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FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
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Contents:
RE: 15.5 gallon beer keg as a fermenter ("Steve")
Motorising Valley Mills (Wes Smith)
Floor Malted MO (Wes Smith)
Subject: Does anyone still floor-malt their Maris Otter? ("BeerBloke")
DH (Kevin Elsken)
HD # 3544 - Great White North (East) Brews ("Abby, Ellen and Alan")
Racking from plastic fermentor ("Fred L. Johnson")
hop ID ("Al Beers")
Philco fridge (fridgeguy)
DH ("Bridges, Scott")
Re: NC Micros (ctreves)
Wort Sensitivity (Bob Hall)
DH / Kettle volume / Fig beer / 1/2 barrel fermenters (David Harsh)
RE: Kettle volume indicator ("Houseman, David L")
Does anyone still floor-malt their Maris Otter? (Jim Cave)
re: How to rack from primary fermentor (The Artist Formerly Known As Kap'n Salty)
Drunk Monk Challenge - 3/24/01 - 1st call for judges ("Formanek, Joe")
RE: DH ("Beth Fuchs")
Racking Cane ("AYOTTE, ROGER C")
racking with spigots (Frank Tutzauer)
Re: Does anyone still floor-malt their Maris Otter? (Jeff Renner)
Funky Pils (AJ)
RE: Floor Malted Grain (SiteAcquisition)
DH (Danny Breidenbach)
I'm not dead yet! ("S. SNYDER")
faucet racking vs. siphoning ("S. SNYDER")
Gearheads (Epic8383)
Keg Fermenter (Epic8383)
Low Carb Beer ("Anthony Torrez")
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Date: Wed, 31 Jan 2001 21:04:17 -0800
From: "Steve" <brewingone at home.com>
Subject: RE: 15.5 gallon beer keg as a fermenter
Mike,
I've been using 15.5 gallon kegs as fermenters for quite awhile. I took a
different approach though, I had three 15.5 kegs sitting around and a dozen
5 gal cornies. I thought, if only there was a way to thoroughly clean the
15.5s the way I do my cornies? The only thing stopping me was the lid. I
took my 3 15.5s and 3 of my less-than-perfect cornies to a friend that does
stainless welding, he plasma cut holes in the tops of the 15.5s and tig
welded the cornies lids to the kegs. It took quite a bit of polishing on
the inside with my air die-grinder outfitted with an abrasive flapper wheel,
but they came out very nice. Now I place a 10gal batch in one of the kegs,
place a blow-off tube on the CO2 fitting and never worry about getting the
krausen clogging up the tube because of the 4.5 gallon headspace (even with
a hefe). After the primary fermentation is done, I transfer it via the draw
tube to a second 15.5 under CO2 pressure and finally follow the same
procedure when filling the cornies for carbonation and serving. The only
time my beer comes in contact with air is when it leaves the brew kettle on
its' way into the primary, after that I always transfer under CO2 pressure
into purged kegs.
Cleaning them is a snap, pop off the lids, hit them with my pressure washer
and have my daughter (skinny arms) clean out any residue that's left. You
can also place the kegs on your propane burner to heat up the water if you
are using PBW.
If you're interested in seeing photos of the system, let me know and I can
send them to you.
If you don't know someone that has a plasma cutter and tig welder, you can
find a certified stainless welder in the phonebook, each keg should take
about an hour of labor (if the guy knows what he's doing). Most welders
will charge between $45-70 an hour. Overall a much less expensive option
than the Sabco system.
Anyone in the Seattle area interested in doing some 10gal all-grain batches,
shoot me a line. Since I moved from SoCal, I don't have a brew partner
anymore.
Steve
Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 01 Feb 2001 18:21:55 +1100
From: Wes Smith <wessmith at ozemail.com.au>
Subject: Motorising Valley Mills
Hi Folks,
Ant Hayes asks about the mechanics of motorising a Valley Mill. I did mine
a couple of years ago but did not go with 300 rpm - that is simply too fast
and with 8 to 10kg of grain it will generate a lot of heat. My mill is one
of the earlier ones with nylon sleeve bearings on the adjustable idler
shaft and the damn things move around when the mill gets hot and partially
seize the roller. My recommendation is 120rpm - thats about as fast as you
can consistently hand crank (unless your Regan Pollandi - boy he had the
ESB one SMOKING!) Also you are making things difficult by starting with a
2800 rpm motor - much better to try for a 1440 rpm which will have a switch
start and give better starting torque. The acid test is raw wheat - it
really takes some crushing.
