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FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
Digest Janitor: janitor@hbd.org
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Contents:
Dry hopped vs. hopped tea in the keg (Karen & Troy Hager)
Brew pub brew (Karen & Troy Hager)
Specific gravity definition? (Christopher Farley)
Fermentation Chiller without the Baffle (Ken Schwartz)
Safale, Saflager and Safebrew ("Galloway")
Five Star Chemicals (Nathan Kanous)
DFW Brewpubs (mohrstrom)
Jumpers and compost ("Pannicke, Glen A.")
Sanitation Solutions - iodaphor, chlorine, caustic soda, parasi ("Branam, Mike")
Stuck Fermentation / bad beer? ("Steven Parfitt")
Berliner Weiss ("Sedam, Marc")
bucket in a bucket (Chris Hatton)
HBD Tee-Shirt Contest! (Pat Babcock)
kegging bookmarks - thank you ("Leroy Strohl, iii")
Re: 1st Time All-Grain Questions (alastair)
Hydrometer vs. bubbles ("Tal McMahon")
Berliner Weisse (Richard Foote)
Chicago Travel ("wailstail")
RE: Roggenbier ("Dennis Lewis")
Keg dimensions (Denis Bekaert)
Boil question ("Hedglin, Nils A")
Hops in the keg (Denis Bekaert)
See, Commerical Lite Beer Can Be Useful (Denis Bekaert)
RE: composting grains, etc. (Bruce Wingate)
Check my math ("Mike Pensinger")
Re: Safbrew T-58 ("Thomas D. Hamann")
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Date: Tue, 14 Aug 2001 21:54:34 -0700
From: Karen & Troy Hager <thager at smcoe.k12.ca.us>
Subject: Dry hopped vs. hopped tea in the keg
Last batch of 1.045 OG pale ale, 10gals split into two kegs. The beer had
slight sour/harsh flovors in it so I decided to do an experiment.
In one, I dry hopped with one oz. of Cascades. For the other, I steeped
about 2 oz. in 160F water for about 3-4 hours. I then poured a couple cups
of this "hopped tea" into keg #2.
I was surprised at how different they came out tasting, but what I wanted to
post about was that I have noticed that the dry hopped keg needs about 5
more psi to be carbonated correctly. I have the hopped tea keg on about
15psi, it is carbonated perfectly but I get some foam on the first pour. At
15psi the dry hopped keg is way under carbonated so I bumped that one up to
about 20psi for about a week and it now seems to be equally carbonated and
pours great with no foam!
Perhaps the hop bag has covered the tube on the bottom which would explain
the need for high pressure to pour, but why the difference in carbonation
levels at the exact same pressure???
Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 14 Aug 2001 22:21:04 -0700
From: Karen & Troy Hager <thager at smcoe.k12.ca.us>
Subject: Brew pub brew
I got quite a few responses to my post about the brewpub brewday ... Lots of
questions.
The brewery is Steelhead in Burlingame, CA - they have about 4 brewpubs one
in Oregon, one in SF and a couple down here. The beer that we brewed that
day was a "blonde" basically a light pale ale. Grist was all GW pale malt
and a little corn.. all was ground and mashed together at 150-151F. It was
hopped with Galena for bittering at 90 mins. and Liberty for the 30 and KO
additions. Water was filtered with a huge GAC (carbon) filter but no
additives were put in. We have soft water without many minerals - Ca is in
the 15ppm range.
The brewer is about 50 some years old, was never a homebrewer and decided
about three years ago (I think after a trip to Europe) to become a brewer
and enrolled in a brewers program at...?? maybe Davis?? After completion he
then trained at the Oregon site and then got this position down here as head
brewer. He says he doesn't make much, I would guess around 30Gs, barely
enough to make it around this area.
His beers are decent. They are getting better as time goes on. When he took
over this brewpub, they beers took a turn for the worse, but as time goes on
(and I'm sure he learns the quirks of this system) they are getting better
and better. I have never tasted any stale or cardboardy flavors in any of
his beers. He pulled out a keg that he brewed for an IPA festival, it was
unfiltered, primed and dryhopped in the keg - it was fantastic! Malty,
bitter, and great hop aroma - the best beer I have tasted of his.
