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	FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
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Contents:
  Re: Invert Sugar Procedure and HBD Search Index ("Greg 'groggy' Lehey")
  re:  A brief return to bottling (MOREY Dan)
  RE: Invert Sugar (eIS) - Eastman" <stjones@eastman.com>
  Coffee Roaster Applications (Bob Hall)
  coffee roaster ("Spencer W. Thomas")
  Bottling part of a batch (Michael)
  Re: Carbs (Bill Wible)
  bottling for competition (Leo Vitt)
  Re: Wombat Stew Or Wombat Brew? ("Dan McFeeley")
  The Perfect Brew House ("Phil Yates")


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Date: Tue, 6 Jan 2004 17:24:59 +1030
From: "Greg 'groggy' Lehey" <grog at lemis.com>
Subject: Re: Invert Sugar Procedure and HBD Search Index

On Monday,  5 January 2004 at 21:31:04 -0500, rickdude02 at earthlink.net wrote:
> Fellow Brewgeeks (emphasis on geek for this question):
>
> A mention has come up in my local club about preparing an
> invert sugar solution.  I seem to recall that it is possible to
> rotate dextrose by boiling it in an acid solution, but details
> escape me.  Further, it's been quite a few years since P-chem
> and I'm not even sure how to begin to try and research this.
>
> Anyone familiar with the process?

You can't change dextrose in an acid solution.  What you're thinking
of is hydrolyzing sucrose.  Sucrose exhibits a mild right-rotation.
When you hydrolyze it, you get equal quantities of laevulose
(fructose) and dextrose (glucose).  Laevulose is more optically active
than dextrose.  As the names suggest, they rotate to the left and
right respectively, so the resultant solution rotates to the left:
you've inverted the rotation, which is why it's called "invert sugar".

To do this, make a solution of sucrose in water (about 1.030-1.045
SG), bring to the boil, add a teaspoon or two of citric acid and boil
for about 10 minutes, or until your polarimeter shows that the
reaction is complete.

Greg
- --
Finger grog at lemis.com for PGP public key.
See complete headers for address and phone numbers.


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Date: Tue, 6 Jan 2004 08:13:26 -0600 
From: MOREY Dan <dan.morey at cnh.com>
Subject: re:  A brief return to bottling

Nathan,

I woud recommend that you preceed with:

(c) Keg most of it, but bottle a little and prime those (with PrimeTabs,
most likely). Seems difficult to calibrate, having never used PrimeTabs
before. 

Here is a simple guide you can use:

1.  Determine the amount of priming sugar you would use for a 5 gallon batch
in term of cups.  For example, 3/4 cup corn sugar for 5 gallons.
2.  Since there are 48 tsp in a cup, and a 5 gallon batch produces
approximately 48 bottle, the tsp required per bottle will be the same as the
cups required for 5 gallons.  So for this example, add 3/4 tsp of corn sugar
to each bottle.

I have not had any problems using this technique.  I have been using it for
over a decade.

I've never used Prime Tabs and cannot comment on them.


Dan Morey
Club B.A.B.B.L.E.  http://hbd.org/babble
[213.1, 271.5] mi



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Date: Tue, 6 Jan 2004 09:40:58 -0500
From: "Jones, Steve (eIS) - Eastman" <stjones at eastman.com>
Subject: RE: Invert Sugar

Rick Theiner asks about the process of making invert sugar.

Graham Sanders has a set of instructions on making Candi sugar by
boiling a sugar solution with citric acid, and I have a copy of those
instructions on our club website. The link is
http://hbd.org/franklin/public_html/docs/candi_sugar.html. I've not yet
made any, but it seems rather easy. Rick, if you try it be sure to let
us know how it works.

