---

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

Contents:
  European Brewery List? ((Childers Mark))
  Local Water Supplies. (Geoff Bagley)
  Re: 40-60-70 and attentuation ((Fredrik Stahl))
  When to Stop Secondary Fermentation ("David C.C. Sprague")
  Well water and softeners (Bob McCowan)
  False Bottoms ((Ken ))
  Re: tasting panels, stones and filters (Joe Rolfe)
  RE:  Symptoms of warm fermentation ((George De Piro))
  gnats,mashing ("Herb B Tuten")
  Iodophor Questions (Jeffrey M Kenton)
  digital thermometer (Anton Schoenbacher)
  professional brewing ("Bryan L. Gros")
  Peated Malt (Fred Waltman)
  Cold storage for altbiers (Brewkits at aol.com)
  The Un-Believer's Six-Pack (KennyEddy at aol.com)
  Re: Longshot Hazelnut (James Moncsko)
  Peat Smoked Malt ((Curt Schroeder))
  yeasts (EDWARD SPADONI)
  Robotic Palate (Carl Hattenburg)
  "Tapping" a fridge (David Cummings)
  re: mini kegs (Dale Smith)
  re: Well Water (Dave Whitman)
  mashing & water ratios (Darrin Pertschi)
  Brewer's Almanac ((Jeff Sturman))

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----------------------------------------------------------------------

From: CIM at crossair.ch (Childers Mark)
Date: Fri, 04 Oct 1996 09:21:56 +0100
Subject: European Brewery List?

 
A short request. 
 
I recently moved to Switzerland and am looking for some list of brewerys 
here in Europe.  Not necessarily the big factories but more the smaller 
breweries and monasteries, etc. 
 
thanks,.....mark 
 

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From: Geoff Bagley <geoff at gcbagley.demon.co.uk>
Date: Thu, 3 Oct 1996 23:32:45 +0100
Subject: Local Water Supplies.

 
 
Our local water supply comes from a bore-hole near Bromsberrow, 
Worcester, England. 
 
The Water Authority (Severn Trent) combine this with some water taken 
(and purified) from the River Severn. 
 
Local legend states that the local (Malvern) water is famous for 
containing "nothing at all", but in spite of that they DO add some 
chlorination. 
 
Both the "tap-water" and the water from local springs make good beer. 
 
In the case of the tap water, I use the water from the HOT tap, on the 
grounds that, having been heated, most of any chlorine will have been 
driven off. 
 
Personally I feel that too much is made of the mistique of various types 
of water. If you are desperate you can "tweak" the pH value, but I have 
never been able to detect the difference! 
 
Just go on brewing, and only start worrying if you encounter a problem. 
 
Best regards, 
Geoff Bagley 

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From: fredriks at abel.math.umu.se (Fredrik Stahl)
Date: Fri, 4 Oct 1996 11:24:23 +0100
Subject: Re: 40-60-70 and attentuation

Russ Brodeur wrote: 
 
>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. 
 
I usually use the 40-63-71 C schedule for pale ales. The step from 40 C to 
63 C is done by infusion and from 63 C to 71 C by heat on my electric 
stove. I have settled for 45 min  at  63 C and 15 min  at  71 C for British 
bitters to get a low enough FG, which seems to work rather well. With this 
schedule I get a mash efficiency of >90% and a total efficiency of about 
85%. 
 
My problem is getting a low enough attenuation when needed, e.g. for 
Scottish ales. I have tried a mash with 15 min  at  60 C and 45 min  at  70 C, 
but the difference was only one or two points. It seems like the beta 
conversion at 63 C is very quick indeed. 
 
Russ, could it be that you are not aerating enough and pitching enough 
yeast? I think I reused the yeast cake from a previous brew on the Scottish 
ale mentioned above, and that the fermentation was very quick. Maybe this 
caused a high attenuation hiding the effect of the more dextrinous wort. By 
the way, the scottish ale is a bit phenolic and seems to contain too much 
of the higher alcohols (sometimes I think it gives more of a headache than 
other beers :-( ). This could have been caused by high temps during the 
quick fermentation. (I thought I had kept the temp down but it might have 
been higher during the violent initial phase.) 
 
