Homebrew Digest Tuesday, 27 August 1996 Number 2162
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FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
Shawn Steele, Digest Janitor
Thanks to Rob Gardner for making the digest happen!
Contents:
Re: Bleach (lheavner at tcmail.frco.com)
William's Nut Brown Extract (Bill Sadvary)
Secondary Fermentation question ((Tom Lochtefeld (Risk Mgt)))
Redhook dating question ("Bridges, Scott")
Too Much Homebrew (Digest) ((Richard Ransom))
Need advice on applejack lagers (apple juice) ((Tam Thompson))
Real Root Beer, Water, ("David R. Burley")
Belgians in London (Kit Anderson)
conical bottling bucket? / dissolving chalk (Gregory King)
Re: Bleach leaving a film (Jeff Renner)
Irish Moss Musings / Mash pH (KennyEddy at aol.com)
Re: ales in San Francisco (Charles Epp)
Re: warm Wyeast, pumpkin, cocoa, & washing soda ((Mike Uchima))
Funky Taste, ("David R. Burley")
counterpressure bottle filler ("Bryan L. Gros")
Re: Boiling Over ((John A. DeCarlo))
Re: conical bottling bucket? / dissolving chalk (RUSt1d?)
More on brewing water ((William P Giffin))
Search homebrew archives (Spencer W Thomas)
Is there any way to prepare specialty malts at home? (Jorge Blasig - IQ)
thermometers ("Kenneth D. Joseph")
german beer purity law (M257876 at sl1001.mdc.com (bayerospace at mac))
taste of iodophor ((Chuck Wettergreen ))
The Reinheitsgebot (Michael Gerholdt)
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----------------------------------------------------------------------
From: lheavner at tcmail.frco.com
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 1996 09:53:02 -0500
Subject: Re: Bleach
If Clorox has no chlorine, isn't it Hydrox? or is that just
cookies...
Anyway, as far as I know, bleach is bleach. In fact, a quick check of
the label will tell you that liquid plummer is bleach. Bleach is made
by mixing chlorine gas (Cl2) with a sodium hydroxide (NaOH) solution.
The result is sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) and salt (NaCl). Excess
NaOH is required to avoid the loss of Cl2 which most people consider a
bad thing. (been there and done that once in a high school chem lab
long ago and far away...) The other thing that can happen at cool
temps and excess Cl2 is the formation of muriatic acid (HCl) and
hypochlorous acid (HOCl). HOCl is pretty unstable which is why you
would still get free CL2.
The point is that all unscented bleach that I have seen has NaOH and
NaOCl in roughly equal concentrations (and NaCl). The only difference
that I have seen between name brand and generic bleach is price. Buy
the cheapest you can find. Bleach is pretty basic stuff. I've worked
in chemical plants that produce bleach as a commercial product, as an
intermediate, and as a waste. They all seem to use 6% NaOH as the
basis, so the resulting strength is always the same. I don't know
why, but I suspect that higher concentrations of NaOH and NaOCl are a
pain to work with and provide no additional benefit relative to the
cost of the NaOH and Cl2. Just out of curiosity, where can I find out
more about Chlorine free Clorox bleach?
I don't know how bleach could encourage bacterial growth. Any
bacteria that have a fondness for bleach sorta scare me! ;-) Maybe
your rinsing too much with bacterially contaminated water and
defeating the purpose of the bleach.
Lou Heavner
<lheavner at frmail.frco.com>
Return to table of contents
From: Bill Sadvary <sadvary at dickinson.edu>
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 1996 11:21:44 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: William's Nut Brown Extract
Anyone have a close all-grain match to William's Nut Brown Ale extract.
I would like to make an old extract recipe using the all-grain
equivalent.
Thanks.
- -Skill
Return to table of contents
From: toml at fcmc.com (Tom Lochtefeld (Risk Mgt))
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 96 11:33:35 EDT
Subject: Secondary Fermentation question
I just cooked up and put a pale ale into the Primary on Sunday night.
I checked it Monday night and the violent blow off had come and has
seemed to subside. At what point should I transfer the wort to the
secondary fermenter? I am going to "dry-hop" in the secondary. Should
I rack over the hops bag tonite (Tuesday), rack into secondary and then
add the hops later? Wait another day? How should I go from here?
Please e-mail direct.
