)
The last person said he gets over 56# per bushel of corn. Now if that is
fresh from the field, most of the weight will be in husk and cob, so the
final yield will be much lower if it is cut.
If all this was answered in the original post, could someone let me know
what # it was? (I must have missed it:-)
john
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 16 Aug 95 09:05:14 -0500
From: kit.anderson at acornbbs.com
Subject: Brewing position
Sugarloaf Brewing Co. in Carrabasset, Maine is looking to add another
brewer. See the Maine Brew Page at http://www.maine.com/brew or email
me for more details.
I already have a day job.
Kit "Travels With Chiles" Anderson
Bath, Maine
<kit.anderson at acornbbs.com>
*
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 16 Aug 95 09:05:17 -0500
From: kit.anderson at acornbbs.com
Subject: Brewing position
Sugarloaf Brewing Co. in Carrabasset, Maine is looking to add another
brewer. See the Maine Brew Page at http://www.maine.com/brew or email
me for more details.
I already have a day job.
Kit "Travels With Chiles" Anderson
Bath, Maine
<kit.anderson at acornbbs.com>
*
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 16 Aug 1995 07:52:01 -0600
From: flemingk at usa.net (Kirk R Fleming)
Subject: Correction/SG and Plato Equations/Wort Dilution
In my #1809 post there's an error...in the table "Eqn 2" should be "Eqn 3".
SG to Plato and Back
- --------------------
The Plato-to-sg conversion equation presented by AJ in #1809 provides
yet another source of great enjoyment. That's the first time I've seen
his equation, but back in May Jeorg Houck forwarded me the following:
deg P = -676.67 + 1286.4*sg - 800.47*sg^2 + 190.74*sg^3
The interesting thing is how well AJ's eqn agrees with this cubic.
The Plato values given by the two eqn's agree to within .1 P up to
sg = 90, then converge again up to about sg = 169 where they again start
to diverge. But even up to sg ~ 200 the two results agree to about .2 P.
But Jeorg also forwarded a simpler equation that works *very* well in spite
of its unimpressive appearance:
deg P = (259*sg - 259)/sg Note there's only one constant to remember!
This approximation is pretty spectacular. It agrees with the cubic equation
to within .1 P up to sg = 90, to within .2 P up to sg = 116, and to within
.5 P to sg = 168. Someone may know *why* it agrees so well--I don't, and I
prefer to remember the inverse: sg = 259/(259 - Plato)
Wort Dilution (the reason this Plato thing got going in the first place):
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------
This problem almost solves itself if you can use SI units (here's your
chance, Dave, I've left a shot wide open!). The premise again is:
You have x litres of wort at gravity sg1, and want to know how many
litres of water to add to get some lower gravity sg2. First, read sg1 in
Plato degrees (or convert it) to get p1, and do the same with the desired
sg2 to get p2. Given
v1 = original wort volume (L)
w1 = original wort "weight" (Kg)
dw = weight of water to be added (Kg)
p1 = original sg in deg Plato
p2 = desired sg in deg Plato
e1 = original extract weight (Kg), then
w1 = sg1*v1 orig wort weight is orig sg * vol (in Litres)
e1 = (p1/100)*w1 extract weight is orig Plato * orig weight (Kg)
(w1 + dw) final wort weight (Kg)
The final Plato gravity times final wort weight has to provide the
extract weight e1, because the sugar weight hasn't changed...
(p2/100)(w1 + dw) = e1 and set this equal to the earlier expression for
e1 giving:
(p2/100)(w1 + dw) = (p1/100)*w1 then solve for dw...
dw = -w1(p2 - p1)/p2, or what is the same:
-------------> dw = (sg1*v1)(p2 - p1)/p2 (1) <---------------
Example: 20L of 1.060 wort is to be reduced to 1.045 through addition
of plain water. How much is needed?
Convert 1.060 and 1.045 to Platos of 14.7 and 11.2, respectively. Then
dw = -(1.060*20)(11.2 - 14.7)/11.2 = 6.625 Kg, OR, ~6.6 Litres
The only constant in this exercise is the "259" to convert sg to Plato--
and you could just use your hydrometer as the conversion table instead, and
go directly into Eqn (1).
With SI units, a hydrometer and a measuring glass graduated in litres,
Eqn (1) is all that's needed--NO constants of any kind need be remembered,
transcribed, or typed into the calculator. Just another way to do bizniss.