I think I will try one of the following approaches the next time I brew a 
Scottish ale: 
 
1) A single saccharification rest at 67-68 C. 
 
2) Starting the saccharification at 63 C and immediately raise to 71 C (the 
raise takes <10 min on the stove). 
 
I'll let you know how it turns out. 
 
- -------------------------------------------------------------- 
Fredrik St{\aa}hl          Tel: int +46 90 166027 
Math. Dept.                Fax: int +46 90 165222 
University of Ume{\aa}     E-mail: fredriks at abel.math.umu.se 
S-90187 Ume{\aa}, SWEDEN   WWW: http://abel.math.umu.se/~fredriks 
 
                   On tap: Berghem Best Bitter 
         *** Nemo saltat sobrius, nisi forte insanit *** 
- -------------------------------------------------------------- 
 
 

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From: "David C.C. Sprague" <dsprague at bga.com>
Date: 
Subject: When to Stop Secondary Fermentation

A little background.  This is my first batch that happens to be a pale ale 
that came in a kit form.  The instructions indicated that the starting 
specific gravity should be at 1.050.  Ours started at 1.052.  Fermentation 
was over in three days in the bucket.  Two days after that I transferred the 
liquid portion, leaving the trub (sp?) in the bottome of the bucket, to a 
glass carboy.  In the process of transferring, I checked the specific 
gravity again.  The instructions said that fermentation was over when the 
specific gravity reached 1.012.  Ours is 1.010.  The place I got the kit 
from here in town is quite laid-back about when to bottle/keg.  They said 
something like, "Hey man, whenever your specific gravity is there or 
whenever you get thirsty like."  Ok, I can somewhat handle that, but in 
about a week I have five gallons of beer.  I do not know how much clearer it 
is supposed to get and feel that I have no good background for the 
"artistic" ability to say that It Is Done. What do I do? Thanks for your help! 
 
___________________________ 
David C.C. Sprague 
Research Technologist 
Core Laboratory for Applied Molecular Biology and Genetics 
Scott and White Department of Research and Education 
Temple, Texas 
W:  817-771-7604 
H:  512-259-7282 
 

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From: Bob McCowan <bob.mccowan at bmd.cpii.com>
Date: Fri, 4 Oct 1996 08:08:09 -0400
Subject: Well water and softeners

> My question is should I use the water from the softener, tap in 
>prior to it being softened, or 
>does it matter? I have been told that the softened water may have a higher 
>sodium content, although I do not 
>believe this to be the case since the softener rinses out the brine after each
>cleaning cycle. 
 
Yes, the sodium is higher.  The softener works by exchanging 2 sodium ions 
for each calcium ion it removes.  Unfortunately, it leaves the carbonates 
untouched, so you end up with water with a bunch of carbonates that are much 
harder to remove.  You may be better off taking the unsoftened water, 
boiling it, cooling it and then racking off the precipitate. 
 
Our well water is very hard (350 ppm hardness) and we soften for household 
use.  Since we also have manganese that's removed by the softener, 
presoftened water is not that great an option. Treatment of our water is a 
little tricky since it undergoes significant variation during the year.  In 
long dry spells we have high manganese; in wet weather the manganese is 
lower but the iron is higher.  I guess we have multiple water sources in 
varying ratios.  Our well is 630 feet deep. 
 
GIven all this, I generally use bottled water - either spring or distilled, 
depending on the style of the beer. 
 
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 
 
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
 

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From: kbjohns at escape.com (Ken )
Date: Fri, 4 Oct 1996 08:40:47 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: False Bottoms

Thomas Neary wrote 
 
>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 
 
PBS offers both types; a 9" for use as a hop back, and 2 full false bottoms, 
folding and solid. 
 
The full false bottom will allow for a better extraction rate at a higher 
speed. It's more efficient. For complete explanation as to why see Aug 95 
Brewing Techniques article covering this point. 
 
