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	FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
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Contents:
  Vote Early. Vote Often. Vote Gump. ("Rob Moline")
  water salts to style (Tom Meier)
  Re: Wyeast Lag ("Abby, Ellen and Alan")
  bulkhead ftg (PVanslyke)
  Keg conversions ("Grant Stott")
  yeast starters ("gontar00")
  Enzyme Kinetics - part 1 ("Stephen Alexander")
  Pitchable yeast field report ("Bev D. Blackwood II")
  Gott Bulkhead Fittings ("Houseman, David L")
  Re: Re: Aireation with Venturi tube (Jeff Renner)
  not the plastic debate again! ("Pannicke, Glen A.")
  Reusing Yeast Bed (cmmundt)
  RE: glass carboys ("Brian Lundeen")
  Re: Advice Heeded/All-Grain Easier Now (Jeff Renner)
  Gott grain capacity /  White Labs performance ("james suchy")
  Cutting Kegs (Rod Prather)
  yeast culturing and re-using yeast (djazzie)
  High mash-in temperature (Brian Watson)
  Welding, Dremel, Venturi (LaBorde, Ronald)
  Re: Alcohol % (Chris Cooper)
  Venturi Dedecarbonation ("Philip J Wilcox")
  solution for dry hopping in keg (Chris Hofmann)
  Eureka! Bulkhead Fittings Solution for Gott/Igloo/Rubbermaid (John Palmer)
  Follow-up:SG to Alcohol (Jeff Lutes)
  Clarigfication on CPVC bulkhead for a Gott (Mark Kempisty)
  What to do when your lager freezes. Re: Yeast (John Palmer)
  Ode (Crossno)


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Date: Tue, 31 Oct 2000 23:21:46 -0600
From: "Rob Moline" <brewer at isunet.net>
Subject: Vote Early. Vote Often. Vote Gump. 

			Vote Early. Vote Often. Vote Gump.
     The Beer Party has been formed as a less than serious attempt to
provide levity to the current political season.
     Our platform is deliberately designed to provoke controversy, at least
on one point, with the hoped for result being more page hits.
     This Presidential Campaign is a Zero Cost, No Endorsement, Seven Day
effort that we hope will bring at least a grin.
     PLEASE, visit  http://www.jethrogump.com/gumpforprez/ and send this URL
to everyone in your address book, and ask that they do the same!
     No animals were harmed in the creation of this website, and we pledge
that should we lose this election, which is more than likely, any
invitations to the Inauguration of the winning Candidate shall be graciously
accepted!

Cheers!
Jethro Gump

 "The More I Know About Beer, The More I Realize I Need To Know More About
Beer!"



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Date: Tue, 31 Oct 2000 23:20:15 -0600
From: Tom Meier <tom.meier at mindspring.com>
Subject: water salts to style


Paul Kensler writes about a headless wheat beer..
>I experienced this once, on a Bavarian wheat beer.....never could
>hold any sort of a head, even thought it was >50% wheat and highly
>carbonated.  Think alcoholic wheat pop.

I had the same problem with a dunkelweizen.  I had chilled a 2 liter
of it in a coke PET bottle.  The person drinking it did not realize
it was beer until tasting it.  The foam died immediately when poured,
so it was a dead ringer for coke.

=================================================

For the enterprising water chemists out there, I would like to pose
a suggestion for a new homebrewing product.

I would pay to have a product that would virtually guarantee a great
water profile with little thought or trouble, (i.e. preboiling, measuring
8 different chemicals, etc. etc.)  Lets face it, we've all got enough to
worry about .. oops I mean reLAX about when brewing. 

So. Is there a product that can do this, and if it not, why not?  What 
I would like to see, is a tiny bag of mixed salts that I could dump
into my deionized strike water that would give me the exact water
profile of say, Munich.   The key is that water would have to be deionized
(perhaps using a fish tank deionizer).  The other catch is the sparge water
would need a different treatment if you are of the 'low ph to avoid 
tannins' mindset.  Perhaps this could be as simple as adding a few Tsp
of DME.

The brewing salts I've seen add to hardness. Thats no good for those
of us who have 200 ppm as CaCO3.. I've been told that most public water
is not very consistent and changes considerably with weather and seasons.
I would like to see something that is predictable, repeatable, no fuss,
no muss, no rant or cuss.   The salts could even be labeled by style.
Think of the profit margin on this product. A few cents material cost for
something I would personally pay a convenience premium of 60, 65, neh even
70 cents for.  A virtual gold mine.

Am I the only one out there that doesn't want to understand water
chemistry or own a pH probe? Is this a plausible idea?

Till then I am living with my astringency and long conversion times.