KRF Colorado Springs
Return to table of contents
Date: 16 Aug 1995 07:46:32 U
From: "Palmer.John" <palmer at ssdgwy.mdc.com>
Subject: 8/11 Immersion Chilling Nickel
Hi Group,
I just received HBD #1805 and the posts on Immersion Chilling have prompted me
to toss in my nickel.
I have a monster Immersion chiller. It is 50 ft of 1/2" copper tubing wrapped
in a double (inner, outer) coil about a foot high. It is connected via vinyl
tubing to an immersion pump which goes in the Hot Water Tank (keg) after I am
done with it. I mean, after mashing and lautering I empty it and fill it with
cold water (70F) from the hose.
The pump recirculates this water from the chiller to the keg and back. I do
this to conserve water here in S.Cal, but it has another advantage. The first 5
gallons of water thru the chiller are boiling hot (almost). I discharge this
into another bucket and pour it out later. Then I start dropping 10 lb blocks
of ice into the keg to keep up the temperature differential. This does alot to
speed up my chilling. If I lived up north obtaining cold water to chill with
wouldnt be a problem. I always stir while chilling, either with the paddle that
has been in the wort since the boil or by moving the chiller around inside the
boiling keg. I can chill 10 gallons in a half hour to 60F depending on how much
ice I use. I still use about 20 gallons of water to chill with but I would
probably use more just connected to the garden hose and as Dion says, that last
20 degrees would take much longer.
John J. Palmer - Metallurgist for MDA-SSD M&P
johnj at primenet.com Huntington Beach, California
Palmer House Brewery and Smithy - www.primenet.com/~johnj/
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 16 Aug 1995 09:52:06 -0500
From: djones at iex.com (Douglas R. Jones)
Subject: Re: Your Post
>I have conflicting information on the use of Iodophor. One source
>(Williams Brewing) says that iodine sanitizer should be used at the ratio
>of two teaspoons per gallon of water. One should then rinse to remove
>toxic iodine residue. Other sources say that one should not exceed 0.5
>oz. per five gallons. No rinsing is necessary. Who is right?
I use, generally, 1 oz/5gallons. Sometimes a little like 1.5 oz/5 gallons.
When getting bottles ready for filling I use 2 oz/7 gallons. I also rinse.
>Secondly, I have read with some interest recently about *racking* from
>the brewpot to the primary. In my five or six batches so far, I have
>never racked to the primary, simply because my instructions said nothing
>about it. Is is beneficial to rack to the primary rather than simply
>pouring?
While there may be something to this, especially for those who have large
brew lengths. I suspect weight is the issue and ease of manipulating a large
kettel. In my brewery we use a mesh filter stuck in the funnel and once the
wort is chilled (ice/water filled sink) my brew partner will pour the wort
into the carboy (I don't because of 2 trashed disks).
Doug
- --------------------------------------------------
'I am a traveler of | Douglas R. Jones
both Time and Space' | IEX Corporation
Led Zeppelin | (214)301-1307
| djones at iex.com
- --------------------------------------------------
Return to table of contents
Date: 16 Aug 95 09:00:40 EDT
From: Christopher.R.Vyhnal at Dartmouth.EDU (Christopher R. Vyhnal)
Subject: more on SG/T corrections
in HBD #1809, Kirk Fleming follows up on the SG/T thread:
>>> I guess the question is whether the physics of the problem is better
modeled with 2nd or 3rd order curves. If there is someone out there who has a
handle on goodness-of-fit for these regressions it would be interesting to root
this out a bit. <<<
if my understanding of polynomial expansions is correct, there is no
theoretical basis for the exact order of a polynomial regression--it's an
empirical fit which always improves with the addition of higher order terms. i
also understand that polynomial regressions are notoriously bad for
extrapolating beyond the range of the data fit. this doesn't really apply
here, however, since we're only considered with a limited temperature range.
the equation i listed was a 2nd order fit to thermal expansion data for water
over the whole temperature range from its freezing to boiling points (from the
Handbook of Physical Constants, 1966, S.P. Clark, editor). you could use a
higher order regression if you wanted to, but your equations just get more
complicated unnecessarily. if you agree that the uncertainty of a hydrometer
reading is +/- 0.001, then the 2nd and 3rd order regressions are identical
within error of the measurement.
