HOMEBREW Digest #1849 Thu 05 October 1995

Digest #1848 Digest #1850


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


Contents:
  International orders (Steve Madsen)
  Re: Yeast for bread?/signatures (Carl Etnier)
  new UK hop varieties ("Dr. Gillian Grafton")
  Re:   Legislating drugs out of existence (Tim Fields)
  what did i do? (Evan_Still)
  Competition advice... (Robert_Ser)
  Grainger (DONBREW)
  the kitchen sink (DONBREW)
  Brewing and Kids (John DeCarlo              )
  recipe scaling? (Jim Sims)
  More Infusion Terminology (John DeCarlo              )
  mail order Gott cooler (Chuck E. Mryglot)
  lauter-tun miracles ("Andrew D. Kailhofer")
  Useless faucet; Lauter tun (Michael Genito)
  Infusion question (Russell Mast)
  Re - Brewing and Sinks (D. Scott Gardner)
  Re: Grainger Business-Only (hollen)
  Carboy stuff (Robert.Fike)
  stuck fermentation results (Neal Parker)
  Vanilla in Beer ("Herb B. Tuten")
  Re:Faucets (Paul D. Wiatroski)
  Re: Glucan and Wheat.. (Dan Sherman)
  Hydrometer Readings. (Russell Mast)
  Assembling lautering manifold (Neal Christensen)
  Online competition call for entries (RCBEER)
  Carbonator/Rims Q (Tim Short)
  The Word (Dave Draper)
  little white dots (Rolland Everitt)
  RE: finding good competitions (uswlsrap)
  Papazian Holiday cheer (Slyboyy)
  27-mm cappers (Elde)
  Nitrogen in beer/cold plates/beer lines (bra427)
  Nitrogen in beer,cold plate construction,beer lines cool (bra427)

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---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 4 Oct 1995 17:20:12 +0900 From: tomio at ai.mew.co.jp (Steve Madsen) Subject: International orders Hi everybody, I'm currently brewing my first batch here in Osaka, Japan (following John Palmer's instructions for a basic Ale), but I'm starting to think of the future . . . As you can imagine, decent raw materials for homebrewing are in limited supply and rather expensive here. Does anyone know of a good source for international orders in relatively small quantities? I'll just be sticking with cans/bags of extracts and hop plugs until I get myself a garage or something. Any information appreciated. (End request, begin travelouge) Oh, in case anyone is interested on the cost of homebrewing in Japan, here are some figures for equipment and ingredients (I've converted to US dollars): 1 kg can of malt syrup ("B" brand, Japan's domestic homebrew kit brand) US$20 1.7 kg can of Cooper's brew kit: US$35 2 lb DME (Livermore, CA) (incl 2 packs Red Star Ale Yeast, 20 caps): US$28 10 1/2 oz Hop Plugs, 5% AAU from England: US$35 Hand-held bottle capper: US$25 Bench capper: US$80 (plastic) Bag of 125 bottle caps: US$10 Airlock: US$10 Racking cane w/sediment standoff, brass bottle filler, vinyl hose: US$35 Yeast packets: US$3-5 (These are current as of this weekend, at the "Sogo Hop" wunderkind department store annex just south of Tennoji station, if that means anything to you) I'm sure prices in the U.S. are significantly less, to the point where even with shipping it is seriously worth the effort. And, other than the odd bag of Crystal Malt, an Edme stout kit, and some cans of "Kicker", that's not far from a complete inventory of that place--so won't take too long before I'm out of creative room without an outside supplier. Again, any suggestions for an international supplier of raw materials are welcome. - -- Steve Madsen, Research Engineer Virtual Reality R&D Lab, IS Center Matsushita Electric Works, Ltd. 1048, Kadoma, Osaka 571 JAPAN E-mail: tomio at ai.mew.co.jp Phone numbers (Japan country code, "81", is included): Tel: +81-6-908-6835 (Complete phone number from N. America: 011-81-6-908-6835) Fax: +81-6-900-2766 (Complete fax number from N. America: 011-81-6-900-2766) Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 1995 10:24:00 +0100 (MET) From: Carl Etnier <Carl.Etnier at abc.se> Subject: Re: Yeast for bread?/signatures Marla Korchmar asks about using beer yeast slurry in baking. Jeff Renner replied, amongst other things, that it makes bread rise more slowly than normal bread yeast. I can confirm this. Otherwise, I take a different approach than the one he describes. I like a heavy, whole-grain bread with a lot of oomph and character. When I started making sourdoughs, I was unsatisfied with the sourness of the dough until I was using starter for 100% of the liquid in the recipe. Making bread from beer yeast slurry for the first time, I did the same thing. I swirled around the slurry in the bottom of the carboy and used half a liter instead of water for making two loaves of bread. This I shouldn't have done. It was much too bitter. I don't know if washing would help, as Jeff suggests, at such high dosages. Now I use a 50% dilution of this slurry, unwashed, for a satisfactor sourdough character. If I need the rising to go quickly, I also add a package of bread yeast. Otherwise, it just rises all day or overnight. BTW, there is a "chain" of at least two brewpubs in Zurich and Winterthur, Switzerland, that use both the yeast and spent grains from brewing in the breads. Back und Brau is the name. When I was in the Zurich one in January, its beer was no great shakes--though leagues better than the Cardinal and similar swill around here-- but its bread and pretzels were excellent. ******** Spencer says: >Time for the semi-annual request: If you put a short signature >line at the end of your posts (see below), then we can all feel >more like a community of brewers. Hier hier! Carl Etnier A Yank temporarily transplanted from Sweden to Switzerland Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 1995 11:39:52 +0000 From: "Dr. Gillian Grafton" <GRAFTONG at novell2.bham.ac.uk> Subject: new UK hop varieties A few issues ago there was mention of some new hop varieties from the UK. There are descriptions of all of these new varieties on the hop page of the UK-homebrew web page: UK-homebrew: http://sun1.bham.ac.uk/GraftonG/homebrew.htm hops: http://sun1.bham.ac.uk/GraftonG/hops.htm Hope you find them interesting. Gillian Grafton GraftonG at novell2.bham.ac.uk Return to table of contents
