Homebrew Digest Thursday, 3 October 1996 Number 2214

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   FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
        Mike Donald, Digest Janitor-in-training
        Thanks to Rob Gardner for making the digest happen!

Contents:
  Wish we could cancel posts... ((George De Piro))
  GABF festival judging (Dane Mosher)
  Kegging high-gravity beers / GABF medals (or lack thereof) ((George De Piro))
  kegging ((Tom Lochtefeld (Risk Mgt)))
  Miscellany ((Ed J. Basgall))
  GABF ((Bill Giffin))
  IPA Recipe Request/ Warm fe ("Craig Rode")
  hazelnut recipe ((Greg Moore - SMCC BOS Hardware Engineering))
  hop terminology ("Bryan L. Gros")
  Re; Subject: Starter (John.E.Carsten at oklaosf.state.ok.us)
  False Bottoms ((Tom Neary))
  Laaglander (Steven Ketcham)
  Filtering chill haze (Russ Brodeur)
  40-60-70 and attentuation (Russ Brodeur)
  Re: Lambics!! (Michael Caprara) ((Joe Formanek))
  .22 micron filters (Bob McCowan)
  Re: Aeration filter sanitation (Kelly Jones)
  re: Cider (initial fermentation) ((Dick Dunn))
  Yeast Package (Anton Schoenbacher)
  continental malt vs domestic ((BAYEROSPACE))
  Re: Leaf hops (Kelly Jones)
  Begginner wants partial mash (Anton Schoenbacher)
  What is Pale malt: (Jim Cave)
  Pushing Wort, HBD Web (krkoupa at ccmail2.PacBell.COM)
  Review of Brew Ware ("Palmer.John")
  seattle ("Jay Lubinsky")

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---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: George_De_Piro at berlex.com (George De Piro) Date: Thu, 3 Oct 1996 08:55:57 -0700 Subject: Wish we could cancel posts... After re-reading Jeremy's rye post I realized that his mashing schedule does boil the rye. This may blow my theory (see earlier post), but it may not. If he boiled for only a short time, as opposed to my double decoction, his mash would still have more structure, I think. I just don't know! Sorry for the bandwidth used... George De Piro (I need more sleep; 5 hours/night isn't cutting it!) Return to table of contents
From: Dane Mosher <dmosher at xroadstx.com> Date: Thu, 03 Oct 1996 08:23:49 -0500 Subject: GABF festival judging Howdy beerethren, I wanted to put in my $.02 on the quality of the judging at the festival. Although I can't claim to have tried all the medal winners, I can say that the medal winners I did try seemed worthy of the honor. On the other hand, I also believe that the quality of American microbrews as a whole still has a long way to go. I know I'm a picky bastard, but most of the beers I tried I didn't particularly enjoy. For example, I was really looking forward to trying some Koelsches since this was their first year to be recognized as a separate style. However I only found one that I didn't pour out before finishing. I also noticed that the judges only saw fit to award a bronze medal in this category--no gold or silver. I'm glad that some awards such as these were withheld because I don't think the judges should tell a microbrewery that their beer is superb when it clearly isn't. How is beer going to improve in this country if we do nothing but pat each other on the backs? There were certainly some outstanding beers at the festival, but by no means were all of them so. I applaud the PPBTers for trying to give credit when and only when it was due. Dane Mosher Big Spring, TX Return to table of contents
From: George_De_Piro at berlex.com (George De Piro) Date: Thu, 3 Oct 1996 08:47:23 -0700 Subject: Kegging high-gravity beers / GABF medals (or lack thereof) Malty Bill asks about kegging his soon-to-be-made Imperial Stout. His main concern is that it may not develop the proper complexity if he force carbonates rather than bottle conditions. Why force carbonate? Why not keg it and call it "cask conditioned Imperial Stout?" Just keg it before fermentation is done, or use your favorite priming method. It seems to me that the bigger problem is that kegged beer never seems to last as long as bottled brew: "There's plenty left, I can have another sample!"...4 hours later..."Hey, where'd all my beer go! I was saving that for the Pope's visit next year!" -------------------- Now for my opinion about the GABF medal awarding policy (if you're sick of this stuff, PAGE DOWN NOW). I can understand not awarding Gold medals (or even not awarding ANY medals for an entire category). These things are MARKETING DEVICES. If the best fruit beer in the contest isn't great, I mean REALLY GREAT, why should the brewer get to brag about a GABF medal? At the AHA Nationals this year some very mediocre-scoring beers took home gold medals (off the top of my head, I know that the gold-medal Bock scored a 34). Should a beer scoring that low take home a gold? It was the highest scoring Bock, so maybe it should. Homebrewing awards aren't the same marketing tools that GABF medals are. Unlike the AHA, the GABF is a measure of ABSOLUTE quality, not RELATIVE quality. If you're getting the right to call your beer the BEST BEER IN AMERICA (blatant disregard for the TM), it had better be DAMN GOOD by ALL standards, not just relative to the other competitors that year. And yes, pro brewers can make bad beer, too... Forgive the ranting, sorry if it bored anyone. Have a good time, all the time! George De Piro (Nyack, NY) Return to table of contents