the bottom line is that as long as your wort is between 30 and 80 degress F,
you don't really need to apply a temperature correction to the SG reading you
get with your hydrometer. if, on the other hand, you're taking your SG reading
at some higher temperature (i.e., pre-chilling), then you should correct for
the thermal expansion of your wort. Kirk's provided a nice table that shows
the correction you should apply at a given temperature.
cheers,
chris
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 16 Aug 95 09:43:07 PDT
From: kpnadai at adsnet.com
Subject: Crowd Pleaser Ale
When I first started brewing, I tried to please the beer drinkers around
me. I experimented with rice solids, rice syrups, dextrose, and honey as
adjuncts, and doing everything I could do to brew light colored beer short
of bleaching the malt extract.
One day, my girlfriend commented my brews were getting to the point where
they were "almost as good as Coors." She is still my girlfriend, but ever
since then I have brewed for myself and enjoyed brewing much more. "You
don't like my brew? Then stop at the store on the way over buy Zima for
all I care!
I have since fallen in love with IPA and especially the Cascade hop. Anchor
Liberty, my current commercial favorite, is a little, shall we say, wimpy
on the hops.
Anyway, I will be having an end to Summer party. (You are all invited, BYOK)
I was thinking about brewing something a little more crowd friendly. Short
of mixing my brew with club soda, do any of you have any favorite crowd
pleazin' ales?
TIA,
Brew Bayou,
Kevin Nadai
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 16 Aug 95 09:27:28 PDT
From: kpnadai at adsnet.com
Subject: Chillin' Tales
I use liquid nitrogen to chill my wort in 45 seconds. It is extremely
expensive and dangerous, much like exploding bottles, peroxide poisoning
and all. Please refer to the LN2 FAQ for how to get started.
Don't chill too long though, or the cold break won't settle before the
whole thing freezes around the immersion chiller like a great big wortsicle.
I can't stir using the chiller because my hand freezes to the copper coils.
Is my beer ruined?
I was thinking about using liquid oxygen right into the wort instead. That
way, I can aerate as well. LOX is MUCH more expensive and dangerous, so I
think it would be better.
As a scuba diver, I don mask, regulator, and tank. Then I purge the house
of oxygen with LOTS of CO2. Haven't had an oxidized batch yet.
Lately, I keep thinking back to that very first batch where I did everything
wrong and it turned out great.
IMBR? (Is my brain ruined?)
Brew Bayou,
Kevin Nadai
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Date: Wed, 16 Aug 95 11:06:42 EDT
From: "Lee A. Menegoni" <lmenegoni at nectech.com>
Subject: Dead Hunter Airstat Fix
A few members of our club have had the same problem as recently posted, the
AC outlet is no longer gated and is in the off state. Below is a portion
of a post discussing this problem.
> The part number for the Airstat zener is 1N5359B. It's a 24V, 5W zener.
> It's the only zener on the board, marked as Z1 I believe. Mine read dead
short
> with an ohmmeter.
We had problems finding the part if anyone has a source please post it, I
still have a dead hunter I would like to fix.
Lee Menegoni
NEC Technologies
1414 Mass. Ave / MS 2110
Boxborough MA 01719-2298
v 508-635-6282
f 508-264-8787
LMenegoni at NECTech.com
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 16 Aug 95 11:14:04 EDT
From: "Lee A. Menegoni" <lmenegoni at nectech.com>
Subject: Braided tubing
I have purchased Food Grade, mercury and silcone free PVC tubing from US
Plastics, it has a temp rating of +25 to 150F. Its listed applications are
Food and beverage tubing, air and water lines, potable water, deionized
water, air breathing lines.
Sold in 10 foot increments or 100 foot rolls. Price per foot is about 50
cents a foot for 3/8" ID, model number 60722 and 70 cents a foot for 1/2"
ID model number 60723, plus UPS costs..
US Plastics 1 800 537 9724
Lee Menegoni
NEC Technologies
1414 Mass. Ave / MS 2110
Boxborough MA 01719-2298
v 508-635-6282
f 508-264-8787
LMenegoni at NECTech.com
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 16 Aug 95 11:26:03 EST
From: James_Busch_at_lablan at cscgt.gsfc.nasa.gov
Subject: Pitching Temps and affects
Several posters asked what are the negative consequences of pitching
yeast at high temps. The easy answer is more fusel alcohols and more
esters. How much this bothers you depends on yeast strain and the
beer being made. Some esters are desirable in some beers. Most
fusels are undesirable, and can lead to headaches. I dont usually
post excerpts of my Brewing Techniques column here but this is a
timely point to do so. I`ll also make a shameless plug to say how
great BT is and you should join by emailing to btcirc at aol.com.
