Homebrew Digest Thursday, 29 August 1996 Number 2165

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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:
  Lambics??? ("Michael W. Jones")
  CP filler  ((Jeff Sturman))
  Brewbie/Basic Info/Time/Agitation (Glen MacNamara)
  CBS comp anouncement ((Tom Fitzpatrick))
  just my 2 cents on the boilover thread (Mike Weintraub)
  Wringing hop/grain bags ((Billy Cole))
  Dry hopping (WattsBrew at aol.com)
  Heater Voltage (orion at mdc.net)
  In Need of A Recipe (<Ron_Barbercheck at MB01.CCMAIL.CompuServe.COM>)
  Re: Boiling Over ((J. Matthew Saunders))
  Gypsum (Nancy or Jeff Renner)
  copyright (bob rogers)
  Strange yeast question ("John M. Posing")
  Brewing water still ((William P Giffin))
  wyeast 1728 ((Greg Douhan))
  Overnight mashes (Captain)
  GELATINE (Jack Schmidling)
  Re: Fementowhat? ("Preston M W (Mike)")
  Sorghum beer - an SA homebrewer's point of view (Michel Vandenplas)
  German Purity Law and Water ("DICK KUZARA")
  microwaving to sterilize? ((Tom Lochtefeld (Risk Mgt)))
  RE: Reinheitsgebot (Bill Ridgely 301-827-1391 FAX 301-827-3053)
  Copyright Al (c) ((BRIAN WURST))
  Berkeley Brews (Douglas Thomas)
  Boiling stones (Domenick Venezia)
  Copyrights online (Derek Lyons)
  figuring SO4 ppm from gypsum additions (Gregory King)
  Boiling over (guym at Exabyte.COM)
  Jet burners (guym at Exabyte.COM)

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---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Michael W. Jones" <keni.mo at worldnet.att.net> Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 16:18:32 -0500 Subject: Lambics??? Hello, I am a fairly new homebrewer and, despite this fact, myself a few fellow homebrewers are interested in brewing up a Lambic. We have done some reading and realize this to be quite an undertaking, but wish to try it anyway. Does anyone have any advice on how we might get started, any recipes, tips etc.? Michael W. Jones keni.mo at worldnet.att.net Return to table of contents
From: brewshop at coffey.com (Jeff Sturman) Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 15:28:37 -0600 Subject: CP filler I thought I saw plans to assemble a CP filler once on the interent, but after a few days of looking for them I am empty handed. Does anybody know where those plans can be found? I know they are in a back issue of Zymurgy but it would be much easier to get them off the internet. email is probably best. TIA jeff Return to table of contents
From: Glen MacNamara <gmac at websys.com> Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 17:04:00 -0400 Subject: Brewbie/Basic Info/Time/Agitation My pal and I are new brewbies, and have been reading the Digest for a few weeks and learning a lot. We've done about 6 or 7 batches with some success, and we now have a disagreement on some of what is going on. Currently, our process goes about like this: boil ~1.5 gal water, add can liquid malt (usu 3.3 lbs dark or amber), add bag dry malt (usu 3 lbs dark or amber), and boil ~15 min. Add hops (usu ~12% AA) and boil ~20 min. Usually we add ~5 lbs honey at this point (we both like it strong, and hope to get some of the flavor). Then add hops in hop bag, boil about 10 min more. Big plastic bucket for a week, then carboy for a week, then bottle. The sludge is left behind for both racking and bottling. Item: We're both pretty broke right now, and can't invest in new equipment for a while. Item: There's a lot of people drinking the brew (especially me), so it disappears nearly as fast as it gets created. Problem: He wants better beer through aging, I want more beer faster. Question: The bittering hops are loose in the wort and go into the primary fermenter. Is this good, bad, or indifferent? What effect would extending the time on these (used) hops have? Question: What effect would extending the time in the secondary have? There usually isn't any bubbling (or very slow) after the week in the primary, and none at all after a week in the secondary. Is there benefit to letting it sit longer before bottling? Question: We made a 'blond' beer (usually we make dark). When we racked it to the secondary, my friend commented how it was difficult to tell the difference between it and the mead next to it (both a sunny yellow). The carboys stay in a fairly dark, cool, extra bathroom downstairs. When we came back to bottle a week later, it had turned DARK. VERY DARK. What happened?? BTW, we bottled it anyway, and haven't tasted it yet. Question: I've read numerous entries on how to safely bubble the beer using airpumps, airstones, and whatnot. Why? What benefit is there in A) oxygenating the beer or B) agitating (gently shaking, not insulting) the beer? My apologies if any of these are so obvious anyone should know them, or if they are a recent thread and I missed it somehow, or if I misunderstood the recent 'bubbling' thread. Please email me at gmac at websys.com if you do not want to bloat the digest with loads of basic info. Thanks much!! Return to table of contents