From: toml at fcmc.COM (Tom Lochtefeld (Risk Mgt)) Date: Thu, 3 Oct 96 09:52:36 EDT Subject: kegging I am thinking of kegging some homebrew in those 5 gallon soda kegs. Under pressure and refrigeration, how long does a tapped keg last before it loses taste or carbonation? or... does it last indefinitely? Does a keg have to be refrigerated and/or carbonated right after it is filled or can it be stored for a while? Has anyone had bad experiences with kegging? Can somesone refer me to publications or literature? Private e-mail OK Regards Tom Return to table of contents
From: edb at chem.psu.edu (Ed J. Basgall) Date: Thu, 3 Oct 1996 10:03:56 -0400 Subject: Miscellany Hi all, (Steve, Al, David, Charles, Wade, HBD collective) Just a quick note to let you know I haven't dropped off the face of the earth (yet). I've been swamped at work and have barely had time to go through my email. I wish I could participate in your expt. but I have too many other obligations at this time. We just purchased a house and are putting on an addition. The shortening daylight hours are working against me. Central PA is starting to be filled with beautiful fall foliage and many wild mushrooms are up. I am also designing an experiment to satisfy myself and address the concerns about aeration of wort solutions. Sterility of different setups and dissolved oxygen in particular. I still can't conceive how bugs might be able to be transported through a 1/2" cotton plug in an airline. But without the empirica data I would be just blowing smoke. More on these issues as I consult with friends in the aquatic oxygen availability field. Dissloved oxygen meters are only about $600.00. Sterile agar plates are much less $. Once I get access to both, I'm all set to go. I'll send out details on the expt'l setup once I have things written up. Please feel free to comment, critique, flame.... cheers Ed Basgall SCUM (State College Underground Maltsters) University Park, PA Return to table of contents
From: bill-giffin at juno.com (Bill Giffin) Date: Thu, 3 Oct 1996 10:13:25 cst Subject: GABF Top of the morning to ye all, Remember whose event the GABF is. The AOB can run the event in any manner that they chose. If they feel the need, as they obviously did, to give a bit of credibility to their judges by giving them a title well it is their thing. Bill Return to table of contents
From: "Craig Rode" <craig.rode at sdrc.com> Date: 3 Oct 1996 09:23:11 -0600 Subject: IPA Recipe Request/ Warm fe If any of you hop heads have an idea of what the hop schedule would be for the current incarnation of Grant's IPA, I sure would be obliged if you would share it with me. I can't quite place it. I have a problem with my latests pale ale. It's essentially a SNPA clone, one that I have made with great success in the past. The current batch tastes...well....lousy. Missing the hop nose I usually get, and sorta funky tasting. The classic symptoms of infection, I know. However, I believe my sanitation procedures to be fairly straightforward and reliable. The only difference with this batch is that I started brewing earlier in the year than usual (despite Al K's warning) when it was still fairly warm in the basement. I think this fermented in an ambient temp of about 75-80F. What are the taste symptoms of a beer fermented too warm? After a year of using a Corona, I just switched to a JSP MaltMill (TM). I must say that it really does a fine job. Do those of you that own one of these devices usually remove the fingerguards so more of the rollers are eating grain? Also, I thought that the thing was guaranteed for life even if motorized, but the literature seems to indicate otherwise. What's the deal? TIA Craig (Milwaukee, WI) Return to table of contents