I also went with a pully/belt reduction setup using a lay shaft. The
project became a nightmare and if I had my time over again I would go with
a worm drive reduction box that delivers 120 or so rpm. New about A$280 or
you should be able to pick up something at a second hand or surplus
machinery place. I have some photos I can email if anyone is interested.
Wes Smith
Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 01 Feb 2001 18:23:00 +1100
From: Wes Smith <wessmith at ozemail.com.au>
Subject: Floor Malted MO
Hi Folks,
Benjamin Edwards asks about the availability of Beeston floor malted MO.
Sadly it is no more - the Bairds maltings which produced the floor malted
MO has succumbed to developers and the last batch of malt was produced in
early December last year. The final batch was however given due ceremony
with a small function attended by CAMRA and other interested parties. I
actually had dinner with the plant manager last November while visiting
another of the Bairds maltings in Scotland - a very informative and well
lubricated few hours.
To explain the Bairds/Beeston thing - Beeston is the North American trading
name for malts produced by Bairds Malt Limited in the UK. Here in Australia
we have the same range of malts under the Bairds brand. But take heart,
there is a new replacement product called Pale Ale Malt (slightly different
from the old Pale Ale Malt) which has an almost identical specification but
is pneumatically malted. No other varieties have been floor malted at
Bairds for some years.
I also understand that there are a couple of small floor maltings still
operating in the UK but pricing is an issue when it comes to importing. In
any event I will be in Old Blighty next week and will make some enquiries
and report back.
No disclaimers - I import & distribute Bairds products in Australia.
Wes Smith
Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 1 Feb 2001 08:46:43 -0000
From: "BeerBloke" <BeerBloke at btinternet.com>
Subject: Subject: Does anyone still floor-malt their Maris Otter?
From: "Benjy Edwards" <rdbedwards at hotmail.com>
> My local homebrew shop owner said that Beeston's is now no longer
>floor-malting their Maris Otter and that he was planning to switch to
>another British maltster, someone whose name starts with an F, perhaps
>Forest or some such name?
'Lurk mode off'
There is a family-owned maltsters in Stanstead Abbotts in Hertfordshire,
England called 'French and Jupps' They've been around since 1703 but are a
specialist dark maltsters. They don't produce any pale malt.
BeerBloke
'Old Wibblers Brewery'
Romford, Essex, England.
ICQ 48953086
http://www.wibblers.co.uk
BeerBloke at wibblers.co.uk
'Lurk mode on'
Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 01 Feb 2001 06:52:07 -0500
From: Kevin Elsken <k.elsken at worldnet.att.net>
Subject: DH
On good authority from the wife, DH stands for 'dear husband'. Or at
least that is what they want us to believe. She got a good chuckle when
I told her what SWMBO stood for...
Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 01 Feb 2001 07:47:20 -0400
From: "Abby, Ellen and Alan" <elal at pei.sympatico.ca>
Subject: HD # 3544 - Great White North (East) Brews
Living now in PEI and having imbibed in Halifax since 1981, you can
expect a pretty good experience in one place and the jurification for a
truck load of brew for the other another.
PEI is the land of the most restricted liquor laws in Canada as well as
the worst selection of everything but whisky of which it has a decent
selection at a decent price. There is one brewer - Murphy's which
supplies its own restaurants with draft and which are moderately basic
which is as bland a recommendation as I can imagine. What is great in
PEI is the food. Oysters bought bulk from the wharf, lobsters boiled at
the cottage. Good golfing and beaches too. If you need cottage
location / recommendations, feel free to drop me an e-mail. If driving
here bring your own brew onto the island as the store selection is
limited and expensive. If you are going to try Maritime large
production brews, each has it followers: I drink Oland's Ex as a good
commercial pale ale.
Halifax, on the other hand, is one of the true hubs of dypsomania in the
country. I once heard Ed McCurdie, the folk singer, call it a shopping
mall for alcoholics. While there are no true globally first rate brew
pubs such as the Kingston Brew Pub of Kingston, Ontario or the Whip of
Vancouver, BC or Gritty McDuff's of Portand Maine, there are pubs...and
taverns...and bars...It has the second highest number of drinking
establishments per population only after St.John's Newfoundland [which
is so great you really need to spend some time training in Halifax
before you can justify it]. Garrison and Propellor are the local micro
brews which are very good. Grantite Brewery is the oldest brew pub with
a very comfortable setting. Their Peculiar is bottled by Hart Brewery
in Carleton Place Ontario {as is the Kingston Brew Pubs' Dragon's Breath
Pale Ale] Have pan fired Haddock at Maxwells Plub and a Caledonian
80/ - it is beers of the world place. Have "Two and Juice" and steak
and eggs at the "Midtown on Saturday morning hung. For trendies the
Economy Shoe Shop on Argyle Street has a good selection of brews on tap
that move quickly to the Hoegaarden is always fresh in summer. Go to
the Lower Deck late on Friday night and watch Nova Scotians sing our own
folk songs at the top of our lungs after a couple of gallons of draft.