Date: 04 Oct 95 07:17:53 EDT From: Tim Fields <74247.551 at compuserve.com> Subject: Re: Legislating drugs out of existence In #1848, Brian Pickerill <00bkpickeril at bsuvc.bsu.edu> Muncie, IN comments on the Abe & Al "are we for or against drugs" thread: >THINK about it--did the use of the drugs cause the crime and violence, or is that an >artifact of trying to legislate them out of existence? - -- Pseudo non-beer discussion to follow -- PG DN options fully enabled, or search for this string:-- End of Pseudo-- That is a good question. Allow me to THINK outloud for a few moments... IMHO, "drug-related" crime and violence have a single root cause: addition dependency. IOW, "the use of the drugs cause the crime and violence". This dependency ("demand") drives the supply side. Lots of dependency means lots of demand. Less dependency means less demand. NO dependency means NO demand and hence no demand-driven crime and violence. RE violence, lets break that down into micro and macro levels. On the micro level, addiction dependency results in individual crime/violence in search of money. EG I'm going to rob you to get that $50 i NEED. On the macro level, this gang or that organization will be VERY violent with each other to make sure they are the supplier making all that big money. But, I hear you saying, all this crime and violence is an artifact of trying to legislate drugs out of existence. Well... lets see. Suppose we don't attempt to legislate drugs out of existence. I assume you mean legalize drugs? What would the result of this be? I suppose legalization would make it easier to import since the police, ATF, Army, etc would no longer be an impediment - so prices might drop some. Since it's ok to do drugs now, perhaps demand would increase. That increases upward pressure on prices, and probably increases the number of users. There would still be a ton of money to be made, so suppliers would still be motivated to fight for market share. Certain portions of congress would no doubt want to build a bureaucracy around this to regulate suppliers and tax drug sales. This tax is a cost increase paid by the "Consumers". The Drug cartel's cost of doing business would increase from all the resulting red tape. They pass this along to the consumer - more upward pressure on prices. So... IMHO legalization results in more demand, some upward pressure on prices, and some downward pressure on prices. Would this mean lower street prices, and possibly less micro violence? Would cartels duke it out on the field of competition instead of shooting up everything? Bottom line: dependent users still need money because the product isn't free. They don't have any more money for legal drugs than they do now for illegal ones, and even if the cost drops some (which is questionable - when is the last time you saw someone give up money they were already making just to be nice?) users will still be violent to get what they need. Suppliers still want the business and will fight for market share. And, Uncle Sam becomes an active, money-making player. Gee... after THINKing about it, it's MO that the *use* of drugs is causing the crime and violence. The effort to legislate them out of existence might put some upward pressure on pricing, but i do not believe anti-drug laws are the major cause of crime and violence. Eliminating the *demand* would eliminate the crime and violence. - -- End of Pseudo non-beer discussion above -- Jeez. If you told me a few years ago I'd be talking like this, I would have laughed in your face ;-) "Reeb!" - Tim Tim Fields...Fairfax, VA 74247.551 at compuserve.com _or_ timfields at aol.com (weekends) timf at relay.com (non-brewing time) Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 95 8:03 EDT From: Evan_Still at vos.stratus.com Subject: what did i do? hi to all, I must have had one two many the night before or i could blame it on the lousy software that doesn't aknowledge a send command.Anyway sorry for the wasted bandwidth.No quetions i think 3 of the same is enough for now.Hope everyone has a good oktoberfest. E.S. Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 1995 08:04:28 est From: Robert_Ser at ceo.sts-systems.ca Subject: Competition advice... Hi all, I am considering entering my first homebrew competition. The beer I want to enter is a variation of a Pete's Wicked ale. The problem I have is that this beer does not fit any of the competition's beer classifications. The closest class I can find is 'English Brown', but the specified O.G. must be in the 1.032 to 1.044 range, with an alcohol content of 2.5% to 3.6%. My beer had an O.G. of 1.056 and an alcohol content of 4.4%. I would have liked to have my beer judged for what it is, and not in comparison with a true English Brown. Is there any point for me to enter my brew into this competition, or should I wait for another competition that has an American Brown category? Comments from any of the beer judges out would be much appreciated... Thanks in advance, Rob