HOMEBREW Digest #470 Wed 08 August 1990

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


Contents:
  Re: Homebrew Digest #469 (August 07, 1990) (Keith Morgan)
  Eckhart?, racking, overcarbonation (ROSS)
  clear glass, over-carbonation (mikec)
  Re: Racking Tube Horror Stories & Grolsch bottles for sale (Sheridan Adams)
  Bock Im Stein (Jason Goldman)
  New Brewery (Joe Uknalis)
  Brewer-cavers (Joe Uknalis)
  Re: Racking Tube Horror Stories (Chris Shenton)
  Re: Brewpubs in...St. Louis (blasphemy) (Chris Shenton)
  racking tube problems... (Jeffery R Blackman)
  various (Russ Gelinas)
  Siphon woes, Rosebud beer (cckweiss)
  Homebrew Digest #469 (August 07, 1990): Racking Tube Horror Stories (Wayne Allen)
  grains and advice on fruity flavors (BRWJ)
  Racking Tube Horror Stories
  grains, siphons, and ale yeast (mage!lou)
  Brewpub List (Steve Mosier)
  fruity flavor (Algis R Korzonas +1 708 979 8583)
  The "w" word ("Philip Edward Cutone, III")
  special grains (florianb)
  poor racking tube (florianb)
  Racking tube woes (Mark E. Freeman)
  Too much foam in your glass -- a solution (Lynn Gold)
  Hot Fermentations and Racking Tube Madness... (mark gryska)
  Re: Bock im Stein (Clay Phipps)
  Re: off tastes from honey (Clay Phipps)
  Nasty Smelling Honey Lager ("Mike Schmidt")

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---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 08:20:03 edt From: Keith Morgan <morgan at DG-RTP.DG.COM> Subject: Re: Homebrew Digest #469 (August 07, 1990) > From: winter%cirrusl at oliveb.ATC.olivetti.com (Keith Winter) > Subject: Over-carbonated :-( > > OK, I'm trying to relax but it is getting harder to do. My latest batch > (Papazian's Palalia India Pale Ale) has come out over-carbonated. I I've had problems with overcarbonation every time I've used bulk priming. Seems to be a problem of nonuniform distribution of the priming sugar solution - my last batch of Pale Ale ended up with about 1/3 of the bottles flatter than Twiggy's chest and 2/3 malty alka-seltzer imitations. I've always had better luck putting a half teaspoon or so of corn sugar directly in each bottle. You'd think that the risk of infection would be high, but I've never had a problem with it. I guess there's little enough fermentation going on after the priming sugar is added that off flavors/odors don't have much chance to develop. Keith "lotsa li'l bubbles" Morgan Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 08:30 EDT From: ROSS at mscf.med.upenn.edu Subject: Eckhart?, racking, overcarbonation Date sent: 7-AUG-1990 08:18:12 Concerning Eckhart's book "The Essentials of Beer Styles"... I ordered this book from him at the American Brewers Information Services address in Oregon two months ago and still haven't received the book or cancelled check. Does anybody know a phone number where he can be reached? IN REPLY TO THE QUESTION ABOUT LOSING THE SYPHON BETWEEN THE CURVED RACKING TUBE AND THE REMAINDER OF THE TUBING... No, I've never had this problem. Perhaps you could try getting more vertical distance between your syphoning source and your receiving end. By placing my carboy a considerable height above my bottles, it greatly increases the flow rate so the different diameters of the tubing doesn't become a critical factor. See the discussion about syphoning in the appendix in the Papizian book, it's pretty informative. IN REPLY TO THE QUESTION ABOUT OVER/UNDERCARBONATION. I've found that the 1/2 to 3/4 cup of priming sugar gives me good control of the carbonation level. I have had problems like you described in my most current batch of Pale Ale. I'm almost certain that it was caused by incomplete fermentation before addition of priming sugar and bottling. As I was specially brewing this beer for an upcomming party, I had no choice but to bottle by a certain date. I guess I could have been more scientific and compensated for the incomplete fermentation by adding even less priming sugar. Also, I put about 6 bottles into the refrigerator two weeks after bottling. They were great. The remainders left at room temperature continued to ferment and they are overcarbonated but once the gas (and head) subside, they taste great. --- Andy Ross --- ross at mscf.med.upenn.edu Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 08:58:54 EDT From: mikec at sun03.niehs.nih.gov Subject: clear glass, over-carbonation Hey homebrewers, I can start my day off right with a HBDigest again :-) It just wasn't the same w/o it. Anyway, last weekend I bought a bottle of Sam Smith's Oatmeal Stout to try and was amazed that it was in a clear bottle! What about the bad effects of light on beer? It was quite good, but I'm curious why such a reputable brewery put their stuff