He said that Steelhead has 4 staple beers that he has to brew to their
recipe (or close anyway) they are the blonde, an IPA, a hefe, and an amber.
He has to have a black beer on tap either a stout or a porter. Other than
that he can do his own thing.
That's about it. Hope that helps.
Troy
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 01:48:27 -0500
From: Christopher Farley <chris at northernbrewer.com>
Subject: Specific gravity definition?
So, what exactly is the definition of specific gravity, as used in
brewing?
I've seen various temperature correction charts and formulas for
correcting SG to 59F, 60F, and 68F. I've frequently seen definitions
of SG citing 39F/4C as the standard reference temperature. What
*is* the definition of SG? Is an arbitrary reference temperature
defined, or do all SG readings require a temperature to be meaningful?
- --
Christopher Farley
www.northernbrewer.com
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 05:42:51 -0600
From: Ken Schwartz <kenbob at elp.rr.com>
Subject: Fermentation Chiller without the Baffle
Alan McKay asks:
"A buddy and I are going to build him one of these and I was wondering
if anyone has tried it without the baffle and fan. So it is basically
just an insulated box for your fermenter, and you put some ice into it
to keep it cool.
Will the temp get too low?
How low will it get?
Has anyone tried this?"
The concept will definitely work to keep the temperature down, but what
you give up is any control over the actual temperature. The temperature
will depend on the outside (room) temp, how much ice is used, how long
the ice has been in the box, etc. The Fermentation Chiller works by
using the baffle to "store" cold air, and the fan to circulate it when
needed to maintain a desired temperature.
- --
*****
Ken Schwartz
El Paso, TX
Fermentation Chillers and More: http://www.gadgetstore.bigstep.com
Brewing Web Page: http://home.elp.rr.com/brewbeer
E-mail: kenbob at elp.rr.com
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 08:01:28 -0400
From: "Galloway" <galloway at gtcom.net>
Subject: Safale, Saflager and Safebrew
Hi Alan,
You have stumbled across my favorite lines of yeast. Let me preface this
mail by saying I have no association with DCL, yada, yada, yada. Unless
brewing Belgians, I use the DCL product almost exclusively.
DCL yeast makes six strains of brewing yeast. The company web site,
http://www.dclyeast.co.uk , has profiles on all six strains of their brewing
yeasts.
Here is what they have to say about your "Mystery Yeast";
T-58: A specialty yeast selected for it's estery, somewhat peppery and spicy
flavor development. Low sedimentation. Recmmended fermetation temperature is
18 to 24 degrees centigrade. Recommended pitching rate is 2.5 to 5 g/hl.
I really can't say enough good things about this product. I have experienced
minimum lag times and always a robust, explosive fermentation. The yeast
always seem to establish themselves in record time. Yesterday, I pitched 10
grams of their S-33 (rehydrated in a pint of warm water) into 5 gallons of
an Alt wort. Within one hour the blow off tube was pressurized. I just
checked it this morning and the blowoff "bucket" over has flowed. I saved
the best for last; It's also inexpensive. The local homebrew shop
(www.homebrewden.com no association, but a shameless plug none the less)
gets $1.50 per package.
Depending on the strain it comes in 7 or 10 grams. Unless pitching a big
beer, one package will suffice.
Regards,
Dave Galloway
Chattahoochee, FL
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 07:12:42 -0500
From: Nathan Kanous <nlkanous at pharmacy.wisc.edu>
Subject: Five Star Chemicals
Hi,
I posted once before and only got a reply from Spencer. I like PBW and
StarSan but the FiveStarChemicals website is not loading. Has Five Star
gone out of business? Anybody know?
nathan in madison, wi
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 09:09:59 -0400
From: mohrstrom at humphrey-products.com
Subject: DFW Brewpubs
Marc Sedam heads out:
> I'm going to be in Dallas on business from September
> 13-15. Could anyone please point me in the right
> direction in terms of the local brewing scene?
> Looking for brewpubs within easy travel distance
> from the airport.
Is ANYTHING "within easy travel distance" from DFW???
