---

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


Contents:
  tartness/new mash tun?/kolsch ("C&S Peterson")
  Mash On Ice & Yeast Culturing (DD)
  CO2 toxicity ("Graham Wheeler")
  Re: Cats Meow (Paul Niebergall)
  growing hops in  hot climates (Tom Pope)
  Belhaven 80/- clone (Brad McMahon)
  Another new feature... (Homebrew Digest)
  "Spirit of Free Beer" competition results, 6/7/97 (Mark Stevens)
  HELP!!! Homebrewer stranded in NJ (Some Guy)
  Brew Software (Guy Mason)
  Whither My Hops (KennyEddy)
  Check Valves in CO2 Manifold? (BernardCh)
  Grand Cru (korz)
  Polyclar/Wort canning (NOT)! (korz)
  CO2 Toxidity (?) (korz)
  CO2 tanks (Randy deBeauclair)
  Daylight Length (korz)
  He's Gott to Have It (hugh)
  filtered beer taste (Ian Smith)
  Re: Grand Cru: Where to Classify...Thanks for the Input! ("Applied Computer Resources")
  RIMS heater controller (Ian Smith)
  IPA etc ("Mark Bridges")
  brew free or die! (Andy Walsh)
  Woops! Daylight Calculations (korz)
  Weizen Bock (Ronald Babcock)


NOTE NEW HOMEBREW ADDRESS:  hbd.org 

Send articles for __publication_only__ to homebrew at hbd.org
  (Articles are published in the order they are received.) 

If your e-mail account is being deleted, please unsubscribe first!!

To SUBSCRIBE or UNSUBSCRIBE send an e-mail message with the word
  "subscribe" or "unsubscribe" to homebrew-request@hbd.org. 
**SUBSCRIBE AND UNSUBSCRIBE REQUESTS MUST BE SENT FROM THE E-MAIL
**ACCOUNT YOU WISH TO HAVE SUBSCRIBED OR UNSUBSCRIBED!!! 
IF YOU HAVE SPAM-PROOFED your e-mail address, the autoresponder and
  the SUBSCRIBE/UNSUBSCRIBE commands will fail!

For "Cat's Meow" information, send mail to lutzen at alpha.rollanet.org

Homebrew Digest Information on the Web: http://hbd.org

Requests for back issues will be ignored. Back issues are available via:

  Anonymous ftp from...
	hbd.org	/pub/hbd	
	ftp.stanford.edu	/pub/clubs/homebrew/beer
  E-mail...
        ftpmail at gatekeeper.dec.com (send a one-line e-mail message with 
                                   the word help for instructions.)
  AFS users can find it under...
        /afs/ir.stanford.edu/ftp/pub/clubs/homebrew/beer

JANITORS on duty: Pat Babcock and Karl Lutzen (janitor@hbd.org)


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


Date: Fri, 6 Jun 97 13:35:55 UT
From: "C&S Peterson" <CNS_PETERSON at msn.com>
Subject: tartness/new mash tun?/kolsch

HBDers -

I have been catching up on my HBD issues so forgive any tardiness in these 
topics.

HONEY and FRUIT
Several (well informed) opinions on fruit beer seemed to warn against using 
honey in a fruit style beer.  From my experience, I would disagree with them.  
First, honey does tend to dry a beer out a bit, but if you stick to orange 
blossom or wildflower honey, I find there is a residual sweetness and "honey 
flavor" that is an excellent complement to a fruit.  Also, the drying effect 
of the honey supports a stronger fruit flavor in the beer vis a vis malt, 
which would tend to mask the fruit.  For similar reasons, I advocate the use 
of flaked corn or rice in a fruit beer, as it will give a brilliant white 
long-lasting head to your fruity-colored beer.   The visual effect of a 
strawberry colored or raspberry colored beer against a brilliant white head is 
most pleasing (OK, lets keep the comments clear here guys!).

Again, I would also follow the advice given to mash high, try a little 
lactose/dextrine, etc.  Also, my advice to use honey and flakes would be 
appropriate for a tart, summer like brew, but may not be good advice for a 
raspberry stout or fruit flavored butt-kicker such as a barley-wine.

NEW MASH TUN?
I was at a conference last week during which they served coffee to the masses 
out of large rectangular "coolers" specially made for coffee.  Undoubtedly 
many of you have seen these things -- they look pretty rugged, have molded 
"feet", and latchable tops.  I was wondering if anyone out there in the 
collective either used one of these things for a mash tun or sparge tank, or 
at least had looked into using one.  They look to be a bit more durable than a 
round Gott, and might be easier to fit a slotted manifold into that the round 
Gott.  