in Montreal Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 1995 08:42:11 -0400 From: DONBREW at aol.com Subject: Grainger Dave Bradley sez: > OK, so I called to get the Grainger catalog so often referenced >here on the Digest. I was told this is a business-sales only outfit, >meaning I can't order without a Federal tax ID number. Anyone care >to comment? Do you all order this stuff through your employer? Well it seems to depend on the individual store, but.... Grainger does charge sales tax, so there should be no need for a tax I.D. What I did was get some business cards printed up, one of these was all I needed to open an account. My cards identify me as a "Handyman". Perhaps ordering by phone is different, but there should be a store somewhere within 20 miles of mostmajor cities in the U.S. there are at least 4 in the D.C. area. So, I guess what I mean to say is you need to have an account in order to buy from Grainger, but they accept cash and charge sales tax at the store level. Some stores don't even ask for business I.D. Don Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 1995 08:42:14 -0400 From: DONBREW at aol.com Subject: the kitchen sink Dave Rodgers wonders how to fix the kitchen sink. I'll bet that there in an aerator on the spigot with hidden threads, just remove it with pliers and replace it with a hose adapter from the local hardware store. Or, if chilling is the only prob. You could get one of those hair rinsing attachments that slip over the faucet and cut off the rinse head, should only cost $3-$4. Don Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 95 09:11:12 EST From: John DeCarlo <jdecarlo at homebrew.mitre.org> Subject: Brewing and Kids krkoupa at ccmail2.srv.PacBell.COM writes: >This legal age to brew thing really has my curiosity, since my 2-year >old son helps with the process. In fact, I can't brew without him >begging to participate (stir, measure, dump in stuff). He thinks it's >his equipment anyway. I'm sure this is an untested area for local jurisdictions. Just as Virginia once ruled that the license to brew at home meant you couldn't take your beer outside the house, who knows what interpretations will be put on homebrewers needing to be adults? However, there is some precedent on who is the brewer. Brew On Premises (BOPs) have gotten rulings that require the brewer to pitch the yeast. Thus, to be extra safe at home, you may want to be the one who pitches the yeast. OTOH, I let my kids help me brew where they can, and let them taste my beer (my son, now 3, has always liked beer, so I keep open glasses away from him and just give him sips), and choose to not worry about the possibility of someone invading my home or charging me with child abuse. You can go *too* far in worrying. John DeCarlo, MITRE Corporation, McLean, VA--My views are my own Fidonet: 1:109/131 Internet: jdecarlo at mitre.org Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 1995 09:21:12 -0400 From: simsj at goober.scra.org (Jim Sims) Subject: recipe scaling? I've asked before with minimal response, so i'm trying again: Can anyone offer some SWAG/rules-of-thumb/etc for scaling recipes? I've been brewing 5 gal batches [for about 3 years] and acquired a 45-50 gallon stainless steel (water filtration system) tank for a song. I've modified a 15 gal keg for a brewpot, made a counterflow chiller [thanks to all the suggestions from the HBD - it works *great*], brewed some 5 gal full-boil batches with this system, and i'm ready to scale this to brewing 15 gallon batches and fermenting 45 gallons at a time :-) But, short of many repeated trials (and errors ;-( i assume), I dont have a good feel for scaling recipes from 5 gallon (partial or full boil) batches to 45 gallon partial biol batches. I been cooking long enough to know that just multiplying the ingredient amounts will likely yield a mess. I'm sure that micro (and larger) breweries must do small-scale test batches and have some reasonable method for scaling [that's hopefully sorta generic]? TIA, jim Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 95 09:25:03 EST From: John DeCarlo <jdecarlo at homebrew.mitre.org> Subject: More Infusion Terminology Hmmm. Although I don't have any references, I have always distinguished the mash approach by the message of applying heat. Perhaps this is totally misguided. So, you would have the following types of methods, some or all of which could apply to a particular mashing session: Direct Fire: Adding heat to the mash tun, which heats up the mash. Infusion: Adding water (warm) to the mash tun, which heats up the mash. Decoction: Adding grains/liquid (warm) to the mash tun, ... Other: Adding hot items (rocks, etc.) to the mash tun, ... So, I would start with infusion for dough-in, then rely on direct fire for my stovetop mash tun for the rest of the temperature increases. If I had a cooler as a mash tun, direct fire is pretty much ruled out. Steam is hot water, yet it might be worth referring to as some other method than infusion. Corrections and clarifications encouraged, as always. John DeCarlo, MITRE Corporation, McLean, VA--My views are my own Fidonet: 1:109/131 Internet: jdecarlo at mitre.org Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 1995 09:52:56 -0400 From: cem at cadre.com (Chuck E. Mryglot) Subject: mail order Gott cooler FYI... The US Plastics catalog (800-537-9724) has the 10 gallon Gott cooler for $57.86 (page 81) chuckm Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 04 Oct 1995 09:18:09 -0500 From: "Andrew D. Kailhofer" <andy