From: gmoore at wacko.East.Sun.COM (Greg Moore - SMCC BOS Hardware Engineering) Date: Thu, 3 Oct 1996 10:22:06 -0400 Subject: hazelnut recipe Well, ok - no one has the rogue hazelnut recipe. I've heard that the longshot hazelnut was a bit heavy on the hazelnut extract. Also heard that the recipe for the beer was on the bottom of the carton. Does anyone have the longshot recipe they can send me and I'll try to modify it to be closer to the rogue variety? Of course, I'll post it back to the group if I ever get it perfected. - -G Return to table of contents
From: "Bryan L. Gros" <grosbl at ctrvax.Vanderbilt.Edu> Date: Thu, 03 Oct 1996 09:24:37 -0500 (CDT) Subject: hop terminology > >Dave writes: >>If you use whole leaf hops, > >(I guess this is pick on Dave day ;^). "Leaf hops" are a misnomer. You >use the hop flowers for brewing, not the leaves. Al's comment is true. But "leaf hops" is a common term, at least among the homebrewers that I know. I've also heard "whole hops", "hop cones", and "hop flowers" used a lot. I think they are all acceptable, all used a lot, and they all mean the same thing. Am I right? - Bryan grosbl at ctrvax.vanderbilt.edu Nashville, TN Return to table of contents
From: John.E.Carsten at oklaosf.state.ok.us Date: 03 Oct 96 09:42:32 -0500 Subject: Re; Subject: Starter Jorge Blasig says: "I think I have some problems with the starter (for his first batch of mead). I added three big spoons of honey to a pint of water and 1 tsp of yeast extract and boiled for 15 min. I put this wort in a 1 L bottle. When it was at around 25C, I added 2 tsp of previously re-hydrated yeasts and aereated it as much as possible and put the airlock to the bottle. There has been lots of bubbling since then (started immediately after the pitching) and during the last three days. However, the yeasts do not seem to grow as I think I need. I have a 1 cm sediment since the beginning but it does not seem to grow to 5 cm as I was suggested. I do not not whether this is enough for pitching a 25 L carboy or not. " My two cents (take this for what it's worth) I have limited mead making experience. But this is based on what I've made so far. He is making a starter from honey, which means he is essentially making a "mini batch" mead. Due to the high gravity and fermentability of honey, most meads take months or even years to ferment completely. This being considered, it is not surprising (to me) that very little of his yeast has settled to the bottom of his starter. If it is actively fermenting, I would say that it is in prime condition to pitch into his must (that's wort, to you). The amount of sediment shouldn't matter at this point because there is likely quite a bit of yeast still in suspension. My suggestion would be to pitch the starter, open a homebrew, and let your mead rest in a warm dark place. Sorry for the bandwidth, But I hate for people to worry about their meads. It musses your must. John Making Mead in the Hearland Return to table of contents
From: thomas.neary at peri.com (Tom Neary) Date: Thu, 3 Oct 1996 10:43:57 -0400 Subject: False Bottoms I am in the process of designing a multi-tier 3 converted keg brewing system. The false bottom that I have decided on is a perforated SS sheet. But the problem I have is that I have seen two different styles in use. What are the pros & cons of using a 15" diameter perforated SS sheet which covers the entire circumfirence of the the keg and sits on short legs as opposed to an approximately 7" diameter sheet which sits flat on the bottom and only covers the little depression in the bottom center of the keg. Both false bottoms have an L-shaped tube which goes thru the center of the false bottom and thru the keg wall. The only thing I can think of is the amount of liquid which will sit under the grain bed during mashing, but I'm not sure if or why it would matter. It appears that all liquid will drain through the L-shaped tube. Any and all comments are greatly appreciated. TN Return to table of contents
From: Steven Ketcham <ketcham at earthlink.net> Date: Thu, 3 Oct 1996 08:09:43 -0700 (PDT) Subject: Laaglander Hello! I just finished brewing an extract only beer. I was amazed at how good it was (we've all made comments like this before). I would like to know some of the data on it. Could someone give a stab at the SRM and the IBU's of the end product? I would like to try a whole grain recipe sometime in the future and I enjoyed the flavor of this one. One (1) four lb. can of Laaglander Irish Ale boiled for 15 min in two gal.s of water as per Papazian. One (1) cup of sugar added at fermenting and three fourths (3/4) cup of sugar at bottling. The total yield in the carboy was five (5) gallons (the recipe given called for four but my six year old daughter wasn't there to help count). Allowed to ferment for six days and age in the bottle for seven. The beer was a dark almost red color. It was really good! Thanks. Return to table of contents