Excerpt from my next column, edited and enhanced by A.J. deLange:
"Increased temperature has several effects on yeast metabolism. Fusel
alcohol production is increased. The levels of intracellular acetyl
coenzyme A are increased. As this is the starting point for lipid and
sterol synthesis lipid anabolism is increased which results in increased
availablilty of acyl coenzyme A products. These can combine with the fusel
alcohols to form the higher esters. Acetyl-coenzyme A is itself an
acyl-coenzyme A molecule and, as ethanol is the alcohol in highest
concentration, ethyl acetate is the predominant ester in beer. Note that
where the wort has been insufficiently aerated some of the acetyl-coenzyme
A which would ordinarily go into sterol synthesis does not do so because of
the lack of oxygen. This can then flow into the lipid synthesis pathway
producing extra acyl-coenzyme A molecules and thus higher ester levels."
Good brewing,
Jim Busch
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Date: 16 Aug 1995 08:32:13 U
From: "Palmer.John" <palmer at ssdgwy.mdc.com>
Subject: Dilution Theory made Simple?
Hi Group,
For the last couple days I have been bemused at the apparent complexity that
many respected participants of this group have directed to the Dilution
problem.
To me it seems very simple.
If you have collected 7 gallons of 1.042 wort, and you are going to boil it
down to 5 gallons, what will be your final OG?
1. You have 7 gallons of 42 points per gallon wort. Total points = 7x42 = 294
2. The OG of 294 pts in 5 gallons = 294/5 = 58.8 or 1.059
Likewise, If you are boiling 3 gallons of 1.080 wort and plan on diluting it to
5 gallons in the fermenter:
1. 3 x 80ppg = 240 pts total
2. 240 pts/5 gal = 48 or an OG of 1.048
What could be simpler? (of course, the last time I posted something like this,
on the delta V of solutions, I was quickly shown my error by several friends. I
dont think that will be the case this time, but I wont hold my breath too
long.)
John J. Palmer - Metallurgist for MDA-SSD M&P
johnj at primenet.com Huntington Beach, California
Palmer House Brewery and Smithy - www.primenet.com/~johnj/
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 16 Aug 1995 12:07:21 -0400
From: GubGuy at aol.com
Subject: Beer Trivia?
Hi All,
I'm wanting to put together a door game for my small, local BBS that focuses
on beer, but I'm short on trivia questions for this little project. Anybody
have a Beer Trivia file they would like to share? Just trying to do my part
to educate these Coors Light (shudder) swilling local yokels. TIA from the
Beer Wastelands,
-Ray-
"Aye, aye, Bessy, never brew wi' bad malt upo' Michaelmas day, else you'll
have a poor tap."
-Mr. Tulliver From "The Mill on the Floss"
by George Eliot
GubGuy at aol.com
-Ray Ownby-
Moses Lake, WA
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Date: Wed, 16 Aug 1995 10:27:42 -0600 (MDT)
From: David Taylor <dptaylor at lamar.ColoState.EDU>
Subject: siphons and carboys
I have to comment that there is an easier and more sanitary
way to siphon beer into and out of a carboy than the method
proposed by David Wright. If you want to slightly pressurize
or depressurize the head space in the carboy (which is a good
way to get your siphon started), you are better off using a
pipet bulb than your mouth. (These can be had from FISHER
SCIENTIFIC 1-800-766-7000 at the inflated price of about $5
and many other places if you care to shop around.)
I often use a two-holed rubber stopper at top of the carboy
for siphoning. I have a short glass tube that goes through
the stopper into the head space to use with the pipet bulb.
I use a longer glass tube (at least 3/8 inch diameter) which
can reach down to the bottom of the carboy and has a bend on
top to avoid crimping the flexible tubing.
It is a much more sanitary solution to the same problem.
Dave Taylor
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
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Date: Wed, 16 Aug 1995 11:39:33 -0500
From: cerevis at mcs.net (Christopher P. Weirup)
Subject: Iodophor and other ramblings...
I have been noticing a lot of bandwidth about B-Brite and iodophor. I just
would like to put my two bits in.
