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	FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
		Digest Janitor: pbabcock at hbd.org


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Contents:
  sec: unclass re: Yeast Harvesting (Longish) ("Williams, Rowan")
  I don't hate bottling... Anymore... (Bev Blackwood II)
  Beer in NYC? (Dean)
  Bottling trick: use the dishwasher (David Radwin)
  Re: I Hate Bottling ("Robert M. Opalko")
  RE: I hate Bottling ("Bridges, Scott")
  Carbonating the soda keg ("Jim Bermingham")
  Re: Priming in soda kegs? (stencil)
  re-pitching into pseudo-Lambic slurry (RiedelD)
  Re: Priming in Kegs ("Michael O'Donnell")
  Re: Priming in soda kegs? ("Scott D. Braker-Abene")
  Re: Priming in soda kegs? ("RJ")
  Re: Priming in soda kegs? (Scott Alfter)
  RE: Priming in soda kegs? (David Hagan)
  re: acid additions (tmeier)
  reuse of yeast ("D. Clark")


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Date: Fri, 30 Jul 2004 13:02:25 +1000
From: "Williams, Rowan" <Rowan.Williams at defence.gov.au>
Subject: sec: unclass re: Yeast Harvesting (Longish)

Many thanks to those who took the time to PM me with valuable feedback,
advice and thoughts on the subject.  The general consensus is that I
overdiluted the incubated yeast in the first place.  Whilst this may not
spell the end of the harvesting process, I simply need to pay more attention
to stepping up the starter when I want to use the bottled yeast at brew
time.

For my next harvest (2124) I will start with a much smaller starter and step
up at high krausen.

Thanks again to everyone for their help.

Regards,
Rowan Williams 
Canberra Australia
[9588.6, 261.5] AR miles



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Date: Thu, 29 Jul 2004 22:42:34 -0500
From: Bev Blackwood II <bdb2 at bdb2.com>
Subject: I don't hate bottling... Anymore...

Dave in Tucson opined:

> Bottling usually entails a lot of screaming, cursing, and fuming.

Dave, Dave, Dave... I too hated the counter-pressure filling... I had 
enough of that after my first effort. I have since gone VERY low tech. 
I bottle straight from the keg using a picnic tap.  Every now and then, 
I end wasting a bit of beer when my keg's a bit too carbonated, but as 
a rule, I get first rate fills!  Any effect on the beer you ask? I 
still win first place ribbons, so I'd say not!  Relax, don't worry and 
use a picnic tap!  (It's literally the low pressure (about 8 psi) 
method to homebrew bottling bliss!)

(BTW, I'm hoping to run the Tuscon marathon in December... would love 
to "carb-load" with you while I'm there!)

 -BDB2

Bev D. Blackwood II
Co-Competition Coordinator
The Foam Rangers
http://www.foamrangers.com



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Date: Thu, 29 Jul 2004 20:42:56 -0700
From: Dean <dean at deanandadie.net>
Subject: Beer in NYC?

Been looking around the archives a little, but didn't come up with an answer 
to the question: Is there a good place to get beer in New York City?

I'll be in the big apple for a few days next week and would like to find a pub 
or two with good brews.

Thanks,
- --Dean - Unscrambler of eggs
- --

Take your time, take your chances
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It matters not how strait the gate / How charged with punishment the scroll
I am the master of my fate / I am the captain of my soul.    -- Invictus --
                                                         -- William E Henley --



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Date: Thu, 29 Jul 2004 21:22:19 -0700
From: David Radwin <dradwin at sbcglobal.net>
Subject: Bottling trick: use the dishwasher

Dave Larsen wrote that he hates bottling in part because it makes a 
mess. I have found one way to minimize mess (primarily the inevitable 
drips and spills) in bottling is to put the priming bucket on the 
counter over the dishwasher and open the dishwasher door. Then any 
leakage will land not on the floor but on the inside of the dishwasher 
door where it will be automatically and effortless cleaned up next time 
I run a load of dishes. (I don't know if this technique would prevent 
messes from a counter-pressure filler.)