at aerie.bdy.wi.ameritech.com> Subject: lauter-tun miracles We brewed our first batch of pumpkin ale last friday night, and used a couple of pieces of new gear to do it. We just finished our grain mill. It is (uncharacteristicly) a hardwood frame surrounding a pair of (one free, one belt-driven) 8" long, 2-1/2" dia black anodized medium diamond knurled cold steel rollers. I don't have the details on the motor, but it did pull 7-1/2# of grain through in maybe about a minute. I expect that the 5" aperture in the hopper helps. :-) I believe we'll call it "Bone Crusher". No, I don't have the plans, nor may I tell you where we got these rollers, and I doubt if you could get my brewing buddy Diane's dad to build the frame for you (not like we could stop him if he wanted to, old cabinetmakers die hard). This is only to inspire envy. :-) We also just finished our new lauter tun. After reading here a couple of weeks ago about the Fass-Frisch 5L keg bungs and Gott coolers, I decided to check and see if worked on mine. I've got a 52qt Coleman "Steel Belted", and true to life, the same deal holds true. The reusable bung fits perfectly. I trotted off to the local builder's store and grabbed 10' of 3/8" soft copper tubing, bent it into a planispiral coil that roughly filled the space of the bottom of the cooler, put a screw-on cap on one end and cut slots 1/4-3/8" apart over the entire length of the tubing, save about 4" at either end. Using the gear was very satisfying. We didn't get quite a fine enough crush, but that's our fault for not setting the mill rollers close enough together. The mash for our pumpking ale was (as you might expect) a goopy mess, but without any sort of screen or false bottom over the copper manifold (slots on the bottom) the wort cleared almost immediately, and better than it *ever* did in our old zapap-style tun. My advice is scrap the zapap (except for a hop-back maybe) and go with the cooler. It can even be returned to its original state with little or no trouble, which is always good with the non-brewing spousal unit. Andy - -------- Andy Kailhofer Sr. Analyst, Ameritech Network Services 414/678-7793 andy at aerie.bdy.wi.ameritech.com FAX: 414/678-6335 740 N Broadway, Room 430, Milwaukee, WI 53202-4303 pXoXsXtmaster at ameritech.com (without the Xs) Fight for your right to privacy! Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 1995 10:44:58 -0400 From: genitom at nyslgti.gen.ny.us (Michael Genito) Subject: Useless faucet; Lauter tun In #1848, drodger at world.std.com (Dave P Rodger) wrote: >I've just moved to a new apartment, with visions of brewing dancing in my >head, and I realized that the kitchen sink is completely unsuitable for >brewing. It's an old sink, and the faucet isn't threaded Many older bathrooms have tubs but no showers. To accomodate the people that would like to take a shower, there is an inexpensive device, basically a hose with a shower head at one end and a rubber funnel at the other. The funnel slips over the (unthreaded!) tub faucet, the water is turned on and wala! a shower! I would go to a plumbing supply store and ask for this device. To accomodate your bottle washer, I would also ask for a straight pipe threaded for the standard faucet thread (unless they already have an adapter). I think your supply store person will find the challenge interesting and help you out. On another note - I am new to all grain and have seen other newbies posting about making their own lauter tuns, many using Papazian's Zapap bucket full of holes design. I used this in the beginning, and although it seemed to work ok, I found sometimes it sparged very quickly and at least once, got a stuck sparge. Also, my original attempts at all grain, although drinkable, were not as good as I expected. I found a quick, cheap and easy alternative, which sticks to the principle of a slow sparge allowing for greatest extraction. Get a piece of stainless screen (I cut one out from a seldom used tea strainer). Roll the screen into a pipe that will fit inside your bottling bucket in the spigot. Fold over the end of the screen so that the end does not have an open hole. When ready to sparge, pour your mash into the bottling bucket and open the spigot. This is easy to work with, easy to clean, and provides for a long sparge. I also put a colander over the bucket when pouring in the sparge water, so as not to disturb the grain bed. I know maintaining a steady temp around 170F is also important, but I have not found a great variance in the time it takes to sparge, and if it were a problem, I would consider creating a simple insulated cardboard box or blanket in which the bucket could sit while the sparge takes place. My all grains have tremendously improved since the use of this sparging device, and I have not yet had a stuck sparge. BTW, the move to all grain isnt that dramatic, as long as you enjoy the art of brewing and the extra time all grain takes. Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 1995 09:56:39 -0500 From: Russell Mast <rmast at fnbc.com> Subject: Infusion question My typical method of mashing is to raise the temperature with additions of boiling water. I start with a very thick mash for acid or protein rest, and then add little boiling water to raise temp once or twice more. Is this "step-infusion"? I'm not drawing mash liquor off, but I am adding boiling liquid to raise the temp. -R Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 1995 08:25:58 -0700 From: dsgardne at ucsd.edu (D. Scott Gardner) Subject: Re - Brewing and Sinks >I've just moved to a new apartment, with visions of brewing dancing in my >head, and I realized that the kitchen sink is completely unsuitable for >brewing. It's an old sink, and the faucet isn't threaded, so I can't >attach either my bottle washer (not critical, but a pain) or my wort >chiller (substantially more of a problem...) I also had the same problem a few weeks ago when I moved into my new apartment. I went to the local hardware store, and picked up a converter. This converter has a short rubber tube on one end with a clamp so that you can fasten it to the faucet; and the other end has standard threads. Piece of cake! Scott Gardner Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 1995 08:55:46 -0700 From: hollen at vigra.com Subject: Re: Grainger Business-Only >>>>> "Dave" == Dave Bradley::IC742::6-2556 >>>>> <BRADLEY_DAVID_A at Lilly.com> writes: Dave> OK, so I called to get the Grainger catalog so often referenced Dave> here on the Digest. I was told this is a business-sales only Dave> outfit, meaning I can't order without a Federal tax ID number. Dave> Anyone care to comment? Do you all order this stuff through Dave> your employer? Grainger's stated corporate policy is business only. However, if you walk into a local office and plunk down cash, you will rarely be turned down. This is of course up to the local management of your local office. If you ask corporate, you will get the corporate policy, nothing more. - -- Dion Hollenbeck (619)597-7080x119 Email: hollen at vigra.com Senior Software Engineer Vigra, Inc. San Diego, California Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 04 Oct 95 13:45:10 EST From: Robert.Fike at ccmail.gsfc.nasa.gov Subject: Carboy stuff A long time ago, I remember some talk about a device called "Phill's Phalse bottom (I think)". It was a device that held a carboy inverted so that the trub could be dumped via a valve and excess CO2 could be vented out. I have been wanting to try brewing with a carboy, this sounds neat. Is there such a device or should I not have taken myself off that medicine that keeps those voices out of my head. Thanks Rob Robert.Fike at ccmail.gsfc.nasa.gov (sorry no banner with the witty sayings. However the one about "dying like my grandfather did" still is my favorite) Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 95 15:03:00 EDT From: NParker at Lockheed.on.ca (Neal Parker) Subject: stuck fermentation results On Oct 2 I threw out the following: >The old problem: >A number of beers I've brewed in the last while start off quickly (6 hours >from pitching), foam up well and then stop short at 1.025, 1.022, etc. and >never really move from these S.G.s (or take 2 weeks to do it). >I brew extracts with dry or liquid yeast, boil everything, cool the wort, >let sit, rack off the trub, shake the bejesus out of the carboy (for 5 min) >and then pitch. The thing is - this problem is new to me >and might coincide with me doing full boils. I'm tired of having to >worry about it - how do I prevent these incomplete ferments? Aerate more? >Could there be a problem with leaving too much trub behind? I allready >pitch from a 750ml starter - go to a 1.5l starter? Go back to open ferments >(I use a carboy for the primary now)? >I have to get over this problem before I put all the effort into full grain. >TIA :) I got back a raft of responses. The solution / suggestion I place my faith in is that of poor aeration due to my boiling of the wort and make up water. The responses were: Poor aeration: improve aeration by - leaving more airspace in the carboy when shaking, use a pail for the primary, using a pail when aerating, using the aquarium pump / airstone method, using the holes in the racking cane method; Pitch more yeast: use a 1.5 litre starter; Don't rack off the cold break: there are yeast nutrients in that material; Temperature: make sure the temperature doesn't change too much during the ferment; Cloramine: the fact that Ottawa changed to chloramine from chlorine may impede the ferment; Yeast nutrient: add some to the batch. Wow, lots of advice. I'm keen to toss this batch and move on to another to try and use some of the advice but the trap is alive again so I'll wait and bottle. It'll probably be my best batch - so how do I re-create this? :) Neal Parker nparker at lockheed.on.ca Lockheed Martin Canada Kanata, Ontario, Canada Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 1995 15:18:49 EDT From: "Herb B. Tuten" <HERB at zeus.co.forsyth.nc.us> Subject: Vanilla in Beer Has anyone had experience brewing with vanilla flavoring, either with extract or beans? I'd like to try it, but I'm not sure if a particular style lends itself better to vanilla aroma and flavor. I saw a few recipes of this nature at Cat's Meow, but wanted to ask the collective for advice before continuing. Thanks. Herb herb at zeus.co.forsyth.nc.us Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 1995 15:20:38 -0400 From: gi572 at cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Paul D. Wiatroski) Subject: Re:Faucets Dave writes: . >So what I'm wondering is whether anyone has advice (other than, give up >and have a new faucet/sink installed, or get used to drinking expensive beer) >for how to turn a useless faucet into one that can be used for brewing >paraphernalia? . I don't know if you use an immersion or counter flow chiller. If it's an immersion chiller, I bought an inexpensive shower hose at Kmart (has a rubber end that slips over the end of the faucet) for about $3. When the shower head end is removed, the