KOLSCH
For whomever kicked off the Kolsch question, I agree that 45IBUs is way too 
much bitterness for such a beer.  But you also may want to consider using a 
bit of wheat 7-10% or so in the mash.  I should mention that I have only tried 
to make a Kolsch (up to 8 versions now.....) but have never actually tasted 
one from the source (only depended on well-informed opinions and brewpub 
versions).  Does anyone know of a commercial version, preferably imported from 
Germany, available in the US?  As far as yeast goes, I would advocate the 
Kolsch or (parish the thought!) American Ale Wyeast.  Both give the crispness 
desired, and the Kolsch version ends up with a little wine flavor added in.  
And hey, here's a thought, given the honey discussion above, why not throw in 
a little clover honey to lighten it up?

Have fun!

Chas Peterson
Laytonsville, Md

Return to table of contents


Date: Mon, 09 Jun 1997 06:01:18 -0500
From: DD <dunn at tilc.com>
Subject: Mash On Ice & Yeast Culturing

- --MimeMultipartBoundary
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

Been brewing for years, all grain for a while, but had a new experience
yesterday.  Just as I was getting ready to sparge a ten gallon batch I
noticed that the yeast starter had not started...through in a tablespoon
of dregs from a batch of stout & put the entire mash tun on ice...took a
while to drop the temp. but 24 hours later its nice and cool, of course,
the starter is ready, but work calls.  Anyone ever tried mashing one day
and finishing up days later?  Should I anticipate any problems when I
complete the brew Tues. night 60 hours after starting?

Anyone got suggestions on the best place to start (no pun intended) my
education on culturing yeast?  The H.Brewer's Companion?  One of
Miller's books?  Source for the yeast?  materials?  wd
- --MimeMultipartBoundary--

Return to table of contents


Date: Mon, 9 Jun 1997 12:07:47 +0100
From: "Graham Wheeler" <Graham.Wheeler at btinternet.com>
Subject: CO2 toxicity


CO2 TOXICITY
Nathan talked about CO2 toxicity (HB2436), and asks what to do about it. I
must admit that I find this CO2 toxicity thing a bit strange, or at least
new to me, but it does make a certain amount of theoretical sense. The
American HB preference of fermenting in smooth glass fermentors would mean
that there are no (or few) sharp points to act nucleation zones for CO2
bubbles to form, and the beer could end up supersaturated with CO2. I
suspect that the British HB preference of fermenting in open polypropylene
buckets would have the same effect, although perhaps not to the same degree
as glass. Unless you are prepared to shove some insoluble crystaline
substance into your fermentor, the best idea that I have seen was in these
pages not very long ago; shove a couple of stainless-steel pan-scourers
into your fermenter. They can be easily sterilised by boiling. The bloke
that thought that one up deserves some sort of innovation award.



Return to table of contents


Date: Mon, 09 Jun 1997 08:29:53 -0500
From: Paul Niebergall <pnieb at burnsmcd.com>
Subject:  Re: Cats Meow

Greetings:

In HBD 2436, AlK writes "I wonder if there might be a way to correct
past goofups in our Cat's Meow recipies?"

I love the Cat's Meow, it is the best collection of recipies I have every
seen.  However, some of the information contained in the Cat's Meow
can be downright scarry.  It seems there are a lot of posts in the HBD
and the Brewery BBS that offer a reply of "check the Cat's Meow" to the
question of "how do I make a ...........?"  The problem is, a person
searching for guidelines or recipes on making a particular style can
quickly be overloaded with some good information and a lot of dubious 
information.

I'm not posting this just to rant.  I truely enjoy the Cat's Meow.  I was just
wondering if there was any screening process that could be instituted. 
Or better yet, how about a "Best of the Cats Meow"?  