Also, eat a donair, local Lebanese community fast food Maritimers love -
must be done inebriated - smells the garlic coming out of your pores for
days.
Check out the websites for Halifax night life or even the Halifax Daily
News for a good sense of the city. Go to see Lunenburg, one hour down
the south shore. A United Nations' certified gem of a old fashioned
coastal town. Also, eat more seafood... There is also a great brewing
supply shop, Brewng Centres, in Dartmouth on Akerley Blvd. It is run
by a couple of guys who have won national awards for their own brews.
They do mail deliveries for we rural brewers in the hinterlands.
Again, any help you might want would be no problem to provide. Both
Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island have very keen tourist government
agencies. Do some internet seaching and they should pop up quickly...
Alan McLeod in PEI
Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 01 Feb 2001 07:49:10 -0500
From: "Fred L. Johnson" <FLJohnson at worldnet.att.net>
Subject: Racking from plastic fermentor
Gregor asks how to rack from a plastic bucket fermentor. Gregor has
probably had the same difficulties I and many of us have had in maintaining
the racking cane in a convenient location and keeping it in place. Greger
fears that allowing the beer to flow through the very convenient spout at
the bottom will contaminate his beer. I tried a number of not very
successful methods until I finally gave up and started using the spout.
However, I take special care to keep the spout sanitized from the time the
bucket is first sanitized. I store the spout (except for the rubber gasket,
which will corrode) in a bucket of iodophor with a lot of other small parts
and tubing. When the bucket is sanitized with iodophor, the solution is
emptied from the bucket with the spout (at least partly). After emptying
the bucket, I close the spout and immediately connect a 5 ml syringe filled
with iodophor to the end of the spout with plastic tubing and fill the spout
with iodophor. The spout has a little vent hole that allows flow in this
otherwise sealed arrangement.
I keep the syringe and iodophor on the spout until I'm ready to move the
beer from this fermentor to a secondary. Before I use the spout, it gets
flushed thoroughly with iodophor solution and a bulb type syringe (or any
other type of syringe), taking advantage of the little vent hole in the
spout. I make sure the spout is well drained before I connect tubing to it
and then open the spout to allow flow from the primary fermentation bucket
to the secondary (carboy).
No problems in about 30 brews using this method.
- --
Fred L. Johnson
Apex, North Carolina
USA
Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 01 Feb 2001 07:55:39 -0500
From: "Al Beers" <albeers at hotmail.com>
Subject: hop ID
Jay wrote: I'm beginning to doubt the original labelling.
I was wondering if anyone was aware of a lab or service that could confirm
the hop varieties growing in my garden.
You might try the Hopunion site: http://www.hopunion.com/pics.htm
I found it helpful, when I had similar situation. Hope this helps,
Don't take life too seriously...you won't get out alive.
Al
albeers at hotmail.com
Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 1 Feb 2001 07:58:51 -0500
From: fridgeguy at voyager.net
Subject: Philco fridge
Greetings folks,
In HBD #3545, David.Personaire asks about drilling the side of an old
Philco fridge to install a beer shank and faucet and wants to avoid
hitting any refrigerant lines.
Fridges of that era were made to last and were simple designs in
comparison to what is built today. The small ice cube tray compartment
in these old fridges is actually the evaporator. The refrigerant lines
should be visible at the rear of the compartment where they run from
the evaporator into the rear of the cabinet.
There is usually a sheet metal cover or panel on the rear of these
fridges that covers the insulation and refrigerant lines. Some are
formed in a way that allows you to see where the lines run. Others can
be removed to allow access to the lines. In almost every case, the
lines run down the back of the cabinet, near the center.
The side is likely to be the safest place to drill the fridge. In
rare cases wiring may run through the area so use caution when
drilling. There is often a trim piece near the door gasket that can be
removed to allow access to the area between the inner and outer
cabinet. The insulation will likely be either rock wool or fiberglass
so it can be moved aside for a better view.
Some of these old beasts used porcelainized steel inner cabinets
which can be pretty tough to drill. See the current thread on drilling
enameled brew pots for ideas. Be sure to seal around any opening you
create to prevent air leaks and to keep moisture out of the insulation
(which may already be water-soaked).