In HBD #1809, Jim Dipalma writes:
>I liked the old BBrite better, too. The new formulation is suspiciously
>similar to
>dishwasher detergent. I switched to iodophor.
I may be mistaken, but iodophor is a sanitizer, while B-Brite is a
detergent. This is a big difference. B-Brite does not sanitize. On the
other side you still need to clean your equipment before you use iodophor.
I've noticed a number of people confusing what B-Brite does and what
iodophor does. If I am wrong, someone please slap me around and set me
straight.
Relatedly, in HBD #1809, Fr. Bradley A.M. Barber writes,
>I have conflicting information on the use of Iodophor. One source
My personal experience with iodophor is 12.5ppm. That roughly translates
to 0.1 oz. per 1 gallon of cold water. At this concentration no rinsing is
necessary, although you do need to drip dry your equipment. I have never
had problems (or infections) with this concentration. That seems to be
true with other people I've talked to about using iodophor.
On a completely different subject....
I hate to bring gelatin back up again, but there is one thing that is
driving me crazy at nights. When do you add the gelatin? I've heard right
before racking to the secondary, sometime during the secondary, and to the
bottling bucket. I've added gelatin during the secondary with less than
specatcular results, i.e., clumps of gook floating in my brew. Private
e-mail is fine.
Thanks in advance!
Chris Weirup
cerevis at mcs.net
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 16 Aug 95 12:57:25 PDT
From: Rob Emenecker <robe at cadmus.com>
Subject: more siphoning
In HBD1809 David Wright presents a straightforward method of siphoning using
a carboy cap. (I am assuming he is referring to one of the orange caps). I
used to use a similar method but experienced a great deal of oxidation with
the batches I siphoned doing this. I made a few simple changes to the basics
(as outlined by David) and they eliminated my oxidation problem...
1. Instead of using 3/8 I.D. tubing I switched to 5/16 I.D.
from the racking tube to the receiving vessel (carboy,
bottling bucket, etc.) tubing. This gave a tighter seal
which prevent any O2 (air) from getting sucked in between
the wall of the tubing and the outer wall of the racking
wand.
2. Instead of blowing on the tube attached to the carboy cap,
I pumped CO2 into the tube. By keeping modest pressure
applied to the "in" side of the carboy cap, then siphon
just chugs along. I know this may seem like a waste of CO2,
but if it saves a brew, it's worth it.
Hope this helps!
============================================================================
Rob Emenecker (remenecker at cadmus.com)
Cadmus Journal Services, Inc., Linthicum, Maryland 21090
410-691-6454 (voice) / 410-684-2793 (fax)
Date: 08/16/95 Time: 12:57:25
- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
"There are only two things in life that are ever certain... taxes and BEER!"
============================================================================
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Date: Wed, 16 Aug 95 13:43:06 EST
From: Tim_Fields_at_Relay__Tech__Vienna at relay.com
Subject: RE Bullets, cooling to pitch temps
In #1809, Russell Mast <rmast at fnbc.com comments:
>(Guns don't kill people, bullets kill people.)
^^^^^^^
Sorry -R, PEOPLE kill people.
Also from 1809, PatrickM50 at aol.com writes re Jim Busch's comments:
> Once
>the temp of the cooling wort has dropped to about 80 deg or so, I
>stop
>stirring, remove the chiller, and let the wort sit all quiet like and
>covered
>for at least 10 minutes to let the cold break settle. I then siphon
>using an
>aeration-tube at the end of the flex tubing and this further cools
>the wort as it fills the fermentor.
I tried to siphon my cooled wort _once_. Partial wort boil. It
siphoned like molasses so I gave up on it (Perhaps I cooled it a bit
too much; to maybe 60F). It _did_ look pretty cool tho; oozing out in
a viscous stream under water....
Was trying to avoid HSA. After reading more posts here, it seems that
cooling to below 80F is sufficient to avoid HSA, and at that temp I
shouldn't get the molasses effect. Will give it another shot.
-Tim
Tim Fields / Vienna, VA, USA / timf at relay.com
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 16 Aug 1995 14:08:01 EDT
From: uswlsrap at ibmmail.com
Subject: Michigan and Ontario suggestions?
*** Resending note of 08/16/95 10:43
Greetings!