Tom Meier
Decatur, AL







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Date: Wed, 01 Nov 2000 06:39:33 -0400
From: "Abby, Ellen and Alan" <elal at pei.sympatico.ca>
Subject: Re: Wyeast Lag

> Date: Tue, 31 Oct 2000 09:52:43 -0700
> From: "Richard B. Dulany Jr." <RDulany at co.el-paso.tx.us>
> Subject: Pitchable Wyeast--lag time.
> 
> I brewed a 5 gallon batch of stout from extract (OG 1048) on Sunday, Oct.
> 22. I pitched a tube of Wyeast Irish Ale #1084 directly into the 72 deg. F,
> well-stirred wort. Trusting the beer fates, I decided not to make a starter
> although the yeast was packaged on August 30, 2000 and was almost two months
> old. I just took the tube out of my refrigerator the night before I brewed
> and let it warm to room temperature.
> 
> There was no visible fermentation for the first 36 hours. But, sometime
> between 36 and 48 hours (while I was at work), the yeast "erupted" and foam
> spewed through the airlock. I racked to a carboy on Friday, Oct. 27. Bubbles
> are still escaping through the airlock every minute or so as of this
> morning.
> 
> I was concerned about the lag time too, but the beer seems ok. I'm hesitant
> to use the pitchable tubes again though because of the lag time. The
> slap-packs seem safer.
> 
> Richard Dulany
> El Paso, TX


I am in the 36th hour of a 1275XL Thames primary and am waiting for the
explosion of fermentation myself so the format of the yeast may not be
the critical factor.   It was also a 30 August batch which I left out of
the fridge overnight.  It ballooned up so much before I opened the pack
that I thought the pack risked springing a leak.  I pitched it in the
mid-60's well aeriated SG 1.034 bitter and left it in a warm room. It
warmed at a good pace and is sitting at 72 degrees now.   There is a
head has slowly built in the primary so I do not believe sanitation is
an issue.   The action of the pack after I released the nutrient has not
yet paralleled the primary but we shall wait and see.  I hope five
inches of space in the pail suffices should the explosion actually show
up.  This is my first use of Wyeast or any liquir so I will be
interested to see what happens.

Alan McLeod
New Glasgow PEI


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Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 06:24:40 EST
From: PVanslyke at aol.com
Subject: bulkhead ftg

Good morning,
    A couple years ago I made a bulkhead fitting from a "thin wall shower & 
tub elbow". I don't have the item at hand to describe in detail. This item is 
made by B&K Industries (usual disclaimers). It is a combination inlet 1/2 in. 
female sweat or 1/2 in. NFS. Outlet is 1/2 in. NPT. Requires a 1-1/8 in. 
hole. The locknut is of undetermined material but could probably be replaced 
with brass or nylon if you can find it.
    I don't remember how much the item was (I think around 5.00 or less) but 
I can let you know as I will be buying another in a couple days.
    Because of the curvature of the keg, I flattened the area slightly 
(tapped lightly with large hammer) before drilling.
    If anyone is interested, email me directly and I will get a photo and 
attach to return email.

Cheers,
Paul VanSlyke >> brewin' and relaxin' in Deposit, NY


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Date: Thu, 2 Nov 2000 11:38:48 +1100
From: "Grant Stott" <gstott at primus.com.au>
Subject: Keg conversions

Having just scored a keg to convert to a boiler, its great to see the recent
discussions on converting kegs.
Can anyone tell me if there is any real reason to add a tube & false bottom
to a converted keg used solely as the kettle. I can understand the reasons
if you are using it as a mash tun, but I'm thinking that adding a ball valve
is all I need for a kettle.
I saw a 10gal Rubbermaid cooler for the 1st time last weekend (also the 5
gal for the 1st time) The price over here is $123.00 I think I will continue
mashing in my rectangular cooler.
Grant Stott
Geelong Vic. Australia



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Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 08:23:39 -0500
From: "gontar00" <Richard_R_Gontarek at sbphrd.com>
Subject: yeast starters

There has been a fair amount of people complaining lately about dead yeast,
long lag times, and high final gravities. All I've got to say is that if you
are going through the trouble to make your own beer, you owe it to yourself
to make a starter if you're using liquid yeast! Yes, I know there are yeast
suppliers that claim their product is ready-to-pitch, but since making a
small starter is so easy and cheap, there is absolutely no reason not to go
the extra yard (more like an inch). Your beer will thank you for the extra
bit of TLC.

Rick Gontarek
Owner/Brewmaster of The Major Groove Picobrewery
Trappe, PA



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Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 09:12:21 -0500
From: "Stephen Alexander" <steve-alexander at worldnet.att.net>
Subject: Enzyme Kinetics - part 1

There are very tiny bits of background knowledge that will make this paper
more readable.  Some basic chemistry and a  trivial knowledge of
differential calculus is useful in appreciating the detailed argument, but
I have tried to convey the meaning in word as well as equation and so a
skipping over any confusing equations should not impair an understanding of
the larger issues.  I have tried to strike a balance between the assumption
that the audience understands the basics and that it does not.  I am sure
that this balance is imperfect.


Enzymes --  rate of reaction as related to brewing

Enzymes are proteins which act as catalysts  for certain chemical reactions.
Enzymes are an intimate part of virtually every biological pathway.  When
one hears the term gene, or genetic property, one should think 'enzyme',
since genes are principally DNA encoding for the proteins that represent
enzymes.  Plant and animal metabolic processes involve systems of thousands
of distinct enzymes to accomplish the  various functions involved.

Plants store their energy reserves as carbohydrates, and many of the more
advanced plants  create complex carbohydrates such as starch as part of a
long term storage strategy or a reproductive success strategy.  The feed
grains fall in this last category.  These starch making plants also have
enzymes which help reduce those carbohydrates to simple sugars, especially
glucose, which fuels the primary energy mechanism available to higher plants
and animals.