I don't have that book of my notes with me, so these will be vague memories
of my experiences. I'm sure the locals will chime in, too. The closest
would be Big Buck at The Bass Pro Shop in Grapevine. I haven't been to
that location (too many delays in opening), but they have a wide range of
brews at their original location here in Michigan. Routh Street (near
downtown) is quite good, Two Rows (NW), too. Humperdink's (a Big Horn
operation) in Addison was an odd number -- a Bud bar that had brewing
capabilities (I'm always suspicious of any brewpub that doesn't push their
own beers - isn't THAT what they're supposed to be about???), try Hoffbrau
or (gasp!) Rock Bottom instead. Copper Tank (downtown) is worthwhile, too.
Oops - a quick look at www.pubcrawler.com (the Beer Traveler's best friend)
doesn't show Routh Street at all, and Rock Bottom has closed. Oh, well...
Mark in Kalamazoo
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 09:15:53 -0400
From: "Pannicke, Glen A." <glen_pannicke at merck.com>
Subject: Jumpers and compost
Stencil wrote about Todd's ball lock kegs:
>>if it is feasible/possible to convert my fittings to what everybody else
>>that I know is using...?
>Since you're going to
>need a few cross- connect lines anyway, for pushing
>cleaning and sanitizing solutions from keg to keg, I'd
>advise you to make up a couple of pin-gas/ ball-product
>and p-p/b-g jumpers, so you can transfer to and from
>friends' kegs, or to a borrower for club shows.
>FWIW, a spritz bottle of cheap NEX vodka is handy
This is a great idea and beats the pants off of trying to actually convert
fittings. I use these jumpers for my equipment (ball lock only) to do
transfers from primary to secondary and on to serving tanks. I'm going to
have to keep a few ball to pin jumpers around for when friends visit now!
Regarding the series of posts on compost:
I've just started a compost heap in our new back yard. It was actually one
of the first projects I undertook once we moved in. The compost heap gets
everything organic in it: grass clippings, weeds, leaves, hedge clippings,
dead squirrels (I didn't do it), drowned moles, dog poop, water changes from
the fish tank, table scraps, spent grains, trub/yeast slop - all with a thin
layer of dirt for every few inches of compost additions.
The key to keeping it all smelling nice:
Variety - adding those spent grains and trub certainly adds variety. Mix
them in well with the other compost to let the bacteria, yeasts and fungi
break them down instead of allowing them to putrify in a layer of their own.
Rotting - good! Putrifying - bad!
Turn over - This adds to the mixing action, but also allows some of the
microflora from the bottom to seed the new additions at the top. It also
helps to mix those wet grains into the pile. A wet heap is bad and will
smell. A dry heap is slow to work. Moist is best.
Microflora & fertillizing - A compost heap will not work without bacteria,
yeasts and fungi. Adding layers of dirt every few inches introduces new
microflora and so does adding your beer yeast. Remember that even if the
beer yeast just died and did no work, they will at least contribute valuable
nutrients to the other microflora. Fertillizing? Yeah. I dump a gallon or
two on the heap every month. Standard gerden fertillizer works fine.
I've only have one layer of spent grains in there for about 2 weeks and they
don't stink. Neither does any of the other stuff that you'd think would
stink. It's only been going for about 3 months now and I'm starting to get
good decay at the bottom of the pile. I really think that the addition of
the trub/yeast slop has helped to make this pile so active and healthy.
Carpe cerevisiae!
Glen A. Pannicke
glen at pannicke.net http://www.pannicke.net
75CE 0DED 59E1 55AB 830F 214D 17D7 192D 8384 00DD
"I have made this letter longer than usual,
because I lack the time to make it short." - Blaise Pascal
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 09:17:46 -0400
From: "Branam, Mike" <Mike.Branam at ccur.com>
Subject: Sanitation Solutions - iodaphor, chlorine, caustic soda, parasi
I have been using iodaphor and chlorine for the past 2 years, but I was
wondering if anyone had experience with caustic soda or parasitic acid. I
have heard these do an excellent job on stainless steel coke kegs, and all
the fittings. I have friends that keep parasitic acid in a spray bottle and
spray the ball lock fittings when ever they change from keg to keg. It would
be nice to have some sort of sanitizing solution that could be sprayed for
those items that are hard to get into a sanitizing bucket that also did not
need rinsing. What are the concerns? What are the advantages? Where can I
get this?