Steve Jones, Johnson City, TN
State of Franklin Homebrewers (http://hbd.org/franklin)
[421.8 mi, 168.5 deg] AR




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Date: Tue, 06 Jan 2004 10:39:25 -0500
From: Bob Hall <rallenhall at toast.net>
Subject: Coffee Roaster Applications

My wife is considering the purchase of a coffee roaster, and in order to 
convince me she said, "I'm sure that you could use it in your (beer) 
brewing." OK, I'll ask. Do any of you ever use a coffee roaster in your 
beer and ale production?

Bob Hall
Napoleon, OH



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Date: Tue, 06 Jan 2004 10:56:54 -0500
From: "Spencer W. Thomas" <spencer at umich.edu>
Subject: coffee roaster

(As an HBD janitor, I get a sneak preview, so I'm taking advantage...)
Bob Hall asks:

>My wife is considering the purchase of a coffee roaster, and in order to 
>convince me she said, "I'm sure that you could use it in your (beer) 
>brewing." OK, I'll ask. Do any of you ever use a coffee roaster in your 
>beer and ale production?
>
No, I haven't used my coffee roaster in making beer.  I'm not sure how 
you would, although I could see using it maybe to make emergency 
chocolate or black malt. :-)  Of course, if your tastes run to Java 
Stout, there's an OBVIOUS application!

That said, I find roasting coffee to be an obvious adjunct / follow on 
to making beer.  Both let you take control of the means of production, 
guarantee the freshest possible product, let you experiment with 
different "recipes" (bean origins, blends and roast levels in the case 
of coffee).

As I have discovered since I started roasting, coffee flavor degrades 
even more quickly than beer flavor.  I toss any beans more than about a 
week old now, because the flavor has gone "bad."  I find my coffee is 
best from about 1-5 days after roasting.  It's really hard to get this 
level of freshness from any commercial coffee, unless you've got a local 
roaster and you're willing to visit at least a couple times a week.

Be warned, thought.  It's a slippery slope!  I started out with an 
existing popcorn popper.  Before I knew it, I was haunting the local 
thrift shops.  I bought three more poppers (gave one away, one is a 
spare.)  Then I just had to buy an electronic thermocouple thermometer.  
And for better control I built a split-circuit voltage control with a 
Variac for the heating element and a voltage-boosted dimmer for the fan 
speed.  Others have added PID control to their roasters (shades of the 
RIMS/HERMS discussions here on the HBD.)  And that's not to mention the 
two espresso machines, a new grinder (and I'm trolling Ebay for a better 
one), new coffee maker (the old one just didn't hack it), etc. etc.  Not 
to mention the time I spend reading the home-roasters email list.

Give it a try!  It's lots of fun and the rewards are almost immediate.

=Spencer
(I'm curious -- which roaster are she/you thinking of getting?)




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Date: Tue, 6 Jan 2004 12:33:21 -0600
From: Michael <grice at binc.net>
Subject: Bottling part of a batch

Nathan asked about bottling part of a batch.

In my limited experience with a counterpressure filler (bought in October
or November, used once so far), it's a bit difficult to figure out how
to use but isn't that bad once you get used to it. I did waste a bit more
beer than I would have liked (probably the equivalent of 3-4 bottles). I
have read some complaints about oxidation with one of these; perhaps
someone could comment.

Primetabs work fine--I have used them to bottle part of a couple of
batches. The thing you want to keep in mind is that the beer should
definitely be degassed, or you'll get some foaming. They're not at all
difficult to calibrate. but the amount of carbonation is hard to tweak.
It's easy to reduce carbonation by a third by using two tablets instead
of three, but it's not easy to reduce carbonation by (for instance)
a tenth. If you want finer control over carbonation, just use sugar
(which will be more difficult to measure).

Oh, and the bottles should be cold using either method, I believe, in
order to reduce the possiblity of foaming.