in a clear bottle. Also, in Digest #469 Keith Winter remarked that he thought that a long aged beer, like a X-mas Ale, would be a prime candidate for over-carbonation because of its length in the bottle. Is this true? I was going to try one of those next. Cheers, Mike "just brewed his 2nd batch while finishing off the 1st" Carr Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 8:47:18 CDT From: sja at gath.cray.com (Sheridan Adams) Subject: Re: Racking Tube Horror Stories & Grolsch bottles for sale > Subject: Racking Tube Horror Stories > > (I'm gonna flame here) > This really gets me pissed when the siphon stops and the > remaining beer/wort in the tube *BUBBLES* back into the carboy! > Of course I do this several times, AAAARGHHHHH!!!, before I give > up and just use a plain hose. > Although I haven't tested it yet I may have a solution to this problem. I purchased a tap for my primary fermenter. What I plan to do is use the two-stage method of brewing and when it come time to bottle, transfer the beer to the primary fermenter and hook up the hose to the tap. This will allow any bubbles to clear out of the line. I should know whether it works in a week or so. If anyone is interested, I was in Semplex of USA the other day and noticed that they are now selling Grolsch bottles for around $10 a dozen. I don't know if they sell them mail order yet, but if one is interested it might be worth checking out. - -- Sheridan J. Adams sja at grog.cray.com (612) 683-3030 Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 07:55:53 mdt From: Jason Goldman <jdg at hp-lsd.cos.hp.com> Subject: Bock Im Stein Ah yes, Bock Im Stein. Very good stuff. Last summer I was browsing Niemann-Marcus in Chicago and I saw that they were giving away samples of this in their gormet section. It tasted wonderful, so I decided to buy a bottle. I was pleasantly surprised when the clerk asked if I wanted a bag or if I'd like to drink it while I shopped. Of course, I imagine that it makes some of their prices easier to handle ;-). Jason hp-lsd!jdg Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 07 Aug 90 09:53:08 EDT From: Joe Uknalis <UKNALIS at VTVM1.CC.VT.EDU> Subject: New Brewery If Monday's stock market plunge did'nt scare you away.... offering by prospectus only, this is not an advertisement etc... Ralph Early, President Little River Brewing Company PO Box 657 Floyd, VA 24091 yea! Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 07 Aug 90 09:56:52 EDT From: Joe Uknalis <UKNALIS at VTVM1.CC.VT.EDU> Subject: Brewer-cavers Hey- Anyone out there a caver & coming to OTR?? Wanna swap brew stories & suds? If there's mud in your blood (but not your brew) send a note & we'll see what we can do! Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 10:35:06 EDT From: Chris Shenton <chris at asylum.gsfc.nasa.gov> Subject: Re: Racking Tube Horror Stories semantic!bob at uunet.UU.NET writes: > I've been having troubles using > one of those rigid type racking tubes. The problem is a loss of > pressure/suction where the rigid racking tube connect with my racking > hose. The difference in between the inside diameter (ID) of the > rigid tube and the ID of the hose creates an open air gap. This > gap causes the suction to slow and eventually the siphon fails. I get the same thing. I just thwack at the joint with my finger (kind of like snapping your finger) a couple times and it usually dislodges the air bubble. It doesn't come back. Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 10:42:15 EDT From: Chris Shenton <chris at asylum.gsfc.nasa.gov> Subject: Re: Brewpubs in...St. Louis (blasphemy) "Gary F. Mason - Image Systems - MKO2-2/K03 - 603884[DTN264]-1503 02-Aug-1990 0753" writes: > Looking through the brewpub list, I find none in St. Louis. Are there any, > or have the big-brew interests kept them out? Write/call the AHA. They have a list of brewpubs and micro brewers. I've found it very helpful when I've travelled, although there are no evaluations. Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 8:32:03 PDT From: Jeffery R Blackman <blackman at hpihouz.cup.hp.com> Subject: racking tube problems... Full-Name: Jeffery R Blackman Bob Gorman writes: > Date: Fri Jul 27 15:47:53 1990 > From: semantic!bob at uunet.UU.NET > Subject: Racking Tube Horror Stories > On a different subject: I've been having troubles using > one of those rigid type racking tubes. The problem is a loss of > pressure/suction where the rigid racking tube connect with my racking > hose. The difference in between the inside diameter (ID) of the > rigid tube and the ID of the hose creates an open air gap. This > gap causes the suction to slow and eventually the siphon fails. I've > tried putting a hose clamp at the