Nazdrowie,

Paul Niebergall
pnieb at burnsmcd.com


Return to table of contents


Date: Mon, 9 Jun 1997 08:27:18 -0700
From: popeman at webtv.net (Tom Pope)
Subject: growing hops in  hot climates

I have been growing hops in  Fresno, Ca. for several years. Fresno
summers are much  like those in West Texas, hot days without much
cooling in the evening.  I have tries many varieties, but the only  ones
I've found to flourish here are clusters and cascades. Other varieties,
including chinook, fuggles, tettnang, saaz, and  hallertau have all
experienced severe vine wilt  as soon as the  hot summer days arrive.
Some  of my fellow  homebrewers have had better  luck with these
varieties by planting them  in a location where they are  shaded all
afternoon. I do know that  Sacramento, which has similar weather to
Fresno, once had extensive hopyards, and the  main  variety grown was
clusters. The  hopyards were removed when the demand for European
varieties increased  and of course  grapes mostly replaced  the hops in
those areas.  I  have read of some  experiments wherein  the soil
temperature in this region has been  artificially cooled in the evening
and this  has resulted in the successful  growth  of  horticultural
products  which could previously  be grown successfully  in  more
northern  LATITUDES,  An  implication of this experiment  is that  the
northern  latitudes  have more cooling of the soil in the  nights than
do these southern latitudes and that  this  factor   may significantly
affect  the ability to grow  particular  plant varieties    in various
climates, latitudes or growing conditions.......Cheers,  Tom Pope 

Return to table of contents


Date: Tue, 10 Jun 1997 01:05:18 +0930
From: Brad McMahon <brad at sa.apana.org.au>
Subject: Belhaven 80/- clone


Sam Darko asked about a Belhaven clone

Here tis!

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

Belhaven 80/- Clone.

Ingredients:

Light Liquid Malt		2kg
Light Dried Malt		1kg.
Dextrose			500g
Crystal Malted Grain		115g
Black Malted Grain		65g
Cascade Hops			25g
Fuggles Hops			30g	
Goldings Hops			15g
Irish Moss			1 teaspoon
Ale Yeast			1 sachet
(susbstitute Wyeast 1087 Ale Blend or 1728 Scottish Ale)

1. Crack grains, place in pot, cover with cold water
   (about 3 litres), bring to boil, strain and save the liquid.

2. Add all malts, both liquid and dried together with
   dextrose to the strained liquid. Bring to the boil, 
   then add the Cascade and Fuggles hops and boil for one hour.

3. Add the Goldings hops and the Irish Moss and boil
   for a further 15 minutes.

4. Rehydrate and start yeast.

5. Cool wort down to 30-40C as quickly as possible.

6. Strain wort into fermenter and fill up to the 20 litre
   mark, and pitch yeast at 26C.

7. Ferment out at 22C for 7-10 days. Bottle.

O.G.  1.041
F.G.  1.010



Return to table of contents


Date: Mon, 9 Jun 1997 12:35:05 -0400 (EDT)
From: Homebrew Digest <hbd at brew.oeonline.com>
Subject: Another new feature...

Greetings, Beerlings! Take me to your lager...

Karl strikes again! 

Ever wonder what's in the queue BEFORE you post a note? Ever wonder
whether you're the only one not receiving the Digest at any given time? 
WELL! Buck up, little braumeist(er/ress)! Thanks to another ingenious
tickle of the IBM ivories, now you can find out all that good stuff! 

Send a single line note to Homebrew-Request at hbd.org containing the word
"queue". Shortly afterward, your mailer will say "Boop!", and all te
mysteries of the universe will be laid bare before your very eyes! 

Like all things, though: use it with moderation! If the Digest spends 
all day showing off the queue, it will have little time to acually
SEND the contents of that queue... 

See ya!
The Home Brew Digest Janitorial Staff


Return to table of contents


Date: Mon, 9 Jun 1997 12:52:08 -0400
From: stevens at stsci.edu (Mark Stevens)
Subject: "Spirit of Free Beer" competition results, 6/7/97



Results are now available for the 1997 Nations Capital 
Spirit of Free Beer Homebrew Competition held June 7, 1997. 

The competition was sponsored by Brewers United for Real 
Potables (BURP) and was graciously hosted by Brew America, 
Vienna, Virginia.