The catalysis by enzymes of chemical reactions is a simple yet remarkable
thing.  The chemical reactions involved must be thermodynamically favorable,
or exothermic.  Catalysis does not provide energy to the system, but it
lowers the threshold energy level needed for a reaction to take place.  By
analogy, catalysis is like lowering the level of a dam and permitting the
water to flow downhill at an increased rate.  Catalysis does not cause water
to flow uphill, tho' be aware that the reverse reaction rate, or
'splashback',
can occasionally be significant.  It cannot be said that catalysis is
necessary for the reaction as some water flows over the dam anyway.  In
biological systems tho' catalysis often increases the rate of the reaction
by 3 to 6 orders of magnitude and sometimes much more.  In our primary
example system using amylases to produce sugars from starch it is easy to
understand that the natural rate of starch degradation into sugar is
thousands of times lower in the absence of enzymes.

Another aspect of these systems of enzymes is that they are often part of a
regulatory system that is involved in keeping some chemical or product at an
appropriate level in a living organism.  Not only must the enzymes be
available for driving the reaction forward, but it must also be possible to
stop or inhibit the reaction  from going too far.  A barley seed needs
glucose to fuel its growth, but the entire endosperm is consumed over a few
weeks, not an hour.   There are several ways in which this is effected, but
product inhibition, in which an enzymes ability to catalyze is reduced in
the presence of either its immediate product or more often the product
several steps beyond the current one is very common.

The enzyme proteins are long chained linkages of the 20 basic types of amino
acids, and the resulting molecules may consist of up to several thousand
amino acids.  The protein molecule is not necessarily a single strand, but
may contain doubled or tripled sections.  The molecule is unlikely to be a
straight chain, but instead spirals and folds back on itself repeatedly,
often looking more like a jumble of ribbon.  There are several sorts of
relatively weak bonds which may occur between crossing strands.  These can
act to fix the ribbon jumble into a fairly fixed shape.  The individual
amino acids do not carry uniform electrical potential, and so various parts
of the molecule attract and repel each other based on this local potential.
The pH of the medium and the availability of free ions (e.g. salt solutions)
impact the effect of these charges and so the shape and solubility of the
proteins.   Some enzyme co-factors, agents which  permit or improve the
catalytic effect, act to 'improve' the enzymes molecular shape so that it
catalyses its reaction better.  One example is that many plant
alpha-amylases  require calcium as a co-factor.  If no calcium is present
the alpha-amylase converts into an unusable  shape. (denatures) after which
it no longer catalyses its reaction and so ceases to be an enzyme.  Most
cofactors impact the rate of the reaction, and are not absolutely required,
as is the case for alpha-amylase and calcium.

When we brewers speak of enzyme catalyzed reactions in the mash tun the
discussion often becomes obscure due to a lack of careful terminology,
especially about rates of reaction, so incorrect conclusions are often
derived.  The concepts behind the reactions and their rates are so basic
that a Socratic dialog could lead even the least  scientific brewer among us
to the correct conclusions.  Unfortunately a history of catch phrases and
statements drawn upon out of context make erroneous conclusions more
common than correct ones in this area.


Some basic terminology will be introduced as needed.

 - Substrate: The term 'substrate' refers to the source material that is
acted upon.  The substrate of beta-amylase is linear 1-4 linked  glucose
units of length 3 or greater and  water.  The substrate of beta-glucanase
are the 1-3 and 1-4 linkages in beta-glucans + H2O.

 - Concentration, or number of molecules per unit volume,  of a molecule 'M'
will be written as [M].  Often units of moles per liter are used by
chemists, where a mole represents 6.022*10^23 molecules.


 -S






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Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 08:17:10 -0600
From: "Bev D. Blackwood II" <blackwod at rice.edu>
Subject: Pitchable yeast field report

I've never had a single problem with White Labs yeast.  Unless I need 
a strain they don't carry, I'll pick the tube over a smack-pack any 
day.  My one caveat is that I haven't tried out the Wyeast "shampoo 
bottles" yet, which I've heard mixed reports on.
 -BDB2

Bev D. Blackwood II
http://www.bdb2.com/


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Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 09:34:08 -0500 
From: "Houseman, David L" <David.Houseman at unisys.com>
Subject: Gott Bulkhead Fittings

The recent flurry of postings on bulkhead fittings for a Gott, particularly
John Palmer's on PVC, reminded me that I've been using one I made for
several years without problems.  I never ended up using PVC or CPVC; but
perhaps others would like to use this simple approach as well.  I removed
the spigot from the Gott and replaced it with the following (description,
not ASCII art):  

1/2"x1-1.5" closed SS nipple placed through the hole where the Gott spigot
was.  I believe I had to trim out the hole a little to get this to fit but
it is a tight fit.  I rubber gasket on each side of the Gott wall.  On the
inside is a brass (yes, de-leaded) 1/2" hose barb to 1/2" female NPT adapter
(readily available about everywhere).  On the outside is a 1/2" brass ball
valve that has female NPT threads on each end.  The ball valve and adapter,
when tightened together, seal the Gott.  This has not leaked and has been
mechanically stable.  On the other end of the ball valve I have a 1/2" NPT
to garden hose adapter and use garden hose to hose barb (3/8" and 1/2")
connectors to connect various hoses --- far cheaper than tri-clover clamps
and for the homebrewer, works just as well.  On the inside of the Gott I use
a standard Phils Phloating Phalse Bottom but replaced the 3/8" connector
with a 1/2" nylon adapter and connect that to the 1/2" hose barb on my
bulkhead with a piece of 1/2" Teflon tubing that's very stiff; this helps
hold the Phalse bottom down.  

