---

	FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
		Digest Janitor: janitor@ brew.oeonline.com
		Many thanks to the Observer & Eccentric Newspapers of 
		Livonia, Michigan for sponsoring the Homebrew Digest.
				URL: http://www.oeonline.com


Contents:
  Coffee stout recipes ("Braam Greyling")
  steaks and hops (Tumarkin)
  Re: bottle pressure (Joe Rolfe)
  Re: na beer (Spencer W Thomas)
  type of draft tower? ("Robert DeNeefe")
  Widmer Kolsch Recipe (Glenn Heath)
  Re: bottle pressure (Spencer W Thomas)
  Priming NA beer ("Dave Draper")
  re:Gambrinus Honey Malt (Dan Morley)
  Gambrinus Honey malt. (Jim Cave)
  Re: Brewcaps ("Kim Lux")
  No- and Low-Alcohol Brewing -- Addendum (Vacuum Distillation) (KennyEddy)
  Brass Ball Valves, Fittings, etc (Nick McClain)
  Water Quality Analysis (Steve Gray)
  Great Canadian Homebrew Conference / CO2 tanks (Eamonn McKernan)
  Re: Johnson Temp. Controller (Sharon/Dan Ritter)
  new URLs and email address (Note the *NEW* address)" <Note.the.*NEW*.address at caro.net>
  Is this why brewing is a primarily male hobby? ("Sovcik, Paul")
  RE: seals on 5 gallon Gotts/Compressor cycling/Botulism/fining/greed (John Wilkinson)
  North Texas Scottish Festival Homebrew Competition! (Tony Owens)
  Valley Mill ("C&S Peterson")
  which hop calculation method? ("David W. Hansen")


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


Date: Thu, 8 May 1997 09:17:00 +200
From: "Braam Greyling" <braam.greyling at azona.co.za>
Subject: Coffee stout recipes

Hi there,

A friend of mine LOVES coffee end LOVES stout. I promised to brew him 
a coffee stout. Does anybody have a full-grain recipe for a nice 
coffee stout.? I am particularly interested on how much and when the 
coffee should be added to the boil. Also what type of coffee would be 
ideally suited. 

Thanks a lot.
Private mail or digest post is fine. I read this thing everyday.

Braam Greyling    I.C. Design Engineer
Azona(Pty)Ltd     
tel +27 12 6641910  fax +27 12 6641393

You can taste a good beer with one sip, 
but it is better to make thoroughly sure.

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Date: Thu, 08 May 1997 08:10:19 -0400
From: Tumarkin at ix.netcom.com
Subject: steaks and hops

Dean Mueller writes concerning hops trelling:

>You should set up a couple poles and run wire between them at
>least 12ft high. This wire is what really holds most of the weight.
>Put a steak in the ground near the base of each bunch. If you
>run Vs from the wire to each steak  with twine it will work great.

I be careful about putting a "steak" in the ground near your hops, I
know my dogs would be on it in a flash, and we don't want dogs in our
hops, or hops in our dogs. Sorry, Dean, I'm not a great speller either,
but I couldn't resist this one.

On another hops related note, I am thinking about getting a Daisy Seal a
Meal vacuum heat sealer, but the company (now Rival Corp) told me that
their bags are not oxygen barriers and that you can get "industrial
bags". I'd appreciate hearing from anyone that has used the Daisy Seal a
Meal (or any other similar devices you'd recommend), what kind of bags
did you all use? Does anyone know ofsources for industrial quality
oxygen barrier bags?  TIA

Mark Tumarkin
The Brewery in the Jungle

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Date: Thu, 8 May 1997 09:14:15 -0400 (EDT)
From: Joe Rolfe <onbc at shore.net>
Subject: Re: bottle pressure

 depending on temperature, pressure for new glass can be up up 60psi
before a lot of breakage occurs (commercial counter pressure.).

during refermentataion anywhere from 20 to 40 psi - check a Zahm-Nagle
pierce tester chart.

most breakage occurs due to over priming and using weak bottles.
small knicks and rough handling will cause most beer bombs...even 
with normal pressures.

joe

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Date: Thu, 08 May 1997 09:59:19 -0400
From: Spencer W Thomas <spencer at engin.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: na beer 


Chris Rae wrote:

    4. with distilled water, top it off to exactly one pint again.  do not
    use tap water.
    5. cool the sample.

I think you'd want to do these two steps in the reverse order.  The
volume will change as you cool the sample.

I note also that you need very accurate SG measurement to make this
work, since you're looking for a SG difference of 1 point or less.
The standard homebrewer's hydrometer, with 2 point markings, probably
won't do the trick very well.