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 09:27:31 -0400
From: "Steven Parfitt" <the_gimp98 at hotmail.com>
Subject: Stuck Fermentation / bad beer?
I started a split batch of Belgian Doubble (Enghien Blonde Ale) on July 7th,
OG 1.062. This was my third All Grain batch.
Half was pitched with a starter made from the dreges of a couple of bottles
of Double Enghien Blonde Ale. Half was pitched with WY1214. After three
days, the DEBA pitched half had developed an off smell and then quit
fermenting. I repitched it with a 1056 starter I had and it started back up.
After two weeks, it was only down to 1.028.
The Wy1214 half was down to 1.012 by that time, and was racked to corny.
The Wy1214 half has been subsiquently pitched with more Wy1214 and priming
sugar, and bottled. It was "Hot Roomed" for two days at 80F, then put in a
cellar at 68. It now has a nice "bubblegum" flavor.
The other half still is at 1.020, and has a "flat" taste to it. Not quite a
Sour taste, just Flat and off. No estery aroma or flavor. Just really
neutral and thin tasting, even though it has a high terminal gravity. Any
recomendations before I use it to clean the commode?
Thanks,
Steven, Ironhead Nano-Brewery http://thegimp.8k.com
Johnson City, TN 5:47:38.9 S, 1:17:37.5 E Rennerian
"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
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 09:46:18 -0400
From: "Sedam, Marc" <marc_sedam at unc.edu>
Subject: Berliner Weiss
Mark in Kalamazoo writes...
"I think that Marc Sedam had posted some info a couple of
years ago. I
think he advocated no-boil, but I found out the hard way to
watch the dwell
time in the DMS production temp range. I'd go with a short,
uncovered
boil."
I did do a no-boil Berliner Weiss, but I counted on the
inoculation of the wort with lacto bugs from Wyeast for the
sourness. Maybe a 36 hour mash at 99F would do the trick
too! I didn't worry too much about the no-boil routine.
Once the vorlauf was free of particles the wort went
straight into the counter-flow chiller and yeast was
pitched. Takes about the same time as an extract batch!
Cheers!
Marc
- --
Marc Sedam
Chapel Hill, NC
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 10:07:25 -0400
From: Chris Hatton <Chatton at aca.com>
Subject: bucket in a bucket
I use the ole bucket in a bucket lautering system and I was considering
adding an extension to the nozzle in the bottom bucket in order to direct
the flow to the center of the bucket. I've noticed my extraction efficiency
is a little low, could be I'm sparging too quickly, but I don't think so.
Anyone tried this modification??
Chris in Hoboken
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 10:30:49 -0400 (EDT)
From: Pat Babcock <pbabcock at hbd.org>
Subject: HBD Tee-Shirt Contest!
Greetings, Beerlings! Take me to your lager...
No, no - this is NOT an opportunity to douse tee-shirt clad
beauties with water.
As you (may or may not) know, the HBD has been getting our
merchandising act s-l-o-w-l-y together. So far, we've managed to
get button production under way in support of the many
conventions, competitions and conferences we HBDers go to, and
at which we pass each other like so many ships in the night,
having no way to recognize each other...
Our next sally into the battle of marketing is tee shirts! One
problem: what goes on it?! That brings us to the HBD Tee-Shirt
Contest! Here's an opportunity to stew your creative juices, let
them congeal in technicolor, and spew 'em onto the chest (or
back) of HBD members everywhere!
We're looking to have designs for the HBD Tee-Shirt created by
those who know the HBD best: you. So create your artwork, render
it to gif or jpeg format, and send it to teeshirt at hbd.org. We'll
publish the pic onto the HBD website, and provide voting buttons
so that site visitors can vote for the 2002 HBD Tee-Shirt
design. The design netting the highest votes by contest deadline
goes to production, with attribution to the winner! The winner
will also receive a free shirt bearing their design, plus a HBD
button containing their name and Chief Clothier as the second
line. Their photo and design will also appear on the HBD
website.
Legal mumbo-jumbo:
All designs, whether winning or not, become the sole property of
HBD.ORG to use or disposition as they see fit. Contest is open
to anyone wishing to submit a design. HBD.ORG reserves the right
to not publicly display any design deemed obscene, in poor
taste, or counter to the HBD.ORG philosophy without notification
to the submitter. Designs must not contain copyrighted or
trademarked images, unless copyright or trademarked by HBD.ORG.