Hope this helps!
- ----------------------------------------
Forrest Duddles - Fridgeguy in Kalamazoo
fridgeguy at voyager.net
- --
Is your email secure? http://www.pop3now.com
(c) 1998-2001 secureFront Technologies, Inc. All rights reserved.
Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 1 Feb 2001 08:30:56 -0500
From: "Bridges, Scott" <ScottBridges at sc.slr.com>
Subject: DH
>Date: Wed, 31 Jan 2001 09:31:54 -0700
>From: "Jeffry D Luck" <Jeffry.D.Luck at aexp.com>
>Subject: DH? - Re. Off-topic observation
>
>Ok, I'll bite. What does DH stand for?
Ahhh, DH. The pet name my ex-wife had for me. Brings back many fond
memories (sarcasm). Well, it's obvious that the guys who are not familiar
with this term have never been married.
Scott
Trying to find time to brew in Columbia, SC.
p.s. One of these days I'll get my GPS out and figure out where the h*ll I
am in rennerian coordinates.
Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 1 Feb 2001 09:17:13 -0500
From: ctreves at vic.com
Subject: Re: NC Micros
I recommend "Weeping Radish" micro. Usually available
are: "Fest" and "Corolla Gold". I have been trying like
hell to duplicate the "Corolla Gold" in homebrew and
haven't been able to. Also, the law in TN is "no beer
imported thru the mail" so I can't get any of this stuff
myself without going over there. I have pestered their
distributor about this more than once and have been told
that the R-D area is as far west in NC that they can be
found. He recommended hitting several large grocery stores.
They run a microbrewpub in the Outer Banks if you are
getting out that far. They also ship to places that allow
beer to be shipped in, unlike TN. www.weepingradish.com
If you find it, for pete's sake have a Gold for me b/c I
can't.
Christopher Reves
frustrated in Knoxville,TN
miatachris at hotmail.com
Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 01 Feb 2001 09:19:32 +0000
From: Bob Hall <nap_aca_bh at nwoca.org>
Subject: Wort Sensitivity
Stephen Neilsen wrote:
"My experience, such as it is, indicates that splitting the brew period
is filled with complications. I have had perhaps five ocassions where
this has happened, genreally due to SHMBO screaming bitter somethings in
my face .... With one exception, the beer tasted like the local dog
population had used my chiller as a hi tech (dog-wise) dunny"
Stephen, new-born wort is a delicate creation! It senses discord, picks
up those "bad vibes," and when alarmed withdraws frightened into its
worty-fetal shell. Your wort has been permanently scarred by those
'screaming bitter somethings.' Not true you say? Look at your own
correlation. Try an experiment .... coo, kiss, and nibble some ears over
the next batch (SHMBO optional). Post the results on HBD (primarily the
brewing, but results of the cooing might make interesting reading too).
Reminds me of growing up on the dairy farm. Be calm around the cows ....
stressed cows = no milk. Stressed wort = no beer. We must have done
alright ... never had a tank of milk taste like doggy do.
Bob
Napoleon, OH
Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 01 Feb 2001 09:55:21 -0500
From: David Harsh <dharsh at fuse.net>
Subject: DH / Kettle volume / Fig beer / 1/2 barrel fermenters
Greetings-
Obviously, DH are my initials. I don't believer, however, that the
most common usage in society is in reference to me. At the risk of
offending someone with coarse language, I think it usually is a variant
of the term "richard head" if you know what I mean.
- ---
Kettle volume
If you aren't going to impose your welding friends to put in a sight
glass, why not take a stick <tm> and put little marks on it at various
volumes that you measure. You could then dip it into the wort and see
how high it gets wet. Hmmm. Dipping a stick, you could use this in
other applications as well. I better patent that concept soon before it
makes its way into the public domain.
- ----
Fig beer
There's a Belgian ale that includes figs as a flavoring adjunct (it is
not a lambic). As many Belgians have raisiny/plum/etc. notes, the fig
flavors blend nicely. I don't remember the brewery or the name, but
check Jackson if you want the details. As far as a conventional "fig
beer", I can't say it appeals to me. But then, I want to make a kimchee
beer to mess with judges that want to tell me that a rotten cabbage
aroma and flavor is inappropriate. (no, I'm not serious)
- ----
Instead of worrying about sealing the barrel, just do what a friend of
mine has done. Take two half barrels, cut a small opening in one (~8"
diameter) and a large "boiling kettle" size hole in the other. You can
then take the large "opening" and use it as a lid for the small hole and
you have essentially an open fermenter (plug the hole where the tap
fitting was. The lids from the small holes can be used as cymbals in
bockfest parades.