=Spencer

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Date: Thu, 8 May 1997 09:03:32 -0500
From: "Robert DeNeefe" <rdeneefe at compassnet.com>
Subject: type of draft tower?

I've been (very slowly) trying to build up a kegging system for my homebrew.
 I've gotten catalogs from Foxx, RAPIDS, and Superior Products, specifically
looking for a chrome tower with two taps to go on a chest freezer I already
have.  The Superior catalog has the same tower with either "48 inch 3/16
hose or stainless steel tube with male beer nut."  As far as I can tell, the
model I'm interested in from Foxx uses vinyl tubing while RAPIDS has models
that go either way (stainless steel tube or vinyl tubing).  Does anyone have
any recommendations as to which way to go?  It seems like it really wouldn't
matter one way or the other, but since I only get one shot at this purchase
(like most, I brew on a tight budget and kegging has been stretching it to
the bursting point) I want to make sure it's the right one.

 Robert
 Sugar Land, TX

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Date: Thu, 08 May 1997 07:06:25 -0500
From: Glenn Heath <brews at flash.net>
Subject: Widmer Kolsch Recipe

A few years back, Widmer was making a Kolsch that
was outstanding.  They say they are never going
to make it again (not popular enough) and I have
moved outside of Widmer borders so even if they
did I would not have access.

Does anybody have the recipe for the Kolsch that
Widmer made?  At one point I remember seeing a 
reference to it.  Thanks,

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Date: Thu, 08 May 1997 10:09:42 -0400
From: Spencer W Thomas <spencer at engin.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: bottle pressure 

AJN asks about the typical pressure in a bottle, and at what pressure
a bottle will "blow up".

A typical homebrew might have "2 volumes" of CO2 dissolved.  At 70F,
the overpressure would be about 21PSI (1.5 atm).

A typical macrobrew might have 2.5 volumes.  If you put a sixer of one
of these into a hot car, it might get up to 120F.  A linear
extrapolation (always dangerous) indicates that the pressure would be
about 45PSI.  I think this is an underestimate.  So *new* bottles
should be safe to a significantly higher pressure than that.

An anecdotal data point:

I once made a beer which I bottled too soon.  I later calculated that
if it finished fermenting, it would end up with about 6 volumes of
CO2.  A back of the envelope calculation indicates an overpressure of
about 80PSI.  I immediately put the whole batch in the fridge, to slow
down or stop any further fermentation.  I did have a couple of bottles
break while I was transporting them in a closed (thank goodness) box
in the back of my car.  This indicates that at least some bottles will
fail at a pressure somewhere below 80PSI.

=S

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Date: Thu, 8 May 1997 09:14:38 -6
From: "Dave Draper" <ddraper at utdallas.edu>
Subject: Priming NA beer

Dear Friends, 

Brett Shorten is going to try the low-alcohol heating 
procedure, and asked: 

> For this NA beer, should I assume that all CO2 has been driven off
> by the alcohol-reducing process, or would there still be some CO2
> in the beer? 

I've already replied privately to Brett, but thought I might post 
here too.  My view is that heating the beer will indeed drive off any 
CO2, or at least sufficiently much that one can safely assume that 
there is essentially zero CO2 dissolved in the heated beer.  The 
solubility of CO2 goes as the inverse of temperature, so heated beer 
will be able to hold less; and the act of heating itself will 
dynamically drive it off.

I should qualify this by saying this is just my supposition; I have
no experience making low-alcohol beer.  If I ever do want to try it,
though, I need go only as far as Ken Schwartz's excellent recent
series of posts on the subject for the straight poop on how to
proceed.  Good work, Ken.

Cheers, Dave in Dallas
- ---
*****************************************************************************
   Dave Draper, Dept Geosciences, U. Texas at Dallas, Richardson TX 75083
             ddraper at utdallas.edu  Home page: hbd.org/~ddraper
                   Beer page: hbd.org/~ddraper/beer.html
The one with the biggest starter wins. ---Dan McConnell


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Date: Thu, 8 May 1997 08:40:46 -0600
From: Dan Morley <morleyd at cadvision.com>
Subject: re:Gambrinus Honey Malt

>Members of our homebrew club have an offer to get some whole malts from one of
>our local microbreweries.  He has been using a new Gambrinus brand malt 
>called Honey Malt.  It is apparently a pale malt.  Have any of the collective
>used this malt in any homebrewing recipes, and care to comment on how they
>turned out?  The brewer didn't tell us specifically which beers and what
>proportion of the malt bill he was using this malt in, but he really liked it.
>Four of our club members visited the brewery last week and had a round of
>samplers of his current beers, and although good beers, they were for the most
>part very similar in flavor and malt profile, except for some slight variations
>in color and hop varieties/amounts.  Private e-mail is fine, or a post here
>for others who might be interested.