From: fitz at fasicsv.fnal.gov (Tom Fitzpatrick) Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 16:44:47 -0500 (CDT) Subject: CBS comp anouncement 1996 National Homebrew Club of the Year, The Chicago Beer Society presents: Spooky Brew Review '96 A BJCP Registered Homebrew Competition To be held at: FOUNDERS HILL BREWING CO. 5200 MAIN ST. DOWNERS GROVE,IL 60515 Entry forms available: Tom Fitzpatrick 728 Concord St. Aurora, IL 60505 (630)896-6255 fitz at fnal.gov AHA National or similar recipe forms and bottle labels acceptable. RULES & REGULATIONS Entries: Two (2) brews in appropriate bottles constitute an entry. Acceptable bottles include 10 - 14 ounce, green or brown bottles only. Caps must be blank or blacked out with indelible marker. Attach an appropriate label by rubber band (no tape), filled out completely and legibly, to each bottle entered. Entry is open to all homebrewed beers, meads, and ciders not brewed on commercial property. Entry deadline: Entries will be accepted between October 5 and 19. Walk-in entries will be accepted only if preregistered by sending in entry/recipe form(s) and fees by the competition deadline. Categories: Brews will be judged according to the categories/subcategories used for the 1996 AHA National Homebrew Competition. Ribbons will be awarded to the top three (3) brews in each category receiving at least 25 points. All first place beers will advance to the Best of Show round where the top three beers will be recognized and the Best of Show winner will receive a special ribbon and prize. As in years past, a Spooky Beer category is available. A prize will be awarded to the scariest brew entered. A new category is also available this year: the Smashed Pumpkin category (Worst of Show award). Send us your absolute worst beer (we've all made mistakes) and the winner (or loser, if you will) will receive a prize. All brews must be drinkable!! Fees: The fee per entry is $5.00, or $4.00 each when entering 5 or more brews. Entry fee for the SPOOKY and SMASHED PUMPKIN category are only $1.00! Send or hand deliver entry/recipe form(s), fees, and bottles to Founders Hill Brewing Co. at the above address and to the attention of the Brewmaster - Spooky Brew Review. Make checks payable to Chicago Beer Society. Judges: Anyone interested in judging at this competition should contact Tom Fitzpatrick by mail, phone, or e-mail as shown above. *Remember, this competition is one of only five competitions in the Midwest that determine Midwest Homebrewer of the Year! Good luck and good brewing! - -Tom Fitzpatrick BJCP Competition Director Return to table of contents
From: Mike Weintraub <weintrau at lifesci.lscf.ucsb.edu> Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 14:42:55 -0700 Subject: just my 2 cents on the boilover thread There is a technique that I find quite effective in preventing boil overs that I have not seen anyone else mention. I wait to add the hops until the wort is boiling vigorously. This seems to prevent the foam at the top from getting as thick, probably due to the strong convection currents in the brew pot. I have not had a boil over since I started doing this. Mike Weintraub weintrau at lifesci.lscf.ucsb.edu Return to table of contents
From: Billy_Cole at dgii.com (Billy Cole) Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 16:29:43 +0100 Subject: Wringing hop/grain bags I brew partial grain beers and have developed a baseline routine that I use for all my beers. I usually fill my grain bag with my grains and bring it up to 150-160 for about 45 minutes before adding extract and bringing to a boil. During this initial 45 minutes, I bring another gallon of water to around 175 in a separate pot. I have a fear of missing out on some sugars when I pull my grain bag out of the boiling pot so I pour the 1 gallon of water over the grain bag while holding the grain bag in the air. Then I squeeze the heck out of the grain bag with my hands (yes, it hurts) to get all I can from the grain bag. with 4 lbs. of grains in there, there is alot of wort hiding in that bag. Am I causing aeartion when I shouldn't be? Also, is this necessary on my part? I do the same with my hop bags. I don't want to lose out on any hop character anywhere. Am I blowing it or does everyone do it this way? Thanks for any help. - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Billy Cole / Senior Engineer / Digi International ph: 206-867-3893x628 / pager: 206-663-0229 billyc at dgii.com Return to table of contents