Thanks
Return to table of contents
From: "Bridges, Scott" <bridgess at mmsmtp.columbiasc.ncr.com>
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 96 10:31:00 PDT
Subject: Redhook dating question
A question for you left coast brewers (it's not a brewing question,
specifically)..... My local grocery store recently started carrying Redhook
products. I snatched up a six pack of the ESB last week. I noticed that
the bottom of the six pack carton had "12/95" imprinted in it. Thinking
that I had just paid for 9 month old beer, I got steamed. The beer didn't
taste off, but it wasn't as hoppy as I expected (remembered from drinking it
a while back). On a more recent trip to the store, I saw the AB guy
restocking. Remembering the AB-Redhook deal, I asked him about the dating.
He pointed out the "best consumed by" date on the bottles, which said
11/6/96. He didn't know anything about the date on the carton, but felt
confident that the beer was fresh since our local Columbia market just
started carrying it. So, what's the real story on dating? How long does
Redhook say the beer will keep? Why in the world would there be a date
printed on the carton, if not to indicate bottling date? When was the beer
bottled, if it says best consumed by 11/6 on it? How long can I
realisticcally expect a Redhook product to be "fresh"?
TIA,
Scott
Return to table of contents
From: rransom at msu.edu (Richard Ransom)
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 96 16:32:54 GMT
Subject: Too Much Homebrew (Digest)
Hey y'all;
Thanks for all the replies about lining concrete fermenters. I really
appreciate all the thought and effort that went into them. Thanks again.
I now remember just why I haven't been receiving Homebrew Digest for the
last decade or so: it ends up filling my mailbox with unread issues. I
have tried to keep up, but it's equivalent to reading 20 - 40 emails a day
every day in addition to the "serious" (work-related) mailings I already
have to deal with. I've flirted with a few email digests, and so far each
one has grown to the point where it's too time-consuming to keep up with
them. It was interesting to see how Homebrew Digest has changed (not much)
and to see what level of interest is out there in NetLand (still a lot), but
there's no way I'm gonna let my mailbox fill my hard disk.
Sayonara, all.
Father Barleywine
+++++++++++ ++++++++++ ++++++++++ ++++++++++ ++++++++++ ++++++++++
Richard F. Ransom D.O.E. Plant Research Laboratory
Visiting Research Associate Michigan State University
rransom at msu.edu East Lansing, MI 48824-1312
ph. (517) 353-4886 fax (517) 353-9168
+++++++++++ ++++++++++ ++++++++++ ++++++++++ ++++++++++ ++++++++++
Return to table of contents
From: Tamth at mail.utexas.edu (Tam Thompson)
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 1996 11:34:55 -0500
Subject: Need advice on applejack lagers (apple juice)
I need some feedback on using apple juice in lager beers.
I think that a crisp, clean applejack lager would be very nice
for late fall/early winter.
I'm thinking of putting a gallon of apple juice in a 5.5-gallon
batch of lager. The malt portion would be about 8 lbs. of
pilsner malt (I don't get such a good yield) and perhaps
1 lb. of munich malt. 1/2 lb. of home-toasted malt might
be nice, too. I know you have to pasteurize the apple juice,
and that you certainly don't want to boil it, or get it up
above 180 F (the pectin sets). I really want to try to avoid
cheap, filtered, clear apple juice, since I prefer the taste
of the organic unfiltered kind, but I'm wondering if the
beer will still clear. Irish moss works wonders for me on this
score, usually. I know this beer will be fairly dry due to
the fruit sugars, so that's why I'm using a bit of munich.
Yeast will probably be good old Wyeast Bav. lager, since I'll be
making some bock at the same time.
Any tips on applejack lagers would be much appreciated.
Please respond off-list as well as by posting to the list.
BTW, I've been brewing for 6 years and 130 batches, and have
taught homebrewing classes before. I've just never made
applejack lager before.
Thanks,
Tam
Tam Thompson, Ph.D. candidate
Mechanical Systems & Design Area, Robotics Research Group
Mechanical Engineering Department, The University of Texas at Austin
Tamth at mail.utexas.edu
Return to table of contents
From: "David R. Burley" <103164.3202 at CompuServe.COM>
Date: 27 Aug 96 12:56:44 EDT
Subject: Real Root Beer, Water,
Brewsters:
Mark asks if anyone has any real experience with root beer from roots. When I
was a Boy Scoutmaster, we went to summer camp. I noticed many,many small
sassafras trees a year or two old in an area which would be inappropriate for
them in the future. So I Pulled them up, washed the roots, cut them up and
boiled them to make a tea. It turned reddish-brown as I recall and with a
little sugar and some ice it made an excellent root beer. Some of the boys were
skittish about anything that didn't come from a store in a bottle, but most
tried it and really liked it - so did I.