Here's a quick look at the top prizes. The full list of
ribbon winners is available on the BURP web site at:
http://www.burp.org/sofb97/winners.htm

TOTAL NUMBER OF ENTRIES:  401
JUDGING PROFILE:  56 judges (51 BJCP, 1 pro brewer, 4
                     experienced but not in BJCP)

Best of Show Awards:

1st place BOS (to be brewed at Virginia Beverage Company, Alexandria, VA):
	Alan Folsom (mild)

2nd place BOS (brewer for a day at Potomac River Brewing Co., Chantilly, VA):
	Jim Rorick (weizen)

3rd place BOS (brewer for a day at Brimstone Brewing Company, Baltimore, MD):
	Scott Bickham (barleywine)

Brewer Select Award (to be brewed at Oxford Brewing Company, Linthicum, MD):
	Bud Hensgen (stout)

Lager Challenge (to be brewed at Blue N Gold Brewing Company, Arlington, VA):
	Delano Dugarm (schwarzbier)


Thanks to all of the prize sponsors, judges, stewards, competition staff, and 
to our host site, Brew America of Vienna, VA, for making this a fun, successful
event for everyone!



Return to table of contents


Date: Mon, 9 Jun 1997 13:07:16 -0400 (EDT)
From: Some Guy <pbabcock at oeonline.com>
Subject: HELP!!! Homebrewer stranded in NJ

Greetings, Beerlings! Take me to your lager...

Well, as some now know, I've been teaching a "class" on homebrewing in 
Plainsboro, NJ. Unfortunately, I appear to be a little more serious about 
buying homebrew supplies than Princeton (or Small Change?) Homebrew is 
about selling them! I can understand scheduling a day closed, but the 
last two times I went to this shop - during published hours - Joe has 
either been out watching fires or otherwise AWOL. Out here on launch for 
Ford Motor Company, my time is very limited. I don't have the half-hour 
or so I need to skeedaddle into Princeton to play "Hours of Business" 
roulette with this guy.

Sooooo... Anyone know of a decent, PROFESSIONALLY RUN homebrew shop in 
Plainsboro or environs? I need grains, extracts, dry and liquid yeasts, 
hop bags, - you know: stuff! 'Twould be great to find a shop that has it 
all. Thought I had, but...

See ya!

Pat Babcock               | "Beer is my obsession, and I'm late for
pbabcock at oeonline.com     |  therapy..." -PGB
brewbeerd at aol.com         | "Let a good beer be the exclamation point
janitor@ brew.oeonline.com |  at the end of your day as every sentence
Home Brew Digest Janitor  |  requires proper punctuation." -PGB
Webmaster of the Home Brew Page http://oeonline.com/~pbabcock/brew.html
                 Home of the Home Brew Flea Market


Return to table of contents


Date: Mon, 09 Jun 1997 13:39:43 -0400
From: Guy Mason <guy at adra.com>
Subject: Brew Software

All Hail the Collective,

Having finally convinced the spousal unit that a home computer is
mandatory, I now need some advice.  I would like to hear some opinions on
various brewing software packages, especially anyone who replaced software
that was not getting the job done.  Send private e-mail and I'll post the
results.

Thanks 



- -- guy

Elvis has left the building...

Return to table of contents


Date: Mon, 9 Jun 1997 14:35:52 -0400 (EDT)
From: KennyEddy at aol.com
Subject: Whither My Hops

Strange things happening in El Paso these days...

A few weeks ago I planted three Fuggles rhizomes in my backyard.  These are
fed daily from a drip irrigation system which does a good job of keeping the
soil moist but not soaked.  I  eagerly checked the mounds each day during the
first couple of weeks for signs of growth, but alas, no little green things
were ever seen.  I decided to let them grow in their own time, so I stopped
checking on them as often.

Yesterday I decided to visit my bittering buddies only to find still-bare
mounds.  Something's gotta be wrong, I figured.  Five weeks oughta be long
enough for the little bastards to at least put up shoots.  As I crouched down
and looked at one mound, I saw a neatly-bored hole diving directly into the
center of the dirt.  I probed the hole with a stick, and sure enough,
something moved...

At first I thought it was a box-turtle baby, judging from the color and
texture of the object I saw.  I shined a flashlight down the hole, which
revelaed a glistening, undulating surface, and I jumped back when I saw the
huge, cold black eye staring back at me.  Too big for a turtle (unless a
gigantic turtle had somehow burrowed here without disturbing the ground).
 Yikes!! A rattlesnake?  No, at least I didn't think so.  Certainly not
mammilian.

I began to carefully dig using a garden trowel (rhizome be damned at this
point).    The dirt fell back onto my nemesis, obscuring any partial view of
it that I once might have had.  Finally, I scooped up a large lump of moving
soil.

A friggin' bullfrog.  A bullfrog!!

"Did YOU eat my hops?",  I asked, half expecting an answer.  Disappointed by
its silence, I tossed it over the rock wall into the desert behind the house.
 Now that my mound was trashed, I figured I'd look for the rotted vestige of
my Fuggle.