I hope everyone who made it to "Beer and Sweat" in Madison ;-)
(the Ninth Annual Great Taste of the Midwest<tm> took place under
the sun and under the tents with an official high temperature of 99F)
enjoyed themselves and all those different beers despite the heat.
Comments and suggestions are welcome.
Now to the main point of this post, the what-are-the-good-breweries-and-
brewpubs-in-(blank) post:
(blank)= Michigan and Ontario.
Yes, I've been to Bell's (and will return)
But what about:
-small, obscure places in almost-Northern Ontario? (roughly along a
line from Soo to Sudbury and even out to Ottawa/Hull)
-recommendations for sorting through the excellent, good, and mediocre
among everything in Toronto?
-anyone know about the little one in Escanaba mentioned in MIDWEST BEER
NOTES? Anything else in the UP?
-anything worthwhile in the Detroit/Windsor area?
-breweries that do and don't offer tours? (for example, Northern doesn't
offer tours in their Thunder Bay brewery, but what about Sault Ste. Marie
or Sudbury? other packaging brewers worth a visit and offering tours?)
-anything else not covered above that demands a visit even if a bit out of
the way?
-what bottled product is worth bringing back into the U.S.?
PRIVATE EMAIL, PLEASE!! Don't use HBD bw to reply!!
TIA
Now go have a beer,
Bob Paolino uswlsrap at ibmmail.com
Madison
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Date: Wed, 16 Aug 1995 14:12:34 -0500 (CDT)
From: Kenneth K Goodrow <goodrow at orion.etsu.edu>
Subject: High pitching temps.
If pitch temps. are "supposed to be" low at around 60-70 degrees, why
have I had two excellent batches of beer when I rehydrated my yeast in
100 degree water (as recommended in two sources, one Charlie's) for 15
mins. and then pitched it in about 100 degree wort? I have experimented
with this method of pitching and have derived two of my best batches. I
have done some minimalist brewing (e.g., not taking SG measurements,
doing barebones sanitation, etc.) and it has turned out excellently,
too. Is it just my batches and brewing conditions, or can pitch temps.
be played with more than we assume?
Kenn
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 16 Aug 1995 13:03:18 -0700 (PDT)
From: sprmario at netcom.com (Mario Robaina)
Subject: Alcoholic Lemonade
In Sydney last summer, my girlfriend and I tried some alcoholic lemonade
brewed (?) at a brewpub there (can't remember the name). It was very
nice. Very effervescent (sp?), and quite high in alcohol, but quite
refreshing nonetheless. I have since taken up homebrewing and am now
contemplating trying to duplicate it, but am interested in what
others have to say about it. Is the acidity going to be a problem?
Should I just make some Country-Time and throw some yeast in?
My thought at this point is to do some gravity experiments with
Country-Time, and aim for the high side (so as to end up with residual
sweetness). I'd boil this (10 minutes?) for sanitation only, pitch a
yeast that poops out on high gravity brews, and some yeast nutrient (I
assume lemonade is not as rich in nutrients as wort), and see what
happens. Also would like to finish with champagne yeast (the bubbles and
flavor profile of the stuff we tried was something like a mimosa heavy on
the champagne side), but that would probably defeat the goal of residual
sweetness.
I suppose I'm most interested in whether anyone's tried this before, but
would also appreciate educated guesses as to how I might make some. Any
takers?
-John Girard
(through sprmario at netcom.com)
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Date: Wed, 16 Aug 95 15:36:29 -0400
From: "Michael R. Swan" <mswan at fdic.gov>
Subject: Hazelnut extract in Nut Brown Ale
In HBD #1809, I posted the following questions about using Hazelnut
extract in Nut Brown Ale:
<< Has anyone brewed a batch using hazelnut extract? How did it turn
<< out? Any ideas as to how much extract should be used? Should it go in
<< the secondary or the bottling bucket? Thanks in advance.
Steve Armbrust and Jeff Frane advise that the 1993 AHA convention was
held in Portland and the commemorative brew was a hazelnut brown ale (brewed by
Chris Studach (?)). I checked and the recipe for this beer is in the Summer
1994 issue of __Zymurgy__ (Volume 17, No. 2).
I will need to check the actual recipe, but the recollection seemed to
be that between two and three ounces of pure extract was called for.
Apparently the hard part is finding someone who carries the real thing. A lot
of people carry hazelnut oil, but this is probably not appropriate.