From: Russ Brodeur <r-brodeur at ds.mc.ti.com> Date: Thu, 03 Oct 1996 11:12:29 -0400 Subject: Filtering chill haze I am toying with the idea of filtering my beer. I have kegs of both pils and Octoberfest which I brewed for a friend's O'fest celebration. Both have been lagering for 2 weeks now, and will be lagered an additional 2 weeks before consumption. The pils is based primarily on DWC pils malt , plus 1 lb. Ireks Munich, and the O'fest is brewed from straight Ireks Munich malt. Both are double-decoction mashed w/o a "protein" rest at 122F. I use 140-45 F and 155-60 F rests for control of wort fermentability with mash-in at 105 F. I sampled both brews last night and there was still a considerable amount of chill haze (more in the O'fest than the pils). Anyway, my lagering fridge is on its last legs and won't go below 40-45 F. So, I am not getting adequate flocculation of chill haze precipitates and would like to filter (so the beers "look" pretty at Octoberfest). Any idea what pore-size filter to use?? I will be transferring from keg to keg under CO2 pressure, so it should be an easy thing to do. TTFN Russ Brodeur in Franklin, MA Return to table of contents
From: Russ Brodeur <r-brodeur at ds.mc.ti.com> Date: Thu, 03 Oct 1996 11:24:44 -0400 Subject: 40-60-70 and attentuation It's been a couple of years since I last brought this up, but has anyone out there had any luck using this mash schedule (40-60-70 C), as initially proposed by G. Fix, to control fermentability in INFUSION-mashed beers??? I have found the 60:70 C rest-time ratio super effective for controlling attenuation in DECOCTION-mashed beers, but insignificant in infusion-mashed beers. There is obviously something going on at 140 F in an infusion mash, because the wort begins to taste sweet, but my attenuation using a 30 min:30 min ratio have always been as though I'd used the 70 C rest only (ie. poor attenuation). I'd like to hear what others have observed. TTFN Russ Brodeur in Franklin, MA Return to table of contents
From: jformane at students.uiuc.edu (Joe Formanek) Date: Thu, 3 Oct 1996 10:30:26 +0800 Subject: Re: Lambics!! (Michael Caprara) Lambics!! (Michael Caprara) said: >My advice is to get a separate racking cane and siphon hose for lambics >only. Some of the bacteria cultures that you use can contaminate your >plastic. Also, they stink BIG TIME, and you may not want to put a stinky, >white mold covered bacteria starter into your lambic, but JUST DO IT! >Ferment only in glass and clean thouroughly with bleach before using for >a "regular" beer. Finally, let it age, let it age, let it age, and then, let it >age some more. Bottle at least 12 or so small bottles and try one a month for >a year, take good notes, and you will be amazed at how the lambic >changes. What I have have attempted on some recent (last 4 mos. or so) lambics that I've made is to ferment in plastic. I noticed on some earlier attempts that I had a difficult time developing a nice pellicle of Pedio on the lambics in glass. Flavor stayed quite bland, and I used either Boon, Cantillion or Hanssens starters in them. Figured that it might be a aeration problem--too little surface area in contact with oxygen right off the bat. so...I ran my wort chiller right into the open plastic fermenter and covered it with sanitized cheesecloth. Kept it like this for 4-5 days, then covered it and put in the airlock. Within a week it had developed the beginnings of a GREAT pellicle! This one is about 4 mos. old now, and it has developed some really nice acetic as well as Brettanomyces character. Just got to wait another year or so to really find out how it worked. Has anyone else tried this method before? With what results? Cheers! Joe ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// Joseph A. Formanek President, Boneyard Union of 580 Bevier Hall Zymurgical Zealots (BUZZ) U of Ill--Urbana/Champaign BUZZ - "When too much is not enough!" (217) 244-2879 (w) 2nd Annual BUZZ Boneyard Brewoff (217) 351-7858 (h) 7/20/96 - What a time it was!!!!!!!! Grad student, Professional and Home Brewer, BUZZ president.... Gad! What else can I get myself into????? Now on tap at "Joe's Brewery": "Academic Ale", and "German Alt" Now on tap at Joe's house: "Quicktime English Pale" and "Zippy Scottish Ale" Disclaimer: "No, I don't own the Brewery--just the house!!!" \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ Return to table of contents