Some breweers do use the the 9" for mashing because it's less expensive. It 
will give extraction rates and speeds about equivalent to manifolds and easy 
mashers 
Ken 
Precision Brewing Systems URL http://www.wp.com/HOSI/pbscat.html 
East Coast Brewing supply URL 
http://virtumall.com/EastCoastBrewing/ECBMain.html
 

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From: Joe Rolfe <onbc at shore.net>
Date: Fri, 4 Oct 1996 09:22:01 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: Re: tasting panels, stones and filters

just my thoughts on taste panels... 
 if done properly, they can provide a wealth of information. 
siebels has a great course on how to implement taste panels. one 
of the major issues is the taster and his/her training.  without 
proper training (doctored samples at various thresholds) one may 
never know the blind spots the may have. 
 
 for commercial brewers the taste panels are very important, and 
lots of records need to be kept on each individual. micros very rarely 
can afford to do this in a proper sense. hence many craft brewers are 
not sure what they are shipping and how it differs from last months brews. 
many do not have the labs or people to execute the process.  one thing i 
notice, i tastes beers - probably too much (go figure;/ and i for one 
have more difficult time tasting our own beer than some other breweries. 
 
the festival panels, are a snapshot in time, very brief sampling of beer 
bottled/kegged in a hurry by mostly those that are not equipped to 
package (brewpubs - not all but most).  many micros are not equipped to 
package either even thou they do it on a regualr basis. one other issue 
that pops up on tasting panels is the general health of the taster - this can 
vary day to day.  my suggestion for the blind taste panels would be to 
perform this operation several times over the period of the festival, to 
play down any variability.  multiple samples, multiple days.  i dont know 
the details of the gabf - but my guess is they do a good job.  but a good 
job can always be a great job....and greater... 
 
 i will totally agree 
with one other person on the big guys (AB, COORS, MILLER) - they do the job 
extremely well.  try an find a micro that can brew such a light profiled 
product, package it as fast as they do and ship it.  if anything goes wrong 
it will stick out like a sore thumb - hence the reason why many panels 
trianing select coors light or similar beer to doctor.  i for one can not 
knock any of the major brewers - i can understand the bull they go thru 
to produce the products...it is scarey at best....most micros have this 
"cavilier" attitude, and are more worried about paying the bills, than 
shipping a quality product.  not all mind you but alot.  just look in the 
new brewer articles as few months ago - the one were siebels tested a 
sampling of beers...lots had oxygen way over 1 and 2ml...is that good? no... 
if i remeber a/b would dump a batch if it had .3 - any they have very 
tight controls on the distribution. 
 
 sorry for the wasted band with - i'll get off it and on to something 
nicer...... 
 
on airstones and filters, filters need not be sanitized if they are sterile. 
but if you have somethinggrowing on the filter media, you may want to 
autoclave them (if they can hack it) and test the sanitation with a stress 
test of aerated wort/no yeast.  if you incubate for 3 days at 80-90F the 
aerated wort, and you have no growth - consider it sanitary but you should 
do this often as it is easy to blow a hole in the filters. .2 ucron or lower 
is a must... 
 
for those doing rye beers - your results will vary from brewery to brewery 
based on the set up and raw materials.  there are a lot of rye products out 
there, some are great others are crap (from brewing purposes and equipment 
that the average brewer may have).  if one person say it is a sticky mess 
worse than pumpkin mash - you either have poor ingredients or process or both. 
mostly the average homebrewer has good process for the equipment - it might 
tend to be more poor ingredients.  buyer beware on all brewing ingredients. 
 
great brewing to all 
joe 

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From: George_De_Piro at berlex.com (George De Piro)
Date: Fri, 4 Oct 1996 08:32:41 -0700
Subject: RE:  Symptoms of warm fermentation

     Hi! 
 
     Craig asks what the symptoms of overly warm fermentations are.  Well, 
     like everything else in this hobby, it depends.  Some yeast strains 
     are very tolerant of warm temperatures and will make good beer at 
     temps in the mid to high 70's (degrees F, of course.  ~25C for you 
     metric types). 
 