Nothing.  A couple of pebbles, a leaf maybe, but no rhizome.  Frustrated, I
dug up the other two mounds.  Nada.  Zippo.  Zilch.

We don't have typical garden animal pests in the city at least; no rabbits or
gophers.  Lotsa bugs, I suppose, but can anyone guess what might have
happenned to my hops?  How long should I expect a rhizome to take to sprout?
 Is my beer ruined?

*****

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


Return to table of contents


Date: Mon, 9 Jun 1997 14:40:41 -0400 (EDT)
From: BernardCh at aol.com
Subject: Check Valves in CO2 Manifold?

I'm designing/fabricating a modular CO2 distribution manifold for my keg
system.  Anyone who's done something similar could provide some input on this
design.  The description of my design follows:

Coming out of the low pressure side of the regulator I plan to connect to a
series of Parker or Weatherhead brass Tees, one tee for each "node" on the
manifold.  On the "branch" of each tee (the outlet that intersects the "run")
I am looking to connect a 1/4" brass ball valve and then a check valve to
shut off the gas supply and prevent back-flow of beer into the gas line.

The Parker Valve catalog lists a series of Standard Check Valves and a series
of O-ring Poppet Check Valves.  Both series are somewhat similar but the
O-ring style uses a pair of O-rings (naturally) to seal, whereas the standard
valve uses a custom molded seal.  Both are available in "cracking pressures"
of 0.33, 1, 5, 10 psi.  I'm assuming that I would want the lowest cracking
pressure available.  Comments on which series or cracking pressures?

There is a check valve on the low pressure side of the regulator that came
with the regulator assembly.  Does this make the check valves I plan to
install at each node unnecessary, or does it only provide a level of
insuarance against filling my manifold with liquid?

Comments, concerns, ideas?

Chuck
BernardCH at aol.com
Music City Brewers; Nashville, TN - 'Music City USA"

Return to table of contents


Date: Mon, 9 Jun 1997 14:24:29 -0500 (CDT)
From: korz at xnet.com
Subject: Grand Cru

Applied writes:
>Made a tasty Grand Cru not long ago...
>Nice coriander flavor...rich and creamy...
>Want to enter it in a competition...
>Not sure where to classify it, Belgian Pale or Belgian Strong
>(O.G.- 1.070, F.G.- 1.016)

I believe that what you mean is that you brewed a Celis Grand Cru clone,
not a "Grand Cru."  Grand Cru is not a style... it is a name that a
brewer may give one of their beers that is "special" in some way.  "Grand
Cru" means something like "Special Vintage" or "Special Bottling" or
"Deluxe."

In the case of Celis (and Hoegaarden, which Pierre used to own), the
Grand Cru is a stronger, all-barley version of Celis White (or Hoegaarden
Wit).  In the case of Rodenbach, the Grand Cru is 100% higher-OG recipe
beer, aged in huge oak tuns, whereas the "standard" beer is a blend of
the aged beer and a much younger, lower-OG beer.

So, back to your question.  According to the AHA guidelines, there is
no mention of spices being acceptable in Belgian Strong (which is where
this beer should really be), so it may or may not get clobbered for
having spices (depends on the judges).  You could enter it in Herb
and Spice under Classic-style and specify Belgian Strong as the classic
style.  If you do enter it under Belgian Strong, you had better make
sure that the organiser promises to give the judges special instructions
to allow spices in the Belgian Strong Ales.

Al.

Al Korzonas, Palos Hills, IL
korz at xnet.com


Return to table of contents


Date: Mon, 9 Jun 1997 14:36:42 -0500 (CDT)
From: korz at xnet.com
Subject: Polyclar/Wort canning (NOT)!

Regarding the Polyclar, I checked this weekend and the Polyclar SB100
is the "standard" Polyclar, also known as "Polyclar AT."  The Polyclar 10
is the finer and slower-settling stuff.

***
Incidentally, regarding that poster who described his wort canning
technique, I'd like to add my name to the (undoubtedly long) list of
people who will warn you about botulism.  You really need to either
pressure-cook the wort (INCLUDING THE LIDS!) to make sure you have
killed any botulism spores OR boil and chill the canned wort just
before use.  Using wort that has been canned simply using boiling
water will work fine 999 times out of 1000, but that 1000th time
it will kill you.  It may actually be safer than that, but you are
certainly more likely of killing yourself using boiling-water-canned
wort than you are winning the lottery.  Frankly, I don't like the
odds.