From: WattsBrew at aol.com Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 19:34:08 -0400 Subject: Dry hopping Good day brewers, I am about to try dry hopping for the first time. I am using homegrown hops. The hops have already been dried and are packaged in the freezer. The question I have is "do the hops need any special attention or should I just chuck them in the secondary?, also is there any risk of contamination from homegrown hops?." Your collective wisdom is greatly appreciated. Brewing in Lancaster, NY - Bill Watt Return to table of contents
From: orion at mdc.net Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 19:45:02 -0400 Subject: Heater Voltage Kelly Jones Remarked about heater costs: >While checking out the Web Pages of PlumbingSupply.com (I'm ordering some >stainless fittings for my brew system) I noticed they supply the elements >discussed here recently for RIMS heaters (see >http://PlumbingSupply.Com/elements.html ). They have extra low density, >Incoloy elements (5500W at 240V) for 24.95. No affiliation, not even a >customer until today. Kelly, et al.... All well and good if you are propared to deal with a whopping 240 volts! This is not a toy that gets plugged into the 115 volt outlet! You carefully wire it direct into your panel, and hope for the best. Don't get stung by this baby! This is a commercial heater with commercial applications. I wouls stay away from it for casual home brewing.... OD Orville Deutchman Brewer of Down Under Ale! Hobby Brewing at its Finest! I'm relaxing, and having a homebrew! orion at mdc.net Return to table of contents
From: <Ron_Barbercheck at MB01.CCMAIL.CompuServe.COM> Date: 28 Aug 96 20:11:56 EDT Subject: In Need of A Recipe Has anyone ever seen a recipe for or made beer with the herb *Cost Mary* (also known as Bible Leaf)? I have an herb garden with 2 huge plants that have plenty of leaves just beggin' to be utilized. I read in an herb book that Cost Mary was used through the 18th century in English ales (there was a belief that hops were not too good for you). If you do have a clue, are the leaves supposed to be used fresh or dried? Right on, right on, to Bill Ridgely re: Sorghum. Thanks for setting the Eurocentrists straight. I suggest they check out the Discovery Channel (no spam intended) program Pharaohs' Liquid Gold. Seems as though Scottish & Newcastle Brewing found the ancient Egyptian brewing tradition interesting enough to fund an archeological team to find out what ingredients were in the beer made way back when. Return to table of contents
From: saunderm at vt.edu (J. Matthew Saunders) Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 20:50:09 -0400 Subject: Re: Boiling Over John writes: >First of all, though I did not say so, I do this before adding any hops. I >have found that this "film" or "scum" can coat the hops, reducing >utilization. Also, it just makes things easier to get rid of the "scum" >first. Besides, I rarely put in hops for more than 60 minutes, so they go >in only after the wort has been boiling awhile. I see. I usually add my hops right before the boil has started--at the simmer if you will. I've found that I get significantly more bittering doing it this way. I have no idea why. However, if I'm using whole flowers as opposed to plugs or pellets, I throw a handful in right after I get the rolling boil--then no probs. (When I tried this with plugs or pellets....the resulting disaster convinced me it was a BAD idea.) > >If you put in the hops right away (first wort hopping or some variant), >would there be any hop component in the "scum"? It may be, but I don't >know of any reason to think that is the case. >Anyone out there know for sure? I've tasted the "scum". It definately is bitter. > >I have thought that this "scum" is related to "hot break" and that you >don't lose anything by getting rid of it, as you don't want hot break in >your fermenter anyway. I think that you are right. I've found the more "scum" I have in a boil, the larger quantity of hot break I end up with. Any other thoughts out there? Cheers! Matthew. Return to table of contents