     However, to answer the question, some of the symptoms of high 
     fermentation temp are tons of esters (fruity), noticeable higher 
     alcohols (harsh, almost solvent-like), and soapy flavors. 
 
     None of these are terribly desirable or pleasant. 
 
     A friend of mine has found that yeast cultured from Adelaide sparkling 
     ale is a good high-temperature performer.  In fact, he's had trouble 
     with it getting stuck at more conventional temperatures! 
 
     Have fun! 
 
     George De Piro  (Nyack, NY) 

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From: "Herb B Tuten" <herb at zeus.co.forsyth.nc.us>
Date: Fri, 4 Oct 1996 09:30:49 -0500
Subject: gnats,mashing

Greetings, all. 
 
First, a tip...   Recently my basement brewery attracted gnats, 
probably because adding apples to mead caused some blowout 
through the airlock during the night (yuk).  Anyway, I wondered 
how to get rid of the little bothers, who seemed attracted to all my 
bubbling airlocks even after I cleaned up the cyser mess.  At last 
I got an idea; I spread several lengths of wide packaging tape on 
top of the closed buckets and around the airlocks (sticky side up). 
The next day I had 12 gnats stuck to the tape and none flying. 
 
Next, a question...  If a mash tun will not hold all the necessary 
grain for a batch, would it be ok to split the mash/sparge 
operation?   Ok, it would take hours longer; but someone with a 
5 gallon Gott could brew a barleywine.  Is there any reason not to 
collect/sparge the first half, and let it sit quietly in the unheated, 
covered brew kettle until the second half is added later?  I recently 
collected data from folks about the limitations of their mash tun, 
and this idea might help alot of brewers.  Has anyone done this? 
 
Cheers, 
Herb 
herb at zeus.co.forsyth.nc.us 

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From: Jeffrey M Kenton <jkenton at iastate.edu>
Date: Fri, 04 Oct 1996 08:41:56 CDT
Subject: Iodophor Questions

Hello, collective! 
 
As is often the case out here in Central Iowa, I found myself in the farm 
supply store looking for cheap sanitizers, etc for my homebrew setup.  I 
ran across a product (very cheap $6.99/gallon) which claims to be 25% 
Iodophor, dilution schedule was 1 oz/3 gallons.  This schedule looks 
the same as the one on the smaller bottle of restaurant sanitizer I 
already have. 
 
Upon reading the "ingredients" I came across a reference I probably 
didn't want to see.  It said that this product had a significant (0.12%) 
proportion of LANOLIN in it.  The product is for sanitizing udder teats, 
and I imagine the lanolin (even in this low concentration undiluted) 
helps to reduce the chafing and irritation associated with long term 
contact with Iodophor. 
 
Question:  will this lanolin have an effect on my equipment which will be 
soaking in it?  Will I have a new style (Cardigan Pilsener??) or am I 
freaking out?  The concentration information looks like the lanolin will be 
0.12 ppm (or 120 ppb) at sanitizing strength, since the direction say 25 ppm 
Iodophor at 1oz/3gallons. 
 
Private Email is fine, and suggested. 
Thanks for the bandwidth 
 
Jeff Kenton 
 
 
- --- 
Jeffrey M. Kenton 
Teaching Assistant C&IT            PGP?  Email with REQ PUB KEY 
Current Class: ElEd/SecEd 301            in subject line for my 
jkenton at iastate.edu                      public key. 

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From: Anton Schoenbacher <aschoenb at eecs.wsu.edu>
Date: Fri, 4 Oct 96 7:21:24 PDT
Subject: digital thermometer

in response to : 
 
radio shack (std. disc.) now has a lighted indoor/outdoor F/C digital 
thermometer on closeout for $10. the range listed in the specs only goes up 
to 120F, but it has a probe, so you can check the serving temp of your beer, 
the inside of your fridge, etc.. 
bob 
bob rogers   bob at carol.net 
 
I have been doing this for about a month now, it works great.  I am 
surprised at how cold I like my beer to be, 36 deg. 
 