Al.

Al Korzonas, Palos Hills, IL
korz at xnet.com


Return to table of contents


Date: Mon, 9 Jun 1997 15:08:23 -0500 (CDT)
From: korz at xnet.com
Subject: CO2 Toxidity (?)

Nathan writes:
>In a previous digest (June 6, 1997) Al mentioned that some
>"stuck fermentations" are just CO2 toxicity.  He says to 
>swirl the carboy to see if CO2 is liberated and if the beer
>continues to ferment thereafter.  My question is, what do
>you do if your beer is suffering from CO2 toxicity?  I
>recently had a batch that fermented fine for 3 days and
>then pooped out.  I racked to a secondary and found tons
>of CO2 in solution.  I proceeded to swirl/shake/dance with
>the carboy at least once a day for what seemed like forever
>(I think two weeks) and the gravity finally came down.  Is
>this the only solution?  Help Al.  Thanks

Firstly, let me admit that I may be using the term "CO2
toxidity" incorrectly, so please don't start using this
term unless someone with considerably more knowledge of
biochemistry than I confirms that the expression is indeed
valid.  Biochemists?  Anyone?

As for what you can do, well, there are two things. One
is the temperature of the ferment.  Recall that CO2 solubility
is strongly dependent on temperature.  The cooler the beer,
the more CO2 will dissolve in it.  You may simply have
to warm up the beer to get it to hold less CO2 in solution
and therefore finish fermenting without doing the polka
with your carboy every day.

Another thing you can do (on a subsequent batch) is to not
remove all the cold break.  According to Malting and Brewing
Science (or was it The Practical Brewer?), there are researchers
that believe that cold break may provide nucleation sites for
CO2 and prevent the fermenting beer from getting supersaturated
with CO2 (i.e. if there are no nucleation sites, you can actually
dissolve more than the normal level of CO2 in the beer for
a given temperature -- that's supersaturation).

There have been a couple of Technical Communications on this
topic in Brewing Techniques in 1996, I believe.  Look for
"The Trouble with Trub-less Fermentations" or something like
that.

Al.

Al Korzonas, Palos Hills, IL
korz at xnet.com


Return to table of contents


Date: Mon, 9 Jun 1997 16:02:02 -0400
From: Randy deBeauclair <debeau1 at provide.net>
Subject: CO2 tanks

Greetings brewers,

I have a couple quick questions.

1. About CO2(carbon dioxide) tanks.  I have a 20 lb tank but would like =
to get a 10 or 5 lb. tank.  Anyone know of a relatively inexpensive =
source?  I would prefer not to buy new (slightly cost prohibitive!). =20
I live in the AnnArbor, MI area.


2. Anyone have experience with using DeWolf-Cosyns Belgian Pilsen malt?  =
I recently brewed a ginger wit with 50% belgian pilsen/50% raw soft =
wheat.  I have brewed the same recipe several times, but had used Klages =
malt instead of the Pilsen. With the Pilsen malt there was a =
bunch(result of iodine test) of unconverted starch.  That caused lots of =
problems and I think I will be writing it up to experience.  I presume =
that the pilsen malt had a much lower diastatic power level than I =
suspected.  Thoughts?  Comments?

I express my appreciation in advance for any replies.

Thanks,
Randy deBeauclair
debeau1 at provide.net

Return to table of contents


Date: Mon, 9 Jun 1997 16:06:20 -0500 (CDT)
From: korz at xnet.com
Subject: Daylight Length

Graham writes:
>Bear in mind that when Tim does manage to grow hops in Texas, he will
>possibly have a different flavour of hop to the prototype variety. Even in
>England, the best Fuggles are reputed to be grown in Worcestershire and the
>best Goldings in East Kent, and this could be attributed to differences in
>daylight length over a short distance of less than 200 miles.

This doesn't sound quite right.  While I agree that hops transplanted from
one place to another tend to develop different characteristics.  I have
first hand experience with hops that were genetically Hallertauer Mittelfrueh,
Tettnang Tettnanger, Saaz, and East Kent Goldings, but grown in the Pacific
Northwest of the US and indeed they had different characteristics than the
same hops from the original country.  I'm quite sure that many homebrewers
have tried those Northern Brewer plugs that are grown in Hallertau and would
agree with me that they are much more "German" in character than
American-grown Northern Brewer.  A most striking example is Styrian Goldings
which are actually genetically Fuggles, but smell and taste like East Kent
Goldings!