- -----------------------------------------------------------
Bill Giffin writes to ask why use water adjusted to the water of the type of
beer you wish to brew. The short answer is to simulate and get all the nuances
of the beer under discussion. I guess you know all about the effect cacium has
in reacting with the grist components to release phosphoric acid and drop the
pH
into the proper range for brewing since you tried an experiment with lactic
acid adjustment. Incidently, pils in many cases is brewed at a higher pH since
the water is so pure. Taste some water with calcium sulfate stirred into
it,likewise calcium carbonate and magnesium sulfate and see if you can detect a
difference in taste.
British friends tell me that in the old days before the great war (WWII) some
of
the beers were noted for their laxative properties. After an evening of over
indulgence, a friend of mine couldn't make it home in time ( he described the
physiological effect as an oscillating sphincter or words to that effect) and
walked through a small pond to remove the stain from his trousers before he got
home, so his mum wouldn't ask questions. His plans failed, of course. Mums
know everything. Besides, why he assumed she wouldn't ask him to explain how he
got wet only from the waist down. I don't know. I have always assumed this
laxative quality was due to an over-active hand on the part of the brewer in
adding magnesium sulfate (Epsom salts) to get a better bittering cheaply.
- ----------------------------------------------------------
Keep on brewin'
Dave Burley
Return to table of contents
From: Kit Anderson <kit at maine.com>
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 1996 13:07:47 -0400
Subject: Belgians in London
A friend of mine is headed to London and wants to know where he can find
Belgian beer. Does anybody know of any shops so that he may return with lots
of souvenirs to share?
- ---
Kit Anderson
<kit at maine.com>
Bath, Maine
The Maine Beer Page http://www.maine.com/brew
Return to table of contents
From: Gregory King <GKING at ARSERRC.Gov>
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 1996 13:25:00 -0500 (EST)
Subject: conical bottling bucket? / dissolving chalk
Fellow HBDers,
While I'm waiting for delivery of the catalog from U.S. Plastics,
maybe one of youse with a catalog could answer a question for me:
Do they have a 5-gallon conical bucket with a valve at the bottom
that could be used as a bottling bucket? It annoys me to have to
leave behind so much beer in my flat-bottomed bucket (I do drink
the remaining beer of course, but it's not carbonated).
********
A tip to those of you who wish to boost the alkalinity of your
brewing water with chalk. Chalk dissolves easily in seltzer. I
haven't tested the upper limit, but I think at least several grams
of chalk will dissolve in 1-liter of seltzer. It's best to chill
the seltzer (to keep most of the CO2 in solution) before adding the
chalk, and then capping the bottle to retain the CO2. After the
chalk is dissolved, just add the seltzer to the bulk of your brewing
water.
Greg King
gking at arserrc.gov
Return to table of contents
From: Jeff Renner <nerenner at umich.edu>
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 96 13:42:22 -0400
Subject: Re: Bleach leaving a film
George De Piro wrote
> That slippery feeling isn't actually the bleach,
> although it is caused by the it. That
> slipperiness is the lipids (fats & oils) in your
> tissue being turned into soap by the bleach!
More specifically, it's the NaOH, or lye, in the bleach that saponifies
the skin oils. Soap is a salt of a fatty acid; in this case, a sodium
salt.
BTW, soap making is another craft that seems to appeal to the same
psyche as home brewing, at least it does for me. A web site I've found
useful is at http://www.demon.co.uk/murderon/fragrant/makesoap.html. A
quick search turned up a number of others.
Jeff Renner in Ann Arbor, Michigan c/o nerenner at umich.edu
Return to table of contents
From: KennyEddy at aol.com
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 1996 13:49:43 -0400
Subject: Irish Moss Musings / Mash pH
Bob Ledden writes:
> I would like to add one observation to the Irish Moss thread. I use
> rehydrated IM at the 15 min mark of my boils and this has helped in
clearing
> my brews. One other thing that has helped in clearing my beers was going
> from a 60 min to a 90 min boil. I dont add hops until the 60 min mark which
> gives the wort 30 min to create hot break without any interference from the
> hops. Anyone notice the the same thing in there brewery?