From: Nancy or Jeff Renner <nerenner at umich.edu> Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 20:53:25 -0400 (EDT) Subject: Gypsum Al K said: > 1 teaspoon of gypsum (calcium sulphate) in 1 gallon of water will give > about 28 ppm of SO4. That looked way off, so I checked Terry Foster's _Pale Ale_. He says that 1 gram of gypsum per gallon will give 150 ppm sulphate (and 60 ppm calcium). He also ways that 1 tsp weighs 5 grams, so 1 tsp gypsum per gallon will give about *750 ppm* sulphate. Looks like a brain cramp, Al. Jeff Renner in Ann Arbor, Michigan c/o nerenner at umich.edu Return to table of contents
From: bob rogers <bob at carol.net> Date: Tue, 27 Aug 1996 20:54:36 -0400 Subject: copyright Scott says: >>This line is simply stating that said noun from the first line has taken the time to register said nouns entire posting to the HBD with the US copyright office. << this is not correct. if any of you want to know more about copyright point your browser at http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/hypertext/faq/usenet/ and find the copyright faq, which is a good introduction to the subject. bob - brewing in the heart of the bible belt bob rogers bob at carol.net Return to table of contents
From: "John M. Posing" <jmposing at colint.com> Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 20:29:05 -0500 Subject: Strange yeast question Hey everyone. I noticed something kinda strange last night, that I hope someone can explain. I haven't bottled for awhile, just kegs. But I put up a batch of Barleywine for this winters enjoyment in 7 ozs. While moving them, I noticed that yeast had clung to one side of each bottle and that it was always oriented in the same direction, NE. Can someone explain why? - -- John M. Posing jmposing at colint.com Return to table of contents
From: bill-giffin at juno.com (William P Giffin) Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 19:46:36 cst Subject: Brewing water still Good evening, >>Al K you need to make sure there is enough sulphate in the water and then you may have to adjust the pH down with calcium carbonate so the pH is not too low (it depends on your water). << I hope you mean mash and adjust the pH down? Am I supposed to jump up? Still the answer to the question hasn't been answered. How much SO4 is required to "Burtonize" the water? 60 ppm. 150 ppm or 270 ppm. What does the magnesium in Burton water have to do with the bittering of the beer? >>Al K: Alternatively, you could add lactic or phosphoric acids to lower pH without adding sulphate. I believe that these acids do pull calcium out of the water (AJ?) so that you could end up with not enough to protect enzymes or form beerstone. >> I use lactic acid to adjust the sparge water, works great helps keep the tannins down. If your water has little or no calcium such as my water and Pilsen water and you do not want SO4 in the beer then what is the alternative. Beerstone has not been a problem, and filters make pretty beer fast. >>Al K: Correct, but it does make it *easier* to brew. << I have done both I find very little difference in using an acid rest, adding gypsum or lactic acid. How and why do you think it is easier? Then what? If you really want it easy you go to your friendly packy store and you buy the beer. I don't brew to make it easy I brew to brew beer that is as good or better then commercial examples and if it is not I dump the beer I have brewed!! Lets go in another tack. Must I adjust my very soft water in order to brew Munich style beers? Why? I have brewed some very lovely bocks and dunkels and helles with no adjustment at all. Should you adjust soft water for these beers? Still haven't answered the question. I want to know how much is enough? Bill Return to table of contents
From: gdouhan at mail.wsu.edu (Greg Douhan) Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 19:10:33 -0700 Subject: wyeast 1728 Any info on this yeast(1728) would be appreciated. Private e-mail would be great. Thanks Greg Douhan Return to table of contents