Winning design may be rendered or modified suitably for silk
screening and/or for display on the HBD.ORG website.
Contest begins with publication of this notice. Contest is
expected to complete 10/15/01. See http://hbd.org for details as
they are developed.
All proceeds generated through HBD merchandise are used to
recoup the cost of said merchandise and the cost of maintaining
the HBD.ORG presence on the internet.
- --
-
See ya!
Pat Babcock in SE Michigan pbabcock at hbd.org
Home Brew Digest Janitor janitor@hbd.org
HBD Web Site http://hbd.org
The Home Brew Page http://hbd.org/pbabcock
"The monster's back, isn't it?" - Kim Babcock after I emerged
from my yeast lab Saturday
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 11:35:50 -0400
From: "Leroy Strohl, iii" <lstrohl at mwc.edu>
Subject: kegging bookmarks - thank you
I tried to send an off-the-list thank you to Mark Tumarkin
for sharing hisbookmark files regarding kegging, but his
address bounced. His was an informative, carefully
chosen list of sites. Thanks Mark.
Roy Strohl
Fredericksburg, VA
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 08:56:14 -0700 (PDT)
From: alastair <alastair at odin.he.net>
Subject: Re: 1st Time All-Grain Questions
Nils Hedglin asks about going all grain, but only owns a 5 gal pot.
Nils, no problem. Rather than do two half batches, just do a partial
boil and dilute it at the end. You've got all the equipment you need
and if you're worried about the sparge arm, just forget it.
I'll explain: I started with only a 5 gal pot and went all grain
with it. After working out some kinks, I produed some of the best
beer I ever made. Since then I invested in a full all grain setup
(10 gal pot, counter flow chiller, sparge arm, etc). The only
problem now... my beer isn't as good :( The biggest issue I found
was the large sparge... the other the full boil. Both aren't as
desirable as you would think.
I would mash my grain and do a very small sparge (just pour hot
water over the grain). I would collect about 4.5 gals in my 5 gal
pot and boil as normal (i'd end up with about 4 gals). To cool,
I would put the pot in the sink with ice water. After it had cooled
to 105F, I would pour it in my 6.5 gallon bucket and add 2 gals of
bottled water (chilled to almost freezing). The result: 6 gals of
70F wort.
The third beer I made this way qualified for the MCAB, and it
even had a pound of extract in it!
I have never got close to this with my 'proper' all grain setup
and only after a year of OK beer have I gone back (in part) to my
old method. This is kind of where you are now, so don't worry.
If I was you, I'd add a little more grain (go to 12 lbs) and mash
as normal. Collect about 4.5 gals in your pot (you'll only be able
to sparge less than 2 gals). Don't worry about the small sparge,
the extra grain will make up for the loss of efficiency. Chill as
normal and make up the batch with bottled/spring water (I never had
infection problems with it). You'll also get slightly less hop
utilization with the smaller boil, but not too much less.
So you ask why is this better? Well, I found the sparge not only
extracts tannins (polyphenols), but also other nasties like
silicates that add a certain harshness to the beer. Some of these
have a direct effect, some interact with expired yeast cells. The
The cost is a few $ more grain, but since this isn't a commercial
brewing operation, who cares?
So what's good about partial boil? The main reason is the lower
pH of the wort. This enables better isomertization of hop oils
and enhances the hop flavor. But, you do get lower extraction, so
again, maybe another $ towards hops. The lower pH also increases
the rate at which Mailard reactions occur. These are the chemical
reactions that create the nice bready malt taste from the grain.
As for diluting at the end. Bottled water is normally bacteria
free, so no worries there. You can also chill this to improve the
rate at which the wort gets down to pitching temp. Don't forget
the extra $ though.. hmmm, oh well.
Sorry to rant, it's just I've come to the realization that a lot
of homebrewing methods are just copied from commercial brewing
without considering the quality impact. For an extra $5 a batch,
you can make far better beer, and you simplify your process. A
small price to pay I think.
