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	FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
		Rob Gardner, Digest Coordinator


Contents:
  'Tis the Season ... (Martin A. Lodahl)
  Infection or Paranoia? (Mitch Evans)
  lots of stuff (Algis R Korzonas +1 708 979 8583)
  Pubs in San Diego ("Andy Wilcox")
  Pitching yeast... ("Gary F. Mason - Image Systems - MKO2-2/K03 - 603884[DTN264]-1503  04-Jul-1990 1900")
  misinformation (Pete Soper)


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Date: Tue, 3 Jul 90 22:26:09 PDT
From: Martin A. Lodahl <hplabs!pbmoss!mal>
Subject: 'Tis the Season ...

In HOMEBREW Digest #451, Jay Hersh muses:

>P.S. Seems a lot of people are posting requests to be removed from 
>this digest, are these just casual passing readers. Seems to me the
>dedicated readership has been growing here, but I wonder if Rob G.
>can post some stats??

I suspect their casualness is in many cases involuntary.  It's the
end of the quarter, so many who make their living as software
paladins are off in search of a new job (and mailfeed), and the
academic world is also draining.  Most of them will be back, from new
locations, soon -- HBD is addictive!

= Martin A. Lodahl    Pac*Bell Minicomputer Operations Support Staff =
= pacbell!pbmoss!mal  -or-  mal at pbmoss.Pacbell.COM      916.972.4821 =
= If it's good for ancient Druids, runnin' nekkid through the wuids, =
= Drinkin' strange fermented fluids, it's good enough for me!  8-)   =



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Date: Tue Jul  3 23:37:18 1990
From: doc at crash.cts.com (Mitch Evans)
Subject: Infection or Paranoia?


Howdy!

    I've been getting the digest for about the last month, and thought I
would voice a question or two to the folks out there "in the know".

    I get an ugly brown residue along the wort/air boundary during my
initial fermentation.  I have been assuming that this is yeast, or some
other related (read non-nasty) product of the fermentation process.  BUT,
with all of the sanitation articles floating around, I have begun to
worry.  I take very intricate precautions with sanitation, and would hate
to think I have been allowing mold or other critters into my beer for the
past two years  ;)

    My second question has to do with spreading the Homebrew Digest around.
I have given it away to friends, and the folks at the local homebrew supply
shop (Beer and Wine Crafts in El Cajon, CA).  Does anyone mind?  I would
like to take some copies to the next QUAFF (QUality Ale and Fermentation
Fraternity) meeting.  I just joined, and found that I had something to
contribute (if allowed) to a crowd a bit more experienced than I.

                                      Mitch

|             doc at crash.cts.com  or  mevans at coral.nprdc.navy.mil             |
|  The Dream Clinic BBS (619) 670-9522 -- Supports writers and homebrewers   |



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Date: Wed, 4 Jul 90 10:06:41 mdt
From: hplabs!hp-lsd.cos.hp.com!ihlpl!korz (Algis R Korzonas +1 708 979 8583)
Subject: lots of stuff

Greg writes:
>Why shouldn't I cut the top of the keg (7.5 gallons) so that I can
>use a LARGE stopper in the hole (assuming I can get one sized very large). 
>Then when I brewed beer, I boil it in the barrel, blow some CO2 into the keg to
>displace air, stuff in my stopper with an airlock, cool to desired
>tempartature,add yeast quickly, restopper, and let ferment. 

The reason that you wouldn't want to ferment
in your kettle is that if you get good hot and cold breaks, you will
have a fair amount of trub.  You would want to get the brew off the
trub before fermenting.

>I was also thinking that you could use some stainless
>piping for a wort cooler. You'd add the piping during the boil, have both ends
>of the piping come through the large stopper, and then circulate water through
>the piping to cool the wort. 

I initially thought this wouldn't work because you couldn't fit the
spiral tubing through the hole, but if you did a downward spiral
and then doubled the piping back up the same spiral, maybe you could
"screw" the chiller into the hole.  Also, the cost of stainless would
probably be prohibitive -- I suggest copper tubing.  In any case, getting
the wort off the trub would make this setup unpractical.

Mike Charlton writes:
>we have had alot of trouble with fusel alcohol

Charlie Papazian says "fusel oils."  I don't know which is correct.

>He suggests in his book to let the wort sit overnight and then
>rack off the trub before you pitch the yeast.  He maintains that since the
>wort is below 80 degrees F, contamination is not a real problem. 