I have the following information on Gamrinus Honey Malt:

Honey malt is the best description for the Euopean malt know as bruhmalt.
Its intense malty sweetness makes it perfect for any specialty beer. It's
color is 20 - 30 lov. and is without any astringent roast flavors.

Plumpness. >6/64" %     >85
Mositure, %H20          <4.5
Color, Deg Lov          20-30
Fine extract %d.b.      81
Coarse extract %d.b.    79
F/C Diff                <2
Total Protein, %d.b.    11.0-12.0
Soluble Prot. mg N/l    1100-1200
Soluble Prot. g/110g db 5.4
Kolbach                 55
Viscosity, mPa s        1.75
pH                      5.4
Diastatic power         <50    

This information comes from Gambrinus.

I have never used this malt myself.


Dan Morley
V.P. Marquis de Suds Homebrewers    


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Date: Thu, 8 May 1997 8:23:55 -0700 (PDT)
From: Jim Cave <CAVE at PSC.ORG>
Subject: Gambrinus Honey malt.

	This is similar to an Aromatic Munich malt.  It is definately not a 
pale malt, as in lager, pilsner or ale malt. This malt smells like honey, but
I don't think the honey note makes it into the beer.  Nor do I think it is
as intense as the Belgian Aromatic Malt.

	I use it occasionally to add a bit of extra to a bitter or a dark 
lager.  I won a bag of it and still have most of it.  Others have found it
a bit astringent above 10% of the grist, and others don't like the flavour.
Personally, I wouldn't go out and buy a whole bag.

	BTW, the Gambrinus ESB malt is a very good substitute for the English
pale ale malts.  If you can get it for a good price, it is worth trying.

				Jim Cave

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Date: Thu, 8 May 1997 09:23:35 -0700
From: "Kim Lux" <lux at cadvision.com>
Subject: Re: Brewcaps

With respect to the posts in Homebrew Digest #2414 (May 08/97) and prior
concerning brewcaps:


I have been considering using a brewcap for some time now, but have
refrained for a couple of reasons:

1) They are expensive where I live. (C$40)

2) I do not like the small diameter of the tubing that is used to vent the
CO2 and drain the trub. 

(Some people complain of having trouble getting the trub out; I think that
a larger diameter hole ie 3/4" would help immensely here.  See description
of my proposed setup below.) 

3) I hate the thought of having to flip a full carboy upside down.

4) I do not think that I could use one for primary fermentation due to the
over pressure and explosion hazard.



I do think, however,  that I would produce BETTER beer with a brewcap like
device for the following reasons:

1) I would use a carboy for all stages of processing from primary
fermentation through to mixing the priming sugar just prior to bottling. 
Because the beer is not transfered (racked) during any of these processes
there is much less chance of contamination and oxidization.

2) I would drain the initial primary fermentation trub, something which I
do not presently do because of the hassle associated with doing it. 

3) I would brew more beers because of the labour saved not having to rack
to new containers all the time. (When I do a fruit beer, I have to rack 3
times: from the primary into the secondary, from the secondary into a
tertiary and from the tertiary into a container for priming. Each of these
rackings required sterlizing a new container (carboy) and all the racking
equipment.  This is a big pain IMHO.)

4) I would be able to adjust certain brewing attributes, like how much
fruit I added to the secondary, on the fly because I would now be able to
get a sample to taste the product, without risking infection. 

5) I would get a much better picture of what is happening during primary
fermentation as with using a glass carboy for primary fermentation,  I
could see what is happening while it is underway.

6) I would produce more beer because I will have less racking losses.
(Debateable.)

7) I will have less primary fermentation infection danger because a carboy
is a more airtight primary fermenter than a plastic pail.  

In light of these percieved advantages and my dislike of the present market
offering, I am going to build my own "carboy fermenter vessel" as follows: 
 (I will not be brewing during the summer and thus will do this in the fall
of 1997.) 

1) I am going to cut a 1.5" hole in the bottom of a 6 US gallon (23L)
carboy with a glass cutter.  This hole will be large enough to allow the
insertion of a regular airlock or a  "super size" airlock.  This hole will
also be used to pour wort into the vessel, add fruit and stir in priming
sugar as ...

2) I am going to build a stand for the carboy to mount it permenently
"upside down".  I will probably build a platform with 4 wheels to fit under
my stands so that they may be wheeled from one location to another. 

3) I am going to afix a 3/4" quarter turn brass valve to the neck of the
carboy via a drilled out stopper and miscellaneous harware.  (I will
probably wire the stopper in place like a wine cork, but I will need to
test this first.)