Any ideas on where to get the pure extract? I have seen Royal Piper
Cordial Extracts (used to make cordials by adding vodka). Would this work?
Thanks to all who responded.
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mike Swan "The path of the righteous man is
Dallas, Texas beset on all sides by the inequities
mswan at fdic.gov of the selfish and the tyranny of
"My views are my own" evil men." Pulp Fiction
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 16 Aug 95 17:14:59 EST
From: kwh at roadnet.ups.com (Harralson, Kirk)
Subject: Slow cooling = DMS???
Last week, someone mentioned that one of the reasons to chill wort
quickly, other than for sanitation, was to minimize formation of DMS
in this critical period. This triggered a thought about the common
methodology of adding fruit at the end of the boil and steeping for a
short period. Wouldn't this almost guarantee a significant amount of
DMS formation? I have used this method before, and ended up with a
very soft, rounded beer that could be described as having the typical
buttery character. The funny thing is, I think this is a somewhat
desirable quality at low levels in SOME beers, but definitely not
fruit beers. I definitely prefer crisp clean flavors in fruit beers,
and will stick with adding fruit and/or flavors in the secondary from
now on. I have read recommendations for people to encourage some DMS
formation (by steeping after the boil) to enhance the malty characters
of some ales. Does anyone do this? How long should you steep before
you got too much? What styles would this benefit? Comments?
Kirk Harralson
Bel Air, Maryland
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Date: Wed, 16 Aug 1995 17:31:08 -0400
From: TRoat at aol.com
Subject: BrewPubs in Myrtle Beach, SC
Going to sit on the beach in South Carolina (Myrtle Beach) September 1-7. I
get bored on the beach quickly (my wifes turn to chose the vacation you see).
Any brewpubs in Myrtle Beach (or surrounding area) to keep me occupied and
happy!?
Help save my vacation! :-) E-mail fine.
Todd W. Roat
(TRoat at aol.com)
"Too much of everything is just enough!"
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 16 Aug 1995 18:05:27 -0400
From: eamonn at chinook.physics.utoronto.ca (Eamonn McKernan)
Subject: craft beer
At a recent CABA (Canadian Amateur Brewers Assoc) event, we had a Molson
Bigwig give a talk (name of Moss?). He pointed out that ingredients
constituted only 5-10% (I don't remember the exact figure) of the pre-tax
cost of a beer. After taxes, it's half again that cost. Further he claimed
that they were able to easily reproduce various craft beers, and had done so
on occasion. The real reason for price differences between craft beer and
mega-swill beer is economies of scale: it's cheaper to brew in big volumes.
He said that the market didn't want what we call "good" beer. People like
swill. Now if more good beer was available, eventually people's tastes
will mature, but they are trying to make good beer available eg. through their
signature series.
I am no Molson fan, but I couldn't fault the argument. Though
certain styles they'll NEVER duplicate (lambics are the most obvious example)
, and they won't be as adventurous as craft brewers in their attitude, even
if most beer is mega-brewed in the future, who cares as long as it's beer
I want to drink. And cheaper is better.
All we have to do is convince the rest of North America not to
drink crap!
Eamonn McKernan
eamonn at atmosp.physics.utoronto.ca
"More than one in five Canadian children are poor... Statistics Canada reports
that the pre-1993 social spending cuts alone --not even those promised in the
Martin budget-- will result in a 40 percent poverty rate by the year 2000...
Unprepared to pay for a civilized society, we are creating one characterized
by social barbarism." J.F. Conway, Toronto Star, July 25, 1995
Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 17 Aug 1995 08:08:21 +1000
From: david.draper at mq.edu.au (Dave Draper)
Subject: Immersion chill data / Mashout & extraction
Dear Friends, as the wort-chill discussion proceeds, we now have Jim DiPalma
requesting some info of a type I have handy. I get immersion chill times of
30 to 40 minutes to 15-17 C (59-63 F) without stirring. I don't stir
because I want the Junk to settle to the bottom of the kettle so as to bring
as little along into the fermenter as possible. My particulars: chiller is
a 15 m (just shy of 50 ft) copper coil, OD 12 mm, ID 10 mm (0.47 and 0.39
in. respectively). This time of year, in the depths of the Sydney "winter",
water temp is a respectable 12 to 15 C (54 to 59 F). Cold water goes on the
*upper* end of the coil in order to bring the coldest water into play at the
top, where the warmest wort will always be (this, IMO, is the key to getting
shorter chill times without stirring). My kettle is a 40 L (10.6 US gal)
aluminum pot, wall thickness about 4 mm (0.16 in.). My typical situation is
to have from 20 to 23 L (5.3 to 6.1 US gal) of bitter wort to chill, having
gravities in the range 1045 to 1070--I've not made anything stronger in my
~1.3 year (15 US months :-}) in Sydney. Also, I have not yet brewed through
an entire year with the same setup--have been accumulating gear as I go--so
can't offer much in the way of noticing seasonal changes. I usually have
the water flow at only a modest rate at first, because it is quite easy to
chill when the wort is still very hot, then I open it up to a stronger flow
once the temperature of the returned water falls to about 22-25 C (71-77 F).