'smatter of fact, this is exactly what I do, in all the all-grains I've done
so far, and I *still* get cloudy when I FTIM and clear when I don't.
*****
On the water thread, Frederick L. Pauly asks:
> Would there be a noticeable flavor difference in a Pale Ale
> mashed at a pH of 5.8 vs one mashed at 5.2? What type of flavor
> differences if any and are there any commercial micros that
> prefer a high or low mash pH?
I'm absolutely guessing here, but perhaps this might help. I doubt that
there would be much/any flavor difference due to the mash pH per se, but you
*might* notice a difference due to the high alkaline water condition that
caused the high pH in the first place. High alkalinity in your beer can
harshen hop flavor, hinder break development, and darken/redden your beer.
Another effect of high mash pH would possibly be reduced efficiency, since
saccharification enzymes prefer a lower pH range. Any of you enzymophiles
care to quantify this a bit?
*****
Ken Schwartz
KennyEddy at aol.com
http://users.aol.com/kennyeddy
Return to table of contents
From: Charles Epp <chuckepp at ukans.edu>
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 1996 13:02:08 -0500
Subject: Re: ales in San Francisco
Hey gang,
I'm heading to San Francisco on Thursday and I'm looking for guidance in
finding brewpubs/beer bars that specialize in British ales (or American
ales). Not wanting to burden you all, I checked Pubcrawler (what a
resource, by the way!). But there are 36 listings for SF. Could
anybody help me narrow the search (private email is fine). Thanks in
advance!
Chuck -- chuckepp at ukans.edu
Return to table of contents
From: uchima at fncrd8.fnal.gov (Mike Uchima)
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 1996 13:03:46 -0500
Subject: Re: warm Wyeast, pumpkin, cocoa, & washing soda
(Sounds like some sort of sick recipe, huh? :-))
Don Trotter <dtrotter at imtn.tpd.dsccc.com> says:
> Duff at duff at tam2000.tamu.edu asks about Wyeast that has gotten
> heated. I have seen an article in an old special issue of Zymurgy that
> claims that 100% of the yeast in a Wyeast foil packet will be dead
> within 3 days, whan kept at room temperature.
So why is it that we can keep bottle-conditioned beer at room temperature, and
still have some viable yeast in there? I suspect that most commercial bottle
conditioned beers (especially imports) have spent a lot more than 3 days at
elevated temperatures, and people still culture yeast from these successfully.
I've also left swollen packets of Wyeast sit for a week or so at room temp
(not that I'd actually *recommend* doing this, mind you) and they've still
been OK. Slow to start, but definitely still alive.
...and Tim & Marilyn <brokenskull at earthlink> wrote:
> i would like to make a pumpkin ale this fall, and was wondering if anyone
> knew how much fresh pumpkin i need to brew 5gals....tks in advance.....tim
Well, I've got one in primary right now, so I don't actually know how it will
turn out yet. HOWEVER: Watch out for this stuff. You *will* have the "sparge
from hell". Worse than oatmeal... sets up like a big wet block of concrete in
the lauter tun.
Next time I brew with pumpkin, I'm adding some rice hulls to the mash.
George_De_Piro at berlex.com (George De Piro) sez:
> The reason I used cocoa powder was to avoid the oil slick in the first
> place! Papazian lied to me! I feel so betrayed!
Hmm... I don't think cocoa powder is oil *free* -- it just has less oil in it
than the solid stuff (baker's chocolate). I used baker's chocolate in a porter
a few months back; it was very tasty, but there was a huge oil slick (like
1/4") in the neck of every bottle.
...and Al K wrote:
> Note that you should not
> soak anything very long in either One-Step or sodium carbonate (washing soda)
> because it a carbonate film can form on the item (which takes acid to
> remove).
Yeah, I found this out the hard way. I soak bottles in washing soda solution
to remove labels (it works *great* for this, BTW). The first time I used it,
the bottles weren't standing up, so the washing soda solution got *inside* the
bottles. It was a *major* PITA cleaning the deposits out...
- -- Mike Uchima
- -- uchima at fncrd8.fnal.gov
Return to table of contents
From: "David R. Burley" <103164.3202 at CompuServe.COM>
Date: 27 Aug 96 14:46:29 EDT
Subject: Funky Taste,
Brewsters:
Kevin writes to thank HBD and relate some of his disasters. Kevin, all those
things you talk about, funky taste, non-fermentation, slow starters, etc. could
be explained by not rinsing your equipment properly to remove your sterilant.