From: Bob McCowan <bob.mccowan at bmd.cpii.com> Date: Thu, 3 Oct 1996 11:25:35 -0400 Subject: .22 micron filters >When I bought my 0.22 micron inline air filter from Heartland Hydroponics, >the person I talked to on the phone said absolutely do NOT run water >through the filter, because liquids were too big to pass through the >hydrophobic membrane. My question is, given the admonition I recently >received, how does one sanitize the inline filter? > >Truth in brewing, > >Nick These things should be wrapped and sterile. Bob - -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bob McCowan voice: (508)-922-6000 x208 ATG/Receiver-Protector fax: (508)-922-8914 CPI BMD Formerly Varian CF&RPP e-mail: bob.mccowan at bmd.cpii.com or Beverly, MA 01915 bob.mccowan at cfrp.varian.com - --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Return to table of contents
From: Kelly Jones <kejones at ptdcs2.intel.com> Date: Thu, 03 Oct 1996 09:30:33 -0700 Subject: Re: Aeration filter sanitation Nicholas Dahl wrote: > When I bought my 0.22 micron inline air filter from Heartland Hydroponics, > the person I talked to on the phone said absolutely do NOT run water > through the filter, because liquids were too big to pass through the > hydrophobic membrane. Folklore! True, most of these filters are made from expanded PTFE, or Gore-Tex. True, Gore-Tex won't pass loose water droplets freely. That doesn't mean that liquids can't be forced through the filter with a little bit of pressure. If you have the filter I'm thinking of, it was made to fit on the end of a syringe. Try filling a syringe with sanitizer and squirting a few cc's through. Kelly Hillsboro, OR Return to table of contents
From: rcd at raven.talisman.com (Dick Dunn) Date: 3 Oct 96 10:26:41 MDT (Thu) Subject: re: Cider (initial fermentation) Tim.Watkins at analog.com wrote: > When using the wild yeasts to ferment a cider, would it be better to > use an open fermentation, or a closed one with an airlock?... You don't want it truly "open" (unless you *really* like cider vinegar) - yes, contamination would be an issue. A loosely-covered pail (the way some folks do primary fermentation of a beer) will work, but it's not the best. On the other side, if you're starting with good juice, perhaps fresh- pressed, it's likely not to have been filtered very much, if at all. This means there's a lot of small solids that you've got to get rid of. If you tried to start the fermentation with an airlock on (which I *don't* recommend) you'd need a bunch of headspace for safety. So the best arrangement is a blowoff, because that's the easy way to push the solids and crud out of the cider, during those first few days when the fermentation is really lively. Fill your carboy fairly full, and use a real blowoff--a large tube, so it doesn't clog. None of this half-inch tubing fitted to a stopper; use the largest tubing that will just fit inside the neck of the carboy. - --- Dick Dunn rcd at talisman.com Boulder County, Colorado USA ...Too bad about Boulder. Return to table of contents
From: Anton Schoenbacher <aschoenb at eecs.wsu.edu> Date: Thu, 3 Oct 96 9:53:34 PDT Subject: Yeast Package I popped my wyeast package a couple of days ago and was wondering how long I could go before using it. I was going to brew and have changed my mind (no money) It was about an inch thick then I put it in my fridge yesterday. Should I dump it in some extract/water 'wort' to give it more food ? - -- *****Anton Schoenbacher*****aschoenb at eecs.wsu.edu***** ****************************************************** Return to table of contents
From: M257876 at sl1001.mdc.com (BAYEROSPACE) Date: Thu, 3 Oct 1996 11:58 -0600 Subject: continental malt vs domestic collective homebrew conscience: jim layton wrote: >I use Am. 2-row malt (from Great Western) in most of my ales and I have never >experienced flavors that I could attribute to DMS. On the other hand, I've >used continental pils malts, from DWC and Durst,<snip>. In each of these >cases a pleasant flavor I believe to be due to DMS is present. I can detect >this same flavor in many commercial German beers (helles, helles bock, and >pils) and therefore I believe it to be appropriate in these styles. >My boiling and cooling techniques are consistent (90 min. boil, immersion >chill to pitching temp within 45 min). I cannot attribute this flavor to any >factor other than the malt. Does this experience match with that of others? >Is this flavor, which I can describe as smooth and grain-like but not really >"corny", due to DMS? i would say that what you're tasting is the difference between continental and domestic malt. i see no reason for domestic 2 row pale (not pale ale, right?) to have less potential for dms than continental pils malts. the kilnings for these malts would be