David Houseman


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Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 09:04:36 -0500
From: Jeff Renner <nerenner at umich.edu>
Subject: Re: Re: Aireation with Venturi tube

I used to use a venturi tube when I siphoned, but now that I have a 
pump and a RIMS, I have a new trick.  Well, it's been maybe five 
years now.

After the immersion chiller has taken the temperature below 80F with 
recirculation, I loosen the hose fitting from the boiler to the pump 
while I recirculate, and this loose fitting sucks air which the pump 
beats into tiny bubbles.  I suspect virtually all of the O2 that 
could dissolve does.

I continue to recirculate and aerate a while even after I've reached 
pitching temperature, and sometimes pitch right in the boiler.  Since 
I'm recirculating through hops, I'm a little concerned that some of 
the yeast may get filtered out, so I usually don't.  Then I pump to 
the fermenter, still with the loose fitting adding air.

Jeff
- -- 
 -=-=-=-=-
Jeff Renner in Ann Arbor, Michigan USA, c/o nerenner at umich.edu
"One never knows, do one?"  Fats Waller, American Musician, 1904-1943


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Date: Wed, 01 Nov 2000 10:00:33 -0500
From: "Pannicke, Glen A." <glen_pannicke at merck.com>
Subject: not the plastic debate again!

Scotty wrote:

>Cant believe the anti-plastic brewing debate has reared its ugly head
again.

>Personally I cannot believe people brew in glass...hot wort, slippery glass

>and a very small hole to clean with.

I can't believe that people brew in either plastic OR glass.  With all of
the advantages of stainless steel why not go that route?  [note: tongue very
much in cheek!]

In all seriousness, I brew using all three and have found that the pros and
cons of each make it a pretty close race.  I use plastic for the occasional
open fermentation and have two dedicated to lambics in which I WANT the
scratches.  I use glass mostly for secondary fermentation and aging.
Stainless is great for my lager beers since the handles make it so easy to
lift the kegs in & out of the chest fridge.  Also transfers can be done
under pressure, so I can eliminate much of the lifting anyway.  So I'd say I
really couldn't pick one over another.  They all seem to have their own
specialized use in my homebrewery.

>I vote also for resurection of the HSA arguements to accompany this line of

>discussion....

Wait a minute... where's my helmet and shoulderpads?  OK, I'm ready... and
that's just to READ - not participate!


Carpe cerevisiae!

Glen Pannicke
http://www.pannicke.net
"He was a wise man who invented beer" - Plato




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Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 10:28:38 -0500
From: cmmundt at AircraftBraking.com
Subject: Reusing Yeast Bed

Hi All,

     I have a question for all the yeast ranchers of HBD.    I plan on
brewing again within the next two weeks and I would like to reuse the yeast
that is presently brewing my ESB.  What would be the easiest/best way to
collect as much of the yeast bed as I could and save it for two weeks?
Someday when I am allowed more space and gadgets for my brewing I plan on
getting into culturing yeast, but now I need a way to preserve yeast for a
couple of weeks.  If successful at repitching the yeast I expect to use
this procedure in the future.

     This next brew session I hope to show a fellow brewer the art of
all-grain.  I was talking to him last night (Tuesday) about this last batch
of all-grain and how simple it can be.  It does take a longer time, but not
much more work when using a single temp infusion mash.  He became
interested in the process.  So I hope to introduce him to all-grain and
drink a few of my other extract beers and what some football while the mash
in taking place.


Chad Mundt
cmmundt at aircraftbraking.com



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Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 09:38:59 -0600
From: "Brian Lundeen" <blundeen at rrc.mb.ca>
Subject: RE: glass carboys

Scott Morgan displays a certain amount of silicaphobia when he writes:

> Personally I cannot believe people brew in glass...hot wort,
> slippery glass
> and a very small hole to clean with.

While a healthy respect for the potential dangers of glass is called for, I
don't consider using glass on a par with some of the really dangerous things
some brewers try to get away with, like using a propane cooker in their
basement without ventilation.

Why would you be putting hot wort in a carboy? This is your fermenter, the
wort going in should be at or near pitching temp. Otherwise, you will get
hot side aeration. ;-) If your CF chiller can't get it to at least lukewarm,
then it should go first into a plastic or s/s container. The worst thing you
can do with a carboy is direct a stream of hot liquid into it. This will
stress the glass and eventually it will give way in a most satisfyingly
catastrophic manner. This is why I won't buy used carboys, you don't know
how the previous owner treated it.

DRY glass is not slippery. Make sure both the glass and your hands are dry,
make sure you have an unobstructed path between where it is now and where
you want it to be, grip firmly around the neck with one hand and under the
base with the other (or use a good carrier like the strap devices or milk
crates), and you should not have a problem.