From: Captain <captain at iquest.net> Date: Wed, 28 Aug 96 22:14 EST Subject: Overnight mashes >A friend and I tried an overnight mash for a stout the other day, and so >far things seem to be fine (mash was sweet after 10 hours, no off >flavors). We're going to try again with a more delicately flavored beer, >but has anyone tried this before, and what were the results? I'm >concerned about astringent flavors and components that would contribute to >a greater-than-normal amount of haze. Thanks in advance... I use a cooler for a mash/lauter tun and do overnight mashes all the time. Typically I use 25 to 35 lbs of grain for a 10 gallon batch O' brew. I'll heat my mash water to 180 degrees and mix at a rate of 1 qt. per pound of grain. It almost always mashes in at around 153 degrees. By 9:00 the next morning, the temp has usually not dropped below 148 to 149 degrees. There's a lot of mass and it's a good cooler. I like this procedure. It saves me a lot of time on brew day. ********************************* "Beer... it's not just for breakfast anymore." Jim Kirk captain at iquest.net ********************************* Return to table of contents
From: Jack Schmidling <arf at mc.net> Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 21:53:15 -0700 Subject: GELATINE I have a question for the Dr Gelatine: Now that I have no fear of killing my gelatine or causing it unnecessary pain and anguish by boiling it, I have developed another quandry. Because my fermenter is only 10 gallons, I brew my beer allowing for the addition of one gallon of brewing water at kegging time. Normally, I boil the water the night before I am going to keg to allow it to cool and precipitate some of the stuff in my well water. There is usually a layer of sludge on the bottom and some stuff floating on the top. Careful pouring leaves the sludge behind. Now the problem is that if I add gelatine to the boiling water and let it cool, the precipitate that settles out seems to be more substantial and sticks to the bottom of the kettle like glue. The question is: Did I "use up" the gelatine by letting the water cool over night or will the brewing water with gelatine still function as a fining agent? No guessing now. js - -- Visit our WEB pages: Beer Stuff: http://dezines.com/ at your.service/jsp/ Astronomy: http://user.mc.net/arf/ Return to table of contents
From: "Preston M W (Mike)" <mpreston at ford.com> Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 06:54:11 -0400 Subject: Re: Fementowhat? Someone with entirely too much time with nothing to brew wrote...... > Greetings, Beerlings! Take me to your lager... Now, stand on your head and > have someone step on your left earlobe. Hard. Suddenly the rest makes sense: > Attobreweries are not related to SI at all. These are the guys that win all > the competitions and get all the attoboys. Decibreweries, like Al K, only > brew in the winter. Centibreweries brew prohibition beer to save money. Nano > - - and Millibreweries are run by women; nanos having children. It should be > obvious that femtobreweries are run by feminists. > > Did I miss any? Missed just one. The Geekobrewer. That's someone who has more than one brewer's software program (and uses them all), and has their own web page with the majority of the contents dedicated to beer/brewing ;p - -- "lager sir is regal" Mike Preston Return to table of contents
From: Michel Vandenplas <mvdp at maties.sun.ac.za> Date: Thu, 29 Aug 96 12:19 +0200 Subject: Sorghum beer - an SA homebrewer's point of view In response to the the messages of Terry Tegner and Bill Ridgely within recent digest issues I'd like add the following comments. Sorghum beer is South Africa's original homebrew and only true indigenous beer. I'm therefore rather proud of it. It may not be a Belgian lambic but it is, when tradtionally made, "spontaneously fermented". It has a unique flavour and is ,IMHO, highly drinkable and thirst-quenching when fresh. A few days later, however, things change for the worse. It becomes far more alcoholic and sour and definitely an acquired taste. Mmm...hints of the difference between Belgian Faro Lambic versus Old Lambic? As to it not being a beer, I think many commercial lager brewers would like to encourage that view. However, substitute sorghum malt for barley malt and the brewing process is very similar. Sales of sorghum beer are about 4 times higher than lager beer in South Africa, but as Bill has mentioned, there seems be growing culture that it is an inferior product to be seen drinking. A sad state of affairs in the eyes of a homebrewer who realises that this beer has played an important role in his countries cultural and homebrewing heritage. Finally, it remains a highly nutritious and thirst-quenching beer, the only beer-style unique to Africa, something well worth preserving and trying. Michel Vandenplas Amateur Brewing Association, Cape Town, South Africa Return to table of contents