similar, not as high as traditionally malted english pale ale malt. just as with hops, you can't just bring a variety of barley over the ocean, put it in a different climate/soil, and expect it to thrive. there are undoubtedley economic factors at play as well (yield/acre etc$$$) for the reasons we have different barley strains in n. america as compared to the malting barleys that originated in europe. by the way, in my previous post i mentioned "traditional english malting" and "exhaustive english malting procedure". i didn't go into any detail on what i meant by that, but al k and steve alexander responded to clarify that what i was referring to was the greater modification that many pale ale malts get as compared to typical lager malt. al k points out correctly that this is an idea that comes from the past when the malting methods really were quite different, and today the difference in modification is probably not that great between the pale ale and lager malts we have available. regarding the levels of nitrogen in modern barley (on the rise, according to al k), i have a question as to how this affects our beer. if the total protein levels are going up, do we need better modification and/or more exhaustive mashing schedules (i.e. protein rests) to compensate for this? is it the total protein that determines if we need a protein rest, or just the soluble/insoluble ratio? what effects other than chill haze does excess big protein in the final beer cause? are there any ill effects on the flavor? are there potential stability problems for unpasteurized beer? which book is it that i have to get to answer these questions? brew hard, mark bayer Return to table of contents
From: Kelly Jones <kejones at ptdcs2.intel.com> Date: Thu, 03 Oct 1996 10:02:43 -0700 Subject: Re: Leaf hops Al writes: > Dave writes: > >If you use whole leaf hops, > > (I guess this is pick on Dave day ;^). "Leaf hops" are a misnomer. You > use the hop flowers for brewing, not the leaves. Al: "Leaf hops" is a term used by brewers, hop growers, and hop merchants to describe the hop product (strobiles) used in whole, unprocessed form, as opposed to pelletized, plugged, extracted, etc. "Hop leaves" would describe the leaves of the hop plant, and you probably wouldn't want to use them as a substitue for "Leaf Hops". Kelly Hillsboro, OR Return to table of contents
From: Anton Schoenbacher <aschoenb at eecs.wsu.edu> Date: Thu, 3 Oct 96 10:08:46 PDT Subject: Begginner wants partial mash I have never done a partial mash, I want to. Does anybody have a good relatively easy recipie to start with, along with some basic guidlines on what to do ? Thanks much - -- *****Anton Schoenbacher*****aschoenb at eecs.wsu.edu***** ****************************************************** Return to table of contents
From: Jim Cave <CAVE at PSC.ORG> Date: Thu, 3 Oct 1996 10:16:40 -0700 (PDT) Subject: What is Pale malt: Al Korzonas writes that we shouldn't be using the term "Pale malt" in reference to lager or pils malts. This would cause unecessary confusion. Unfortunately, both Canada malting and Gambrinus refer to their products as "Pale Malt" and these are "lager type" malts. Since Canada malting is the world's largest malting conglomerate, I think we need to advise people of the term "Pale Malt" and its designation. Jim Cave Return to table of contents
From: krkoupa at ccmail2.PacBell.COM Date: Thu, 03 Oct 96 11:08:54 PST Subject: Pushing Wort, HBD Web Here are two "aha's" I wanted to pass on. Or maybe they're "duh's"? 1. Filling converted kegs with a pump. For space reasons I use a 2-tier system with a pump instead of a 3-tier system with all-gravity. (Some day I hope to be an all-gravity brewer, but right now I use pump extracts.) Previously, I had pumped the hot wort to the top of the keg and dropped it in from the top. But when folks questioned me about HSA, I rethought the aerial top drop and started looking at the keg "exit". My boil-kettle keg has a stainless steel welded coupling with a ball valve and quick connect fitting on the outside, ss false bottom on the inside. So, I quick-connected the pump to the "exit" and pushed the wort into the boil kettle up from the bottom. And it works! I pushed 15+ gallons of liquid up 5 feet with the Little Giant / Grainger 2P039 pump. I partially close the ball valve on the keg to provide positive pressure on the output side of the pump, just like the external gate valve I had previously used from the top drop. No splash, less equipment. I also installed a foot-operated on/off switch for the pump, so I didn't have to plug/unplug it from house electricity while adjusting the ball valve. Major convenience. 2. Hypertext, not e-mail. I must have hit page down too many times ("... scroll down for crissakes" - J. Busch) ... I just stumbled into HBD on the internet ... and I don't remember anyone mentioning this before. You mean I didn't have to receive HBD as e-mail files all this time? I could just go to http://alpha.rollanet.org/hbd/HBD.html any time I felt like it? And search for whatever topic I wanted to find? OK, sometimes my lightbulb is slow to glow, but now I know the secret. Ken Koupal krkoupa at ccmail2.pacbell.com http://www3.pair.com/jgurney/one/brewnet.html Return to table of contents