The hole size is only a problem if you feel that elbow grease is a necessary
part of a thorough cleaning. Use a good CIP cleaner such as PBW in a warm
water solution, fill it up and let it do the work. I usually let mine sit
overnight, and the next day drain and rinse.

I'm sure there are horror stories out there of carboys failing, even when
everything was done right. Manufacturing defects are always a possibility.
It happened to a friend of mine, fortunately without personal injury. His
carboy had a section of glass at the base that, upon examination of the
post-catastrophe shards, turned out to be paper thin. The carboy was fine as
long as it sat flat on its base, but when he tilted it slightly on just the
wrong spot to wipe off some spillage around the base,... WHOOSH.

Now a flaw in the base is the area that poses the greatest danger in terms
of loss of product and risk of injury should it fail while being lifted.
This is easy enough to check with a new carboy. Fill it with water, grab by
the neck, tilt and rotate so that the entire rim of the base gets tested
with the weight of a full carboy. As long as it's treated properly after
that, not assaulted with hot liquids or banged against hard objects, it
should serve you well for your brewing lifetime.

Cheers,
Brian



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Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 10:40:53 -0500
From: Jeff Renner <nerenner at umich.edu>
Subject: Re: Advice Heeded/All-Grain Easier Now

Chad Mundt <cmmundt at aircraftbraking.com> has smoothly brewed his 
second all grain batch.  Congratulations, Chad, and I hope your 
success inspires other brewers who are trepidatiously standing on the 
sidelines


>Is this indicative of the style,
>as I am brewing all-grain I have become more concerned about staying true
>to style.
>
>      9 lbs of Muntons Pale Malt
>      1 lb of Crystal 20 L
>      0.7 lbs of Weyerman Vienna
>      0.5 lbs of Carapils 10 L
>
>Infusion mash at 153 F for 1.5 hours, passed the iodine test.  Boiled
>for 60 minutes


First, I'll bet you could have saved 30 minutes on the mash as I 
suspect it was converted after an hour.

But regards the grain bill, my personal preference would be to darken 
this a bit with a little chocolate malt.  Not much, as you don't want 
any drying effect, but an ounce or a little more would do, especially 
if you pulverized it in a blender (you'd probably have to blend more 
than an ounce to get it to work).  That way you'd get maximum color 
and not too much flavor.  It would add a bit of nutty flavor too that 
would be appropriate, I think.

Assuming that Fuller's ESB is the Ur-ESB, then you might want to 
consider their grain bill, which is reported in the CAMRA _Real ale 
Almanac_ as 90% Alexis and Chariot pale ale malt, 3% crystal, 7% 
flaked maize, and caramel.

Graham Wheeler and Roger Protz's CAMRA _Brew Your Own British Real 
Ale at Home_ repeat this and add 34 grams black malt per 25 liter 
batch to make up for the caramel.  I don't think this is a good 
substitute, as black malt can have a very dry bitterness, not a 
caramel richness.  A better choice, other than chocolate malt, might 
be some dark crystal, something that may not be widely available in 
England but is for us.  I have had good success with Durst 90L 
crystal and DWC Caramunich, and I'm sure other dark crystals would 
work.

Another recommendation is to use Briess's Ashburne malt, also called 
Extra Special Malt and at one time called ESB malt, as your base 
malt.  This is my first choice for the maltier British styles such as 
mild or ESB.  It's a really nice malt.  They have some suggestions 
for its use on their web page http://www.briess.com/.  Do a search 
for Ashburne and you'll get some old newsletter articles.

Hope it turns out well.

Jeff
- -- 
 -=-=-=-=-
Jeff Renner in Ann Arbor, Michigan USA, c/o nerenner at umich.edu
"One never knows, do one?"  Fats Waller, American Musician, 1904-1943


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Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 10:56:02 EDT
From: "james suchy" <grayling at provide.net>
Subject: Gott grain capacity /  White Labs performance

Bob asked about 10 gallon Gott Cooler lauter tun capacity.

My friend Craig and I brewed a 10 gallon batch of Bigger and
Badder than Nearly Nirvana at at Chris Frey's house for 
national hombrew day.  For that 10 gallon batch we used 23 lbs 
of malt which fit to the rim at 1.1 qts per pound.  Note that 
this just barely fit into the tun.  For mashout, we drained the 
tun, heated to boil and added it back to the tun. (I don't 
wanna hear about HSA from anyone.....this batch turned out 
awesome!) 

I would assume if you were using 17 lbs of grain and 1.1 qts 
per pound strike water, you would be able to do a mashout with 
about 2 gallons of boiling water.

===================================

Regarding White Labs.....

I have always used White Labs pitchable tubes with great 
success.  I have never had a lag time greater than eight 
hours.  I mainly use the Cal. Ale yeast, but I have also used 
the Kolsch, the Irish, the Edinburgh and the East Coast yeast 
strains with great success.  All of this with no starter.  I 
use one tube for a 1.050 - 1.058 starting gravity batch.  If it 
is a bigger beer, I brew a 1.050 beer first, rack off the yeast 
cake in a week, brew the bigger batch and add to the yeast cake 
from the first batch.  Works like a charm and the second batch 
takes off like a rocket.  

Cheers!