From: "DICK KUZARA" <DICK_KUZARA at itd.sterling.com> Date: 29 Aug 1996 06:48:28 -0600 Subject: German Purity Law and Water Subject: Time: 6:36 AM OFFICE MEMO German Purity Law and Water ... Date: 8/29/96 There has been much discussion about the Reinheitsgebot. I would like to know if conditioning additives (adding gipsum to the mash and/or lactic acid to the sparge water) violate this law. Any comments? Return to table of contents
From: toml at fcmc.COM (Tom Lochtefeld (Risk Mgt)) Date: Thu, 29 Aug 96 07:57:37 EDT Subject: microwaving to sterilize? Does anybody know anything about sterilizing bottles, hops, hopbags, brewing parts etc. in the microwave? Would this be an effective way to kill "nasties" that can cause infection in the brewing process? Regards, Tom Return to table of contents
From: Bill Ridgely 301-827-1391 FAX 301-827-3053 <RIDGELY at A1.CBER.FDA.GOV> Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 07:45:41 EST Subject: RE: Reinheitsgebot Considering all of the discussion lately regarding the finer points of the Reinheitsgebot, it seems appropriate to put this into some historical context. The Reinheitsgebot was proclaimed in the year 1516 to prohibit German brewers from putting bones and blood and other foul matter into their beer. At the same time, the Inca empire in South America, a civilization which had attained a very high degree of technology without a written language or knowledge of the wheel, and which boasted an economic system based entirely on a beer made from masticated corn, was reaching its zenith. This leads one to wonder which society was truely the more advanced. Cheers! Bill Ridgely Alexandria, VA Return to table of contents
From: brian.wurst at aquila.com (BRIAN WURST) Date: Thu, 29 Aug 96 08:07:00 -0600 Subject: Copyright Al (c) >Isabel asks about my copyright. >You apparently are unaware of the fact that there is a company selling >back issues of HBD on CD-ROM. This is a violation of my copyright as <blah, blah, blah> Boy, my sides are hurting! I just got back from the bank and I was laughing all the way there *and* back. Had to deposit the $MILLIONS I've made putting the HBD on CD-ROM. Yeah, Al, I'm the guy whose done it - grab the phone and call your lawyers! HaHaHaHaHaHa!!! It would take quite an imagination to believe that someone could make any sort of money off of something that is so ubiquitous and available. Al, your paranoia is showing.... >Next time you have a complaint or personal question, I suggest you >use private email and not waste HBD bandwidth and the time of all >its subscribers. Yessir, Captain Netiquette, just as soon as you comply with your own suggestion. Why not toss in a taunt for good measure? >Look out Isabel... here it comes again!!! >Copyright 1996 Al Korzonas You did, you cheeky devil! (Excerpts are provided without your express permission...that's another for your lawyers.) Brian Wurst (brian.wurst at aquila.com) "Nature has formed you, desire has trained you, fortune has preserved you for this insanity." -Cicero Return to table of contents
From: Douglas Thomas <thomasd at uchastings.edu> Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 07:50:05 -0700 (PDT) Subject: Berkeley Brews Since moving to Berkeley 2 years ago, I have been hearing about the brewpubs that were planned to move in. At that time, Hart (Pyramid) Brewing and Pacific Coast. Now I also hear of one called Albany Brew Pub and Barbary Coast. Supposedly, they were to open mid to late September, but the only one I have seen any significant progress on is Hart's establishment. Does anyone out there have any ideas on when these are going to open? Also, on the local brew scene here, I just had a Bison Brewing "Juniper Smoked Ale." It was very smooth with a slight herbal bite. Not too hoppy, but high aroma. Great counter to Indian food. I was told that besides adding some actual berries and boughs to the brew tank, that the important step here was "Smoke clensing" of the tank. How does this work? Is it somewhat like burning a sulfar candle in wine casks? that's all Doug Thomas Return to table of contents
From: Domenick Venezia <venezia at zgi.com> Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 08:35:27 -0700 (PDT) Subject: Boiling stones The tendency to boil over can be reduced (not eliminated!) by the use of boiling stones. I throw about 5 old, bent bottle caps into the boil (rip out the plastic if it concerns you). These will act as nucleation sites for large bubbles and as such reduce the risk of boil over. Domenick Venezia Computer Resources ZymoGenetics, Inc. Seattle, WA venezia at zgi.com Return to table of contents