I also use the dishwasher to sanitize my already-clean bottles (I can 
fit about 70), so the bottles are already directly below the bottling 
bucket. I can reach in, take a clean bottle, and fill it. I use a normal 
cycle with no detergent, althought if my dishwasher had a "sanitize" 
option I suppose I would use it. It takes 4-5 hours for the dishwasher 
cycle to run and the bottles to cool off, so sometimes I'll start the 
dishwasher before going to bed. I hope this helps.

David in Berkeley, CA
(sorry, responses to this account are automatically discarded)


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Date: Fri, 30 Jul 2004 07:48:25 -0500
From: "Robert M. Opalko" <Opalko at OxfordMS.net>
Subject: Re: I Hate Bottling

Dave Larsen wonders about what others hate in their brewing processes.  The
one thing I hate is waiting.  Waiting for the beer to be ready for drinking.
Waiting to get my ingredients in the mail.  Waiting for the weekend to brew.
Waiting...always waiting.

- --
Cheers!
Bob Opalko





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Date: Fri, 30 Jul 2004 08:46:32 -0400
From: "Bridges, Scott" <ScottBridges at sc.slr.com>
Subject: RE: I hate Bottling


>From Dave in Tucson:
>I absolutely love brewing, and almost everything about it.  I love 
>formulating recipes, selecting ingredients, mashing, sparging, boiling, 
>fermenting, kegging, and imbibing.  However, if there is one thing I've 
>always hated, it is bottling.
snip
>I just thought I'd say that.  Does anybody else hate anything about their 
>brewing process?

Great idea for a discussion.  Since there seems to be plenty of bandwidth
available, I'll toss in my $.02....

I also love brewing.  Actually, the last maybe 6-8 yrs I haven't done all
that much.  Kids, divorce, work, other interests, etc have kept me from
brewing regularly like I used to.  However, since I moved this year, I've
rekindled my interest.  I got a new beer fridge, new CFchiller, new brew
cart.  My new SWMBO is very supportive of the hobby, and enjoys the fruits
of my labors.  I'm working on getting my rig tuned for max efficiency, and
min effort.  It's become newly apparent to me how much fun it is, and how
much I really missed the hobby when I doing other things.

However, the part that I really don't enjoy is the clean up.  To me, it
doesn't seem like there is an easy way to get everything cleaned up without
a lot of work and carrying heavy stuff around.  I brew all grain (usually in
10 gal. batches) and have a 3 sankey keg set up with 2 propane burners and 2
pumps.  Disposing of the grain, and cleaning out the mash tun, kettle,
chiller, pumps, and hoses always seems like it takes too much work.  That's
the part I could do without.  If anyone has suggestions on how to make this
part of the process less chore some, I'd be eternally grateful.

Scott
Brewing (again) in Columbia, SC



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Date: Fri, 30 Jul 2004 07:47:58 -0500 (Central Daylight Time)
From: "Jim Bermingham" <bermingham at antennaproducts.com>
Subject: Carbonating the soda keg

Greg Tatarian, from parts unknown, wants to know if it is possible to prime
one's beer in a soda keg.  Greg I assume you want to know if you can prime a
keg the same way as you prime a bottle.  The answer is yes.  However, most
people force carbonate with co2.  Force carbonating allows you to enjoy your
beer much sooner.
Dave Larsen, From Tucson, wants to know what we hate about the brewing
process.  Dave, I hate seeing the bottles and kegs in the refrigerator.  I
just can't stand seeing them all lined up in rows, setting there mocking me.
 So I drink them as fast as I can.

Jim Bermingham
Millsap, TX 


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Date: Fri, 30 Jul 2004 09:07:23 -0400
From: stencil <etcs.ret at verizon.net>
Subject: Re: Priming in soda kegs?