After using bleach, B-brite, Iodophor, etc. rinse three times with very hot
water that has been boiled. Although you will hear that it is OK to drip dry if
you use low, sanitizer levels of the iodine compounds, I am of the school that
says use a high enough concentration to sterilize and then rinse with hot,
boiled water. Put about 1-2 quarts in the carboy and rotate it to cover all the
surfaces. repeat three times. Keep all plastic hoses, airlocks, etc. just as
clean as the carboy and you won't have any trouble.
- ----------------------------------------------------------------
Jim Shanley writes to ask why he is still getting fermetation in his secondary
and why it is more active than a primary ferment. My first question is why did
you use bakers yeast when so many fine beer yeasts are available? Secondly, I
think that , if anything, your yeast is*less* active, not *more* as you
suggested. Had it stopped fermenting when you racked it? Did you move it from a
cool area to a warmer area when you transferred it?
- --------------------------------------------------------------
Sorrry, but I forgot the reference and I zapped the HBD already. I agree that a
plastic taste/smell can come from new plastic hoses *(especially)* and
containers. Hoses generally have a plasticizer which can be quite persistent.
I usually use soap and then run very hot water through a new hose for some time
until the water doesn't have a taste Polyethlyene doesn't have any plasticizers
in it usually and smells mildly of oil when first purchased. I always wash well
with soap and water and give it several rinses in boiling water. If you are
really worried about this, brew a strong flavored beer the first time, like a
stout, so that the smell/taste won't be noticed. Of course it is preferable to
use food grade plastics if possible, but I am not familiar with Jorge's ability
to procure these things in Uruguay. I stay away from red pigments in plastic,
since they may contain naphthalene amine based pigments and dyes and many years
ago these were found to contain carcinogens, at least in the intermediate
stages
of manufacture. I sincerely doubt it is a problem, but if black, white and grey
are OK, why not use them?
- ---------------------------------------------------------------
Keep on brewin'
Dave Burley
Return to table of contents
From: "Bryan L. Gros" <grosbl at ctrvax.Vanderbilt.Edu>
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 1996 13:45:22 -0500 (CDT)
Subject: counterpressure bottle filler
Well, I recently purchased a CP bottle filler from Braukunst
and am really happy with it. I bought that model based partly
on the Zymurgy road test and partly on the price. Braukunst
gets them made by a third party, so it took a while for it
to arrive.
I had heard about the "poor man's" bottle filler and the fact
that these "regular" bottle fillers take a lot of practice and
getting used to. Seems like I only needed one bottle of
practice. It is really quite easy to use and the results seem
to be perfect.
The only real problem I have so far is how to clean the
thing when finished. I really need another keg of some
kind of cleaner that I can hook up and run through the
Bottle filler, but all my kegs have beer in them. Alternately,
I could use a Carbonator type cap for a pin lock fitting
and fill a plastic bottle with cleaner.
Just wanted to say that bottle filling is easy and convenient
and this is the best toy I've bought since I went to kegs
in the first place
- Bryan
grosbl at ctrvax.vanderbilt.edu
Nashville, TN
Return to table of contents
From: jdecarlo at mail04.mitre.org (John A. DeCarlo)
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 96 14:59:22 -0400
Subject: Re: Boiling Over
Let me repeat my own method for avoiding boilovers:
Skim the scum that forms just before it gets roiling. This scum/film
covers the wort and traps air which allows it to boil over. Skim it with a
strainer or spoon for a few minutes and you can leave the room for the next
hour and a half with no worries.
John DeCarlo, jdecarlo at burp.org
Return to table of contents
From: RUSt1d? <rust1d at li.com>
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 1996 15:06:27 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: Re: conical bottling bucket? / dissolving chalk
>While I'm waiting for delivery of the catalog from U.S. Plastics,
>maybe one of youse with a catalog could answer a question for me:
>Do they have a 5-gallon conical bucket with a valve at the bottom
>that could be used as a bottling bucket? It annoys me to have to
>leave behind so much beer in my flat-bottomed bucket (I do drink
>the remaining beer of course, but it's not carbonated).
Yo G,
I have looked into the concial bottom containers sold by USP and
unfortunately they are too expensive for practical use. If I were
you I would simply get another bucket and put a valve in the bottom
instead of the side and create some sort of stand for it. It would
be much cheaper.
J.