From: Derek Lyons <elde at hurricane.net> Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 08:44:40 -0700 (PDT) Subject: Copyrights online At 10:35 AM 8/28/96 -0600, you wrote: > >*The third line "Copyright 1996 Al Korzonas" seems pretty straight forward: > >This line is simply stating that said noun from the first line has taken >the time to register said nouns entire posting to the HBD with the US >copyright office. By doing this, all persons or people wishing to use or >quote from said nouns HBD post should ask for permission from said nouns >lawyers or face criminal charges and federal copyright infringement. > Actually the legal protections do not entirely kick in unless said noun actually fills out the paperwork and submits it to the appropriate authority. Also the 'Fair Use' doctrine allows quite a bit of usage of said nouns posts without requiring permissions from said noun. Return to table of contents
From: Gregory King <GKING at ARSERRC.Gov> Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 12:08:35 -0500 (EST) Subject: figuring SO4 ppm from gypsum additions In HBD #2164 Al Korzonas <korz at pubs.ih.lucent.com> wrote: >1 teaspoon of gypsum (calcium sulphate) in 1 gallon of water will give >about 28 ppm of SO4. According to Papazian in TNCJOHB (around p. 270 or so) 1 tsp of gypsum dissolved in 5 gallons of water increases the SO4 concentration by 135 ppm, so 1 tsp in 1 gallon would boost SO4 by 675 ppm, not 28 ppm (looks like Al divided 135 by 5 instead of multiplying). But before taking that number as the gospel, consider this. Gypsum and two other commonly-used brewing salts are hydrates, which means that one or more water molecules are an integral part of their crystal structures. The three salts I'm talking about are: CaCl2*2H2O calcium chloride CaSO4*2H2O calcium sulphate (gypsum) MgSO4*7H2O magnesium sulphate (Epsom salt) If you get out your periodic tables and do the math (don't worry, I already did it) you'll find that: 1 g CaCl2*2H2O contains 0.755 g CaCl2 and 0.245 g H2O 1 g CaSO4*2H2O contains 0.791 g CaSO4 and 0.209 g H2O 1 g MgSO4*7H2O contains 0.488 g MgSO4 and 0.512 g H2O What's the point of this chemistry mini-lesson? If you forget that these salts contain water in their crystal structures, you will make mistakes when figuring out the amounts to use when adjusting your brewing water (the water will have less ppms than you think you have added). If any of you know accurate mass-to-volume ratios for these three salts I can figure out whether the ppm numbers Papazian gives on this page (again, that's p. 270 or so) are correct. Greg King gking at arserrc.gov Return to table of contents
From: guym at Exabyte.COM Date: Thu, 29 Aug 96 11:39:42 MDT Subject: Boiling over J. Matthew Saunders writes: > John writes: >> Let me repeat my own method for avoiding boilovers: >> >> Skim the scum that forms just before it gets roiling. <snip> > This certainly works, but I think that a significant portion of that > "scum" is hop residue. If you skim that gook before it really gets a > chance to do its thing, you significanty reduce the bitterness of > your brew. Unless, like most (I think) of us all grain brewers, you boil the wort for some period prior to adding hops (I usually boil 10 to 15 minutes - long enough to get a good hot break). In this case, no hop constituents are removed by the skimming, which I do. By the time I add the hops (whole), the wort has settled down and stopped trying to get out of the kettle. I use a half-barrel converted keg for a kettle on a jet burner so this is important to me. I had a 5 gallon batch boil over once in the 15.5 gallon kettle. I usually brew 10 gallon batches these days and I watch it more closely! -- Guy McConnell /// Huntersville, NC /// guym at exabyte.com "And the beer I had for breakfast wasn't bad, so I had one for dessert." Return to table of contents
From: guym at Exabyte.COM Date: Thu, 29 Aug 96 11:47:23 MDT Subject: Jet burners Sorry, I missed the request for information on these. I have a jet burner (King Kooker I think) and, while it is admittedly gas hungry, I have no problems with soot or flame color (always blue). I can turn it down and also use the deflector plate for fine adjustment. Also, I have had exactly zero problems with scorching. If you want to get to boiling quickly, these are hard to beat. I could see having a ring style burner as well if I set up a RIMS or manual multi-vessel brewery. Bottom line is that I am perfectly happy with my Harrier. ;-) -- Guy McConnell /// Huntersville, NC /// guym at exabyte.com "Run too fast, and shove too hard, you'll be pushing up the daisies in some old bone yard." Return to table of contents