On Fri, 30 Jul 2004 00:15:23 -0400, in Digest #4568,  Greg Tatarian  wrote:

>------------------------------
>
>[ ... ]  is it feasible to prime one's beer for carbonation in a 
>soda keg? It seems the vessel is certainly made for the pressure, so why 
>can't one just prime as normal for bottling, but rack into the keg? 

Yes, of course, but carbonating with CO2 is better.
Pros:  It's quick and easy;  sugar or DME is cheap;  and the beer is
"naturally carbonated" (sigh.)
Cons:  There is a significant sludge accumulation, and the first few pints of
each session will be hazier than the later ones (assuming there's more than
one session :-);  and degree of carbonation and serving pressure will be
erratic, even if you vent the accumulated head gas and repressurize with
bottle gas.  
But you'll never know for sure till you try it for yourself.

stencil sends


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Date: Fri, 30 Jul 2004 11:26:54 -0400
From: RiedelD at pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca
Subject: re-pitching into pseudo-Lambic slurry

I have a batch of pseudo-Lambic that's been churning away since September
'03.  I'm planning to soon rack it into 2 separate vessels (1 with cherries
for Kriek and 1 for gueuze).  Can I run a new batch of wort onto the slurry
that has been fermenting the beer since last fall, or is a new innoculation
the only way to go?

any thoughts?
Dave Riedel
Victoria, Canada


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Date: Fri, 30 Jul 2004 08:51:26 -0700
From: "Michael O'Donnell" <mooseo at stanford.edu>
Subject: Re: Priming in Kegs

Greg asks about priming in soda kegs.

Your intuition is correct; you can certainly do it.

I've never actually primed, preferring to force carbonate in kegs 
instead.  Do a quick search of the archives and you'll find a wealth of 
posts of how much sugar, etc.

cheers,
mike
Monterey, CA

At 08:57 PM 7/29/2004, Request Address Only - No Articles wrote:
>It seems the vessel is certainly made for the pressure, so why
>can't one just prime as normal for bottling, but rack into the keg?



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Date: Fri, 30 Jul 2004 09:08:10 -0700 (PDT)
From: "Scott D. Braker-Abene" <skotrat at yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: Priming in soda kegs?

Greg Tatarian Writes: 

"but is it feasible to prime one's beer for carbonation in a 
soda keg?"

Skotrat replies:

Hey Now, 

Yah, Sure... No Problem. 1/4-1/3 cup priming sugar should do all of what you
need. My only question is; Why bother? 

personally I would just force carb the beer in the keg after racking because it
is far easier and will result in less mucky muck in the bottom of the keg come
drinking time. 

Yet, if you feel the urge to try it then do it. It will work just dandy as I
have tried it many times myself. 

C'ya!

 -Scott

=====
"My life is a dark room... One big dark room"
 - BeetleJuice

http://www.skotrat.com/skotrat - Skotrats Beer Page
http://www.brewrats.org - BrewRats HomeBrew Club


		


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Date: Fri, 30 Jul 2004 13:16:26 -0400
From: "RJ" <rjdn4 at msn.com>
Subject: Re: Priming in soda kegs?

Greg,

Absolutely nothing wrong with priming that corny keg with corn sugar... just
be sure to cut the quantity of sugar to about 1/3 of what you'd be using to
bottle with... Reason for the lesser amount is that you'll have a
significantly larger volume of yeast in the keg than you would in each
bottle.

You also mention that you have a Trappist ready to go into the secondary...
you could rack that to the keg, too, and let the remainer of the
fermantation to carbonate it as well.

RJ


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Date: Fri, 30 Jul 2004 10:43:26 -0700
From: Scott Alfter <scott at alfter.us>
Subject: Re: Priming in soda kegs?

On Thu, 29 Jul 2004 at 07:08:39 -0700, Greg Tatarian wrote:
> [I]s it feasible to prime one's beer for carbonation in a soda keg? It
> seems the vessel is certainly made for the pressure, so why can't one just
> prime as normal for bottling, but rack into the keg?