If you must seal the keg, Dan "every telemarketer's worst nightmare"
Listermann uses a pressure relief valve on a corny keg for fermenting
but I don't know if he's selling them yet.
Dave Harsh
Bloatarian Brewing League Cincinnati, OH
Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 1 Feb 2001 09:55:24 -0500
From: "Houseman, David L" <David.Houseman at unisys.com>
Subject: RE: Kettle volume indicator
As a volume indicator in my sankey kettle I took a wooden dowel (could have
been my wooden paddle but had an extra dowel but didn't want to mark up my,
at the time, new paddle, ne large restaurant wooden spoon) and marked it as
a dip stick. I added water to my kettle, 2 quarts at a time, letting the
surface settle then placing my dip stick into the kettle, withdrawing it,
and marking with a pencil at each addition. So I then had a dip stick which
was calibrated to what the wort in the kettle would be. I had one problem
which had to get fixed. Originally I used cold water and due to the thermal
expansion of liquid, the measurement at high temperatures was incorrect. It
would have been ok for the wort when chilled but I was always off when I was
measuring hot wort out of the lauter tun or during the boil. So I re-did
the calibration using water that was about 200oF so that I was close to both
the knock out temperature of wort and to that of boiling wort. It's been
much more accurate as far as predicting the true volume of the wort in the
kettle and what yields in the fermenter as I measure boil off. A dip stick
is easy and cheap.
Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 1 Feb 2001 07:13:38 -0800
From: Jim Cave <cave at psc.org>
Subject: Does anyone still floor-malt their Maris Otter?
Benjy Edwards asks if anyone still floor malts their Maris Otter.
Beestons does and I believe Crisp does (if they are still going). BTW
Beastons is excellent malt.
Jim Cave
Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 01 Feb 2001 15:22:49 GMT
From: mikey at swampgas.com (The Artist Formerly Known As Kap'n Salty)
Subject: re: How to rack from primary fermentor
In HBD 3545 Gregor wrote:
> I am afraid that I would
> infect my beer by letting it flow through the plastic faucet.
> Or do you use the faucet? If so, how do you make sure that
> there are no nasties hidden in the faucets. Life would be much
> easier, if I could use the faucets, because they normally are
> placed just a few centimeters above the bottom of the vessel
> and would neatly leave the yeast cake and trub behind. And
> there is easy flow control.
Go ahead and use the spigot, provided everything is cleaned this will
work fine. After sanitizing the bucket, run the sanitizer off through
the faucet. Then you can seal the nozzle up with plasic wrap and
rubber bands if you'd like. If you're _really_ paranoid, get a syringe
and repeatedly squirt idophor or sanitizer up the nozzle 10 minutes or
so prior to racking (use a bucket below the fermentor to keep from
making a mess).
I used this method for years with no problems (I've since gone to a
stainless fermentor, tho).
Cheers -- m
**************************************
Do not taunt Happy Fun Ball.
Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 1 Feb 2001 09:24:11 -0600
From: "Formanek, Joe" <Jformanek at griffithlabs.com>
Subject: Drunk Monk Challenge - 3/24/01 - 1st call for judges
THE DRUNK MONK CHALLENGE
March 24, 2001
Sponsored by the Urban Knaves of Grain
The Urban Knaves of Grain will host the 3rd Annual Drunk Monk Challenge
homebrew competition on March 24 at Two Brothers Brewing Company in
Warrenville, IL. The competition is AHA sanctioned and will accept all
styles of beer, cider, and mead according to the 1999 BJCP style guidelines.
It is a qualifying event for both MCAB IV as well as the 2001 Midwest
Homebrewer of the Year Award. Beer BOS winner will have the chance to brew
their award-winning beer at Glen Ellyn Brewing Company, of Glen Ellyn, IL!
Once again, we'll feature the Menace of the Monastery, a special category
for beer styles which recall the monastic brewing traditions of Belgium and
Germany: Belgian dubbel, tripel, pale, strong pale, and strong dark ales,
plus German doppelbock.
Requirements: 2 bottles. $6 fee for 1st entry, $4 each for 2 or more
entries for the main competition; just $2 each for Menace entries. Entry
deadline is March 17th.
Prizes: Ribbons for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd in each category plus 2nd and 3rd
places in Beer and Meed/Cider BoS and Menace. There will be a split Beer and
Mead/Cider BOS this year, with each receiving a commemorative plaque, as
does the Menace of the Monastery champion. Complimentary DMC tasting glass
for all volunteers.