connection, thinking there was an > air leak there, but that was not it. > Any suggestions? Please! If you don't mind a permanent solution, takes some 5 minute epoxy and seal the rigid racking tube to the racking hose. This easily makes an air-tight seal. Jeff Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 11:48 EST From: <R_GELINA%UNHH.BITNET at MITVMA.MIT.EDU> (Russ Gelinas) Subject: various Thanks to all for the responses to my concern re. a batch of beer with 2 lbs. of honey in it. In the last week the brew went from "Ehhh" to "Ahhh". It changed very quickly, and I think it will still get better. My description of the immature brew as "homebrew-like" (or something like that) got some negative response. IN NO WAY did I mean that homebrew doesn't exceed the big guys' swill in every possible comparison. What I meant was that the brew tasted like poorly made homebrew. I think we can agree that poorly made homebrew has a unique flavor to it. I have had the misfortune to taste as much bad homebrew as good, so I guess "homebrew" sometimes still has a negative connotation to me. But in the future, I'll make it point to be more descriptive. Ok, finally, there's New Hampshire liquor stores selling speciality beer. I think the reason they do that is because of the high alcohol content of the beer, making it hard to categorize (barley wine? malt liquor?). Since I live in NH, I'll gladly volunteer to sample all the varieties and post a description. Please send donations to the address below *:-) RussG. Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 09:22:51 -0700 From: cckweiss at castor.ucdavis.edu Subject: Siphon woes, Rosebud beer At last, a problem I can address! Bob Gorman writes that he has a problem with air lodging in his siphon hose, where the flexible tube meets the rigid racking tube. IUve found two ways to deal with this. 1) Start with your hose filled with water. If you're racking from primary to secondary, just add the small amount of water to the brew, it won't matter. If you're bottling, let the first pint or so of water/wort mixture go into a waste bucket, to avoid getting some watered down beers. 2) If you still get an air bubble in the hose, try pinching the hose firmly just above the bubble. That always sends the air on down the line for me. Now for my question to the group. I just started using Wyeast cultures. I've noticed that I'm getting little flakes of material up near the surface of the beer in the bottle. The slightest movement will send these little gomers drifting down to the bottom of the bottle, looking for all the world like one of those snowstorm paperweights. The yeast in question is the Irish Ale. Comments/explanations/reassurances/loud exclamations of dismay at my obviously unsanitary brewing conditions are invited. I'm hoping some experienced brewer will say "It's a top fermenting yeast, you idiot, and that's yeast at the top of your beer!" Ken Weiss cckweiss at castor.ucdavis.edu Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 11:37:27 CDT From: wa%cadillac.cad.mcc.com at MCC.COM (Wayne Allen) Subject: Homebrew Digest #469 (August 07, 1990): Racking Tube Horror Stories > On a different subject: I've been having troubles using >one of those rigid type racking tubes. The problem is a loss of >pressure/suction where the rigid racking tube connect with my racking >hose. The difference in between the inside diameter (ID) of the >rigid tube and the ID of the hose creates an open air gap. This >gap causes the suction to slow and eventually the siphon fails. I've >tried putting a hose clamp at the connection, thinking there was an Yes, I had this happen last week with a new hose I'd bought. I've used a racking tube forever, but all my previous hoses where the same approximate I.D. as the tube. I managed to finish racking becuase I use one of those two-hole carboy caps; the racking tube comes out of one, and a tube connected to a hand pump (like for air mattresses) goes in the other. This allows me to start the siphon by pressure without touching the hose. I can literally just pump the stuff out if need be, although you really want a pure siphon to avoid oxidation. The only solution is to get a smaller hose or larger tube. _ W | Wayne Allen, wa at mcc.com uunet!cs.utexas.edu!milano!cadillac!wa | MCC/CAD, 3500 West Balcones Center Dr, Austin, Tx 78759 (512)338-3754 Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 12:57 EST From: BRWJ%VAX5.CIT.CORNELL.EDU at CORNELLC.cit.cornell.edu Subject: grains and advice on fruity flavors "...Ralph... ralph at iies.ecn.purdue.edu" asks about how to use specialty grains in extract beers. I have used Papazian's method of adding ALL specialty grains to 1 and 1/2 gallons COLD water and