- -- 
*****Anton Schoenbacher*****aschoenb at eecs.wsu.edu***** 
****************************************************** 

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From: "Bryan L. Gros" <grosbl at ctrvax.Vanderbilt.Edu>
Date: Fri, 04 Oct 1996 09:32:08 -0500 (CDT)
Subject: professional brewing

Jeff Frane writes: 
> Over 
>time, I've come to a few conclusions.  All, I hasten to add, my own opinion. 
> 
>1. There are a lot of people brewing beer that aren't very good at it. 
>Just because someone has a job making beer doesn't mean that they're skilled, 
>or craftsmen and a lot of them don't even notice the flaws in their own beer. 
 
I've certainly noticed this is true in the South, although there were one or 
two 
places in Northen California as well.  You can get away with it down here 
since a lot of customers don't know the difference.  You can't, however, try 
to run a business based on the ignorance of your customers (at least I hope 
you can't). 
 
Have you seen those ads in Zymurgy or The New Brewer for a small 
brewing system?  They basically say to restaurant owners that they 
can buy the system and serve fresh beer at their restaurants, implying that 
little skill is involved. 
 
>2. There is a lot of bogus labeling of beerstyles.  As Dane noted, he 
>was found a number of "Kolsch" that weren't worth drinking; probably even 
>more that weren't even close to the style.  Same goes for "altbiers", 
>"weizens," you name it.  Not to mention all those "British" beers full 
>of Cascade hops. 
 
I also agree with this.  And I consider this misleading advertising.  I'm all 
for giving brewers a lot of leeway to be creative.  They should brew what 
they want, but they should label it correctly.  If I get a beer I feel is 
grossly out of style, I don't have a problem sending it back.  " I ordered 
a Kolsch and this isn't a Kolsch.  If you don't have a Kolsch available, 
bring me something else." 
 
          - Bryan 
            grosbl at ctrvax.vanderbilt.edu 
            Nashville, TN 
 

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From: Fred Waltman <waltman at netcom.com>
Date: Fri, 4 Oct 1996 07:47:08 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: Peated Malt

 
 
There has been some discussion of the proper amount of Baird Peated Malt 
to use in a recipe. You should be aware that there are both "Light Peat" 
and "Medium Peat" (and for all I know a "Heavy Peat") versions.  This may 
account for the different results people have posted. The Medium is much 
stronger. If your retailer buys full bags, they should know which one they 
have. 
 
 
Fred Waltman 
Culver City Home Brewing Supply Co. 
waltman at netcom.com 
http://www.homebrew.inter.net 
 

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From: Brewkits at aol.com
Date: Fri, 4 Oct 1996 11:51:05 -0400
Subject: Cold storage for altbiers

Hello all, 
 
My question deals with the cold storage that is necessary to achieve the 
smooth, rounded flavor of a typical altbier.  I do not currently have access 
to cold storage that is large enough for my secondary.  Has anyone tried 
simulating this lagering step by simply letting the fermentation finish at 
ale temps, bottling, and then storing the bottles in the fridge for a few 
weeks? 
 
Any related experiences or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. 
 
Thanks - Ken Cannon. 

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From: KennyEddy at aol.com
Date: Fri, 4 Oct 1996 13:18:48 -0400
Subject: The Un-Believer's Six-Pack

It seems that whenever I start talking about brewing with non-brewers (you 
know, the Bud-Lite-on-ice crowd), regardless of their opinion of "premium 
beers" they're almost always fascinated with the brewing process and flowing 
descriptions of the wide spectrum of colors, flavors, and aromas they've 
never experienced.  Just a few minutes ago I was in such a conversation, with 
the usual "beer is beer" phrase being brought up.  I replied with a remark to 
the effect that I could send you to the store with a list of six beers that 
would leave no doubt that beers are (or at least can be) different and 
flavorful. 
 
As I walked away I was tossing around a few ideas for which beers I would 
include.  Then I thought this might be a fun thread to start here (although 
my idea of "fun" is often not everyone's): 
 
If you had to assemble a six-pack of beer to give to a "beer is beer" type 
person, which six would it be?  I'm thinking along the lines of good examples 
of a broad range of styles, rather than just a random pile of good beers  I 
think it's most realistic to limit the selection to commercial beers readily 
available in most areas, but feel free to suggest a local favorite if you 
think it's truly outstanding. 
 