One concern of mine is that there are so many different varieties that are
*called* "Goldings."  These have all been grouped together into what we
call "Goldings" these days ["A Question of Pedigree - The Role of Genealogy
in Hop Substitutions" by Don Van Valkenburg, Brewing Techniques, Vol.3, No.5].

The other concern is that it seems hard to believe that 200 miles could
change daylight length enough to affect hops.  Sure, in Kenya, where the
days are 5 hours and 50 minutes shorter than they are in Yakima, Washington
on June 21st, but 200 miles?  I just checked the sunrise and sunset times
for Seattle, WA and Portland, OR which are about 170 miles apart and virtually
along the same line of longitude and Seattle will have 17 minutes more daylight
than Portland on June 21st 1997.  You can check for yourself at:

http://www.blackwalk.com/suntimes.htm

Furthermore, this is on June 21st.  By July 20th, the difference is only
10 minutes!

What about soil chemistry, wind, rainfall, daytime temperature, nighttime
temperature?  Surely these factors combined would influence the
characteristics of the hops more than 17 minutes of daylight, don't you think?

Al.

Al Korzonas, Palos Hills, IL
korz at xnet.com


Return to table of contents


Date: Mon, 09 Jun 1997 15:45:40 -0600
From: hugh at see.sig.net
Subject: He's Gott to Have It

Just used my Gott^H^H^H^H Rubbermaid 10 gal mash/lauter tun for the 
first time, it replaced a rectangular Coleman system that recently 
migrated to California.  

Both tuns have slotted copper tube false bottoms but the new
Rubbermaid model performed superbly.  I recycle the first runnings to 
clarity, as is typical, but the recirculation time for my new system
was maybe a fifth of that for the old rectangular model (10mins vs 45-50 
mins).  This is to be expected - less filter bed area to set up - but I 
urge those of you considering these two options to bear in mind this 
advantage of the cylindrical lauter tun geometry.

(The brew was a 50% wheat malt, single infusion American Wheat Ale, 
Corona type mill, Estrella brand, cf. MaltMill with previous mash 
system; temp. loss was 1 deg C over 60 mins).
- --
BTW, if the undigested version of HBD is dead, how can AlK answer 
questions before they're asked?  (re: Matt's stout question HBD2436) 
Impressive but confusing!
- --
Janitorial question:  Could/should the list software strip email
addresses to reduce spam?  I note that this would make off-line replies 
tricky but might make me, and maybe others,  happier to contribute more 
regularly.  (Without the following corrupted address, for which I 
apologize).

Hugh
- --
hugh at lamar dot colostate dot edu

Return to table of contents


Date: Mon, 9 Jun 1997 16:38:36 -0600 (MDT)
From: Ian Smith <rela!isrs at netcom.com>
Subject: filtered beer taste


Can anyone tell me if I filter my beer with, say a 5 micron filter before 
kegging will it improve the taste ? I am trying to duplicate the 
"cleaner" taste of commercial microbrews.

Also does anyone have a recommendation for a filter type and size or 
where I can buy one ? How do you clean and then sanitize a beer filter ?

Cheers
Ian Smith
isrs at rela.uucp.netcom.com


Return to table of contents


Date: Mon, 09 Jun 1997 18:54:35 -0400
From: "Applied Computer Resources" <jrmeans at nb.net>
Subject: Re: Grand Cru: Where to Classify...Thanks for the Input!

Well, folks...the votes are in and the majority
(100%, that is) says to classify a Grand Cru in
the Belgian Strong Ale category.  And that is what I
shall do.  

Thanks for the input.

Jim Means
Pittsburgh, PA

Return to table of contents


Date: Mon, 9 Jun 1997 16:44:56 -0600 (MDT)
From: Ian Smith <rela!isrs at netcom.com>
Subject: RIMS heater controller


I need to switch a 20 amp 120 VAC heater on and off with a computer card 
that is limited to 5 VDC and 25 mA. Do I need a solid state relay or can 
this be achieved by a less expensive way?. I would like to use an isolated 
relay or a zero crossing relay to prevent "ringing" the delicate computer 
card. Also I eventually would like to use PID control which would make 
the SSR a better choice than a mechanical relay. Does anyone have any 
experience/recommendations/advice etc ?