removing them with a strainer when the mixture begins to boil. My understanding of boiling grains is that it adds a "grainy" or "husky" flavor to the beer -- generally considered negative. One comment on your first method, in which grains are mashed by simple infusion. Don't worry about the temperature -- crystal malt and many other specialty grains contain no enzymes nor convertable sugars (in fact in crystal malt the starches have already been converted to dextrins and other such unfermentable sugars and caramelized). The mashing (or steeping) just extracts these goodies from the grain. Good luck! You'll notice a marked improvement in your beer! Bob Gorman noticed a fruity flavor in his "hot ferment" (aver. 73 degrees). It's my understanding that hotter fermentation results in more byproducts (other than alcohol and carbon dioxide), in particular esters which contribute a "fruity" flavor. It also could be due to your yeast strain (???), some of which are noted for their fruitiness. I think Red Star ale was famous for banana flavors. I used Edme ale yeast for many years and always noticed strong fruit flavors, which dissipated after a couple weeks in the bottle. Some people consider these "off flavors", but such flavors also characterize some awfully good English ales. As to Bob's rack tube problems, why not just get the next size down in racking hoses (you can by them at many hardware stores)? Just in passing, Real Ale is alive and well in England. During three weeks there I sampled many. My favorites: Adnam's (Bitter or "Old Broadside"), Greene King's Abbot Ale, and Fuller's ESB. Yum. The saddest sight: Young Brits drinking lager almost exclusively, even Budweiser longnecks. WAKE-UP! Jackie Brown (Brwj at crnlvax5.bitnet) Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 12:19:54 -0400 From: actnyc!jeff at uunet.UU.NET (Jeffrey Poretsky) > Subject: Bock im Stein > > It's worth a try, of course, that's what beer drinkers do! > I really like the bottle. I have never seen it before, and > may never again, but I thought I would relate this to you all. > > Oh yes, It's imported by: Consolidated Distilled Products, > Inc. of Chicago. > > - -- Cheers! > > - -- Bob Gorman Relational Semantics, Inc. Watertown MA US -- Bob, (and others) I agree with you on the uniqueness of the beer and bottle. For those of you on the east coast there is a place to drink this beer, in addition to about two hundred more. In the Village, NYC, there is a bar called Peculiar Pub. There they have a MENU of beers, ranging from american malt pops to dopple-bocks, animators, and almost any other sort of brewed beverage you can think of. There is also, in the same general area, (15 minute walk), a bar called Brewskies. This is where the local brewers guild meets. An offical invite: Anyone who visits the area and wants to visit these establishments, email to me that info, and I will personally take you to them. Jeff Poretsky uunet!actnyc!jeff jeff at actnyc.UUCP standard disclaimers apply. +1 212 696 3747 "THINK. If you are already thinking, please disregard this message." Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 10:09:53 PDT From: dreger at seismo.gps.caltech.edu Subject: Racking Tube Horror Stories >On a different subject: I've been having troubles using >one of those rigid type racking tubes. The problem is a loss of >pressure/suction where the rigid racking tube connect with my racking >hose. The difference in between the inside diameter (ID) of the >rigid tube and the ID of the hose creates an open air gap. This >gap causes the suction to slow and eventually the siphon fails. I've >tried putting a hose clamp at the connection, thinking there was an >air leak there, but that was not it. I've also had this problem. A simple remedy is to pinch the soft tube just after the connection with the rigid tube. Let go after a few seconds and the trapped air bubble disappears down the tube. Doug D. Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 11:28:56 MDT From: hplabs!mage!lou Subject: grains, siphons, and ale yeast In HBD #469 Ralph McCallister writes: >On one side the preperation states that the crystal malt, in this case about >1 pound, should be mashed using a simple infusion method and then >sparged before beginning the boil. The remaining grains are added half >way through the cooking time and then the wort is sparged and added with >the rest of the water. According CP, crystal and the other specialty grains you mentioned have no enzymes and thus trying to mash them will not have the sort of results you expect from mashing. (TCJoHB p.56) >The second method requires that all the grains should first be boiled >together for about 1 to 4 minutes. As much of the grain as