Any takers? 
 
***** 
 
Ken Schwartz 
El Paso, TX 
KennyEddy at aol.com 
http://members.aol.com/kennyeddy 
 

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From: James Moncsko <James_Moncsko at imail2.ul.com>
Date: Fri, 04 Oct 1996 13:04:44 -0500
Subject: Re: Longshot Hazelnut

Recently, Greg Moore asked for the Long Shot Hazelnut recipe.  I have 
the hazelnut recipe right here from the bottom of the 6 pack, and it is an 
inspiring, wonderfull beer. This is it verbatum: 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
Ingredients for 5 Gallons 
 
9# Pale malt 
8 oz. Munich malt 
7 oz. Caramel malt 
4 oz. Chocolate malt 
3 oz. Victory malt 
4 oz. Carapils malt 
 
2 oz. Fuggles hops 
.5 teaspoon Gypsum added to mash 
Ale yeast  (1056?) 
 
Procedure: 
Mash in at 155'F, rest for one hour. 
Sparge and fill kettle. 
Boil 90 minutes adding hops as follows: 
At kettle full: 1.5 oz. 
At KF + 85 mins:  .5 oz. 
 
Cool to 65' F and pitch ale yeast 
Ferment at 65 - 70'F 
Add hazelnut flavoring before bottling 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
I've heard that this is a recipe that the Boston Wort Processors (HB Club) 
have made and is not exactly the real deal. I'd imagine it would be close 
though. My questions are  What yeast?  Wyeast 1056? Also, where do 
you get hazelnut flavoring?????? 
 
Jim Moncsko, still in Brentwood NY, but not for long........ 
 
 
 
 

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From: cschroed at ball.com (Curt Schroeder)
Date: Fri, 04 Oct 1996 12:52:45 -0600
Subject: Peat Smoked Malt

 
All this discussion about smoked malt has prompted me to relate my 
experience.  I wanted a strong smoke flavored porter (inspired by Little 
Apple's Holy Smoke, Thanks Jethro!) I used 1# of HB Peated Malt for a 11# 
grain bill (5 gal.).  It did not have the "in your face" smoke flavor I 
wanted.  It was more subtle.  Since that time I have heard that Hugh Baird 
comes in Low, Medium, and High Peated Malt.  I have also heard that after 
smoking, within 2 months the grains have lost half of their smoke flavor.  I 
have nothing to back this up, just comments by other brewers and 
homebrewers. 
 
Does anyone have the real skinny on Peat Smoked Malt? 
 
Side issue: 
My weak smoked porter with a high percentage of smoked malt won best of show 
:-)  and now I get to brew it at the Pumphouse (Longmont, CO) :-).  The 
inconsitancy of smokiness has me a little concerned about replicating the 
beer especially in light of what others have said about too much smoke 
flavor from much less grain than I used.  Any ideas about how to scale it up 
and not get too much smoke?   Would peated malt teas in proper proportions 
give me a good gage on how much to use for a given bag of smoked malt?  Any 
ideas would be helpful. 
 
TIA 
Cheers! 
Curt Schroeder, cschroed at ball.com 
Longmont, Colorado 
 
 
 

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From: EDWARD SPADONI <SL9YN at cc.usu.edu>
Date: Fri, 04 Oct 1996 12:56:30 -0600 (MDT)
Subject: yeasts

Hi, I know this is a wine question and this list is primarily for beer 
but I know you guys can help me on this. The question is, what is the 
difference between Sherry yeast and wine yeast if any at all? I used a 
packet of Sherry yeast to make a wine recipe I had made before and it's 
taking longer to settle out and has a different color. When I made the 
recipe before I used a packet that said "For Wine" 
Any comments to help lessen my ignorance would be appreciated. 
Thanks 
Ed 
sl9yn at cc.usu.edu 
 
