HOMEBREW Digest #3699 Fri 03 August 2001

[Prev HBD] [Index] [Next HBD] [Back]


	FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
		Digest Janitor: janitor@hbd.org


***************************************************************
       THIS YEAR'S HOME BREW DIGEST BROUGHT TO YOU BY: 

          Northern  Brewer, Ltd. Home Brew Supplies
        http://www.northernbrewer.com  1-800-681-2739

    Support those who support you! Visit our sponsor's site!
********** Also visit http://hbd.org/hbdsponsors.html *********


Contents:
  Kegging...a cry for input (Denis Bekaert)
  Ergot ("Rob Compton")
  re: Ergot fungus/stirring high grav ferments. ("Stephen Alexander")
   ("plotek")
  Mill Motor ("Colby Fry")
  Unibroue and non-GMOs (Julio Canseco)
  lost items ("Alan McKay")
  Cologne Koelsch Info ("Alan McKay")
  One last Saint ("David Craft")
  saints, kegging (Randy Ricchi)
  Something to be considered (Alan Monaghan)
  p.s. on Koelsch info ("Alan McKay")
  Maritime Brew-Pubs ("H. Dowda")
  Hydrometer correction ("Drew Avis")
  RE: Ergot fungus and beer (Bryan Heit)
  White Translucent Plastic and UV Penitration ("Dan Listermann")
  RE: Kegging vs Bottling ("Houseman, David L")
  Oxidation question ("T & S Klepfer")
  Pre-Boil Gravity and Berliner Weiss (Richard Foote)
  Ergot fungus and beer --- reminiscing... ("Gary Smith")
  Relays for  RIMS? ("Gary Smith")
  kegging woes (Ed Jones)

* * Show your HBD pride! Wear an HBD Badge! * http://hbd.org/cgi-bin/shopping * * Beer is our obsession and we're late for therapy! * Send articles for __publication_only__ to post@hbd.org If your e-mail account is being deleted, please unsubscribe first!! To SUBSCRIBE or UNSUBSCRIBE send an e-mail message with the word "subscribe" or "unsubscribe" to request@hbd.org FROM THE E-MAIL ACCOUNT YOU WISH TO HAVE SUBSCRIBED OR UNSUBSCRIBED!!!** IF YOU HAVE SPAM-PROOFED your e-mail address, you cannot subscribe to the digest as we cannot reach you. We will not correct your address for the automation - that's your job. The HBD is a copyrighted document. The compilation is copyright HBD.ORG. Individual postings are copyright by their authors. ASK before reproducing and you'll rarely have trouble. Digest content cannot be reproduced by any means for sale or profit. More information is available by sending the word "info" to req at hbd.org. JANITOR on duty: Pat Babcock and Karl Lutzen (janitor@hbd.org)
---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 1 Aug 2001 22:58:11 -0700 (PDT) From: Denis Bekaert <Denis-B at rocketmail.com> Subject: Kegging...a cry for input Ant Hayes wrote: <Whilst agreeing on the time and effort part - I differ on kegging being easy. I find that bottling gives far greater control over carbonation. I have been kegging for a few years now, and still battle to get a well carbonated beer to pour properly. A beer line is a bit like an old Alfa Romeo - you may love it, but it plays up all the time, one day pouring fine and the next day foam.> Hey Ant....I bow to your greater experience in kegging, but it seems to me that there just HAS to be a way to solve the foaming issue. With a bow to the gods of brewing, I would think that it is a matter of physics regarding the amount of carbonation a kegged beer can and will hold/release. Of course, style dictates degree of carbonation and complicates matters. Seems like the factors of beer temperature, CO2 psi, and length and diameter of the beer line are the critical factors here, but remember I'm a newbie at kegging. I've been playing around with a keg, changing pressure but leaving the other variables constant, trying to get the proper level of carbonation/head in the glass with some(?) success. I'd sure appreciate some wisdom on this issue from the collective, especially from you Ant, since you were the one who commented on my post. I'm still at the stage where going down to the brew 'fridge and drawing a mug from a keg excites the heck out of me, so my enthusiasm might seem excessive...nah, I hope I don't lose it with experience and/or time. Brew on, brothers and sisters... Denis in Beechgrove, Tennessee where Moonshine is our history, but homebrewing is our passion Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 2 Aug 2001 07:42:03 +0100 From: "Rob Compton" <compton at btinternet.com> Subject: Ergot Hello beerlings, Ergot is not just confined to rye crops. We have suffered the odd "infection" of wheat crops too. And as we grow around 1000 acres of wheat here, we do get to see a bit of it from time to time. I used to