possible >should then be removed , continue with the wort preperation and sparged >before adding this with the remaining water. Everything I've read says that boiling your grains will release tannins which will give an undesirable astringency to your beer. The method that works well for me is to boil some water (not in your brewpot), kill the heat and add all of the speciality grains (crystal, chocolate, black); cover this and steep like tea for about 20 minutes. Pour this concoction through a stainer into your brewpot and sparge. I find this much easier than trying to fish the grains out of the brewpot and then sparging the grains. ============ Bob Gorman writes: > On a different subject: I've been having troubles using >one of those rigid type racking tubes. The problem is a loss of >pressure/suction where the rigid racking tube connect with my racking >hose. The difference in between the inside diameter (ID) of the >rigid tube and the ID of the hose creates an open air gap. This >gap causes the suction to slow and eventually the siphon fails. I've >tried putting a hose clamp at the connection, thinking there was an >air leak there, but that was not it. This problem is easy to fix. Buy a slightly smaller ID hose (i.e. 1/16 inch smaller). It will take a little work to get it on over the hard plastic of the racking tube but you will be certain of a good seal there. Don't expect to be able to get it off afterwards. You will, of course, be concerned about the possibility of wort building up around there and making a breeding ground for infections but, don't worry. Just be sure you rinse it well after use and sanitize it well and it will work fine. My hose has been permanently attached to my racking tube for over a year and 30 batches of brew and I've never had an infection. >(I'm gonna flame here) > This really gets me pissed when the siphon stops and the >remaining beer/wort in the tube *BUBBLES* back into the carboy! >Of course I do this several times, AAAARGHHHHH!!!, before I give >up and just use a plain hose. I had a similar problem with my first racking tube. It took me a long time and much experimentation before I found the real problem and got it fixed. In my case, the bubbles were not air but carbon dioxide. Normally, it should take 5-10 minutes to siphon a carboy. I was getting times like 45 minutes before the bubbles caused me to lose the siphon. I eventually traced the problem to the orange thingamabob at the bottom of the tube that raises the opening of the tube above the sediment. The orange thingy is supposed to have two little stubs that keep it away from the opening of the white plastic and allow an adequate flow into the white plastic tube. These stubs were broken off so that the orange dingus was pressed directly against the bottom of the white tube and severely restricting the flow into the tube. The agitation of siphoning will normally cause some carbon dioxide to come out of solution. With a healthy flow rate the CO2 is swept along with the liquid and is quickly removed from the hose; the result being that you never notice that it has happened. With the low flow rate I was getting, the CO2 had the opportunity to form larger bubbles that collected at the top of the siphon, eventually reaching the point where they were visible where the white plastic joined the hose. Getting a new orange piece solved the problem completely. In short, look for anything that might be restricting flow through your siphon. I have experienced this problem since when I've had fruit in the beer or mead that clogged the siphon and restricted the flow. ========== Ivan Yanasak writes: >I'm going for batch #2 this Friday (the Spruce Ale from CJoHB), and need >recommendations for ale yeast. What are good dry yeasts? Are the >liquid cultures worth the extra $? (The local store has Wyeast). Liquid cultures are highly touted but I've never been particularly impressed; but, then I've never tried a liquid ale yeast. My preferred ale yeast is Leigh-Williams and Sons Beer and Stout yeast. It comes in a plastic bottle and contains enough yeast for 8 batches (the label recommends only 3 batches but that should be ignored). Finally, Louis Clark mage!lou at ncar.ucar.edu Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 13:39 EDT From: Steve Mosier <MOSIER%UNCG.BITNET at ncsuvm.ncsu.edu> Subject: Brewpub List Gary Mason wrote: > Looking through the brewpub list, I find none in St. Louis. Are there any, or > have the big-brew interests kept them out? Is there a brewpub list? How do I get it? BTW, there is a brewpub in Greensboro (NC) now: Vickers. I just saw a story about it yesterday in the Greensboro News and Record. The story cites 4 brews: Gate City Ale, Loggerhead Pilsner, General