Speaking of Volunteers: Please help! BJCP judges and apprentices, please
contact judge coordinator Steve McKenna (mckennst at earthlink.net,
630-305-0554) or competition chairman Joe Formanek
(jformanek at griffithlabs.com, 630-378-4694) to volunteer.
Fun stuff: Volunteers Party the night before. Potluck dinner at the
brewery after the competition. Plus the ever-popular huge raffle.
Information, Rules, and Entry Forms: Available at the competition website,
(http://www.sgu.net/ukg/dmc/) or contact me. Online registration is also
available at the website.
Cheers!!!
Joe Formanek
Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 1 Feb 2001 08:52:07 -0700
From: "Beth Fuchs" <bfuchs at chtm.unm.edu>
Subject: RE: DH
Frank and Jeff are wondering about DH:
I guess I can speak from a bit of experience here, as I'm one of the people
on rec.crafts.textiles.needlework who used the DH designation in the past.
DH can stand for many different things, all depending on what DH has most
recently done. Some times it is Damn Husband, some times Dear Husband, some
times Dunder Head..... I think you get my drift. The trick is to know which
DH you are talking about.
Beth
Danny says:
>Here in the HBD, most of us refer to our spouses/spousal equivalents
>as"SWMBO."
>In the needlework group, you see references to "DH."
So what the heck does it stand for? Dumb Head? Damn Husband? Doesn't
Help? Daddy's Home?
--frank
Ok, I'll bite. What does DH stand for?
Jeff Luck
Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 1 Feb 2001 10:21:00 -0500
From: "AYOTTE, ROGER C" <RCAYOT at solutia.com>
Subject: Racking Cane
I want to add my two cents to the discussion of racking cane for
siphoning wort to the CF chiller.
The advice is correct, it will work but become soft etc. However,
many have missed the opportunity to help advance this brewer to new
ideas.
Make a copper racking cane, it will withstand the hot wort just
fine. Add to the bottom of the cane a 1" diameter copper pipe cap.
Solder this on by inserting the copper tube about 3/4 of the way
into the copper cap (they use these for capping off 1" copper
tubing/piping). Then attach this to your CF chiller via a length
of flexible tubing. MAKE SURE YOU CLAMP IT WELL sorry to shout
but this is very important, the tubing will get soft and allow
air to intrude and at this point in the process, you don't want
to infuse air into your hot wort. The beauty of the soldered on
cap is that you can stuff it with stainless steel chore boy
(curly ribbons of SS; can be found in any grocery store along
side the brillo). This will act as a filter to help keep the
hops and hot break out of the chiller/fermenter train. The cap
will also only allow the wort to enter above the ~1" level and
above, also helping keep out hops/trub. At the end of the
siphoning, I usually tip the pot to get the last bit of wort out.
By this time the hops have created a suitable filter bed and if
you are careful and observant, you can recover almost all of your
wort cleanly.
The copper cane is sanitized at the same time the chiller is, I
soak them separately, connect the cane and chiller, rinse with the
hose, then siphon hot water through (no water through the chiller
at this time so it will stay hot) then place the cane in the pot,
fix with a spring clamp and siphon through the chiller into the
fermenter. I use a piece of sanitized hose over the outlet of the
chiller to suck on to start my siphon, I then slip on another piece
of hose with a copper venturi aerator on it to aerate my wort as it
exits the chiller. The copper venturi thing is a piece of copper
about 8" long with four small holes drilled in it about 3" from the
top. As the wort flows through the tube, air is drawn in through
the holes and mixes with the wort.
Good luck, and happy brewing!
Roger Ayotte
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Date: Thu, 1 Feb 2001 11:53:20 -0500 (EST)
From: Frank Tutzauer <comfrank at acsu.buffalo.edu>
Subject: racking with spigots
Gregor asks whether he should rack from his bucket by syphoning or by
using the spigot. I use the spigot, but I share his concern. I often
ferment in my damp, dank basement which is home to mold, fungi, and
all sorts of unicellular life. I once stored a keg in the basement
waiting its turn to get to the fridge, and like an idiot I left the
cobra tap attached. The resulting biology experiment left me
convinced that the local fauna would have no trouble whatsoever
crawling up the spigot of my fermenter.
I used to seal the spigot with a piece of tape. What I use now is an
inch or so of racking hose topped off with one of the white caps from
the top of an orange carboy cap I had lying around. On brew day, I
sanitize the bit of hose and the cap, run sanitizing solution through
the spigot, and seal it up by attaching the tubing and cap. I like to
use Star San for this becuase it "hangs around" but I have used
iodophor and bleach water, too.