contract to one of the UK's biggest grain merchants as a haulier, and that took me to hundreds of farms across the south eastern part of England. I got to know which farms were the best ergot growers! Soil type has a major impact on the success of the ergot fungus, also some varieties of wheat are affected more than others. And yes, the weather has an effect too. The hallucinogenic effects are caused by a natural version of LSD, perhaps this is where the CIA found the "recipe" for it!!! What I do know is that any loads of grain found to contain ergot would be rejected from just about any mill, and I've had to endure plenty of that in the past! There was one mill that used to take loads of grain that contained ergot, whether they didn't care about it, or more likely they had a gravity separator which removes infected grains with ease, I don't know. What I do know is that they made flour for the "Happy Shopper" brand here in the UK. Draw your own conclusions about that ;-) Talking to the operatives at the plants where they had the technology to remove ergot infected grain, they informed me that the pieces of ergot either had to be destroyed, or they could be sold to a certain pharmaceutical compay, other than that, the storage of it could be contrived as illegal as it contained a "Class A" drug. As has been mentioned in previous postings, it is entirely possible that ergot "poisoning" could be a major contributory factor in histerical cries of "Witch!!!!" Nuff sed for now. Back to the harvest! Regards Rob. PS: comment to Elizabeth Blades - is this why Melvyn's shop is the Happy Brewer? ;-) Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 2 Aug 2001 03:42:51 -0400 From: "Stephen Alexander" <steve-alexander at worldnet.att.net> Subject: re: Ergot fungus/stirring high grav ferments. Mark Hill writes ... >I just saw a television program [...] >The effects of Ergot seem to be similar to LSD but worse. Must have been a government sponsored networks where political correctness trumps accuracy. The statement above is true in the same sense that "drinking turpentine is similar to beer but worse". Painful, mutilating and potentially lethal gangrene and convulsions accompanied by confusion are effects of ergot, not LSD. - -- Stirring ... I've gone as far as placing carboys on stirplates for very flocculent yeasts (like wy1968). No significant negatives and a faster ferment result at moderate gravities. I'd suggest stirring from the beginning and not just in a secondary. Stirring prevents yeast sedimentation and doesn't reverse flocculation as has been suggested. Stirring actually aids flocculation (flocs faster once the yeast are prepared to floc). Reduces CO2 levels too. Among things I would consider doing for a very high grav ferment are acidifying the wort to ~pH=4.5 before pitching, pitch big, add CO2 nucleation points (e.g. activated (aquarium) carbon). The starter should benefit from being grown aerobically prior to pitching and *maybe* including extra O2 thru the first 6 or 12 hours after pitching. I'd also allow time to develop the starter under very cool conditions. Be prepared to re-pitch. Yeast won't ferment quickly unless they are dividing. But the yeast in a high grav brew need more sterols and UFAs to create sufficient membranes to efficiently counter the higher osmotic pressures & ethanol levels. Pitching big and repitching may help overcome the problems. The starter aeration and cooler starter conditions help also. I've papers that show remarkable improvement in attenuation of high grav wort-like mixtures when CO2 nucleation materials are added. Also if you are adding much non-malt adjunct (like sugars or a lot of raw starch) the decrease in amino acid levels may negatively impact the hi-grav ferment. -S Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 2 Aug 2001 18:58:33 +1000 From: "plotek" <plotek at optushome.com.au> Subject: RP/ Ergot in beer It comes as no suprise with anyone who lived through the sixties and seventies. Ergotamide was rumoured to be one of the raw materials in LSD manufacture. These rusts are common on wheats etc and spoil a heck of a lot of produce in places susceptible to it. The fact that americans used to burn their fugly babes is of absolutely no use to an australian. But it is useful to know this as an excuse for a bit of creative kitchenware handling. It does explain why cardinals get around in their getup (that is no suit sire, that is a frock of the first order) and why people get religion. Its the rye bread every time!!! Burgenhaus