I think the main factors allowing me the short chill times I get are: inlet
arrangement as mentioned above; kettle is Al not SS; long chiller with a
generous OD and relatively thin wall (is it all that thin?).
*******
There has been some talk about mashouts increasing extraction efficiency in
the past couple digests too. It should be kept in mind that one of the
effects of mashing out is to make the sweet wort less viscous, more fluid.
Thus whatever you have actually produced during conversion is physically
easier to extract. There may of course be "chemical" benefits to the higher
T step as well.
Cheers, Dave in Sydney
"...when you think about it, everything makes sense." ---Ginger Wotring
- ---
***************************************************************************
David S. Draper, Earth Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney NSW Australia
Email: david.draper at mq.edu.au Home page: http://www.ocs.mq.edu.au/~ddraper
...I'm not from here, I just live here...
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Date: Wed, 16 Aug 1995 17:28:11 -0500
From: Russell Mast <rmast at fnbc.com>
Subject: WIT! or W-I-T ?
Some guy named Russel (sp?) said :
> The Win-It-Too company was engineered for a takeover. My prediction - early
> '97, they'll be bought (or bailed) out by Stroh's, Leinenkugel's or Interbrew.
> (In that order of probability.)
Fat chance. W-I-T, while perhaps engineered for a takeover, is a distributor,
and cannot be owned by any brewery. Perhaps you're thinking of the Spring
Street Brewery, the makers of WIT! beer. In that case, yeah, Stroh's.
Good thing folks like Spencer Thomas are still lurking out here.
-R
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 16 Aug 1995 15:47:46 -0700
From: rider at pullman.com (Bill Johns)
Subject: H2O2 and bubblers and foam OH MY!
>From: gtinseth at teleport.com (Glenn Tinseth)
>Subject: H2O2--not in my wort
>
>Rich Larsen <rlarsen at free.org> wrote:
>>>I took a yeast starter, transferred the living yeast to a larger flash
>>>and added some fresh wort. In the original smaller flask, I added some
>>>fresh wort also, about 50 ml, then about 10 ml Hydrogen peroxide.
>
>To which Bill Johns <rider at pullman.com> responded:
>>EGADS!! H2O2 is a hellishly strong oxidizer. It'll kill everything in
>>the pot.
>
>Not to mention oxidizing hop aroma and flavor compounds, reduced
>melanoidins, and a host of other things you don't want to oxidize. I'll
>stick with my little aquarium pump, bubbler, and HEPA filter.
Yep. I use an aquarium bubbler, too. I didn't say that I'd use H2O2. I
was trying to get the other fellow to use it. ;-)
For those who wondered about my comments using ice to cool the wort, I use
Britta filtered water (city water through a charcol/ion filter to get the
heavy metals and chlorine out) in sterilized tupperware-like plastic
containers. I suppose I should sterilize the containers before I open them
again, just to make sure. I use the aquarium bubbler and a sterilized
bubble stone to introduce O2 and even out the temps. Interesting to have a
primary ice cold on top and hot on the bottom. :-)
Now if I could figure out how to keep the aquarium bubbler from causing a
foam head to form and come squirting out over the bathroom floor, woodwork,
out under the door and in general causing the whole house to smell of pale
malt extract/Kent Golding (I'm not complaining about the aromas, mind you,
it's just so sticky....), I'd really have it knocked.
Ride Free,
Bill
- -------
Sometimes: rider at pullman.com
Sometimes: w_johns at wsu.edu
The two most common things in the universe are hydrogen and stupidity.
Harlan Ellison
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End of HOMEBREW Digest #1810, 08/17/95