From: "Palmer.John" <palmer at ssdgwy.mdc.com> Date: 3 Oct 1996 11:19:47 U Subject: Review of Brew Ware Patrick Dominick asked if anyone had read Brew Ware. Yes, I have. I reviewed it for the current Sept/Oct issue of Brewing Techniques. I will reprint the unedited version here. Brew Ware - How to Find, Adapt, and Build Homebrewing Equipment by Karl Lutzen and Mark Stevens. Storey Publishing, Pownal, Vermont, 1996 300 pages Lutzen and Stevens, the authors of Homebrew Favorites - a collection of public domain recipes from the Internet, have done it again. Their latest effort is a compilation of the many homebrewing equipment and gadget ideas that have been discussed on the Internet over the past several years. The book was written with the experienced brewer in mind, someone that has developed a need for gadgets to facilitate the brewing processes. Logically, most of the material in the book is oriented to the grain brewer. There are chapters devoted to discussing and building Grain Mills, Mash/Lauter Tuns and Kegging. There are also chapters that deal with equipment used for growing and drying hops and yeast culturing; probably the first time these topics have been addressed from the equipment angle. The book is a bit awkward getting off the ground, though. The look and text on the cover conveys the impression that this book is for the beginner. It is, but it's for the beginning gadgeter, not the beginning brewer. Someone who picks up the book expecting to learn how to brew will be quickly overwelmed by the apparent need for lots of equipment. This impression is not helped by the fact that the first chapter compares the homebrewing processes with commercial microbrewery processes and the second chapter is concerned with materials and processes for building a Three Tier, Gravity Fed All-Grain system. The treatment of these topics is well done, it's just a matter of the reader's expections when getting into them. An experienced brewer, looking for ideas on how to build his all-grain brewing system will be right at home. The chapters proceed in much the same order as the brewing processes do. While this is logical for organizing an overall brewing system, it does not follow the normal learning curves for most brewers. Presenting the equipement ideas that can be applied to extract and extract with specialty grain brewing first (ex. wort chilling, bottling), may have been a better way to arrange the comprehensive information this book presents. The individual gadget ideas that are presented in each chapter are easy to read and well illustrated. The illustrations of the various ideas are drawn by Randy Mosher, notable brewer and author of The Brewer's Companion. Many of the drawings are done in drafting style, showing the reader how the item is manufactured and assembled. Ideas are laid out clearly, listing materials, parts, tools and assembly steps. There is even a section in the back listing suppliers for commercial equipement and common parts as well as those hard to find items like food grade RIMS pumps. Lutzen and Stevens have brought together a lot of material for this book. They have contacted and quoted the original authors of some particularly notable ideas that were previously published to the Internet. Likewise they have reviewed and compared notable commercial products when discussing grain mills, lautering and fermentation systems. This book will be a welcome addition to the library of any brewer looking to learn new methods and facilitate their current processes. ************** John Palmer - Metallurgist johnj at primenet.com Palmer House Brewery and Smithy - www.primenet.com/~johnj/ Return to table of contents
From: "Jay Lubinsky" <j-lubins at govst.edu> Date: Thu, 3 Oct 1996 13:45:17 GMT-6 Subject: seattle Hi Brewers, I'll be taking my first trip to Seattle next month. I know this is a land of great beer. What are your recommendations of where to go for some of it? Thanks, Jay Lubinsky Private e-mail okay: j-lubins at govst.edu Return to table of contents