zwartzenbrod is now officially off the Mud menu Cheerio to all my friends in frothville! InSaNe MuDgUtS Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 2 Aug 2001 08:41:13 -0400 From: "Colby Fry" <colbyfry at pa.net> Subject: Mill Motor By the grace of God I am about to "receive" a Valley Mill. I read in a Zymurgy magazine last month in "How to build a better brewery" about motorizing the mill. I was wondering if anyone had any recommendations on the type/model of motor that I should use as well as, the type of sheave (pulley). The sheave that they use in Zymurgy is 9" dia. I have an account at McMaster-Carr and the biggest sheave they carry is 8"? Any recommendations? Possibly Grainger? I think that Valley recommends 300 rpm for a good crush. Also, Zymurgy recommends that you use particle board for the base. Wouldn't particle board eventually crack off into the crushed grain? Thanks in advance for any answers public or personal. Colby Fry colbyfry at pa.net The lone Brewer in Roxbury, Pa pop. 200 Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 02 Aug 2001 08:28:34 -0400 From: Julio Canseco <jcanseco at arches.uga.edu> Subject: Unibroue and non-GMOs Since traffic is a bit slow I'd thought I'd just share an interesting note with the hbd community. Unibroue brewery of Chambly (outskirts of Montreal, Canada) has just started advertising their beers as "free of genetically modified organisms". Unibroue is the maker of fine belgian beers such as Maudite, Tres Pistols and my personal favorite: La Fin du Monde..... none of which can purchased here in 6% abv Georgia. I think Unibroue is making sure their European market does not frown upon their products, since GMOs are a bit more of public concern in Europe than here. What is interesting is that Unibroue had the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) conduct the certification, which they granted. However when Unibroue publicly stated their beers to be "Certified-Free of GMOs by the CFIA", CFIA rescinded from their decision and actually tried to get the court to prohibit Unibroue from advertising it. The court, or at least a judge, dismissed it. Check unibroue.com I wonder what motivated the CFIA to go back on their certification.... special interests? And will any brewery large or small in the US follow suit? Don't think so. julio in athens, georgia ....hangovers are the wrath of grapes... Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 2 Aug 2001 08:31:28 -0400 (EDT) From: "Alan McKay" <amckay at ottawa.com> Subject: lost items Len Safhay wrote : > Arnold also takes care of millers, music and > helps to find lost articles, and I grew up praying to St Anthony to help find stuff. "Dear St Anthony please come around, Something's lost and can't be found" cheers, -Alan - -- - -- "Brewers make wort. Yeast makes beer." - Dave Miller http://www.bodensatz.com/ What's a Bodensatz? http://www.bodensatz.com/bodensatz.html Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 2 Aug 2001 08:32:51 -0400 (EDT) From: "Alan McKay" <amckay at ottawa.com> Subject: Cologne Koelsch Info Bob, Unfortunately I do not know of any english-language brewery tours, but that's not to say there are not any. On Saturday's at 2pm in front of the Hans Sion Brauhaus there are walking tours of the downtown Brauhaeuser. You could probably start there and try to see if anyone is offering an English tour. The company I went with is called "Koelner Altstadt & Brauhaus Wanderweg" and can be reached at 0221/240 46 79 (Wed, Thu, Fri 8 to 12). It was all German, though. But they do custom-made tours according to your wishes, so maybe they can hook you up with an English one. Many of the brewmasters are quite open to visitors, and I managed to get a good number of private tours while there, and spent a good amount of time with various brewmasters. Whether or not you'll get as far without speaking German I don't know. I never did release the following website after my trip to Cologne last August, but since it's looking like it will be a while before I get a chance to do the work on it I really want to, I might as well do so now. Check out http://www.koelsch-konvention.com/ and once inside check out "BierTourist" on the left. I currently do not have any real brewing info on the site - I'm holding off on that until I get the security working properly. But at least there is a lot of info there on where to drink beer. You should take a look at the Weissbraeu. Most folks don't end up there because it is not right downtown, but the food