Just a final note. My old system worked out to have an efficiency
of around 60%. My 'proper' full grain gives me 86-89% by following
standard all grain methods (big sparge, full boil). Who cares?
I'm now 'aiming' at a system efficiency of 60-65% max and looking
forward to better beer :)
For further reading, look in the archives under "No sparge",
"Batch sparge" and "FWH" for discussion on hop extracting with
regards to pH.
Have fun!
Alastair
brewing and aren't
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 12:18:06 -0400
From: "Tal McMahon" <tal_mcmahon at beethoven.com>
Subject: Hydrometer vs. bubbles
Hello all, I got Such great response with my first post
I thought I would try again. I am in the middle of my
3rd, 4rth, and 5th batches (o.k. I got a little carried away)
all are in secondary fermentation and I am pleased with how
they are going. I just got a hydrometer and I know how to use
it and I know what the numbers mean....but here is the question
Do I use the beer as an indicator if it is finished (no bubbles
in the airlock for 5 minutes as I was told by the local guru,
and the yeast settled out) or do I use the hydrometer and wait
until a certain reading or until the reading is consistant for
a few days? The reason I ask is that I have a Full bodied ale
(10 lbs of LME for a 5 gallon batch) that I started on July 14.
It appears to have cleared and is a dark brown color when I
hold a light to it. It has been bubbling 1 bubble every 2 1/2
minutes for 2 weeks. I took a gravity check and it has been at
1.01 at 70 degrees for 3 days. Keep waiting or bottle??
Listen to the "World's Classical Radio Station" http://www.beethoven.com
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 12:42:40 -0400
From: Richard Foote <rfoote at mindspring.com>
Subject: Berliner Weisse
Hi Brewers,
I just (Monday night) put a 9 gallon batch of Berliner Weisse (my 1st
attempt) into the fermentor. I followed the recipe in the latest issue of
Zymurgy. I adhered very closely to the recipe, just upsized (is that a
word?) it. I bumped up the Lactobacillus delbrueckii and Wyeast Kolsch
yeast cultures from 500 ml to just about 1 qt. each. I placed my 18" ss
dial thermometer (a composting thermometer, BTW) into my brew kettle to
maintain, with a low flame, the prescribed temperature of 190 degrees F.
for 30 min. I added pellet hops to the kettle at the beginning of the
sub-boil. The recipe alluded, somewhat confusingly, to mash hopping? I
tasted the resulting chilled wort, as is my custom. Bitterness is indeed
very low.
I ran the wort through my cf chiller as usual, piched the bacterial culture
(all of it), waited 2 hours, decanted most of the supernatant off my yeast
culture and pitched the slurry. The next morning, we had positve pressure
as shown by "blooping" of the air lock.
If there is sufficient interest, I can post the results of the finished
product.
Rick Foote
Whistle Pig Brewing
Murrayville, GA
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 13:05:13 -0400
From: "wailstail" <wailstail at email.msn.com>
Subject: Chicago Travel
I will be in Glendale Heights, Illinois for a couple of months starting
late this month. I am wondering about brew pubs, beer stores and good
liquor stores in the area. Not just the good ones but also the ones to
avoid. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Private e-mails encouraged
Thanks a bunch,
Les Stoddard
Mainer living in exile (Long Island, NY)
wailstail at msn.com
Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 14:17:47 -0400
From: "Dennis Lewis" <dblewis at LewisDevelopment.com>
Subject: RE: Roggenbier
Thanks to all who gave opinions regarding Paulaner Roggenbier. This
is a basic summary of opinions offered and basic assumptions that I'm
going to use for formulating the brew. I think I'll have time to try
it this Sunday, as I'm in need of more Weissbier thanks to my
German neighbor 8-). (Zwischen Prost! is his motto.)
I received the following pearls of wisdom from the generous souls
of the HBD:
Greg Remake <gregory.m.remake at ei.mwhglobal.com> has tried the real deal
and says it's reminiscent of a dark Bavarian wheat. Also says the rye
character is not overbearing in spite of the % grist. Hop rates are
as expected for weissbier.
Richard Foote <rfoote at mindspring.com> made one a while back and highly
recommends a beta glucan rest and lots of rice hulls.
Nathan <nlkanous at netscape.net>in Madison, WI tells me that Michael Jackson
give a grist ratio of 60% rye malt, 20% crystal, and 20% pils.