hose fits nicely over the end of a 3/8" copper chiller tube. Be sure you use a hose clamp. If you use a counter flow chiller, you may be able to adapt the shower hose to the cooling hose of your chiller. I'm not sure if the small diameter of the shower hose will allow enough water to flow though your cooling hose to be effective, you would have to try it. . Hope this helps. . Paul Wiatroski Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 1995 13:17:46 -0700 (PDT) From: Dan Sherman <dsherman at sdcc3.ucsd.edu> Subject: Re: Glucan and Wheat.. John Girard stated: >Planning on doing a 50-50 wheat/barley beer, and am concerned about stuck >sparges. Thanks in advance for any help. I can't comment on the glucan content of wheat right now, but I can say RDWHAHB. I brewed a 60/40 wheat/barley beer this summer with a single-step infusion mash and had no sparging trouble whatsoever. I mash and sparge in a 5gal. Gott w/ a coiled copper manifold (1/16" holes). I mashout with a hot water infusion & sparge with 170F water (keeping the Gott cooler mostly covered) at a rate of about 1.25pts./min. Enjoy your wheat beer! Dan Sherman San Diego, CA dsherman at ucsd.edu Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 1995 15:30:21 -0500 From: Russell Mast <rmast at fnbc.com> Subject: Hydrometer Readings. Kenneth Goodrow says: > Sometimes, actually moreso lately than when I first started brewing, I > will make batches and forget about any readings. I didn't even HAVE a hydrometer for my first 8 or 10 batches. There was one batch, however, that I'm glad I had one. The yeast had "napped out" on us, and might have woken up in the bottle, causing trouble. I like knowing the alcohol content of the beer, and being embarassed by how low my extraction rate still is from all-grain. I never take initial readings with meads because it's not that easy with my technique there. I'm glad the drinking age discussion has wandered offline, I'd almost rather read about the Simpson trial here. (We find the defendant "not a homebrewer") -R Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 1995 14:33:45 -0600 From: nealc at selway.umt.edu (Neal Christensen) Subject: Assembling lautering manifold Recently Tim Laatsch asked about using solder or epoxy to assemble his manifold. I just completed one using 1/2" copper pipe, elbows and T's. I assembled it using copper safety wires. This holds the manifold together, keeps it somewhat flexible and allows for easy disassembly if you ever want to. After assembling the thing the way I wanted it, I drilled 1/4" holes completely through all of the joints, inserted 4" pieces of copper wire though them, and twisted the ends together tight. I haven't tested it yet, but I think it will work just fine. Any comments would be appreciated. Neal Christensen Missoula - A Place Sort Of Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 1995 17:14:37 -0400 From: RCBEER at aol.com Subject: Online competition call for entries The Virtual Village Homebrew Society is hosting the first sanctioned open competition to be judged online via CompuServe. This event is AHA sanctioned and BJCP recognized . The judging will take place in sites around the country with the judges communicating live via CompuServe. The competition is open to anyone and will include all the AHA categories. The deadline for entries is October 13, judging will take place on November 4. The results will be posted as they are decided on Compuserve and judges will be available online to answer questions. If you are interested in entering or want more information, contact Ralph Colaizzi RCBEER at aol.com for a flyer and rules as well as entry and bottle forms. Ther are many good prizes donated by vendors from all over the country. Ribbons will also be awarded. If you would like to judge and have a Compuserve account we will be glad to have help. Ralph Colaizzi NetWort 1 Competition organizer Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 1995 14:31:41 -0700 From: Tim Short <timshort at quiknet.com> Subject: Carbonator/Rims Q Hello all- Just lost a weeks worth of HBD & Mail. Can you say %*%^%*%!**#$%? I saw (before the bang) some private E-Mail in regards to RIMS/Carbonator. Please resend them and I will respond. :) Tim Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 05 Oct 1995 07:32:38 +1000 From: david.draper at mq.edu.au (Dave Draper) Subject: The Word Dear Friends, in #1848 Cap'n Kirk contributes to the ongoing discussion regarding infusion vs. decoction: >If there's a commonly >used term to specify mashing where the heat is applied externally (through >any mechanism) and specifically NOT through hot water additions, I'm all >for it. The word is "svirfneblin" (pronounced "svirfneblin"), as in "I brewed this with a svirfneblin mash." Coined by Otto von Maltz in his classic 1563 work on brickmaking, it has been in constant use ever since. Really, Kirk, I'm surprised at you for not knowing this. Cheers, Dave in Sydney "I'd swap all my gadgets for another 10 years experience" -Charlie Scandrett ...and yes, I am joking! Sorry guys, nothing personal, I'm getting a huge kick out this thread... - --- *************************************************************************** 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... Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 1995 18:38:53 -0400 From: af509 at osfn.rhilinet.gov (Rolland Everitt) Subject: little white dots Upon breaking into a four-week-old batch of brown ale recently, I found that many of the bottles have numerous little white dots (1/2 to 1 MM) clinging to the inside surface just below the surface of the liquid. The ale tastes fine. Are these bacteria colonies or yeast? I have seen the term "yeast pellicles" in brewing books without explanation - are these pellicles? I used EDME ale yeast for this batch. Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 04 Oct 1995 20:28:09 EDT From: uswlsrap at ibmmail.com Subject: RE: finding good competitions In #1848 Dan (Not Sharon) Ritter asks about the quality of judging at competitions: >I brew in a very small town with no other hb'ers. I enter the AHA national >competition and the Dixie Cup primarily to get feedback from qualified judges. >The judges comments have been thoughtful and helped quite a bit. I've also >entered some smaller competitions with some very questionable feedback from the Quality varies not only among competitions but also among different judges at the same competition--not much of a surprise. Just as you have gotten good feedback from judges at the NHC and Dixie Cup, there are undoubtedly people who have gotten little more than some numbers and a page of one- or two-word comments. I've gotten both poor and excellent judging on different entries in different categories in the same competition. And it isn't even a matter of judging rank. There are recognised judges who are very good/experienced but simply don't have the exam score to advance in title or that don't live close enough to places that host many competitions. On the other side, there are national and master judges who don't give adequate attention to making useful written comments. But don't write off small competitions. Remember, the judges at the NHC 1st and 2nd rounds live someplace, and it's not necessarily the city hosting the competition. These judges who live elsewhere in the region most likely judge at their own local competitions as well, and there's no reason to believe that they'll be any less conscientious at home as they are on the road. Granted, those judges who make the effort to travel and judge in larger competitions are going to be more experienced than the ones who judge once a year at a club competition, regardless of the size. Indeed, the competitions to watch out for may the very large ones (200+ entries) in beer-isolated areas. Whatever the local judge pool may be, those competitions are too far away from anyplace else to attract many out-of-town judges and also too far for most of the local judges to judge elsewhere to get more experience--a "double-whammy," if you will. The overall quality of judging at those competitions would probably _improve_ if they were smaller, because the local judging pool would not be spread so thin. That doesn't mean that those competitions may not have some excellent judges, but with so many entries the probability is higher that the category _you_ enter will be covered by less experienced judges or novices recruited to help cover all the flights. This is not a criticism of novice judges; we all started someplace. But where is a novice going to learn more: in a huge competition where the judges are spread thin and the novice is judging with someone barely more experienced than him/herself, or in a competition of a size more appropriate to the number of judges available in which the novice can be matched with a couple of experienced judges willing to give some "on-the-job training" to the newcomer? >judges. Are there a few other large competitions, with quality judging, that >anyone can recommend? Again, I'm interested in feedback and suggestions to >improve my beer and not necessarily winning the gold. It would not be appropriate to recommend or advise against specific competitions, but I hope the considerations I've mentioned above will provide you with the criteria for deciding whether a competition--large or small--is worth your entry fees and shipping effort. In short, you probably have a better chance of getting good judging if 1) there's a lot of good beer and a substantial judging population within a few hours' drive of the competition site, and 2) the size of the competition (number of entries) is in some reasonable proportion to the number of experienced judges likely to be available. There are some places that have geographic/demographic access to a local/regional judging pool big enough to support a 200+ or 300+-entry competition (you mentioned the Dixie Cup); there are some places that simply do not. You're much better off entering a 50-entry competition that can staff it with good judges than a 200+-entry competition that overloads the available judging pool. I said I wasn't going to recommend specific competitions, but let me give this region a plug. The same applies for various other regions fitting a similar general description. There is a LOT of good craft beer coming from both established and newer breweries and brewpubs in south-central and south-eastern Wisconsin, and a lot of homebrewing. Our club puts on a summer craft beer festival that featured 47 midwestern breweries this year. Add to all that beer interest the fact that the Chicago and Milwaukee areas are close to Madison, and you have a decent population of beer judges who travel around the region judging at each other's competitions. I may be a bit above average in the amount of judging I do, but during the late winter/spring, I judged 8 weekends out of 13, and I could have judged every weekend except Easter if I was really hard core. That should give you an idea of how many active this area is. There are other parts of the