- ------------------------------ 

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From: Carl Hattenburg <CHattenburg at Perstorp-us.com>
Date: Fri, 4 Oct 1996 14:52:36 -0400
Subject: Robotic Palate

Hello consortium - 
 
My company makes a Beer Analyzer, and I finally had one 
installed in my office! Yea! It measures or calculates the 
following parameters: 
 
Specific Gravity, Original Extract (w/w), Original Extract (w/v), 
Alcohol (v/v), Real Extract (%w/v), Apparent extract (%w/w), 
Apparent extract (%w/v), Real degree of fermentation (%), 
Apparent degree of fermentation (%), Real fermentation (%), 
Apparent fermentation (%), Extract/Alcohol Index, 
Refractive Index, Calories (100g), Calories (100ml), 
Calories (12 oz), Kilo Joule (100g), Kilo Joule (100ml), 
Kilo Joule (12 oz), Present Gravity, Spirit Indication, 
Extract Gravity, Degrees Lost, Original Gravity. (whew!) 
 
Ok - as I love & appreciate the HBD and it's users, I 
would like to offer the services of my 'robotic palate' 
to the consortium....you send me a bottle (or a keg!!!) 
of your homebrew, and I'll send you the printout of the 
results! (I keep the *brown* bottle...and the kegs!)... 
 
The catch - since the device sits in a hackers office 
(mine) I can not and will not guarantee that the readings 
will be accurate, and will take no responsibility for damage 
caused by the results, or lack thereof. Since I ask no money 
or fees, please don't sue me! Also - I don't know how long 
I will have access to the Beer Analyzer, so first come, 
first serve! (I cannot guarantee any results!!!) 
 
That said - bring 'em on!! Any pertinent info you 
already have (OG/FG/IBUs/HBUs/etc, recipe!) please send 
as well...a self addressed stamped envelope would be 
handy too. 
 
I am going to try to calibrate this beast to read IBUs as well, 
anybody out there know the actual chemical(s) I should look at? 
 
I will guess my window of opportunity to be about 2 months.... 
after that time, please email first! 
 
Send to: 
Testing Lab 
Flack Street Brewery 
12411 Flack Street 
Wheaton, Md 20906 
 
 
 
(e) CHattenburg at Perstorp-us.com 
(e) CHatten at Erols.com     (WEEKENDS!!) 
(www) http://theweeds.smxcorp.com/carlos/carlos.html 
 
 
 
- - Carl H. 
(w) 301.680.7276;    (fx) 301.236.0134;    (h) 301.942.3756 
(e) CHattenburg at Perstorp-us.com        (e) CHatten at Erols.com 
Perstorp Analytical, Inc. 
Quality Control at the speed of light..... 

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From: David Cummings <woodstok at rupert.oscs.montana.edu>
Date: Fri, 04 Oct 1996 13:10:40 -0700
Subject: "Tapping" a fridge

This isn't directly related to brewing, but it is directly involved in 
enjoying the beer. 
 
I in stalled a tap in my vintage fifties fridge through the wall with 
some difficutly.  I drilled progressively larger holes in the wall until 
i got to the largest drill bit.  I then had to grind away the rest of 
the metal to make a large enough hole for the tap. Does anyone have a 
better solution for making a ~1 inch hole in a fridge? 
 
BTW, the tap works great!  And i highly recomend it to anyone who has an 
extra fridge.  It look great, and is a great converstion piece. 
Besides, it just sounds cool to say, "I've got beer _on tap_ at my 
place..."  ;) 
 
TIA for any advice. 
 
Dave 

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From: Dale Smith <des at io.com>
Date: Fri, 04 Oct 1996 13:30:04 -0500
Subject: re: mini kegs

I have had experience with Brew King mini keg system and it wasn't 
pretty. I got the plastic model as opposed to the steel version. I was 
told the principle is the same just that the steel is more durable. I 
had many leaks in my system where the CO2 meets the keg.  I went through 
several O-ring and tried various ways to make it work but ended up 
chunking it for corney kegs. I wish I hadn't wasted my money. Now 
granted this is just one persons experience. I went out numerous time to 
draw a pint only to find no CO2 left and flat beer. Twice the seals blew 
and the kegs puffed up like dead fish. It wasn't pretty nor safe! Plus, 
the regulator isn't much to write home about. I got a lot of real foamy 
spew on more than one occasion. My advise, save your money for another 
month and by a real kegging system. Much better control, plus you can 
force carbonate the beer! 
 
