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	FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
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Contents:
  Brews in Boston? ("Abby, Ellen and Alan")
  RIMS pump running ("Bridges, Scott")
  yeast vitality or viability ("Nathaniel P. Lansing")
  re: Rodenbach ("Steven Parfitt")
  Ganging Thermocouples ("Robert E. Wilson")
  The Mazer Cup is now the Bill Pfeiffer Memorial Mazer Cup ("Ken Schramm")
  NERAX, No. CA breweries, new brew system cleaning ("Czerpak, Pete")
  Re: Bypassing Liquid Bread's Oxyenator? ("Donald D. Lake")
  Fw: Corking champagne bottles. . . ("Galloway")
  aeration (Bryan Gros)
  measuring RPM (Brian Myers)
  Re: Air lock in RIMS ("dludwig")
  MCAB 3 Winners ("Mike Riddle")


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Date: Wed, 02 May 2001 07:35:24 -0300
From: "Abby, Ellen and Alan" <elal at pei.sympatico.ca>
Subject: Brews in Boston?

I am in Boston for a few days in early June.   I suspect there is a
wealth of brewing supping and shopping to do.  Any recommendations?

Alan in PEI


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Date: Wed, 2 May 2001 08:21:36 -0400 
From: "Bridges, Scott" <ScottBridges at sc.slr.com>
Subject: RIMS pump running



From: "Mike Pensinger" <beermkr at bellatlantic.net>

>In a RIMS or HERMS system do the pumps runn constantly?  Or are they turned
>on and off with the element in a RIMS system?

Here's my $.02.

In my RIMS set up, I typically allow the mash to sit for 10-15 minutes to
make sure that mash is thoroughly "wetted" and the temperature is
stabilized.  Then, I turn on the pump and let it run for the entire duration
of the mash.  The heating element operates intermittantly depending on the
mash temp profile.

Scott
Brewing (once again) in Columbia, SC




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Date: Wed, 2 May 2001 08:54:10 -0400
From: "Nathaniel P. Lansing" <delbrew at compuserve.com>
Subject: yeast vitality or viability

  Now another word has been added to help describe whether or not
a yeast culture is suitable for pitching. Unfortunately it doesn't help
clarify the question. By definition (#1), both vitality and viability mean
the difference between alive or dead. A further definition (#2)of viability
is also "suitable for intended purposes"; further definition (#2) of
vitality
is "physical (or mental) vigor)".  It would appear for "our purposes", that
of making beer with the appropriate lag times and minimum off flavors
attributed to yeast starters, we would want to use definition #2 for both
viability and vitality. 
 So as of yet not clearly answered is: which would be a more suitable
pitching culture; A)a culture that is 97% alive with 6% glycogen levels
or B) a culture that is 93% alive with 50% glycogen levels?

**Huh? must be slipping, no flames and a direct, to the point question.
      must be getting old  :-(  **

NP Lansing



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Date: Wed, 02 May 2001 09:09:08 -0400
From: "Steven Parfitt" <the_gimp98 at hotmail.com>
Subject: re: Rodenbach

Mark Tumarkin replied:

>My understanding is that Palm is discontinuing the Alexander, which >has 
>cherry juice added, but keeping the Rodenbach Classic and the Gran >Cru. 
>This URL from the Real Beer Page has more info
http://realbeer.com/news/articles/news-000720.html
>While it's still disappointing to loose the Alexander, it's not the 
> >tragedy that loosing Rodenbach or the Gran Cru would have been. These 
> >are truly unique and wonderful beers.

This seems to be the consensis, that Alaxander is now discontinued, but that 
Gran Cru and Classic are still in production. The supply of Alaxander seems 
to be dissipating rapidly.

I have not been able to locate Classic.

My local supplier (One Stop Licquor store) had a "Sale" on Alaxander for 
$1.99/bottle. I bought all 16 bottles, being the greedy bastard that I am.

I have also ordered a six bottles of Gran Cru at $24/6, Ouch! I wanted a 
case, but can't justify the $96 plus tax it would have taken. $96 buys a lot 
of Grain and Hops.

For those of you who haven't tried these fine beers, you owe it to yourself 
to get at least one of each. It might not be a style you like (Flemish Red 
Ale), but it is a true experience to drink.

The Gran Cru is a "Fine Wine" of a beer. The Alaxander is a shadow of the 
Gran Cru, but still quite good.