4) I am going to make a "super size" airlock that I will put on the
fermentation vessel for the initial stages of primary fermentation. This
airlock will be the same principal as a small airlock, only the tube that
goes into the stopper will be 3/4" or more in diameter and the water cup
will be about a liter (4 cups) in size.  This should allow any and all foam
and particulate matter to exhaust from the carboy during primary
fermentation without any danger of plugging. 

Here is how I plan to use my "carboy fermentation vessel":

1) I will pour cooled wort into the vessel as it comes out of my chiller. 
I will pitch my yeast and afix the "super size" airlock.  I hope to fill
the 23 L (6 US Gallon) carboy with about 21 litres of wort, enough so that
after losses I have enough to fill a 19L corny keg.  

The fermentation vessel will sit on the floor on its stand and be wheeled
with the wheel platform to wherever it is being stored for fermentation. 

2) About 12 hours later I will drain off the trub that has settled at the
bottom of the fermentation vessel (in the neck of the carboy.)   By gently
rocking the carboy, I hope to get the material to settle in the very bottom
of the neck.  When I briefly open the 3/4" valve, most of the trub should
be washed out immediately. 

3) As primary fermentation proceeds, much of the foam, etc. should exit out
of the "super size" airlock.  When primary fermentation settles down, I
will change the airlock from the "super size" to a regular airlock. 

4) When primary fermentation is complete, I will drain the spent yeast off
of the bottom of the beer via the 3/4" valve. ( I may have to rock the
primary periodically to get the trub to settle in the neck.)

(I never know when exactly to call it beer or wort.  I consider it wort
before fermentation and beer afterwards.  Is this correct ?) 

5) If I am brewing a fruit beer and it calls for the addition of fruit to
the secondary, I will remove the airlock and add the fruit. 

6) I will drain trub durring fermentation as required. 

7) When fermentation is complete and all of the trub has been drained, I
will add my priming sugar to the fermentation vessel by removing the
airlock and pouring it in the hole. I will then stir the beer with a long
plastic spoon. I will sanitize the outlet of the 3/4" ball valve with
alcohol and attach my sterilized bottling attachment. (The fermentation
vessel will probably be lifted onto the counter for this operation. I will
place my to-be-filled bottles in the sink on my counter and proceed to fill
and cap them until I empty the vessel. I do it in the sink so that any
overflow is easily washed away.) 

8) To clean the fermentation vessel, I will spray in nearly hot water and
scrub the carboy through the airlock hole to loosen any stubborn residue. I
will fill the carboy with a chlorine bleach solution and leave it sit for a
few days. I will then drain the carboy and place a stopper in the airlock
hole to hold the generated chlorine gas. When I need to use it, I will
rinse it with hot water to remove any chlorine residue. 

Note: The improper cleaning and sterilization of the carboy is my biggest
fear since it will not take the heat like my plastic primary fermentor
will.  If I cannot get the ball valve clean, I may have to remove it from
the carboy prior to subsequent useage.  How hot can rinse water be for a
carboy ?     


What does everyone think of this idea ?  Has anyone done something similar
? 

Thanks

Kim.

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Date: Thu, 8 May 1997 11:55:40 -0400 (EDT)
From: KennyEddy at aol.com
Subject: No- and Low-Alcohol Brewing -- Addendum (Vacuum Distillation)

Kit Anderson asks about using vacuum to remove alcohol from beer.

Wow, in four articles on NA brewing, I didn't even mention vacuum
distillation!  But yes, this is a viable method, from what I've read.  A
while back, I communicated off-line with another HBD'er (name withheld to
protect his mailbox), who worked up some rough figures on vacuum required
such that heating would be minimal -- alcohol would boil just above room
temp.  Bad news is that I don't have the figures on this PC to report on what
he estimated.

In any case, this method not only protects the beer from the evil effects of
heating, but also removes most of the oxygen from the headspace, so oxidation
is no longer much of a problem.

Hop character is often delicate and volatile and can be adversely affected by
this method.  Solution -- overhop (flavor & aroma only -- bittering should be
unaffected), or (as a last resort) add hop essence to taste after the
processing.

The removal of a large proportion of water along with the alcohol is still an
issue, but adding distilled makeup water solves that problem, and you can do
a rough estimate of dealcoholization using Enologist-Phil's method outlined
in HBD 2414.