Return to table of contents
From: bill-giffin at juno.com (William P Giffin)
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 1996 15:18:38 cst
Subject: More on brewing water
Top of the morning to ye all,
OK Burton water has 270 ppm of Calcium, 60 ppm of magnesium, 30 ppm of
sodium, 200 ppm of bicarbonate, 640 ppm of sulfate and 40 ppm of
chloride. That comes to 1240 ppm of what is show. I do know that the
water in Burton does not all have the above some more some less depending
on lots of variables. The pH is about 7+/-.
To make a good bitter or pale ale in the Burton style what of the above
must you have? I have had some Pils that had a nice long bitter finish
and the water in that beer had very little of anything in it.
>>Al K said:
Since the brewers in
Pilsen have very low calcium levels, they have to use an acid rest which
is an enzymatic way of lowering pH (phytase makes phytic acid).
<<
So what is wrong with an acid rest I do it all the time on my Pil and
German style lagers rather then adding gypsum. I prefer the softer
smoother beer that I get by leaving the gypsum in its bag. As a matter
of fact I lost the bag of gypsum that I was using and have not bothered
to find it as I enjoy a softer smoother beer.
So the moral of the story is you do not really need a great deal of
Calcium in you water to make a good or even great beer.
>>Al K again:
Are you sure you used the right amount of salts to duplicate Burton
water?
It's quite a lot. You also need to have a pretty high bitterness in the
beer. The sulphate affects the finish the most.
<<
Yes!
>>Al K again:
If you made a stout with Pilsen water it would be more acid than it
should. The reason stouts work so well in Dublin is because the acidity
of the dark grains balances the alkalinity of the high-carbonate water.
<<
Once you have adjusted you stout mash to 5.3 pH do you have to add more
salts to the mash to approximate Dublin water or is having you mash pH at
5.3 enough?
>>Al K:
Here's a perfect example:
I tried brewing a Bohemian Pilsner with Chicago water + distilled. About
1/3 of the water was distilled, 2/3 Chicago water. I believe that we
have
25 ppm of sulphate in our water. The resulting beer was good and
drinkable
and marginally in-style, but it had a slight increase in bitterness in
the
finish which is due to the sulphate.
<<
This is exactly the reason the German beer use less hops then the Czech
Pils and yet the amount of bitterness is very similar my be that the
German Pils may even seem hoppier.
Once you have adjusted your mash and brewing water into the appropriate
range do you really have to add more to duplicate a particular water? If
so why?
The brewing waters with high concentrations of stuff, what is the amount
of buffering in these waters? How does this effect how much of the
chemical are available to affect the brewing process?
Bill
Return to table of contents
From: Spencer W Thomas <spencer at engin.umich.edu>
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 1996 15:28:01 -0400
Subject: Search homebrew archives
Just a reminder: you can search the archives of the homebrew digest
from my "beer page" at http://realbeer.com/spencer/
=Spencer Thomas in Ann Arbor, MI (spencer at umich.edu)
Return to table of contents
From: Jorge Blasig - IQ <gisalb at elmer.fing.edu.uy>
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 1996 16:25:23 -0300 (UY)
Subject: Is there any way to prepare specialty malts at home?
Dear friends?
I finally found a supplier for malt. However, I can only get pale ale
malt. I will have the chance to brew some beers although I will not be
brewing special beers, the ones which are prepared with special malts.
I wonder whether there is any way to prepare specialty malts like
chocolate, caramel, etc. either from barley or pale ale malt with the
equipment that I can have at home. I mean, is there any chance to prepare
specialty malts at home?
I would appreciate your suggestions about different procedures or literature.
Bye, Jorge
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From: "Kenneth D. Joseph" <74651.305 at CompuServe.COM>
Date: 27 Aug 96 16:13:12 EDT
Subject: thermometers
Guy,
Please forward any advise you receive on thermometer calibration. I just built
a 3 tier brewery with adjustable thermometers on the hot liquor tank and mash
tun, and they read about 8d different from each other. What does one use to
calibrate????
kj
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From: M257876 at sl1001.mdc.com (bayerospace at mac)
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 1996 15:22 -0600
Subject: german beer purity law
collective homebrew conscience:
paul hausman wrote:
>Interesting, I have only ever read (perhaps inaccurate) English
>translations, but I understood the restriction to be only "barley malt",
>hence eliminating other grain malts as well as unmalted barley.
okay, this is the second person who has questioned my assertion that the
original decree specified malt and not specifically barley malt. i'm
starting to doubt my memory.
does anybody have hardcore evidence on what the original reinheitsgebot
specified? barley malt only, or just "malt" in general?