Greene Lager (a dark beer), and Loggerhead Light (ugh). They are experimenting with a Cherry Beer. As soon as I get out there, I'll comment on them. -=steve=- Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 12:15:31 mdt From: hplabs!hp-lsd.cos.hp.com!ihlpl!korz (Algis R Korzonas +1 708 979 8583) Subject: fruity flavor Bob Gorman writes: > If anybody cares my Hot Ferment went well. The average temp >of my wort was 73 degrees (The temperature of my bath room floor). >It finished it's primary ferment in 1 1/2 days. > When I racked it I noticed a fruity flavor. I think that >this may be from the Alexanders Malt Extract, I've never used it before. The fruity flavor is characteristic of ales (it's the main flavor difference between lagers and ales) and is caused by esters that are produced by the yeast when it ferments at higher temperatures. Different strains of yeast produce varying amounts and types of esters. Although I have never tried it, I understand that Red Star dry ale yeast has a tendency to produce "banana esters." Other esters can give your beer strawberry-like flavors. Banana and strawberry are the only two _identifiable_ fruit flavors that I have heard brewers report, although there are others that escape classification. In My Humble Opinion, it was your 73 degree ferment that gave you the fruity flavor and not the Alexanders. Al. Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 14:46:56 -0400 (EDT) From: "Philip Edward Cutone, III" <pc2d+ at andrew.cmu.edu> Subject: The "w" word I may be lenched for posting this request here, but I am looking for a good wine mix, and instructions for the fermentation of said mix. I am hoping to have itdone for the new year. As an added kick, I have had no fermentation experience, (except growing yeast in a supersaturated sugar solution for my brine shrimp, don't ask. BTW it tasted awful, but had a stong kick!) Anyway, if I cannot getthe info here, could I be redirected to someplace I might? Help would be appreciated! me Return to table of contents
Date: 07 Aug 90 12:33:09 PDT (Tue) From: florianb at tekred.cna.tek.com Subject: special grains Ralph L McCallister asks about when and how to add special grains: >On one side the preperation states that the crystal malt, in this case about >1 pound, should be mashed using a simple infusion method and then >sparged before beginning the boil. The remaining grains are added half >way through the cooking time and then the wort is sparged and added with >the rest of the water. > >The second method requires that all the grains should first be boiled >together for about 1 to 4 minutes. As much of the grain as possible >should then be removed , continue with the wort preperation and sparged >before adding this with the remaining water. If you choose to mash the special grains separately, you will need to mash them with malted barley to provide enzymes. However, to mash the special grains implies that there is starch to convert. There are small amounts of starch in crystal and other high-kilned malted barley, but the sugars added by mashing them (in addition to the sugars already present in the special grains, as is) should be insignificant to the total amount of fermentables in the entire boil. The usual reason for mashing the crystal, etc. along with pale malted barley is that it provides a long period of time at elevated temperature during which the "goodness" of the special grains comes out into the solution. This being the case, it is acceptable to simply crush the special grains, place them in a grain bag, and dunk it into the kettle at the beginning of the heating phase. Slosh the bag around during warmup, and as soon as the wort begins to boil, squeeze out the bag with tongs, and remove it before full rolling boil commences. Ralph further mentions that he intends to do stouts with full extract. I might add that to obtain full benefit from the roasted barley (and other high-kilned barleys) and to make a reproducible beer, that it is good to go to a full or partial mash. In that case, at least half of the fermentables should come from pale malted barley. Florian Return to table of contents