and beer are incredible. And as the smallest Koelsch brewery, your chances of getting into Peter (the brewmaster's) private stock are probably the greatest. He brews several times a week. Hmmmm, taking a look it seems I do not yet have a page up there on the Weissbraeu, but if you check back in the HBD end of August / first of Sept 2000, you will see several reports I made and one was on the Weissbraeu. BTW, email me and I can send you a photo of Peter so you will know how to recognize him when you are there ;-) Maybe next week while I'm on vacation I'll get the WB up on the website. As for getting unfiltered beer to take home for starters, why bother? Most of the popular Koelsch strains I know of over here come from real Koelsch breweries anyway. Chris White of White Labs told me once which brewery his comes from, though I'm not sure he wanted me to pass on exactly which it was. In any case, rest assured it is authentic. cheers, -Alan - -- - -- "Brewers make wort. Yeast makes beer." - Dave Miller http://www.bodensatz.com/ What's a Bodensatz? http://www.bodensatz.com/bodensatz.html Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 2 Aug 2001 08:27:28 -0400 From: "David Craft" <David-Craft at craftinsurance.com> Subject: One last Saint Here is the one Saint I always look up to as I prepare my recipes..... Saint ProMash of Sausalitto. I couldn't do it without him! David B. Craft Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 02 Aug 2001 08:45:20 -0400 From: Randy Ricchi <rricchi at ccisd.k12.mi.us> Subject: saints, kegging Stephen Johnson said: "Saint Babcock, Patron Saint of Modern Day Homebrewers!" I thought he was the patron saint of plaid-wearing homebrewers? And let's not forget Jeff Renner, the patron saint of brewing coordinates. Ant Hayes mentioned trouble with his beer lines, pouring fine one day and all foam the next. I have never had this problem, although a friend of mine always did. I wonder if Ant Hayes primes his beer when he kegs it. My friend always does, and I never do. I wait until the beer has cleared in the secondary , then keg and force carb. I have a feeling that people who are having trouble with foaming are getting excess CO2, either from too much priming sugar, or because the beer wasn't COMPLETELY fermented out when they kegged it. Of course, I'm assuming they already ruled out the other cause of foaming, which is having the wrong combination of hose length/type/diameter for the amount of carbonation/pressure/temperature they desire. Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 1 Aug 2001 08:04:09 -0400 From: Alan Monaghan <AlanM at Gardnerweb.com> Subject: Something to be considered The following is a message sent to the oz beer forum : G'day All / Bit of talk about beer calculation programs. To me there are two out there that I use. Yes thats two because i haven't yet found that killer beer program, so I use both these programs for different uses. / 1. Promash 2. Brewers Workshop / I have a couple of others as well but i always tend to fall back to these two. Now both have sharewhare versions you can download (last time I looked). The Promash locks you out after you store three receipes, so unless you know how to break the code (some of us do know how mind you) dont use it to store receipes. The Brewers Workshop has a thirty-day timer on it that locks you out after 30 days. Now you cant buy Brewers Workshop anymore, but you still get the demo version. / Now David look away cause i know your feelings here. I take objection to demo versions being on the net with timers on it, then if you like it you cant order the program. So if anyone wants to get Brewers Workshop, then know how to break the timer, let me know and I will tell you. / Shout Graham Sanders <soap box on> I bring this up as this sort of thing bothers me to no end. The ProMash is a great program, costs very little and a person has spent a lot of time programming it. Why should Graham propose stealing from him? This is not Microsoft trying to gouge us, he is not taking the money and running.... Why then Mr. Sanders do you wish to take something that is not yours? As for the 2nd, if you can't buy it anymore, it is public domain and do with as you please but I think the morals of someone who would espouse stealing needs to be questioned.... <soap box off> Beer and Sweatt forever, Bengals in the Superbowl, never!!!! Be like water my friend ... Alan G. Monaghan, MCSE+I Gardner Publications, Inc. Internet Administrator * Phone 1-513-527-8867 * Fax 1-513-527-8801 * Cell 