Steven, -75 XLCH- Ironhead Nano-Brewery, Near Completion.
Johnson City, TN 5:47:38.9 S, 1:17:37.5 E Rennerian
http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumList?u=241124

"Fools you are... who say you like to learn from your mistakes.... I prefer 
to learn from the mistakes of others and avoid the cost of my own." Otto von 
Bismarck





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Date: Wed, 02 May 2001 08:30:50 -0500
From: "Robert E. Wilson" <Robert-E.Wilson at apgref.com>
Subject: Ganging Thermocouples

To Any Electronics Wiz's Out There:

I have completed converting my old three tier mash mixer type brewery to
a rims system.  I have only brewed H2O with it so far, experimenting
with optimal placement of the thermocouple probe.  I have noticed a
constant 1 to 2 degree difference in the temperature at the bottom of
the mash tun and at the half way level.  I use a bimetal thermometer at
the half way level and the thermocouple probe at the bottom.  The
thermometer is calibrated to the same temp as the thermocouple when tap
water is put into the tank.
My question is:  Can I replace the thermometer with another T'couple of
the same size and type and connect them in parallel to get an average
temperature?  If this is possible am I engaging in "OverKill" or would
this be of some advantage in controlling my Mash temperature?

TIA---Bob Wilson
Waiting to Brew in Auxvasse, Mo.
Robert-E.Wilson at APGRef.com



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Date: Wed, 02 May 2001 11:59:42 -0400
From: "Ken Schramm" <schramk at resa.net>
Subject: The Mazer Cup is now the Bill Pfeiffer Memorial Mazer Cup

Ladies and Gentlemen, 

The Mazer Cup is slated for return, now under the new moniker 
"the Bill Pfeiffer Memorial Mazer Cup."  The AABG and the new 
competition organizers, Jason Henning and Jim Suchy,  agreed 
on the change to honor our mead making and judging mentor and 
friend, Bill Pfeiffer, who passed away last May 5th.   He was a big 
influence on us all, and a repeatedly honored mead maker, having 
won awards ranging from numerous Mazer Cup firsts and seconds
to AHA Mead Maker of the Year.  For those not familiar with the 
competiion, the Mazer Cup is a mead only competition with several 
categories (8 last time), permitting meads to compete against their
 peers and not against dramatically different styles.

Plans at this point are for first round judging to occur March 16th 
and 23rd, 2002. Individual categories may be judged at locations 
around southeastern Michigan, but rest assured that all due care 
will be taken in the handling of entries.  

Information about the competition is available at 
www.mazercup.org.  Please drop by for information on entries 
and time tables.  Contact info is there, too, for those with questions.

Judges are welcome from whence-ever they originate.  Beds will 
be made available.  I truly believe that there is no better chance to 
taste and evaluate this broad a variety of meads - in one place 
at one time - in this country.  One cannot help but educate 
the palate.

As always, I feel confident that the Mazer Cup's standards for 
complete, courteous and helpful judge comments will be adhered 
to stringently. The Mazers will again be crafted by Nicole Henry, 
former thrower for the Pewabic Pottery and currently ceramic 
instructor at the esteemed Center for Creative Studies in Detroit.  
Year after year the beauty and creativity embodied in these 
hand-crafted ceramic vessels continues to astonish me;  they are 
truly unique acknowledgements of mead making acomplishment.

To paraphrase the song:

"Now we're back, and here to say, we can really shake 'em down."

Enter early and often.  Good luck!


Yours,
Ken Schramm
Charter Organizer (retired, at least temporarily)
Bill Pfeiffer Memorial Mazer Cup Mead Competition
Troy, Michigan



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Date: Wed, 2 May 2001 13:49:33 -0400 
From: "Czerpak, Pete" <Pete.Czerpak at siigroup.com>
Subject: NERAX, No. CA breweries, new brew system cleaning

Anybody going to the New England Real Ale Xhibition in Somerville this wkend
on saturday afternoon? Email me privately as I'm going by myself and hope to
gain some drinking partners there.

Jim H. asks about No. CA breweries.  Be sure to stop in at Anderson Valley
in Boontville and also the fellows that make Racer X (don't remember the
brewery name but you can search on the web for racer X).