On racking day, since the spigot has been sealed in a sanitary
environment, it's probably ok to use. Nonetheless, I rotate the
spigot to its "up" position, and pour some sanitizer through it,
catching the overflow in a cup. After appropriate contact time, I
rotate it to the "down" position, attach racking tube, and rack away.
If you're fermenting in a bucket with a spigot, whether you use the
spigot or not, at clean up time it's important to disasemble the
spigot and give it a good cleaning because all kind of yeast and other
crud gets in it.
--frank
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Date: Thu, 1 Feb 2001 11:56:08 -0500
From: Jeff Renner <nerenner at umich.edu>
Subject: Re: Does anyone still floor-malt their Maris Otter?
"Benjy Edwards" <rdbedwards at hotmail.com> writes:
> My local homebrew shop owner said that Beeston's is now no longer
>floor-malting their Maris Otter and that he was planning to switch to
>another British maltster, someone whose name starts with an F, perhaps
>Forest or some such name? Can anyone confirm or deny this?
That would probably be Thomas Fawcett and Sons.
http://www.fawcett-maltsters.co.uk/malts.htm gives this info:
"Seven Generations of Malting Experience . . .
"The Fawcett family has been making malt in Castleford, West
Yorkshire since the late 1780's. The Company was properly established
in 1809 and became a Limited Company just after the first War in 1919.
"The Company continues as one of the oldest family controlled and run
businesses in the UK. The sixth and seventh generation of Fawcetts
are actively involved in directing the activities of the Company
today." ...
"Fawcett's has kept abreast of technological progress in the malting
industry without losing sight of traditional and proven methods.
Today, Fawcett's remain as one of the few Maltsters still operating a
floor maltings in conjunction with a saladin maltings and a state of
the art automated germinating kilning vessel (GKV).
"...Fawcett's Ale malt is produced from the best winter barley
varieties available - Maris Otter, Halcyon and Pipkin are the main
varieties used today. Spring varieties are used occasionally for
specific contracts."
North Country Malt Supply, another family business, is the exclusive
importer to North America. http://www.northcountrymalt.com/. I've
dealt directly with them for Fawcett's malted oats and was very happy
with the service. I also received prompt and thorough technical
support via email from a Fawcett family member.
Hope this helps.
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: Thu, 01 Feb 2001 13:08:14 -0400
From: AJ <ajdel at mindspring.com>
Subject: Funky Pils
Jeff reports a "funky" smelling Pils which he describes as sulfury and
his wife as "dirty socks". Lets hope it is the former and not the
latter. Pilsner is supposed to be sulfury. The sulfur dioxide is
produced by the yeast during fermentation and it is one of my strong
suspicions that the monks selected these strains for their sulfur
producing qualities because sulfur keeps the beer in a reduced state and
reduced state beer is stable over long periods of time i.e. the
traditional 3 months (or longer in the case of Oktoberfest) lagering
period. Usually you will notice the sulfur during the active part of the
fermentation. "Smells like a paper mill." says Randy Paul who obviously
has more experience of paper mills than I do. The sulfur smell should be
a noticeable component of the new beer's "Jungbuket" and persist for a
month or so after which the beer rapidly "turns" with Jungbuket
disappearing in a couple of days. These comments are based on my
experience. Others may have observer otherwise.
The beer should still smell and taste sulfury to some extent and will
have asulfur dioxide content of up to 20 ppm. This will gradually
decrease over time. If you want to get rid of the sulfur diode the only
methods I can think of would be to oxidizse it (which sounds like a very
bad idea) or scrub it out with CO2. This should be doable by
pressurizing the beer to 30-40 psi CO2 for several days then bleeding
down to a few pounds. A couple of repetitions should eliminate a lot of
the SO2 (and, naturally other volatiles as well).
If it is really a dirty socks smell that suggests bacterial infection to
me.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
RE capping on foam: This is easily done with most of the counter
pressure fillers by simply giving the filled bottle a sharp rap with,
for example, the handle of a screwdriver. The rap should produce enough
foam to fill the neck but you have to be carefull not to overdo it or
the cap will ride the foam column up into the air and onto the floor.
Another technique used in commercial operations to raise foam in the
neck is to shoot a jet of hot water into the neck just before the bottle
reaches the capping station. I suppose home brewers could do that too
but I've never tried it. The rapping technique seems much simpler.