1-513-520-6866 * E-mail AlanM at Gardnerweb.com <mailto:AlanM at Gardnerweb.com> 5 URL http://Bullwinkle.GardnerWeb.Com Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 2 Aug 2001 09:12:16 -0400 (EDT) From: "Alan McKay" <amckay at ottawa.com> Subject: p.s. on Koelsch info When in Cologne, you absolutely ***MUST*** visit Lommerzheim. See http://www.lommerzheim.com/ for details. And they serve the wonderful Paeffgen Koelsch, too! cheers, -Alan - -- - -- "Brewers make wort. Yeast makes beer." - Dave Miller http://www.bodensatz.com/ What's a Bodensatz? http://www.bodensatz.com/bodensatz.html Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 2 Aug 2001 06:16:39 -0700 (PDT) From: "H. Dowda" <hdowda at yahoo.com> Subject: Maritime Brew-Pubs Any recommendations for brew-pubs in Nova Scotia, New Foundland and Prince Edward Island? Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 02 Aug 2001 13:52:21 From: "Drew Avis" <andrew_avis at hotmail.com> Subject: Hydrometer correction Brewers: I'm tapping out this message, plagued with doubts about hydrometer correction formulae (gratuitous plague/taps reference for thematic continuity only). I'm struggling with hydrometer correction formulae, as it is a feature I want to add to the upcoming release of StrangeBrew. Here's what I've got so far: In the Aug 12, 1994 HBD, William Cook posts his formula as: Corrected SG = SG + -2.6086e-9*T^3 + 2.0441e-6*T^2 - 1.3003e-4*T + 1.0991e-3 Dan Gerth posts in the same HBD issue his formula: Corrected SG = SG + 9.933E-7 * T^2 + 1.956E-6 * T - 4.065E-3 In HBD #963, 9/7/92, Christopher Lyons posts a formula: Corrected SG = SG + 1.313454 - 0.132674*T + 2.057793e-3*T^2 - 2.627634e-6*T^3 In all of these formulae, T= temperature reading. In the first two, the hydrometer calibration temp is 60F, in the third its 59F. Mark Riley's excellent Hydrometer Correction widget (http://hbd.org/cgi-bin/recipator/brew/widgets/hc0.html) uses something like this formula: DeltaSG= 1.00130346 - 1.34722124E-4 * T + 2.04052596E-6* T^2 - 2.32820948E-9 *T^3 He then calculates DeltaSG at the hydrometer's calibration temp (ct) and at the hydrometer sample temp (it), and calculates the corrected SG as SG * DeltaSG(it)/DeltaSG(ct) Question one: who has an opinion as to which of these formulae is superior? In the hydrometer correction tables I've seen, the correction factor also depends on the SG range of the reading (for example in Noonan's _New Brewing Lager Beer_, and an online metric version at: http://www.gtbrewery.co.uk/hydrometer%20correction%20table.htm). Question two, does anyone know an uber-formula that accounts for the SG being corrected in the formula to arrive at a table similar to Noonan's, preferably a formula that would account for different hydrometer calibration temperatures (of which I'm only aware of three: 15C (59F), 60F, and 68F/20C)? Thanks in advance for any insights from the mathematically/hydrometerically inclined. Drew - -- Drew Avis, Merrickville, Ontario Visit Strange Brew with Drew: http://www.geocities.com/andrew_avis/ Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 02 Aug 2001 08:09:07 -0600 From: Bryan Heit <bjheit at ucalgary.ca> Subject: RE: Ergot fungus and beer The active chemical produced by ergot is very similar to LSD - in fact LSD can be synthesized from this compound with only three or four steps. LSA (lysogenic acid) is the chemical produced by ergot, and is not psychoactive to all people. Its also a suspected carcinogen (as is LSD), and is renowned for causing "bad trips". Its believed that the term "spring madness" may have arisen from people eating grain that had been stored improperly over the winter (read: a lot of ergot), which would cause them to act a little strange. I've never read anything about its effects in beer, but I'd imagine it would give you a good buzz ;-) Bryan Heit >Slightly off the beerten path I just saw a television program that mentioned Ergot >fungus. As related to people thought to be either witches or possesed of the devil. >The effects of Ergot seem to be similar to LSD but worse. The affects came from >eating bread made from the affected rye. So beer probably would not Help. >The program tried to corelate the persecution of witches in medival times in >Europe with weaher patterns favorable to Ergot infection of the rye crop. > > SeeYa-- >Mark Hill Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 2 Aug 2001 10:25:18 -0400 From: "Dan Listermann" <dan at listermann.com> Subject: White Translucent Plastic and UV Penitration I come to the collective with a question. To what degree does UV light penetrate a quarter inch of white translucent plastic? Is it enough to skunk a beer? Perhaps I should bottle a light beer in a clear bottle and put it in a white plastic bucket upside down in the sunlight for a while. Dan Listermann Check out our new E-tail site at http://www.listermann.com Take a look at the anti-telemarketer forum. It is my new hobby! Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 2 Aug 2001 10:49:52 -0400 From: "Houseman, David L" <David.Houseman at unisys.com> Subject: RE: Kegging vs Bottling Denis Bekaert wrote >The moral of the story is this: if you have ever >thought that kegging your beer was too big a step, >think again...its easy and it will save you an amazing >amount of time and effort I both keg and bottle. After doing both for a long time I have to say that I feel that the effort is different, not necessarily easier to keg. Sure at first blush it appears easier, and perhaps those that have been kegging longer have developed tricks of the trade to make it easier, but when I look at the efforts I go through to clean, sanitize and eliminate O2 from my kegs, it's a lot of work. Lots of crevices for bacteria to hide. Move a keg and the sediment is shaken up. But I still do both for different reasons and how much time I have at the time fermentation is complete. I find it easier to lager in kegs than carboys. I don't want tie up kegs for high gravity ales that I want to keep a long time. With the oven or dishwasher, bottle sanitation is not difficult. Each for it's own purposes and benefits. Dave Houseman Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 2 Aug 2001 10:21:44 -0500 From: "T & S Klepfer" <lee-thomas at indian-creek.net> Subject: Oxidation question Dear Homebrewing/Craftbrewing Intelligentsia, I'm finally building my 15 gal. brewery, and something that has been bothering me for a long time has become a design issue. Now, I'm taking a calculated risk asking this question because of the risk of propagating a heated, bitter debate. So please don't take my question too seriously! Are the various spray-type sparging devices, with the foaming and splashing they inevitably cause, responsible for any of the dreaded hot-side aeration? Dare I ask? This may sound like nit picking, but I'm pretty much alone out here in a "lite beer in a can" wilderness, and it takes me a while to finish off a batch. Unless I brew "lite beer in a bottle or keg", of course. Anything I can do to hold off staling is worthwhile for me. The low tech tubing-in-a-bowl is fine, but I'd prefer something a little more ...elegant, shall we say...for my snazzy new brewery. Thanks for any help. And thanks in advance for no HSA debate. Thomas Klepfer Medina, Texas Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 02 Aug 2001 14:35:59 -0400 From: Richard Foote <rfoote at mindspring.com> Subject: Pre-Boil Gravity and Berliner Weiss Brewers, Okay, I'm gonna bite and try to brew my first Berliner Weiss as described in the recent issue of Zymurgy. Actually, our club (Chicken City Ale Raisers) plans to brew a 10 gal. batch of Weizen. We plan to make this brew do double duty by jacking it up a bit and skimming off enough sweet wort for a 5 gal. batch of Berliner Weiss. Question is how much. This will of course depend on pre-boil gravity of the parent batch of Weizen. Question: On average, how many points of gravity increase do brewers out there experience with similar systems (converted 1/2 BBL kegs), say per hour, or over a normal 90 min. boil? It's been a while since I bothered with pre-boil gravity checks. Since according to the article, pre-boil equals O.G., I'll use pre-boil gravity of the parent batch of Weizen with a dilution factor to zero in on the target weight of 1.030 for the baby. Has anyone ever tried this? I like the idea of two brews for the price of one. Any help with birthing is appreciated either by private or public response. Oh, any leads on Sweet Woodruff syrup? TIA, Rick Foote Whistle Pig Brewing Co. Murrayville, GA Looking for the 6% soln. Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 2 Aug 2001 16:40:58 -0500 From: "Gary Smith" <mandolinist at interlync.com> Subject: Ergot fungus and beer --- reminiscing... > Subject: Ergot fungus and beer Ah Ergot: From The sacred clan of the Indol Ring. Enter the Claviceps Purpurea fungus & it's mysterious Western introduction in the 9th century as St. Anthony's fire. Mike mentioned the more recent sightings, "China Cat Sunshine & Jerry" oops, Sunshine was something else... I meant China Cat Sunflower. Ahhh, I remember little peace signs embossed into the top of all those tiny pink ... Oh never mind. Gawd 69 was a great year. :) I bought my first legit beer in 69, I think it was a Naraganset Lager from Rhode Island. I took the four mile long ferry ride from New London, CT (drinking age of 21) to Fishers Island which was New York property and the drinking age was 18. I went to the boat dock where there was a Coke machine filled with bottles of beer. Back then, nobody watched, much less carded anyone who bought the beer from the machine anyway but it felt good to do it legit. I turned the handle (remember those old pewter looking handles that you had to push down on, turning it clockwise on those old red Coke Machines? That was it. I doubt you'd find anything like that today with new laws, more lawyers & NIMBY's. FWIW, Fishers was & probably still is, a place out of time. The Island is three miles long with the Eastern third owned by the Dupont family. The other 2/3 was the town 5% & open space 95%. There were something like 100 families living there, maybe 2-3 stores, one part time officer who was never on patrol and a 100% magnificent view everywhere you looked. The kind of place you read about in National Geographic & wished you had relatives there to visit. I brewed my very first anything in 77 & it was a Mead which I boiled to death not knowing better, on the dorm stove. O'course I just barely made it back to the room with this super hot carboy (no one told me about chillers back then) & it slipped out of my hands, shattered on the linoleum & filled my room with 1/2" of honey water. This was right before midterms & had to study & I couldn't take the time to wash the floors 10 times to get all the stickiness off the floor so for two weeks I had to brave gazillions of flies & all kinds of comments from everyone on the floor that my room stank. Ergot & Beer had nothing to do with that episode but back then again, it might have better explained what happened. To paraphrase a famous old saying of those days: 'Beer will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no beer' ! Gary Who actually did go to Woodstock in 69 in his VW microbus Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 2 Aug 2001 17:07:29 -0500 From: "Gary Smith" <mandolinist at interlync.com> Subject: Relays for RIMS? How-d, Another question regarding RIMS. I want to be sure my brewery electronics can handle the 1,600 watts my ultra low watt density element will generate. I'm using a Johnson Controls thermostat and the info says it will only handle 10 amps of inductive load at 110V. So, I'll be best off to use a relay & have the thermostat trip the relay & run that directly from the GFI. I've heard of people using solid state relays & that would be small & convenient. I do have a couple of old heavy duty Mercury relays from the 40's I used to use with a ham Radio power supply I built which used a 10KVA pole peg transformer but they're glass & I'm afraid of damage. Anyone have success with relays in this regard and any suggestions on model # & where I can find one inexpensively? Thanks & Cheers, Gary Gary Smith http://www.geocities.com/dawgmando/ "The only things worthwhile in life are music and cats" - Albert Einstein - Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 2 Aug 2001 19:05:54 -0400 (EDT) From: Ed Jones <ejones at sdl.psych.wright.edu> Subject: kegging woes I've been kegging for about 4 months now and I obviously still haven't figured out the trick to non-foaming beer. I use both a single-tap kegerator and a fridge with a few kegs with picnic taps. I keep the kegs at around 40 degrees and use 3/16" ID beer line. Everytime I wait more than just a few minutes, the beer I pour is foamy and has little carbonation, even though I dispense at 10 pounds. I use about 10 feet of hose to provide decent back pressure. If I keep pouring (like at a party) things work well. But for just myself, I have to dump an entire glass for the first pour. What am I doing wrong? Thanks! - -- Ed Jones "When I was sufficiently recovered to be permitted to take nourishment, I felt the most extraordinary desire for a glass of Guinness...I am confident that it contributed more than anything else to my recovery." - written by a wounded officer after Battle of Waterloo, 1815 Return to table of contents
[Prev HBD] [Index] [Next HBD] [Back]
HTML-ized on 08/03/01, by HBD2HTML v1.2 by KFL
webmaster at hbd.org, KFL, 10/9/96
Convert This Page to Pilot DOC Format
/n