I've seen several references to Miller's book and was shocked.  I
don't know if he's been misquoted or Miller himself is misguided.
I don't have his book (maybe I should get it and see for myself.
Here's a perfect example.  I can tell you without a doubt that
when the wort is below 180 degrees F, contamination should be your
primary problem.  Don't worry, just be careful to not allow airborne
nasties or nasties living in your wooden spoon, on your hands, in your
mouth, etc. touch your beer.  I believe that Miller may have said
that since the wort is below 80 degrees F, that OXIDATION is not
a problem.  Big difference.  Relax, don't worry, be sanitary.

Al.


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Date: Wed, 04 Jul 90 18:26:32 EDT
From: "Andy Wilcox" <andy at mosquito.cis.ufl.edu>
Subject: Pubs in San Diego


I'll be in San Diego a couple of days next week, and, of course,
it would be great to know about the best local pubs!  Please
drop me an email-line with your recommendations, I leave Saturday!

Worrying about getting that presentation done...

 -Andy Wilcox
(andy at ufl.edu)

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Date: Wed, 4 Jul 90 16:11:05 PDT
From: "Gary F. Mason - Image Systems - MKO2-2/K03 - 603884[DTN264]-1503 04-Jul-1990 1900" <mason at habs11.enet.dec.com>
Subject: Pitching yeast...

It seems like a minor point, but I have never seen it mentioned:

If one wishes to aerate the wort when pitching yeast, and have it mixed well
too, wouldn't the ideal method be to pour the starter into the fermenter first,
then rack the wort in on top of it in a splashy manner?

Thanks...Gary

P.S. I wish I'd heard (or thought) about kegs before I went out and bought
     my SS brewpot 8'(.

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Date: Thu, 5 Jul 90 00:10:42 EDT
From: Pete Soper <soper at maxzilla.encore.com>
Subject: misinformation

Recently Mike Charlton <umcharl3 at ccu.umanitoba.ca> wrote:

>  Hi there.  My brewing partner and I have just finished brewing a batch of
>pale ale.  Partly because we have had alot of trouble with fusel alcohol, we
>used a wort chiller this time.  According to Miller, one of the nice things
>about a wort chiller is that it lets you more easily separate the trub from
>the wort.  This should let you cut down on the amount of fusel alcohol
>produced.  He suggests in his book to let the wort sit overnight and then
>rack off the trub before you pitch the yeast.  He maintains that since the
>wort is below 80 degrees F, contamination is not a real problem. 

  Assuming you thought (and I thought) that you were paraphrasing Miller's 
book "The Complete Handbook of Homebrewing": Wow; This sets some kind of
record for distortion. Hopefuly Miller wouldn't mind the following quote
from page 149 to clear this up and head off misfortune:
  "At this point you have two choices, depending on how cold your wort is. If it
is down to fermentation temperature (48 to 55F for lagers, 60 to 65F for ales)
you should pitch your yeast immediately. If you have got the wort down to near
the freezing point, you can pitch the following morning, after the wort has
come up to fermentation temperature. Either way, close the fermenter and move
it to your fermentation area. The wort should be racked off into a second
fermenter about 8 to 12 hours later, to separate it from most of the hot and
cold break material which will settle at the bottom of the vessel. Also 
remember that, before pitching, the wort must be thoroughly aerated."

>  We decided
>to pitch the yeast immediately (more for time reasons than for worrying) so
>we were not able to rack off the trub.  I have two questions (finally).

  Why not? While the break is settling the yeast have gone into suspension in
the wort. It is not hiding out in the break, so racking the wort after letting
the break settle is not going to somehow leave the yeast behind.

>Despite the fact that we were unable to rack off the trub, will using a
>wort chiller result in lower production of fusel alcohol?  Secondly, we used

  I doubt it but it sure won't hurt the beer if properly used.

>WYeast American Ale yeast for the first time (as opposed to the Doric and
>Red Star that we were forced to use before).  Will the use of this better
>yeast culture reduce the amount of fusel alcohol.  Note that I'm NOT worrying;

  The combination of a good yeast and (especially) lower fermentation 
temperatures should help.
- --------------
Pete Soper (soper at encore.com)                          +1 919 481 3730
Encore Computer Corp, 901 Kildaire Farm Rd, bldg D, Cary, NC 27511  USA

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End of HOMEBREW Digest #454, 07/05/90
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