>It should also be noted that the current German Beer Purity Law
>applies this tough standard of ingredients only to bottom-fermented
>beers such as lagers, not to top-fermented beers/ales such as
>Bavarian weiss. Even the Germans are willing to experiment a bit.
has this always been the case? had bottom fermentation been established
in 1516? or is this a recent change?
i read that the purity law hasn't really been a "law" for a while now. it's
merely a standard which brewers continue to use to promote their products.
still valuable, i think. i guess in the good old days you got your brewery
shut down if you were found in violation of the law.
sorry if i misled anyone. this really should get straightened out.
brew hard,
mark bayer
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From: chuckmw at mcs.com (Chuck Wettergreen )
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 96 15:25 CDT
Subject: taste of iodophor
In HBD #2159 David R. Burley <103164.3202 at compuserve.com> wrote:
good to sterilize with bleach and then rinse with contaminated water. As far
iodophor goes,- I may get some disagreement here - iodophor is no saint and
cause off tastes if not properly used and allowed to dissipate. I have had s
really rotten beer from taps which were rinsed in iodine rinses and then not
flushed properly. Use bleach and rinse well with uncontaminated water. If y
Boy! You must have some acutely sensitive taste buds. I've never tasted
iodophor in any of the beers that I siphon into still-dripping corney kegs.
My iodophor-sanitized kegged beer was served at the Saturday night dinner
for the Midwest Region NHC first round judges, and not a one came up to me
and said, "You know Chuck, your beer tastes like iodophor."
I've never tasted it in the beer that I draw from the taps I've just
sanitized. and then rise by drawing one pint of beer through the tap. I've
never tasted it in beers that I bottle, and those bottles are always still
dripping iodophor down the bottle tree when I start to fill them. I've never
tasted it in beers of other homebrewers who use iodophor to santitze and I
belong to four different clubs and I've sampled *a lot* of beer and mead
from Iodophor-sanitized containers.
I've never tasted it in my milk either, nor have my children (DAD!!! My milk
tastes like iodophor!), yet most dairy farmers use it to sanitize their cow's
udders, milking machines, piping, and storage tanks. The instructions on the
label say not to rinse, to let it drip dry.
I've never had a comment on the taste of iodophor in any of the many beers
and meads that I've sent to the AHA Nationals, AHA Club-only competitions,
the Mazer Cup, the Ambrosia Adventure, the Dixie Cup, CBS's Spooky Brew
Review, and many other contests. I've never heard of anyone else ever
having a comment on their judging sheets about the taste of iodophor.
I've discussed the use of iodophor (and the lack of a resulting flavor)
with BJCP master judges and they have never detected the taste of iodophor
in their beers or any beers that they have judged.
So, as I said above, you must have some acutely sensitive taste buds,
because from what I've seen, you're the *only* person that I've ever
heard of that can detect the flavor of iodophor used to sanitize brewing,
bottling, kegging, and dispensing equipment.
Now if by "not flushed properly" you mean that the line was kept filled
with iodophor and then you drew a glass of beer (without running beer or
other rinse through the line), well then of course you'd taste iodophor,
but then I'd expect that your statement would have read something like,
"If you draw beer from a line filled with iodophor, you'll taste iodophor."
Cheers,
Chuck Wettergreen
chuckmw at mcs.com
Geneva, IL
* RM 1.3 00946 *
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From: Michael Gerholdt <gerholdt at ait.fredonia.edu>
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 96 16:28:19 -0500
Subject: The Reinheitsgebot
- -- [ From: Michael Gerholdt * EMC.Ver #2.5.02 ] --
This is in the Library of Technical Articles on The Brewery:
- -----------------------8<---------------begin paste quote-------------------
- -------------------
Following is an English translation of the Reinheitsgebot (German Purity Law
) adopted in 1516, the
oldest provision still enforced to protect the consumer. This is taken from
the article "History of
German Brewing" by Karl J. Eden, published in 'zymurgy' magazine, Vol. 16,
No. 4 Special 1993.