- --
A.J. deLange
CT Project Manager
Zeta Associates
10302 Eaton Place
Fairfax, VA 22030
(703) 359 8696
855 0905
ajdel at mindspring.com
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Date: Thu, 01 Feb 2001 09:57:15 -0800
From: SiteAcquisition <siteacquisition at Home.com>
Subject: RE: Floor Malted Grain
This post is regarding :
"From: "Benj. Edwards" <rdbedwards at hotmail.com>
Subject: Does anyone still floor-malt their Maris Otter?"
I have good information that Crisp Malting from England and most likely
Hugh Baird (also English) are floor malting their Maris Otter (Pale 2
row). Given the economics are against floor malting, I seriously doubt
that any of the large American malt producers would have a separate
small scale system for floor malting and a main system for high volume /
high speed batch malting. Can you imagine a worker at Great Western
dragging a wooden malt rake through a 4" deep malt bed in a small
building with exact temperature and humidity control? I doubt it.
If you want great beer, start with great ingredients. My standard base
malt is Maris Otter and typically from Crisp. The bag even has great
logo art on it, and makes a great wall covering. It is more expensive
than domestic 2 row, but if you buy it by the bag, the rate gets
reasonable.
"When in doubt, add more hops." - John Maier, Brewmaster - Rouge Brewing
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Date: Thu, 01 Feb 2001 13:09:27 -0500
From: Danny Breidenbach <dbreiden at math.purdue.edu>
Subject: DH
To the stitchers, DH usually refers to "Dear Husband," though some
admitted that any other D-word might be used.
I just thought the difference between DH and SWMBO was striking. I
guess those of us who do obey get the appellation "Dear," and those of
us who don't, get some other D-word.
- --Danny Boy
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Date: Thu, 1 Feb 2001 13:58:19 -0500
From: "S. SNYDER" <SSNYDER at LBGHQ.com>
Subject: I'm not dead yet!
Reports of my demise have been greatly exaggerated.
Scott Snyder
Trumbull, CT 06611
ssnyder at lbghq.com
Rotten Rotti Brewing Company
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Date: Thu, 1 Feb 2001 14:10:22 -0500
From: "S. SNYDER" <SSNYDER at LBGHQ.com>
Subject: faucet racking vs. siphoning
>Gregor mumbles:
"is is going to be my first posting on HBD. I read HBD already
since a long time though."
You are what is called a "lurker" my friend.
My primary fermenter is a 7 gallon bucket with no faucet at the bottom,
however, my bottling bucket (which is a standard 5 gallon) does have a
faucet. It sounds like you may have a hybrid of what I have.
I have always used the siphon because my primary demands it, as I said I
have no faucet. My only fear of you racking to the secondary with the
faucet is aeration. If you just open the faucet and let the beer fall
through the air into the secondary it will aerate and cause off flavors
(stale). But if you attach a tube to the faucet and ensure the tube reaches
the bottom of the secondary, that would certainly help reduce the risk of
oxygenation/aeration.
The faucet is certainly a location where infection could occur as there are
some places in the faucet that are hard to disinfect. There is no reason
not to siphon in my opinion.
Scott Snyder
Trumbull, CT
ssnyder at lbghq.com
Rotten Rotti Brewing Company
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Date: Thu, 1 Feb 2001 14:50:52 EST
From: Epic8383 at aol.com
Subject: Gearheads
OK, OK, I screwed up. Thanx to everyone who reminded me that gears
multiply...
Gus
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Date: Thu, 1 Feb 2001 15:11:21 EST
From: Epic8383 at aol.com
Subject: Keg Fermenter
Hey,ya
At the risk of sounding like the bonehead that I am when it comes to gear
reductions, here goes a question about a sanke keg fermenter. Suppose you
hooked up the tap fitting, plugged shut the beer out line (which runs from
the bottom of the keg), and use the gas in line ( which runs into the top of
the keg) as your blowoff tube. When primary is complete, unhook the fitting,
clean it, and reconnect this time with the beer out line unplugged to draw
off the yeast from the bottom. You can then either let it develop carbonation
real-ale style, or let it secondary for a while then draw off the last of the
yeast, and force carbonate and possibly bottle from the keg. I see no reason
to modify the top of the keg.
Gus the gear-bonehead
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Date: Thu, 01 Feb 2001 21:04:45 -0000
From: "Anthony Torrez" <perpacity at hotmail.com>
Subject: Low Carb Beer
Inspired by the low-carb Atkins Diet fad, I was wondering about making a
"low carb" beer. My main questions are:
1. What are the most attenuative beer yeasts?
2. Would it be possible to make good beer with Champagne yeast?
3. In your opinion, what is the best way to make a low carb beer.
Thankyou everybody,
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