Vaccum pumps are available from many lab supply houses.  Many are quite
expensive, but some hand-operated units can be had pretty cheaply.
 Cole-Parmer (800-323-4340) has a PVC hand pump with gauge that will pull 25"
of mercury, for $46.00 (#E-79301-10). How suitable this is for the job I
don't know, and I have no affiliation with Cole-Parmer etc etc.  You could
attach the vacuum hose to the steam port on a pressure cooker to make a
vacuum cooker (assuming the cooker's seal holds as well against vacuum as
pressure).  You'll have to keep pumping as vapor is produced; I have no idea
at what rate this will happen, so don't sue me if you can't hold an adequate
vacuum with a handpump.  C-P's cheapest motorized pump is #E-07530-40 at $160
(pulls up to 20" vacuum).

Remember that performing this operation will concentrate and collect alcohol
and is therefore illegal distillation.

*****

Ken Schwartz
El Paso, TX
KennyEddy at aol.com
http://members.aol.com/kennyeddy


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Date: Thu, 08 May 1997 11:37:26 -0500
From: Nick McClain <nmcclain at star-link.net>
Subject: Brass Ball Valves, Fittings, etc

Are stainless ball valves a necessity or will brass do the job without
any adverse effects.  I'm currently in the process of modifying my new
stainless brew pot, mash tuns, and fermenter.  Is the price of stainless
really worth it???????

Nick McClain
nmcclain at star-link.net
Union, Mi

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Date: Thu, 8 May 1997 10:32:46 -0700
From: Steve Gray <sgray at sssc.slg.eds.com>
Subject: Water Quality Analysis

I recently received from my water district an annual water
quality report and I am wondering about what it means in
respect to my brewing.  I only do all grain brews and boil
all by water ahead of time. I rarely add water conditioners,
and when I do it's usually a tsp. of gypsum for Stouts and
Porters.  Below are the average 'General Properties' of my
water.  The Organics and Inorganics are all 'non detectable',
with the exception of a couple I have listed below.  Any
comments on my water would be greatly appreciated.  It's 
always good to know what affect these things have and if I
should really concern myself with it.
 
Water District: Eldorado Irrigation District (EID)

Analyte		Average	Range
________________________________________________
Bicarbonate		15 ppm	2.7-23ppm
Calcium		4.7ppm	1.2-8.6ppm
Carbonate		nd		nd
Chloride		5.4ppm	3.0-6.0ppm
Floride		nd		nd
Hardness		15ppm		3.6-26ppm
Hydroxide		nd		nd
Magnesium		.85ppm	.16-1.2ppm
Foaming Agents	nd		nd
pH			7.3		6.5-8.7
Potassium		.10ppm	nd-.051ppm
Sodium		11ppm		2-42ppm
Sulfate		2.4ppm	nd-7.3ppm
Total alkalinity	15ppm		23ppm
Total Filterable
	Residue	42ppm		24-53ppm

ORGANICS

Total Trihalomthanes	31ppm		20-70ppm

INORGANICS

Nitrate as N	48ppm		32-68ppm
Zinc			70ppm		5.8-140ppm


TIA

=======================================
Steve Gray
Shingle Springs, Ca
Work:  sgray at sssc.slg.eds.com
Home:  sgray at calweb.com


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Date: 	Thu, 8 May 1997 14:58:00 -0400
From: Eamonn McKernan <eamonn at atmosp.physics.utoronto.ca>
Subject: Great Canadian Homebrew Conference / CO2 tanks

Howdy all,
	An update on the GCHC: Ron Keefe of the Granite Brewery, and 
Steve Hodos, CABA VP will also be speaking at the conference. That brings 
the scheduled number of speakers to seven, not to mention our panel 
discussion. I guess the $60 Canadian price tag ($70 for non members) must 
look like quite a bargain compared to the AHA's Great Lakes Homebrew 
Rendezvous. I just checked out the AHA details... $225 US for members 
($275 for non members) and that doesn't even include all their events! 
And our coloured money is pretty cheap dont'cha know! Just think of all 
that Real Ale we'll be serving... mmmmmm.....

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

I was hoping to get a few tips from all you keggers out there. I found 
out that we have a 50 lb CO2 tank that needed disposing of here at the 
university, and I have graciously offered to grab it. I have a regulator 
for it, and the CO2 fitting is en route. I have a line on some $20 pop 
kegs (don't know if they're pin or ball lock yet), and soon I'll start 
looking for those fittings etc. I know most people use 5 or 20 lb tanks, 
and I may well get a smaller portable tank in the future (Yes I know not 
to try filling it from the big one to save a few bucks. Dangerous). For 
now, I'm concerned about the safety aspects of such a beast. I will never 
transport the thing without its protective cap and all. I will strap the 
thing to something solid at home so it doesn't fall over. But what about 
leaks? Is it advisable to buy a CO2 detector? Are they expensive? What 
should I look for? Are there other safety aspects that I have overlooked? 
Any kegging advice is welcome. I am about to embark on a new adventure... 
	Pretty soon I'll try "kegging" into a few 2L PET bottles for more 
variety. Pale ale one week, porter the next. I know not to store in PETs 
for months on end for oxidation reasons. But if I make 6 gal, and put ~ 
3.5-4 gal in a 5 gal popkeg I can always bottle a few PETs for near term 
use. Anyone tried this?