Jim Suchy
Ann Arbor Brewer's Guild
(90, 21 miles Rennerian)
- --
http://www.provide.net


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Date: Wed, 01 Nov 2000 11:16:32 -0500
From: Rod Prather <rodpr at iquest.net>
Subject: Cutting Kegs

Cutting Kegs?  You can purchase a cheap 4 1/2 inch electric die 
grinder for less than $20 U.S. at many large hardware outlets 
(made in China).  Takes one disk and about 15 minutes to cut 
the lid out. Be careful, most of these grinders come with a 
masonry disk.  You will have to buy metal cutting disks.  
WEAR SAFETY GLASSES if you value your eyes.  Touch up 
with a little 240 grit emery cloth.  TADA!
- -- 
Rod Prather, PooterDuude
Indianapolis, Indiana


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Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 11:33:47 -0500
From: djazzie at juno.com
Subject: yeast culturing and re-using yeast

I'm interested in knowing how to go about yeast culturing, if there are
any good books out there that aren't too technical in explanation (I
nearly failed just about every science class I ever took, not because I'm
dumb, I'm just scientificly challenged).   Also, what can people tell me
about re-using yeast from the fermenter.  How can I save it?  I've read
about people simply pouring new wort right on top of the old yeast, but
isn't usually a good idea to clean and sanitize out your fermenter
entirely before another fermentation?  Lastly, what would be a good all
around yeast to culture, i.e. something that might be usable in more than
1 style of beer.  Thanks for your help

- --Daniel


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Date: Wed, 01 Nov 2000 08:59:48 -0800
From: Brian Watson <bmw4re at earthlink.net>
Subject: High mash-in temperature

The other night I brewed a batch of Red-Tail-like ale.  It's been at
least 2 years since I last brewed anything so I was definitely a bit
rusty.  I opted for a partial mash as I'd had success in the past with
this technique. The recipe didn't specify a mash-in temp yet it did
specify a cooking temp of 152 deg F.  I ended up mashing in at the 152
F.  When I consulted the Dave Miller book it specified significantly
lower mash-in temp's.  Also, due to my tired state and the sequence of
Mr. Miller's instructions, I ended up just pouring the hot wort into my
fementer with abandon ( I missed the part about not aerating the hot
wort).  I used an immersion cooler which seemed to take about 45 minutes
to get the wort to pitching temp (Unfortunately, it was 11 PM and my
aforementioned tired state caused me to break my &^%#$ at ^ thermometer so
I was forced to use my pool thermometer to check the temp of my cooling
water. )  The good news is that the following day I racked the wort off
of the trub and active fermentation started less than 20 hrs. after
pitching.  What type of trouble might I be in for due to the possible
high mash-in temp and the aeration of the hot wort?  Failure is not an
option.   Thanks.
BMW



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Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 11:46:57 -0600 
From: rlabor at lsuhsc.edu (LaBorde, Ronald)
Subject: Welding, Dremel, Venturi

Bernd Neumann mentions welding to his keg.

I have not used any welding for any fittings. Bulkhead connectors work well,
are much easier to install, and I figure cheaper than any welding job.  What
is this fascination with welding?  Most kegs I have seen with welds, also
have rust, black areas, and other signs of abuse.  If the weld is not done
by an expert, it is an open invitation to problems.

If Bernd has his spigot welded to the bottom of his keg, he will not be able
to heat from the bottom without overheating the spigot.

====

Stephen Alexander talks about homebrewing vessels.

>Let me explain the reason.  Used keg $15, cutting tool wear $1.70, ability
>to make experimental tuns for <$20 - priceless.  I can also get choosy and
>only pick the keg dimensions and gauge that I want (some Sabco's are pretty
>thin & light).

>My cutting method is simple.  Abrasive metal cutting blade in a circular
>saw.

People have been using circular saws, sawzalls, and abrasive cutoff wheels.
Me, I use my Dremel with the cutoff fiber reinforced wheels.  It works
great, uses two or three wheels, and makes a very clean cut.

I recommend this above all other methods, why?, because it is so darn quiet,
so darn easy, and safe (provided you use goggles and face mask for dust).
On a nice day (rare lately with this unbearable summer heat), I just pull up
a chair, put the keg between my legs and Dremel away for about 30 minutes or
so.  No birds, dogs, cats, neighbors, etc. are frightened by the noise.
Afterwards a little rub with a very heavy sandpaper, and It is so smooth,
you can run your finger around it with no sharpness. If you use those metal
blades, you will contaminate the stainless and invite rust at this spot.

===

People seem to like Aeration with a Venturi tube.

I guess it aerates alright, but it seems like a good way to suck up a few
cubic feet of air with wild yeast, and anything else that happens to be
around.

===

From: Ballsacius at aol.com


>I am firing up the brew kettle this weekend and I want to try my first ten 
>gallon all-grain. I have a 10 gallon Gott cooler system and am wondering if

>they will hold the necessary 17 pounds or so of grain, plus strike water (1

>to 1.25qt per pound) and still have room to add the boiling water at the
>of the mash? If anybody could give me some advice, I would appreciate it . 

I think I used about 17 pounds once when brewing a Dopplebock, it was full,
but worked - go for it!