Jens Maudal <jens.maudal at c2i.net> brewed one with 1/3 pils, 1/3 wheat
malt and 1/3 crushed rye (not malted). The brew turned out well
with a fresh, almost apple-like flavor.
So, my formulation will be ~55% rye malt, ~25% pils malt, 20 % light
Durst crystal. Full temp mash augmented by decoction between beta
and alpha rests. For a 5 gal batch, I'm going to toss in a full pound
of rice hull (post-decoction) (and if you've seen rice hulls, you
know how much that is!). Hopping schedule like a weissbier (~12 IBUs
calculated, never measured) and 3068 yeast. And of course, I'll
give a post-brew/post-fermentation report.
Thanks again guys,
Dennis Lewis
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Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 11:49:13 -0700 (PDT)
From: Denis Bekaert <Denis-B at rocketmail.com>
Subject: Keg dimensions
Greetings, brothers and sisters of the brew....
Can anybody give the the "exact" dimensions of a ball
lock keg? I know I have the information somewhere,
but just can't lay my hands on it. Reason I ask is
that I have a side-by-side brew fridge that easily
holds three pin lock kegs on the bottom with room for
the 10 pound CO2 cylinder and I want to put three more
kegs on the adjustable shelf above them if they'll
fit. Pin lock kegs are a tight squeeze since they are
somewhat taller than the ball lock style, while the
ball lock have a slightly larger diameter.
My son came home from college yesterday and I showed
him my keg set up (with 3 full kegs!) and he wanted to
know why I waited three hours to show it to him!
Remember, boys and girls, if you don't want people to
think you're raving crazy mad, wipe the beer foam from
your lips! This is especially important if you, like
me, have a beard and moustache!
Denis in Beechgrove, Tennessee where Moonshine is our
history, but brewing beer is our passion
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Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 11:52:43 -0700
From: "Hedglin, Nils A" <nils.a.hedglin at intel.com>
Subject: Boil question
> Hi,
> The full recipe I'm using for my 1st all-grain attempt calls for a 90
> minute boil of the 6 gal of collected wort with the bittering hops being
> put in after 30 minutes. Do you know if that 1st 30 minutes is only to
> allow some of the wort to boil off? Because of only having (for now) a 5
> gal brew pot, I'm planning on doing 2 half batchs to play with different
> hops. I'm worried about boiling off too much water when boiling only 3
> gal of wort. I think that's what happened with my last batch that was
> supposed to be a stout & ended up a porter because I had to add more water
> than expected to bring it up to 5 gal. Does anyone know if I should
> modify the time of the pre-hop boil to still end up with 2.5 gal at the
> end?
> Thanks,
> Nils Hedglin
Sacramento, CA
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Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 12:01:49 -0700 (PDT)
From: Denis Bekaert <Denis-B at rocketmail.com>
Subject: Hops in the keg
I recently kegged a Cooper's Pilsner and while it
tastes wonderful, it seems a bit underhopped to my
taste. I want to add some Saaz hops (about 2 ounces
in the leaf style) to the keg and am considering a
couple of techniques that I'd appreciate some comments
on:
1. Dry hop in a floating muslin bag (sterilized bag).
2. Boil hops for five minutes to make a hop tea in
about a cup or two of water.
Any suggestions would be most welcome. If adding hops
to the keg is contra-indicated, too bad, I'll just
have to suffer through drinking it! As I said, it's
pretty good as is, but I'd like more hop flavor.
Also, what about adding bittering hops in the same
way? I have a heavy smoked scotch that's in the keg
and wondered if additional bittering hops would
enhance the brew. Would either, or both, of the above
methods work for bittering hops. I believe I'd boil
the hop tea longer than five minutes for bittering
hops, both otherwise pretty much the same idea and the
flavoring hop addition.
Denis in Beechgrove, Tennessee where Moonshine is our
history, but brewing beer is our passion
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Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 17:55:56 -0700 (PDT)
From: Denis Bekaert <Denis-B at rocketmail.com>
Subject: See, Commerical Lite Beer Can Be Useful
Thought some of you might have missed this news item.
It just goes to show you that the Megaswill Light
Beers can be useful. Good thing those boys emptied
the cooler before their boat swamped....