	Thanks for the BW,
	Eamonn McKernan
	CABA Secretary
	eamonn at atmosp.physics.utoronto.ca


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Date: Thu, 8 May 1997 11:57:22 -0700
From: Sharon/Dan Ritter <ritter at camasnet.com>
Subject: Re: Johnson Temp. Controller

Here is a response I got back from Willaim's Brewing about the idea in a
recent HBD post to immerse the temperature controller probe in water to
reduce refrigerator cycling -

>>Dear Williams,
>>
>>I bought a Johnson Controls refrigerator controller from you a while back.
>>It works great. I was thinking of immersing the proble in a mason jar of
>>water to keep my refrigerator from cycling all the time. Do you have any
>>experience or knowledge about this practice? The probe appears to be a
>>solid piece of SS sealed at both ends so it shouldn't leak.
>>
>Dan:  The probe is tin plated copper, and it would be a good idea to dip it
>in something to prevent the tin from reacting with the water.  You might
>try the liquid plastic they sell to make tool handles(by dipping), or at
>least spray it with some epoxy paint.


Dan Ritter <ritter at camasnet.com>
Ritter's MAMMOTH Brewery - Grangeville, Idaho



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Date: Thu, 8 May 1997 15:21:25 +0500
From: "Keith Royster (Note the *NEW* address)" <Note.the.*NEW*.address at caro.net>
Subject: new URLs and email address

Hello fellow brewers!

Just a quick note here to announce a few *new* brewing related 
URLs. Actually, the addresses are new but the sites are not. I 
finally took the plunge and got my own domain name (www.ays.net) so 
three of my brewing related sites have moved. If you have a web 
page or bookmark list with links to them, they need to be updated 
before the old links expire.

1) My recently updated and improved RIMS web pages is now located at
http://www.ays.net/RIMS/ 

2) The Carolina BrewMasters club (Charlotte, NC) is now at 
http://www.ays.net/brewmasters/   Info about the recent US Open 
competition can also be found here.

3) and finally, Jack Schmidling's site regarding his EZ Masher, and
MaltMill, etc.. has moved to http://www.ays.net/jsp/.  

In addition, I have a new email address at keith at ays.net, so update
your address books if you have me in there.  The old web links and
email address will continue to get you there, but not forever.

Thanks! and now back to the regularly scheduled program......

Keith Royster - Mooresville, North Carolina
"An Engineer is someone who measures it with a micrometer,
marks it with a piece of chalk, and cuts it with an ax!"

mailto:keith at ays.net
http://www.ays.net - at your.service web design & hosting
http://www.ays.net/brewmasters -Carolina BrewMasters club page 
http://www.ays.net/RIMS -My RIMS (rated COOL! by the Brewery)

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Date: Thu, 8 May 1997 15:03:54 -0500
From: "Sovcik, Paul" <PJS at NTUICMED2.Hospital.UIC.EDU>
Subject: Is this why brewing is a primarily male hobby?

I just received this by email today - it is an excerpt from an abstract
presented at the American Society for Microbiology Convention:

>>Use of common yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, for home baking and >brewing
>>may be contributing to yeast infections in women. One commercial strain >was
>>isolated from three of 16 patients with vaginitis in a study performed at
>>the
>>California Institute of Medical Research

  I have heard that this was reported in rare cases, but this makes it
seem much more prevalent.... I will try to dig up the full abstract if
possible.

  Now I wonder what strains these were?  Top or Bottom Fermenting?

 -Paul
Paul Sovcik         
Western Springs, IL               PJS at uic.edu

 

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Date: Thu, 8 May 97 17:01:28 CDT
From: jwilkins at imtn.tpd.dsccc.com (John Wilkinson)
Subject: RE: seals on 5 gallon Gotts/Compressor cycling/Botulism/fining/greed

Lance asked:

>Just a quick question about what everyone uses to seal their spigots in the 
>mash tun. I've a five gallon Gott and getting ring seals in their is a pain. 
>Anyone have any suggestions.