Theoretically, yes.  In practice, you might have trouble getting the keg to
seal up.  With my kegs, I usually have to pull up on the lid while
pressurizing the keg to get it to seal properly.  You can't do that if your
only gas source is what the yeast put out.  You should be able to seal the
keg with a keg charger and then let the priming sugar do its job. 

My understanding is that you should only use about 60% of the sugar you'd
normally use if you're priming a keg.

(The main reason I started kegging was to get away from the inconsistent
results I was getting with bottle conditioning...it'd sometimes take forever
to get enough carbonation for a beer to be drinkable.  I don't have that
problem anymore.)

  _/_
 / v \ Scott Alfter (remove the obvious to send mail)
(IIGS( http://alfter.us/            Top-posting!
 \_^_/ rm -rf /bin/laden            >What's the most annoying thing on Usenet?



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Date: Fri, 30 Jul 2004 12:48:51 -0500
From: David Hagan <dhagan at rice.edu>
Subject: RE: Priming in soda kegs?

Greg-

When I first started kegging I didn't know there was another way to carbonate. 
When I first tried force carbonating I didn't like the results, but I've gotten 
better at it.

Use just a little less priming sugar or malt per batch than you would use to 
bottle. The first glass or so you draw off will have sediment in it, but after 
that it's clear aleing!  

Na Zdarovia!
David H




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Date: Fri, 30 Jul 2004 21:02:13 +0100
From: tmeier at real-ale.net
Subject: re: acid additions



AJ, thanks for your excellent reply regarding acid additions
which confirmed my suspicions and cleared the air. You 
really should write that book if you have the time.

 ..

Local Bosco's Brameister Fred Scheer wrote in to suggest
I do not need acid in my sparge water. Hey, that is the
great thing about being a homebrewer - I am free to explore
any procedure I want to enhance the quality of my beers,
and I enjoy trying out new things.

Fred writes:
>Also, the Music City Homebrew Club in Nashville, TN is a
>good source of help.

I don't know of any MCB member (save a couple) that concern
themselves with details like mash pH, but maybe that 
explains why two clubs 1/10th their size are brewing more 
quality beers. ;)

2004 Mid-South Homebrew Series Points Standings:
Rocket City Brewers.....170 
Brewmasters of Alpharetta.....115 
Bluff City Brewers.....75 
Chicken City Ale Raisers.....67 
Antioch Sud Suckers.....60
Music City Brewers.....40

See you Saturday at the Fest!

Tom Meier
Nashville, TN




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Date: Fri, 30 Jul 2004 20:05:52 -0400
From: "D. Clark" <clark at capital.net>
Subject: reuse of yeast

Hi gang,

It is so good to have the digest back.  Thank you Pat for all of your efforts,

I need an opinion from the board about some Wyeast 3068 that I have 
saved.  I brewed a wheat that came out a little heavy with a starting 
gravity of 1.064, finishing at 1.012.  When I started the smack pack it 
took off very quickly.  I made a pint starter three days before brewing, 
and it also fermented very quickly.  I chilled this "beer" to drop the 
yeast and poured off the liquid.  To the yeast sediment I added another 
pint of wort from my sparge that I had thinned with water and boiled for a 
few minutes.  This took off immediately and was really cranking when I 
pitched a little later.  I did not oxygenate my wort, but just let it 
go.  A week later my airlock was showing no activity so I racked to my 
secondary and found that my specific gravity was 1.032.  I was hoping this 
beer would start up again and it did for another week with about a half 
inch or so of krausen on top.  I racked to a keg today with a final gravity 
of 1.012.  The beer is good.  Strong but good.  I have saved the yeast from 
the secondary, but will it have enough vigor left to ferment another batch 
after coming off a fairly high gravity beer?  If  I make another wheat with 
a S.G. of 1.060 or less would I be okay?

I like this yeast a lot and I can usually get two batches made before the 
flavors fade.  Thanks for the help.

Dave Clark
Eagle Bridge, New York



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