Ron La Borde

Ronald La Borde - Metairie, Louisiana - rlabor at lsuhsc.edu
http://hbd.org/rlaborde



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Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 13:15:47 -0500 (EST)
From: Chris Cooper <ccooper at a2607cc.msr.hp.com>
Subject: Re: Alcohol %

Greetings all!
A recent HBD post asked about calculating alcohol
percentage given the change in SG., here is 
a simple table I have used for some time.

The basic formula are:

 (OG - FG) *  105  =  {% Alcohol by Weight}
 {% Alcohol by Weight} * 1.25 = [% Alcohol by Volume]

The following table is a fast way
to estimate the % Alcohol from
the total number of SG points lost
during fermentation:

      #SG        % Alcohol by: 
     points     vol.     weight
   ----------  ------  ---------
	5        .66       .53
       10       1.31	  1.05
       15       1.97      1.58
       20       2.62      2.10
       25       3.28      2.63
       30       3.94      3.15
       35	4.59      3.68
       40       5.25      4.20
       45       5.91      4.73
       50       6.56      5.25
       55       7.22      5.78
       60       7.88      6.30
       65       8.53      6.83
       70       9.19      7.35
       75       9.84      7.88
       80      10.50      8.40
       85      11.16      8.93
       90      11.81      9.45
       95      12.47      9.98
      100      13.13     10.50

Hope this helps!

Chris Cooper, Pine Haven Brewing (aka. Debbi's Kitchen) 
Commerce, Michigan    Member, Ann Arbor Brewer's Guild
(Approximately 25 miles from 0.0 Renerian)



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Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 14:29:50 -0500
From: "Philip J Wilcox" <pjwilcox at cmsenergy.com>
Subject: Venturi Dedecarbonation

HBD'ers,

Another application of this wonderful effect is to use it to De-carbonate a
beer sample. As in before you take a hydrometer sample. Just as easily as
pulling air into the wort line, you can use this same effect to pull a
vacuum on a closed container. If your closed container has carbonated beer
in it, it will pull the CO2 out of solution, and push it out with the flow
liquid. In this case, water from a tap.

Materials are a few feet of 3/8 beer hose, a plastic T and a stopper sized
to fit your flask, 1L PET bottle, 22oz bomber... (Why so big? More
later...)

Take an 10" section of 3/8  beer hose and warm it up in some boiling water.
Shove one end through the TOP of the stopper just far enough through the
stopper to know you have a good seal. The other end goes into the 90 degree
part of the T.

Next take some more tubing and cram it up your faucet about 6" this is
enough to get a good seal in my basement faucet. If you cant get good flow,
you could try the silver solution (Duct tape) or make a trip hardware store
and figure out a better one...

Next set your bottle in the sink by the drain and put the stopper in it.
Bend the T over to the line coming out of the faucet and splice it into the
line where ever is natural. Make sure you have at least 10" of line on the
inches.

Why such a big container? Foam. It foams like crazy. You can lose 50% due
to foam being sucked out if your vessel is too small. I imagine there is a
too big, as it will take longer, and waste more water to pull a vacuum on a
bigger vessel. My best guess is you want something 5x the volume of your
hydrometer sample. 2x just for the amount you would actually add and 3x for
head space.

Phil Wilcox
Poison Frog Home Brewer



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Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 12:42:02 -0800 (PST)
From: Chris Hofmann <chrisrhofmann at yahoo.com>
Subject: solution for dry hopping in keg

I feel the best dryhopping results are acheived when
hops are added directly to the keg.  Problem is that
most of the time you get sediment unless you contain
them.

I think I've found a solution for this problem.  I
located a company that sells pot sized tea
infusers(teaballs).  I bought two and have used them
with excellent results for dryhopping with pellets in
cornies. The company is Upton Tea Importers
www.uptontea.com, the product is call Permabrew, pot
size infuser.

Chris Hofmann, Mukwonago, Wisconsin

__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
>From homework help to love advice, Yahoo! Experts has your answer.
http://experts.yahoo.com/


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Date: Wed, 01 Nov 2000 13:57:22 -0800
From: John Palmer <jjpalmer at gte.net>
Subject: Eureka! Bulkhead Fittings Solution for Gott/Igloo/Rubbermaid

Well I went back to Home Depot today (it's just down the road from work), 
and I could not find the CPVC fittings.
But I did find nearly equivalent fittings in brass that work!

Here it is:
1   3/4 inch F Hose to 1/2 inch MIP Adapter (brass)
     Watts AB part # A-677  $2.50
1   1/2 inch FIP to 3/8 FIP Reducing Coupling (brass)
     Watts AB part # A-815  $2.90
1   1/2 inch Nylon Barb to M Hose (Nylon)
     Watts AB part # A-386  $1.40
1   3/8 Nylon Barb to 3/8 MIP fitting  $2
1   Rubber O Ring ( No. 15, .125 inch thick) 25 cents
1   Schedule 40 PVC Connecter Sleeve (1/2 inch) 25 cents
1   short Nipple (1.5 inches, 1/2 inch MIP, nylon or brass) $2
1   Ball Valve (3/8 inch FIP) $5
Total Cost = $16.30

To assemble:
1. Take F Hose to MIP Adapter and slip the O Ring over the male threads so 
it rests against the flange. This is inserted thru the spigot hole from the 
inside of the tun. Put some teflon tape on the threads.
2. Saw a slice from the PVC connecter to make a spacer about 1/8 - 3/16 
inch thick De-burr it on a piece of sandpaper so it is smooth and parallel.
3. Slip the spacer over the male threads protruding from the spigot hole 
and screw on the FIP Reducer Coupling. Voila! A water tight seal on the 
inside of the cooler.
4. Screw in the MIP hosebarb to the F Hose fitting inside the cooler.
5. Screw the short 3/8 nipple and 3/8 Hosebarb onto the Ball Valve.
6. Screw the Ball Valve assembly into the FIP Reducer coupling and you are 
done!