Stephen asks about cleaning his new brewery before the first batch.
Consider doing a few boils of water and recirculating through all your lines
a few times.  Also think about some of the brewery cleaners and sanitizers
as well thru your system to avoid wasting all that time on a cleanout batch.
For a cleanout batch, maybe consider something that can hide possible flaws
like stout or american brown ale.  rather than something delicate like pils
or something that may cause startup problems like barleywine or wiezen or
rye ale.

have fun,
pete czerpak
pete.czerpak at siigroup.com
albany, NY


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Date: Wed, 02 May 2001 13:56:01 -0400
From: "Donald D. Lake" <dlake at gdi.net>
Subject: Re: Bypassing Liquid Bread's Oxyenator?

Bruce Garner writes that he spent $65 to by components that resemble the
Oxyenator from Liquid Bread....but why?  You buy can exactly what you
need without any adapting from Liquid Bread for $39.95.  In turn, you
would be supporting a homebrewer who made a considerable investment of
his time and money to come up with the perfect product.

I can understand the thought process of finding your own components more
cheaply and assempling them on your own time.  That makes sense because
some people have more time on their hands than others.  But to pay more
to do it yourself than to pay someone else to do it for you is just
plain nuts.

Don Lake
Time is money



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Date: Wed, 2 May 2001 13:56:06 -0400
From: "Galloway" <galloway at gtcom.net>
Subject: Fw: Corking champagne bottles. . . 


- -----Original Message-----
From: Galloway <galloway at gtcom.net>
To: post@hbd.org <post@hbd.org>
Date: Wednesday, May 02, 2001 1:52 PM
Subject: Corking champagne bottles. . .


Hey,

I want to brew a Saison style beer and bottle it in 750 ml champagne
bottles.
I would also like to use real cork  "corks" instead of the newer plastic
ones.
I have no idea in how to do that. Any thoughts??

Regards,
Dave Galloway
Chattahoochee FL




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Date: Wed, 2 May 2001 11:40:21 -0700 (PDT)
From: Bryan Gros <blgros at yahoo.com>
Subject: aeration

I'm finally breaking down and getting something to aerate my wort.

I know you can get O2 bottles and aquarium pumps. The only difference,
I believe, is the amount of time you let them run.

I also see there is a choice of air stones: 2 micron and .5 micron.
The difference there, I believe, is the smaller bubbles from the half
micron stone, but then you have to worry about foaming.

What has worked for you in practice?

How do you sanitize these things? Clean them?

thanks.

  - Bryan

Bryan Gros
Oakland, CA



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Date: Thu, 3 May 2001 07:32:12 +1200 
From: Brian Myers <BrianM at AdvantageGroup.co.nz>
Subject: measuring RPM

I haven't bothered to motorise my mill yet,
but I had an idea for measuring RPM.  If you
were to attach a long piece of thread to the
shaft, and keep it under a bit of tension (to
prevent it becoming snarled), you could run
the motor for a fixed amount of time, and then
use the wrapped thread as an indication of
the number of revolutions.  Crude, but should
give you at least a ballpark figure.

cheers,
Brian
Auckland, New Zealand


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Date: Wed, 2 May 2001 21:45:26 -0400
From: "dludwig" <dludwig at us.hsanet.net>
Subject: Re: Air lock in RIMS

>From: David N Boice <daveboice at juno.com>
>Subject: Air lock in RIMS

>        Well I've been racking my brain to no avail, but maybe someone else
>can
>figure it out. My brew setup is a RIMS built around a converted keg. It
>uses a false bottom with a 1/2" copper pipe coming up through the center
>of it and then to a welded coupling on the side. After a 1/2" ball valve
>on the other side of the coupling, wort then runs down about a foot,
>through 1/2" braided vinyl tubing, into the pump, through another 1/2"
>ball valve, more vinyl, and on to the heater, before returning to the top
>of the mash.
>        The reason I describe all of this in detail is I can't understand
why
>I'm getting air in-line, sometimes to the extent that it air locks and
>stops the flow altogether! When I brewed last Saturday I filled the..

You might be reducing the pressure of the liquid enough to reach it's vapor
pressure. Could be a local effect where the static pressure in the vicinity
of a fitting is causing localized boiling at the elevated temperatures. Just
a thought.

Dave Ludwig
Flat Iron Brewery
SO MD



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Date: Wed, 2 May 2001 19:35:47 -0700
From: "Mike Riddle" <riddle at sonic.net>
Subject: MCAB 3 Winners 

You can now view the winners of the Third Annual Masters Championship of
Amateur Brewing at http://hbd.org/mcab/mcab3/.



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