Michael
Middleton WI


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Date: Tue, 06 Jan 2004 14:10:44 -0500
From: Bill Wible <bill12 at brewbyyou.net>
Subject: Re: Carbs


>Miller-lite and MichUltra are both examples of very low
>carbohydrate beers - what Kunze calls "dietetic" beers.
>These are correctly differentiated from lower-calorie
>"light" beers like Sam Adams Light at 9.7 grams of carbs
>per bottle or Mich Light at 11.7 grams of carbs per bottle.
>[A regular SA lager is 18 grams, and Mich 13.3 ].

So if Miller Lite and IC Light were ALREADY low-carb
beers, then what is the BIG DEAL about Michelob freakin'
Ultra??

Bill



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Date: Tue, 6 Jan 2004 12:02:55 -0800 (PST)
From: Leo Vitt <leo_vitt at yahoo.com>
Subject: bottling for competition

Nathan from MIT was wandering how he should go about getting beer
bottled for a competiton.


I suggest Nathan go with his option C:
"c) Keg most of it, but bottle a little and prime those (with
    PrimeTabs, most likely). Seems difficult to calibrate, having
    never used PrimeTabs before."

I have never used primetabs.  But I see enough statements on HBD saying
they are reliable for me to trust them.  They are basicly sugar in
consistantly sized tablets. 

I suggest you do more bottles than you expect to send to competitions. 
Give yourself some to test and verify. Also, you could break one or
two. If you intend to send off 6 bottles, (for more than one comp)
double that! 

=====
Leo Vitt
Sidney, NE



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Date: Tue, 6 Jan 2004 14:08:04 -0600
From: "Dan McFeeley" <mcfeeley at keynet.net>
Subject: Re: Wombat Stew Or Wombat Brew?

Phil Yates wondered: 

>Being an experimental brewer, I could be tempted to discover what
>fermented wombat tastes like. But somehow I suspect the fur caught
>on the back of the throat would destroy the otherwise delicate flavours
>of a fine rice lager.

Sounds like you're working toward an Australian Scrumpy.  Never 
mind the rice lager -- start with a cider base, throw in wombat, and
you've got it!  :-)

<><><><><><><><><><>
<><><><><><><><>
Dan McFeeley




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Date: Wed, 7 Jan 2004 08:39:52 +1100
From: "Phil Yates" <phil.yates at bigpond.com>
Subject: The Perfect Brew House

Well it's going to be the perfect Brew House after I get a few minor issues
sorted out. This was originally a free standing garage at the rear of the
house which the previous owners had converted into separate accommodation
for guests. Unfortunately it wasn't done all that well and things such as
insulation were not included. On the plus side, all the plumbing for shower,
toilet and even a laundry have been installed. It gets dreadfully cold in
winter and dreadfully hot in summer, but I'll get that sorted. I've
converted one of the bedrooms into my office. The other (unfortunately right
along side) is Jill's. I ripped up the carpet in the main area (much to
Jill's horror) and declared it a child free, wife free, dog free brewing
site. Fortunately, brewers in Australia can still administer these rights
though neither Jill nor Phoebe pay any attention. I have though, held my
ground with Jill's four dogs who used to pee indiscriminately on my
equipment in Burradoo.

One curious thing I have puzzled over has been an odd screeching sound
coming from the toilet plumbing after a visit. I assumed it was something to
do with the water pump. I had to get Wes (an expert on these matters) in to
find the fault. After much consideration, Wes announced that the problem was
not at all mechanical and that it was his belief I had a Wollondilly Water
Frog taken residence in the plumbing of the toilet. No wonder he's been
doing some screeching!

Anyway, how better can a brewer have it? Whilst working from my office I can
keep a close eye on the brew. The shower is perfect for washing out kegs and
the dogs can't pee on my equipment. Somewhere beneath my feet is a fat fury
creature but I'll leave that alone for now. When the world looks bad, I take
it out on the frog living in the toilet and ignore the screeching which goes
on for the next fifteen minutes. I find this far more convenient than
writing abusive emails to Eric Fouch for stress relief.

Where are you Eric? Get your brewing gear together and write an acceptable
post to HBD!

Phil



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