country in a similar situation, and you can probably figure out where those are. Things slow down in the summer, but I just got started again over the weekend, for me the start of a very full competition calendar from October through mid-December. Sorry for the length, but I hope it helps. Now go have a beer, Bob Paolino uswlsrap at ibmmail.com Madison Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 1995 21:27:42 -0400 From: Slyboyy at aol.com Subject: Papazian Holiday cheer Hello All This is not a very important question but here it goes any way. I brewed the Papazian holiday cheer recipe to the letter, and its in the bottles for a month was it a good Idea bottling it almost 4 months before the holidays or should I have waited till about a month before serving. I figured with all the spices involved in the recipe a long bottle conditioning would do the brew good. This beer is stored in the basement for the last month should I begin to refrigerate it any time before the holidays. TIA Michael slyboyy at aol.com Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 1995 23:49:30 -0400 From: Elde at aol.com Subject: 27-mm cappers Does anyone know of a 'bell' type capper, (has the bell rather than jaws), that will handle the European 27mm caps? The bell type is preferred because I have a lot of bud bottles, and I've had problems with capping them with jaw type cappers, and I can't afford two... Derek Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 5 Oct 1995 18:09:47 +0400 From: bra427 at brashs.com.au Subject: Nitrogen in beer/cold plates/beer lines Has anybody had any experience carbonating kegged beer with Nitrogen instead of Carbon dioxide,as in Guiness? I tried here in our local pub a Theakstons Lager(from UK) that is carbonated by nitrogen (I believe?) and enjoyed it very much and am curious in trying to recreate that thick creamy head that's nearly a meal in itself ! I already have a kegging setup and both handgun for away events and a dual tap setup in my bar. One of my taps is a "Guiness" tap with the disc insert inside it, so I am halfway there. Does Nitrogen dissolve in beer at all?, what pressures do you "burp" the keg at, if at all and what pressure do you serve it at??? I have been reading the HBD for a little over a year and haven't seen this question appear before and am interested in the thoughts and experiences that you may have, both good and bad. On another note I am considering building a cold plate to free up more space in my fridge and was thinking of using a coiled copper type setup in a water bath in the bottom of the fridge. Is this a good idea? Will finished beer sitting in copper lines cause any reaction? Will my beer be poisonous!!! Will I die if I drink it? Also on beer lines my length from fridge to tap is 5-6 metres and I use foam insulation type tubing around the lines and find it keeps the beer cool enough, however when you pull your next beer there is a lot of foam initially and wasted beer which defeats the point of keeping the lines cool? It appears that once the beer sits in the line the CO2 comes out of the beer to equalise the line. Is this what happens. Is their any way of preventing this from happening?. Will this beer be poisonous !!!!!! Will I die if I drink it??????? TIA Marty... Kryten: Pub: ah, yes, a meeting place where people attempt to reach advanced states of mental incompetence by the repeated consumption of fermented vegetable drinks. Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 5 Oct 1995 18:09:55 +0400 From: bra427 at brashs.com.au Subject: Nitrogen in beer,cold plate construction,beer lines cool Has anybody had any experience carbonating kegged beer with Nitrogen instead of Carbon dioxide,as in Guiness? I tried here in our local pub a Theakstons Lager(from UK) that is carbonated by nitrogen (I believe?) and enjoyed it very much and am curious in trying to recreate that thick creamy head that's nearly a meal in itself ! I already have a kegging setup and both handgun for away events and a dual tap setup in my bar. One of my taps is a "Guiness" tap with the disc insert inside it, so I am halfway there. Does Nitrogen dissolve in beer at all?, what pressures do you "burp" the keg at, if at all and what pressure do you serve it at??? I have been reading the HBD for a little over a year and haven't seen this question appear before and am interested in the thoughts and experiences that you may have, both good and bad. On another note I am considering building a cold plate to free up more space in my fridge and was thinking of using a coiled copper type setup in a water bath in the bottom of the fridge. Is this a good idea? Will finished beer sitting in copper lines cause any reaction? Will my beer be poisonous!!! Will I die if I drink it? Also on beer lines my length from fridge to tap is 5-6 metres and I use foam insulation type tubing around the lines and find it keeps the beer cool enough, however when you pull your next beer there is a lot of foam initially and wasted beer which defeats the point of keeping the lines cool? It appears that once the beer sits in the line the CO2 comes out of the beer to equalise the line. Is this what happens. Is their any way of preventing this from happening?. Will this beer be poisonous !!!!!! Will I die if I drink it??????? TIA Marty... Kryten: Pub: ah, yes, a meeting place where people attempt to reach advanced states of mental incompetence by the repeated consumption of fermented vegetable drinks. Return to table of contents
End of HOMEBREW Digest #1849, 10/05/95