Date: 07 Aug 90 12:37:57 PDT (Tue) From: florianb at tekred.cna.tek.com Subject: poor racking tube Bob Gorman complains about his racking tube: On a different subject: I've been having troubles using one of those rigid type racking tubes. The problem is a loss of pressure/suction where the rigid racking tube connect with my racking hoze... I suggest going to a hardware store and purchasing some clear plastic food-grade tubing that will in fact fit your hard plastic racking tube. I get mine from a local sports/automotive shop and replace the tubing about every 3-4 months or when it gets cloudy. Florian Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 13:07:53 PDT From: freeman at idaho.Inference.Com (Mark E. Freeman) Subject: Racking tube woes Date: Fri Jul 27 15:47:53 1990 From: semantic!bob at uunet.UU.NET Subject: Racking Tube Horror Stories Hi Y'all, On a different subject: I've been having troubles using one of those rigid type racking tubes. The problem is a loss of pressure/suction where the rigid racking tube connect with my racking hose. The difference in between the inside diameter (ID) of the rigid tube and the ID of the hose creates an open air gap. This gap causes the suction to slow and eventually the siphon fails. I've tried putting a hose clamp at the connection, thinking there was an air leak there, but that was not it. Indeed, this was a great cause of anguish to me during my initial batches. Fortunately, my housemate came to my assistance; we obtained some hosing whose inner diameter was equivalent to that of the racking tube. The hose does stretch enough to fit around the outside of the tube, and the smaller diameter also has the added advantage of creating a tighter seal at the junction. Now it works fine. (and she can say "I told ya so" :-) - -- Mark Freeman freeman at inference.com Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 14:51:14 PDT From: figmo at mica.berkeley.edu (Lynn Gold) Subject: Too much foam in your glass -- a solution I suspect your problem might be your pouring technique rather than the beer itself. Try this: tip the glass on its side and GENTLY pour the beer into it. I've found this technique cuts the amount of foam in my glass regardless of what beer I'm drinking. - --Lynn Brewer of "Fuzzbrau -- A Great Beer Named After a Great Dog" Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 18:25:52 EDT From: mark at zippy.cs.umass.edu (mark gryska) Subject: Hot Fermentations and Racking Tube Madness... In HOMEBREW Digest #469 Bob Gorman writes about high fermentation temperatures, Alexanders Malt Extract and a fruity flavor. I use Alexanders for the majority of my brewing and I am very satisfied with the results. Fruity flavors are created by your yeast with fermentation temperature affecting the amount of "fruitiness" that will be produced. A high fermentation temperature will result in a greater production of esters and aldehydes which are responsible for the "fruitiness". Note that this "fruitiness" is characteristic of a Trappist Ale. I know one brewer who cultures the yeast from Chimay and ferments it in the low 70's, the beer turns out to be very good. The point is that "fruitiness" can be good or bad depending on the style of beer you are trying to make. If you don't like this character then you can use a different yeast strain and/or lower fermentation temperatures. Now, about racking tubes. I think that they are a great invention. Here are a couple of hints that will make siphoning an easier task. I always fill my tubing and racking tube with hot water from the tap after sanitization / rinsing. I have a clamp on the outlet side that I close and then carefully lower the tube into the beer to be racked. I put a jar on the floor and release the clamp to allow the water to run out which is replaced by the beer. I close the clamp and then rack into another carboy, my hydrometer test jar or both. Bubbles may form in the tubing because the agitation of the beer will release the CO2 that has been created during fermentation. You can do a couple things. Pinch the tubing right above the bubble, this should cause the bubbles to migrate down the tubing. Make the difference in height between the two carboys greater, this will increase the speed at which the liquid flows and prevent bubbles from forming. If you loose your siphon don't panic, repeat the process... - mg gryska at cs.umass.edu mark at zippy.cs.umass.edu Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 11:25:00 -0700 From: hplabs!garth!phipps (Clay Phipps) Subject: Re: Bock im Stein In HOMEBREW Digest #469: Tue 07 August 1990, semantic!bob at uunet.UU.NET (Bob Gorman) wrote on Sun Jul 29 16:25:01 1990: > >It was a clay bottle with a resealable top, like on Grolsch bottles. >Upon a second glance the word BOCK stuck out. [...] >The beer is 'Fiedlers Bock im Stein'. A German Beer. >The label also says 'Bockbier im echten Steinkrug'. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ "Bock beer in the genuine stone[-ware] jug". >The bottle came capped with a standard bottle cap, >and the resealable cap was hanging on the side. >The bottle is made of clay and is glazed brown. >It has a four inch diameter and stands about eight inches high. ,,Krug`` also means "mug" or "tankard", thus ,,Bierkrug``: "beer-mug", but in the context given by your description, "jug" is the best choice. >This is a hefty bottle! It was definitely made to be reused, >sort of novelty marketing, like Grolsch bottles. ^^^^^^^ I'd bet that it's the literal opposite; it's probably the *traditional* kind of vessel that was displaced when glass became inexpensive, hence widely used, a century-or-so ago. That change is credited to some degree with enhancing the popularity of lagers versus traditional ales/,,Altbiere``. Perhaps our cullinary historian: Cher Feinstein, can provide more details on the history of beer vessels. In times when the fabrication of containers was nontrivial--regardless of precisely when that changed--the only sensible thing to do was to fabricate containers that could tolerate the abuse of repeated use. I'm certain that the modern custom of discarding containers after a single use would be alien to all but the exceptionally wealthy of their times. [The foregoing may or may not represent the position, if any, of my employer, ] [ who is identified solely to allow the reader to account for personal biases.] Clay Phipps Intergraph APD, 2400#4 Geng Road, Palo Alto, CA 94303 415/852-2327 UseNet (Intergraph internal): ingr!apd!phipps UseNet (external): {apple,pyramid,sri-unix}!garth!phipps EcoNet: cphipps [^^^^^ Our regular delay in receipt of net-news is still 2 *weeks* !$%# at *&^!!!] Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 11:45:49 -0700 From: hplabs!garth!phipps (Clay Phipps) Subject: Re: off tastes from honey A clarification of the submission identified below follows: In HOMEBREW Digest #469, Tue 07 August 1990 hplabs!garth!phipps (Clay Phipps) wrote on Fri, 27 Jul 90 19:55:49 -0700: > >In HOMEBREW Digest #467 (Wed 25 July 1990), >hplabs!mage!lou (Louis Clark) wrote: >> >>[In HOMEBREW Digest #465, RussG wrote: >>> >>>I've also got a brown ale of sorts that has been bottle for 10 days or so, >>>and it is not clearing at all (unlike all my other batches). >>>I[t] also [tastes] sour, bitter, off, but not particularly bad []. >>>It is my first batch using honey (2 lbs. of bargain stuff). > >My only batch using more than a pound of honey >also had a sharp, almost lemony sourness to it [...]. > >>>Is the honey responsible? > >[Yes.] The sourness disappeared completely after a few months. > >>>Is is the dreaded "I" word? > >[No.] A very experienced homebrewer, beer judge, >and former local brew-pub brewmaster concurred. ^^^ The multiple noun phrases all identify a total of one guy. >He didn't taste it until it had been in the bottle for 8 months! ^^ Here "it" refers to the brew itself, NOT the "sourness" mentioned above. The expert witness did not taste any evidence of infection at all, and he described it as "very clean"--8 months after bottling. Geez, it's aggravating to me to stumble over ambiguity in words that I originally though had expressed my thoughts carefully ! I blame some of the ambiguity on the ambiguous use of commas and conjunctions (e.g.: "and") in English, but the remainder of the fault is mine. [The foregoing may or may not represent the position, if any, of my employer, ] [ who is identified solely to allow the reader to account for personal biases,] [ and who really shouldn't care anyhow, considering that this is lunch-time !] Clay Phipps Intergraph APD, 2400#4 Geng Road, Palo Alto, CA 94303 415/852-2327 UseNet (Intergraph internal): ingr!apd!phipps UseNet (external): {apple,pyramid,sri-unix}!garth!phipps EcoNet: cphipps Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 90 21:05:44 PDT From: "Mike Schmidt" <schmidt at aec830.mdcbbs.com> Subject: Nasty Smelling Honey Lager I came very close to dumping out 5 gallons of 3-day-old Rocky Raccoon's Crystal Honey Lager, due to the putrid smell that wafted through our home. My wife almost nixed by upcoming keg purchase after entering our foul smelling brew cellar (a.k.a. The basement). However, much to my surprise it tastes good -- very good!. Thanks Johnny for convincing me *NOT* to pour the wort down the drain. I used 4 lbs of Alexander's Pale Malt Extract and 2 1/2 lbs of Light Honey. The honey, which I would assume is good quality stuff, came from my bee-keeper buddy. I used Red Star dry lager yeast and 2 oz. of Cascade stemmed loose hops. My first suspicion was that the Red Star yeast was contaminated, however the putrid smell appears to be the result of fermenting honey. This was the first time I had used honey in the brew pot. The smell is now just slightly noticeable. This batch is very immature so I will be sure to update you all if/when appropriate. Return to table of contents
End of HOMEBREW Digest #470, 08/08/90 ************************************* -------
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