Cheers
Ian Smith
isrs at rela.uucp.netcom.com


Return to table of contents


Date: Mon, 9 Jun 1997 18:09:21 -0700
From: "Mark Bridges" <mbridges at coastnet.com>
Subject: IPA etc

Greetings All,

Dave Riedel asked for advice on a planned IPA.  Great beer for summer (or
anytime).

For this style you can get an appropriate maltiness with a 100% HB Pale Ale
grist, but you will want a healthy OG to give the necessary backbone to
support the high hopping rates of the style.  A minor amount of crystal
malt is OK, but not essential. You might target a gravity of 1.060 and 60
IBU's. You want a yeast that attenuates well, and the Wyeast #1056 will do
just fine. Having a neutral flavour profile, this yeast will let the malt
and hop flavours shine through.

When you ask about suggestions for the hops in your freezer (good selection
there) you will likely get a number of responses from the HBD crowd.  My
two bits worth would be to go with the GR Northern Brewer for bittering and
Goldings for flavour and aroma.  You might also blend some Fuggle in there
as well.

My last IPA went something like this...

12.5 lbs HB Pale Ale Malt
2oz HB Crystal Malt
*2.25oz First Gold hops  at  8% a/a - 60 min		*denotes my hop scale broke on
brew day !
*0.5oz US Goldings  at  5.2% a/a - 30 min			These measures are therefore
approximate !!
*1.5oz US Goldings  at  5.2% a/a - steep 5 min
 1187 Ale Yeast

OG 1.068 (!)  FG 1.012

As you can guess this is a big malty beer, but it is still hoppy and
approximates the style. Next time I will drop the Crystal and go all HB
Pale Ale, or I may add some HB Vienna.  And I will lower the gravity, as
this version is a bit boozy, though delicious from start to finish.

Good luck Dave in your next IPA.

Any other IPA suggestions/recent brews from the collective ?

Regards,

Mark Bridges





Return to table of contents


Date: Tue, 10 Jun 1997 11:50:37 -0700
From: Andy Walsh <awalsh at crl.com.au>
Subject: brew free or die!

Hi!

>From Sir Gump...
>   Then, when calling a maltster, "Oh, yeah, by the way, the FBI was just
>here asking about you." "What did they want?," I asked. They asked about a
>package I had sent you, to an address at the Mail Boxes. "What did you tell
>them?" "Only that the package contained malt samples. They asked to see
>some malt, and asked what it was used for. But when they asked, "Is it
>explosive?", and I replied " 'Only in certain circumstances,' they sure
>made a lot of notes!"

Would you believe me if I said that it is standard practice on
commercial 4/6 roll malt mills to have anti-explosive devices fitted?
These take the form of ledges directly underneath the rollers. The
ledges ensure the roller gap is full of grain, not air and malt dust,
that can be explosive if a bit of metal or stone goes through the
rollers, creating sparks.
I kid you not!
(the FEDS may have been interested by these anti explosive devices!)

>Karen said that eyebrows were definitely raised when the only one she had
>in her office to show them was a camouflaged model that said, on the front,
>"Brew Free Or Die!"

Feeling lucky Jethro? Just remove those anti explosive devices from your
mill...

Andy.

Return to table of contents


Date: Mon, 9 Jun 1997 22:43:43 -0500 (CDT)
From: korz at xnet.com
Subject: Woops! Daylight Calculations

See what 20 years of using a calculator will do?

15:50, minus 12:00 equals 5:50... NO IT DOESN'T!

Sorry about that.  The daylight length in Yakima, Washington
is only *3* hours and 50 minutes longer (on June 21st) than
that in the middle of Kenya (which has 12-hour days year `round).

Duh!

Al.


Return to table of contents


Date: Mon, 09 Jun 1997 21:50:06 -0600
From: Ronald Babcock <rbabcock at rmii.com>
Subject: Weizen Bock

Homebrewers:

I have brewed several Weizen with 3068 yeast in particular.  With great
success. I am now looking for a Weizen Bock all grain recipe. I would
prefer a light colored malty recipe. I am just about finished with the
conversion of my system and would like to brew a Weizen Bock to celebrate
the dawning of a revamped system. Private email is fine and I will post the
recipe I use at my web site.

Ronald Babcock - rbabcock at rmii.com - Denver, CO
Home of the Backyard Brewery at http://shell.rmi.net/~rbabcock/

Return to table of contents

---