Remove the spigot and replace with a rubber bung for a 5 liter mini-keg 
(Fass-Frisch) available at a local homebrew store or by mail order
from Williams Brewing (800) 759-6025 as a "hermetic stopper".
Insert a length of 1/2" OD vinyl siphon hose through bung to connect to
manifold or false bottom.  I use a Phil's Phalse Bottom from Listerman.
If using the Phalse bottom, I recommend inserting a length of plastic
racking cane or metal tubing into the vinyl tubing to reach from the
Phalse bottom fitting into the bung hole.  This should keep the vinyl
tubing from collapsing under the pressure of the hot grain.  It has been
suggested to me that covering the bottom of the tun with hot water to a
level above the tubing before adding the grain will also keep the tubing
from collapsing but I have not tried that yet.  Clamp the vinyl tubing to
the Phalse bottom fitting with a hose clamp to prevent its being knocked
loose when stirring the mash.  Insert a valve into the tubing on the outside
of the bung.  I use a plastic valve bought from  Brewer's Resource
(800) 827-3983.  I use an Igloo cylindrical cooler but I believe the Gott is
identical as far as the spigot hole is concerned.
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Linus Hall wrote, concerning too frequent cycling of a refrigerator:

>So what I did with my temp controller, which can be set for a narrow
>"deadband",  is immerse the thermocouple (probe) in a 12 oz mason jar
>of water. 

I think the same results could be had by broadening the "deadband" of
the controller.  Immersing the probe in a jar of water means, as Linus points
out, that the controller responds to the slower changes in the water temp than
to the air temp.  However, if a more constant fermentation or lagering temp is
desired it might be better to keep the air temp within tight bounds since the
liquids will be within an even narrower range.  If the air in the refrigerator
starts warming, the controller would sense it and reduce the air temp before
the beer has time to warm up.  Likewise, on the cooling side the compressor
would cut off when the air reached the lower limit and before the beer had
time to change much.  If this results in too frequent cycling just broaden
the "deadband" until the desired results are achieved.  If Linus' controller
keeps the water to within +/- 2 degrees F then he may be fine but my Johnson
and Honeywell controllers do not seem to stay within this narrow a band even
though the adjustment indicates they should.  However, I don't have a means
to continuously record the temp inside so I am not sure.  At any rate, I
believe immersing the probe only broadens the "deadband", something that can
be done on the controllers I have seen.
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------

SM (chains, whips?) spoke of botulism, as he has before.  I am one who does
not ordinarily respond to fright stories but what he and others have said
about botulism convinced me to buy a pressure canner for my starter worts.
It is not too expensive (about $80US at Service Merchandise for a 17 qt. model)
and as easy as the old canning method so why not?  I also have a vegetable
garden and plan to can from it so I have even more justification.  It has
been pointed out, though, that acidifying the starter wort should make it safe
as well.  Is this not true?  By the way, it is not the $.25 or $.75 worth of
starter it is the convenience of not having to cook and cool a starter for each
step of the yeast.

Another thing he spoke of was fining beer.

>So I have to ask, "Why are some of you putting so
>much shit into your beer?".  Irish moss, gelatin, chopped fish guts,
>your wifes' panty hose.  Have you people no limitations?

In my case, I have had some less than clear beers and accepted it for quite
a while but then decided to try gelatin fining to see what it would do.  I
have been experiencing crystal clear beers since and like it.  I don't think
it harms the beer in any way as it simply precipitates out the yeast and other
floating things.  I keg my beer and it would always clear just before the keg
emptied but now it is clear from the beginning.  I do use a secondary and even
transfer again sometimes from keg to keg under CO2 but I was doing the same
before the gelatin without the same results.  Granted, clear beer or cloudy
beer should taste the same but I must admit I enjoy having a glass of crystal
clear beer.
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Pat Babcock was going on about greed, gouging and such in relation to micro
beer prices.  Actually, if one understands the free market, the price must
is always set by the consumer.  The seller can charge no more that the consumer
will pay, even if it doesn't cover his costs.  If he can't recover his costs
he goes out of business or quits producing the loser.  If he charges less than
the market will bear he is cheating his investors.  To ask him to charge less
is asking for charity.  A lot of us could get by on less than we earn, whether
we admit or not, but are not likely to volunteer for a reduction in pay.  If
wages go up because of market forces, we happily accept it.  If they go down
we accept that or find another job.  But enough of my Libertarian ranting.


John Wilkinson - Grapevine, Texas - jwilkins at imtn.dsccc.com




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Date: Thu, 08 May 1997 15:52:37 -0400
From: Tony Owens <ivy at fastlane.net>
Subject: North Texas Scottish Festival Homebrew Competition!