Dale 

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From: Dave Whitman <dwhitman at rohmhaas.com>
Date: Fri, 04 Oct 1996 14:24:53 -0700
Subject: re: Well Water

In HBD #2215, Dave Reid asks about using "softened water" 
 
>I have been told that the softened water may have a higher 
> sodium content, although I do not 
> believe this to be the case since the softener rinses out the brine after 
each
> cleaning cycle. 
 
Believe it.  Water softeners work by exchanging the calcium with 
sodium.  During the cleaning cycle, the softener pumps concentrated 
sodium chloride solution over the ion exchange resin to wash out the 
accumulated calcium and charge up the resin with more sodium. 
It's not "rinsing out the brine", it's using a gross excess of sodium to 
force the calcium off and recharge the ion exchange resin into its 
sodium form.  Every once in a while, you need to dump in a big bag of 
solid sodium chloride to allow the softener to carry out this recharge 
cycle. 
 
> I have recently moved to a house with a well and not city water. All of my 
> brewing has been done with city 
> water, but I would like to try my next batch (an English Ale) utilizing the 
> unique characteristics of our local 
> water supply. My question is should I use the water from the softener, tap in
> prior to it being softened, or 
> does it matter? 
 
My answer depends in part on whether you are brewing all-grain or using 
extract. 
If you are brewing all-grain, you NEED some calcium in your water, and 
the softened water is inappropriate unless you add dump some calcium 
back in, which sort of defeats the whole purpose of the softener.  Thus 
if you're doing all-grain, I strongly recommend tapping off your well 
water prior to the softener (or just buy bottled water) 
 
For extract, calcium isn't critical, but will contribute differently to 
the flavor than sodium will.  The softened water may be ok, but I 
suspect that your beer would taste at least slightly better using 
straight well water, and that the preference for well or bottled water 
would be more important depending on how hard your well water is. 
 
Each calcium or magnesium ion the softener removes is replaced by two 
sodium ions.  Thus the harder your well water is, the more salty the 
softened water is.  If your water had 100 ppm Ca as CaCO3, your softener 
would be adding about 117 ppm Na as NaCl. 

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From: Darrin Pertschi <darrinp at cowles.com>
Date: Fri, 04 Oct 1996 16:14:19 -0400
Subject: mashing & water ratios

In the grain-bag-mashing thread, Ken says: 
"To be on the safe side, stick with around 1-1/2 quarts water per pound of 
steeped grains..." 
Why is this? I think I recall someone else stating no more than 1 gal. per 
pound of grains. 
 
I regularly fill my pot with two gallons of water and steep my grains at 
150 for 30 to 60 min. I may have between one half and two pounds of 
grain. No rhyme or reason to my water volume, I just figured the more 
water the more goodness that could escape from the grains. It sounds like 
I'm wrong, but why? 
 
Also, I'm thinking of getting an EasyMasher and do some real partial mash 
brewing. I'm confused about enzymes and conversions (not to mention 
water compsition) for all the different grains. Where can I find a 
definitive source that explains which grains need to be mashed with which 
other grains? I seem to only have a GED, (Grain Education Deficiency). 
 
- ------------- 
Darrin in Central PA 
Proprietor--Simpleton's Cosmic Brewery 
- --------------------------------------------- 
You never know just how you look through other peoples eyes. <B.H.S.> 

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From: brewshop at coffey.com (Jeff Sturman)
Date: Fri, 4 Oct 1996 14:31:36 -0600
Subject: Brewer's Almanac

Has anyone ever heard of the Brewer's Almanac?  Does anybody know where one 
could find a recent copy of this book? 
 
TIA, jeff 
casper, wy 
 
 

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