You can attach your manifold or Phils Phalse Bottom via the inside hose 
barb, and attach your outlet hose to the outside hose barb.
Use teflon tape on the threads to insure a leakproof seal and disassemble 
between uses to clean. This works really well.
Thanks to Mark and Eric for the ideas!
 -John

- --
John Palmer
Palmer House Brewery and Smithy
http://www.realbeer.com/jjpalmer
How To Brew - the online book
http://www.howtobrew.com



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Date: Wed, 01 Nov 2000 17:37:47 -0600
From: Jeff Lutes <jlutes at osprey.net>
Subject: Follow-up:SG to Alcohol

First, let me thank everyone for their responses...but now I'm REALLY lost.
 Here is a list of what I have received (some of it):

OG = Starting Gravity
FG = Finish Gravity

By Volume:

(OG-FG)*.129
(OG-FG)*133.3
(OG-FG)*131
(OG-FG)*.1275
(OG-FG)*1.25
(OG-FG)/75
(OG-FG)*105

Now, maybe my math is a bit more rusty than I thought, and I DO understand
this is an ESTIMATED alcohol, but ACK!  The thing that really frightens me
is that most of the people who sent me these sited various brewing
books...has anyone ever come up with a common formula?

Gemus Brauen Haus





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Date: Wed, 01 Nov 2000 18:52:26 -0500
From: Mark Kempisty <kempisty at pav.research.panasonic.com>
Subject: Clarigfication on CPVC bulkhead for a Gott

I read John Palmer's comments on my bulkhead idea and I just want to
clarify that I did use and recommend CPVC.  It is definitely rated for
hot water supplies.  I have not had any off-smells or tastes from it. 
it also maintains its strength at mashing temperatures.  My manifold is
all copper and the connection from the manifold to the inside of the
fitting is vinyl tube.  One side benefit from using CPVC is that it acts
as a thermal break between the wort and the ball valve.  Yes, the ball
valve will radiate some heat but I can easily wrap a towel around it to
slow that down.

Secondly, what the heck happened to my ASCII art?  Looks like my spaces
were converted to tabs at some point, but it did look better when I
wrote it.

- -- 
Take care,
Mark


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Date: Wed, 01 Nov 2000 16:06:10 -0800
From: John Palmer <jjpalmer at gte.net>
Subject: What to do when your lager freezes. Re: Yeast

Hi Group,
First Jeff and I wondered what Does happen to the yeast when the lager 
partially freezes, and then Jim wrote me back and said, Okay it's thawed, 
now what, and decided I better ask someone who would know the answer.

I called Chris White of Whitelabs (we are in the same time zone and I have 
pestered him before), and he said that the partially frozen yeast may still 
be alive, but most likely impaired a bit. He commented that even in a 
frozen yeast slurry, there will be 20-30% live cells after thawing. I am 
sure that statement needs to be qualified a lot, but you get the idea. He 
agreed that adding more yeast was a good idea, since the beer in question 
was early in the lagering cycle. If more yeast were not added, then the 
beer may still taste green after lagering.

I asked if the new yeast needed to be acclimated with a Starter, and he 
said, No, not really. Since you aren't looking to get a full batch off to a 
fast start, and since the yeast will have plenty of time to acclimate, one 
tube's worth should suffice to finish the maturation and have viable yeast 
for bottle priming. I am pretty sure Chris was talking in terms of his own 
ready-to-pitch vial, so if you use another brand or strain that is not of 
the ready-to-pitch cell count variety then you may want to make a Starter 
first and conduct that starter at your primary fermentation temperature. 
Using the same lager yeast strain or a similar strain is always recommended.

Good info, eh?
Thanks, guys!
John
- --
John Palmer
Palmer House Brewery and Smithy
http://www.realbeer.com/jjpalmer
How To Brew - the online book
http://www.howtobrew.com



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Date: Wed, 01 Nov 2000 20:30:30 -0600
From: Crossno <crossno at tnns.net>
Subject: Ode

Propane with apologies to J. J. Cale

               If you get thrown out, you've got to take her out;
propane.
               If you wanna boil, the turkey in oil; propane.
               She don't lie, she don't lie, she don't lie; propane.

               If you got bad news, and you need to brew; propane.
               When your sparge is done and you wanna move on; propane.
               She don't lie, she don't lie, she don't lie; propane.

               If your temperature is low, set it to glow; propane.
               Don't forget the refill, it's easy as hell; propane.
               She don't lie, she don't lie, she don't lie; propane

               She don't lie, she don't lie, she don't lie; propane.


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---