Who: Arlington Texas homebrew club,The Knights of the Brown Bottle
What: Celtic Brews Competition
Where: Located at University of Texas at Arlington football 
stadium complex. Interstate 30, Cooper St Exit, 1 mile south to Mitchel
St.
Turn West( right) go 2 blocks. Stadium is on the West side of campus. 
When: Festival June 6,7,8.
 
 CELTIC BREWS COMPETITION 
The Arlington Texas Homebrew Club...The Knights of the Brown Bottle..
have joined with The Texas Scottish Festival in promoting a         
CELTIC
STYLE BREW Competition to be held at the Festival site in Arlington
Texas.The
Texas Scottish Festival is a meeting of the Scottish clans that has been
promoted as a festival for several years at the current location. The
site is
the Field House area of the University of Texas at Arlington,football
stadium.  Entries to the Brew Competition are due May 24th. The first
round
judging will be held May 25th and subsequent rounds at the determination
of
the Competition Committee. Awards will be presented for 1st 2nd, and 3rd
place in each of 7 categories. A best of Show will be determined on the
show
site at approximately 10:00 am. Awards are expected to be presented at
approximatley noon. Several brew demonstrations will be conducted during
the
day. 
A Label contest appropriate to Celtic Styles will be held on site Sunday
at
10: 00 am. 

The Scottish Festival Competition Committee has been working diligently
towards making the upcoming KOBB Celtic Brews Competition as smoothly
run as
possible. We are looking forward to an enjoyable competition. Certainly,
the
awards will be quite impressive. Ribbons will be adorned with The Texas
Official Tartan!! 
Local homebrew shops are participating with KOBB by receiving entries
until
Saturday May 24th at Noon. 
Drop offs are at:

Homebrew Headquarters    900 Copeland Rd. Arlington, Tx  76011 
Dr. Jeckyll's Homebrew Supply 2304 Park Row. Arlington Tx 76013
The Winemaker Shop 5356 Vickery Blvd.Fort Worth,Tx  76107 

Contact Steve Wesstrom for information at 817-360-4847 or           
Email
Steph10344 at aol.com

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Date: Thu, 8 May 97 22:32:04 UT
From: "C&S Peterson" <CNS_PETERSON at msn.com>
Subject: Valley Mill

HBDers-

Someone asked recently about the Valley Mill.  First, I am in no way 
affiliated with the Valley Mill makers, but...............

I have used the Valley Mill this year for 12 batches or so and have been very 
satisfied.  My previous mill was a Corona, and despite their somewhat bad 
reputation for tearing apart husks, I had great success with it.  The reason I 
switched to the Valley was speed.  I can crank (by hand) 5 pounds of grain 
through the mill in about 2 or 3 minutes of intense turning.  It took about 10 
minutes with the Corona.  

The Valley has two knurled rollers, a 5-6# hopper made of 1/2" plastic, and 
must be mounted on a square of plywood or other such material.  The mounting 
sheet has a rectangle cut in it and the grist simply falls through the mill 
into a holding device such as a plastic bucket.

I had to learn a few new tricks with the Valley though.  First, there is no 
*easy* way to clamp the mounting board to a bucket, or stabilize the bucket, 
so you have to hold both the mill and the bucket in place as you crank.  I do 
this by simply pressing my chest over the hopper while I turn the crank.  Kind 
of stupid looking, but effective.   

The only downside to the Valley was that the mill settings are predetermined.  
For some malts (Beeston in particular), I found the optimal crush setting was 
between two of the Valley Mill settings.  The one "below horizontal" was an 
overcrush that triggered some mighty slow sparges.  The one "at horizontal" 
seemed to give a slight undercrush for the Beestons, but was perfect for any 
other malt (DC, Briess, and Durst) that I cranked through this season.  I 
would have preferred a variable setting such as the Corona, but its really not 
that big a deal -- I still get 28-30 pts after the boil, which was roughly the 
same as with my Corona.

The best feature about the Valley has to be its hopper.  Its big, well made, 
and should last a long time.  You'd be surprized how much faster you can crank 
when you're not constantly stopping to fill up a small hopper.  My brewing 
partner, Tom Bergman, also bought one and has similar results/comments 
regarding his Valley.

Good luck!

Chas Peterson
Laytonsville, Md

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Date: Thu, 8 May 1997 19:45:09 -0500 (CDT)
From: "David W. Hansen" <dwhansen at lonestar.jpl.utsa.edu>
Subject: which hop calculation method?

friends...
as i understand it, there are 3 different methods for calculating IBUs:
Rager (highest numbers), Garetz (lowest numbers), and Tinseth (somewhere
in the middle of the other two).  which one is correct?  which one is the
standard or accepted measure for AHA style guidelines?  does it really
matter?
TIA...
dave hansen

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