OSWEGO, New York - This sounds like the making of a
really bizarre beer commercial. Four men spent 17
hours in Lake Ontario clinging to an empty beer cooler
after 5-foot waves capsized and sank their fishing
boat. The men headed out on the lake in a 19-foot
fishing boat last Tuesday after work. They were
already several miles offshore when the waves struck.
As the men tried to stay afloat in the rough water,
their beer cooler emerged from the waves, and they
clung to it. "If the cooler hadn't come up, we would
have died," said
survivor Todd Wafer. Joe Stewart and his wife who live
on the lakeshore heard their faint cries early
Wednesday morning and took their boat out to rescue
the men. All four men were treated for sunburn,
dehydration and heat exhaustion.
And I'll bet they really needed a beer after that
ordeal!
Denis in Beechrove, Tennessee where Moonshine is our
history but brewing beer is our passion
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Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 21:01:00 -0700
From: Bruce Wingate <bwingate at optonline.net>
Subject: RE: composting grains, etc.
>> Date: Tue, 14 Aug 2001 09:36:26 -0400
From: "Alan Meeker" <ameeker at mail.jhmi.edu>
Subject: composting grains, etc.
Jeff, I've been composting all my beer-related wastes for the last few
years, including: the spent grains, trub, and leftover yeast/beer/hops after
rackings and bottlings. My compost pile loves it all - no problems. In fact,
as a biologist, I cannot imagine why anyone would advise limiting the
compost to only uncooked vegetable matter. Did they give any rationale for
this bizarre claim?
-Alan Meeker
Baltimore, MD
>>
Mostly it is to prevent you from putting in the other stuff that goes with
cooking vegetables, like oils and other plate scraps. (You know, like
string beans and bacon or swiss chard and olive oil).
Bruce.
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Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 21:22:18 -0700
From: "Mike Pensinger" <beermkr at bellatlantic.net>
Subject: Check my math
Okay here is the math problem. Page down all you non techie people :)
I want to use 2 240v 3000 watt elements in series. My figures are that the
resistance of one is 19.2 ohms so two in series will net me 38.4 ohms. If I
plug this into Ohms law I find that the current through this combination is
3.125 amps at 120VAC. This nets me 375 wats over a total length of about 48
inches. That makes a watt density of 7.8 wats per inch.
Okay you may wonder why I am going about this whole exercise. Well I
discovered that 2 inch copper pipe is very hard to get but 1 inch is readily
available. I cam bild my RIMS chamber out of 1i inch pipe and fittings with
an element in each end pretty easily.
Please let me know what you think.
Mike Pensinger
beermkr at bellatlantic.net
http://members.bellatlantic.net/~beermkr
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Date: Thu, 16 Aug 2001 11:05:16 +0930
From: "Thomas D. Hamann" <tdhamann at senet.com.au>
Subject: Re: Safbrew T-58
Moin Alan, got this from the DCL site-
Yeasts for general brewing and for seasonal and speciality beers
T-58
A speciality yeast selected for its estery somewhat peppery and spicy
flavour development. Low sedimentation. Recommended fermentation
temperature: 18C-24C. Recommended pitching rate: 50 g/hl to 80 g/hl. This
yeast is also recommended for secondary fermentations in bottles.
Recommended pitching rate: 2.5 g/hl to 5 g/hl.
S-33
A very popular general purpose yeast, displaying both very robust
conservation and consistent performance. This yeast produces superb flavour
profiles and can be used for the production of lager type or ale beers.
Medium sedimentation. Recommended temperature range: 15C-24C. Recommended
pitching rate: 50 g/hl to 80 g/hl.
At 12:12 15/08/01 -0400, you wrote:
>Date: Tue, 14 Aug 2001 17:45:47 -0400 (EDT)
>From: "Alan McKay" <amckay at ottawa.com>
>Subject: Safbrew T 58 Yeast?
>
>Folks,
>
>I've got a 10g packet of "Safbrew T 58" yeast which I think came
>in a Brew House kit (www.thebrewhouse.com).
>
>Does anyone know what kind of yeast this is? Any details?
>
>It's just a plain foil pack with plain lettering.
>
>cheers,
> -Alan
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