"We hereby proclaim and decree, by Authority of our Province, that
henceforth in the Duchy of
Bavaria, in the country as well as in the cities and marketplaces, the
following rules apply to the sale
of beer:
"From Michaelmas to Georgi, the price for one Mass [Bavarian Liter 1,069] or
one Kopf
[bowl-shaped container for fluids, not quite one Mass], is not to exceed one
Pfennig Munich value,
and
"From Georgi to Michaelmas, the Mass shall not be sold for more than two
Pfennig of the same
value, the Kopf not more than three Heller [Heller usually one-half Pfennig]
..
"If this not be adhered to, the punishment stated below shall be
administered.
"Should any person brew, or otherwise have, other beer than March beer, it
is not to be sold any
higher than one Pfennig per Mass.
"Furthermore, we wish to emphasize that in future in all cities, markets and
in the country, the only
ingredients used for the brewing of beer must be Barley, Hops and Water.
Whosoever knowingly
disregards or transgresses upon this ordinance, shall be punished by the
Court authorities'
confiscating such barrels of beer, without fail.
"Should, however, an innkeeper in the country, city or markets buy two or
three pails of beer
(containing 60 Mass) and sell it again to the common peasantry, he alone
shall be permitted to
charge one Heller more for the Mass of the Kopf, than mentioned above.
Furthermore, should there
arise a scarcity and subsequent price increase of the barley (also
considering that the times of harvest
differ, due to location), WE, the Bavarian Duchy, shall have the right to
order curtailments for the
good of all concerned."
- -----------------------8<-------------------------------------end paste
quote-----------------
I do not have immediate access to a German version and cannot comment on
whether the word translated "Barley" above is specific to barley, or whether
it could be other malted grains.
However, this is written in the
BEER JUDGE CERTIFICATION EXAM STUDY GUIDE by Greg Walz:
- -----------------------------8<-------------------------------begin quote---
- -------------------
The Reinheitsgebot, or "Order of Purity", was issued by Wilhelm IV, Duke of
Bavaria, in the year 1516, to guarantee the purity and quality of beer and
to
ban the use of questionable (and sometimes dangerous) additives. The
Reinheitsgebot stated that beer can be brewed only from malt, hops, and
water
(yeast was unknown in the 16th century). The Reinheitsgebot is thus the
world's oldest consumer protection / product quality law still in effect.
This decree formed part of the basic law of Bavaria, and its retention was a
condition of Bavaria's admittance to the Republic of Germany in 1919.
Followed
throughout the Republic of Germany (and West Germany after WW II), the
Reinheitsgebot was interpreted to forbid the brewing or sale of any
fermented
grain beverage as "beer" unless made from only the four ingredients.
In 1987 the European Court (acting for the Common Market) declared the law
to
be "protectionist." As a result, beers not meeting the Reinheitsgebot (such
as most American beers and many Belgian styles) can now be sold in Germany
as
"beer." However, all German brewers are united in their commitment to
continue
following the Reinheitsgebot with the beers they brew. This has been
extended
to the breweries of former East Germany when the two countries were reunited
in October of 1990.
A common misconception about the Reinheitsgebot is that beers brewed to this
standard have to be made from 100% barley malt. Were this true, brewing
Bavarian weizenbiers (or any other German style, such as Klsch, that uses
malted wheat) would be forbidden - and we all know this is not the case!
Today
the Reinheitsgebot is interpreted to mean that beer must be brewed from
malted
cereal grains. Thus the use of malted wheat (or malted rye or malted oats)
in
a beer would not disqualify it from meeting the Reinheitsgebot, but use of,
say, unmalted roasted black barley (as found in Irish Stout) would result in
disqualification. Eric Warner, in "German Wheat Beer" (see Reference
section)
says, "The Reinheitsgebot...law requires that only malted cereal grains be
used
for brewing any German beer." German brewers, additionally, presently
restrict
the use of malted grains other than barley to those styles made with ale
yeasts.
Note the following common adjuncts that would not be permitted in a true
Reinheitsgebot beer: Corn grits, rice, flaked maize, unmalted barley (or
other
unmalted cereal grains), corn sugar, candy sugar, corn syrup, maltodextrin,
Irish moss, gelatin, isinglass, fruit, spices other than hops, honey, etc.
While the Reinheitsgebot has been quite effective over the centuries in
protecting the quality and purity of German beer, keep in mind that we, as
homebrewers, do not have to be limited by it, and are thus free to explore
the
world's wealth of beer styles and ingredients.
- -------------------------8<------------end quote----------------------------
- ------------------
- --
pmg
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