---

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


***************************************************************
       THIS YEAR'S HOME BREW DIGEST BROUGHT TO YOU BY: 

          Northern  Brewer, Ltd. Home Brew Supplies
Visit http://www.northernbrewer.com  to show your appreciation!
               Or call them at 1-800-681-2739

    Support those who support you! Visit our sponsor's site!
********** Also visit http://hbd.org/hbdsponsors.html *********


Contents:
  Re: Sight Glass material (Kent Fletcher)
  Dunkel came out clear... (leavitdg)
  Glad press and seal (Jeff Adelsberger)
  Attn: Homebrew Suppliers ("Lemcke, Keith")
  re:festbier malts (Nathaniel Lansing)
  Dunkel came out clear? ("Spencer W. Thomas")
  re: festbier base malt help (Michael Owings)
  Cantillon Faro (Eric Schoville)
  Re: McMaster Shipping costs ("Michael O'Donnell")
  Faro ("Spencer W. Thomas")
  Re: festbier base malt help (Jeff Renner)
  McMaster Carr Orders ("Berggren, Stefan")
  Re: Festbier base malt help (Ricardo Cabeza)


* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
*           The HBD Logo Store is now open!             *
*            http://www.hbd.org/store.html              *
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
*  Suppport this service: http://hbd.org/donate.shtml   *
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
*   Beer is our obsession and we're late for therapy!   *
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Send articles for __publication_only__ to post@hbd.org

If your e-mail account is being deleted, please unsubscribe first!!

To SUBSCRIBE or UNSUBSCRIBE send an e-mail message with the word
  "subscribe" or "unsubscribe" to request@hbd.org FROM THE E-MAIL
  ACCOUNT YOU WISH TO HAVE SUBSCRIBED OR UNSUBSCRIBED!!!**
IF YOU HAVE SPAM-PROOFED your e-mail address, you cannot subscribe to
  the digest as we cannot reach you. We will not correct your address
  for the automation - that's your job.

HAVING TROUBLE posting, subscribing or unsusubscribing? See the HBD FAQ at
http://hbd.org.

LOOKING TO BUY OR SELL USED EQUIPMENT? Please do not post about it here. Go
instead to http://homebrewfleamarket.com and post a free ad there.

The HBD is a copyrighted document. The compilation is copyright 
  HBD.ORG. Individual postings are copyright by their authors. ASK 
  before reproducing and you'll rarely have trouble. Digest content 
  cannot be reproduced by any means for sale or profit.

More information is available by sending the word "info" to 
req@hbd.org or read the HBD FAQ at http://hbd.org.

JANITORs on duty: Pat Babcock (pbabcock at hbd dot org), Jason Henning,
                  and Spencer Thomas



----------------------------------------------------------------------


Date: Wed, 25 May 2005 23:07:55 -0700 (PDT)
From: Kent Fletcher <fletcherhomebrew at yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: Sight Glass material

Doug Moyer asked:
> Now, how do I cut it to length without breaking it?

A fine toothed hacksaw does just fine.  Let the blade
so the work, minimal pressure, and take it slow at the
end.

> Too bad acrylic can't handle the heat. A flourescent
> pink sight glass on the HLT and a flourescent green
> sight glass on the kettle would be groovy, baby!

What ever blows your skirt up on the colors, but I
still can't imagine why anybody would want a sight
glass (more properly called a gauge glass) on a boil
kettle?  Very useful on an HLT, but teats on a boar
for a kettle, if you ask me.

Kent Fletcher
Brewing in So Cal



		


Return to table of contents


Date: Thu, 26 May 2005 05:58:08 -0400
From: leavitdg at plattsburgh.edu
Subject: Dunkel came out clear...

I made what approximates a Dunkel, and much to my surprise (not dismay, 
however) it came out clear.

Here is the recipe:
5 lb Wheat malt
6 lb Pale malt
2 oz Caraffa I
1 lb Vienna malt
2 oz Special B
a handfull of rice hulls

2 stage infusion (145 for 45 min, then heated to 155 for 1 hour), boosted to 
mashout/ 170

og was 1.061
fg was 1.012

yeast was 4th use of wlp300/ hefe

2 hour boil (low btu heat source): perhaps it was the hot break here that 
created a clear final product?
24 ibu's of Willamette and Brewers Gold.

This tastes very good, so I am not complaining, but still I wonder why it came 
out clear?

Darrell
Happy Brewing!


Return to table of contents


Date: Thu, 26 May 2005 04:45:50 -0700 (PDT)
From: Jeff Adelsberger <fuzzydodads at yahoo.com>
Subject: Glad press and seal

Stephen Johnson wrote:
> I just saw an ad for a new Glad food storage
product: Press and Seal
> Freezer Wrap sheets that are designed to store food
products in the
> freezer. They are sheets of wrap that can be laid
flat and the food 
item
> placed in between, followed by pressing action that
seals the two 
sheets
> together. Has anyone tried these for use with
storing hops that have
> been opened from original packaging? Just curious as
to how oxygen
> permeable they might be...

Its probably mostly user error but I've had bad
experiences with the press and seal stuff.

It is also difficult to tell when you have a good seal
If I had to use something of that nature I'd take the
bags firtst.


		


Return to table of contents


Date: Thu, 26 May 2005 09:00:19 -0400
From: "Lemcke, Keith" <klemcke at lallemand.com>
Subject: Attn: Homebrew Suppliers

Our Siebel Institute / Fort Lewis College Advanced Homebrewing Course
starts in only two months (July 25 - 29, 2005), and we would like to
invite all homebrew product manufacturers & suppliers to provide our
students with your catalogs, promotional materials and product samples.
If you would like more information about this free opportunity to
promote your company to our enthusiastic homebrewing students, please
contact Keith Lemcke, Vice-President of Siebel Institute of Technology,
at klemcke at siebelinstitute.com. To learn more about our Advanced
Homebrewing Course held in Durango, Colorado, go to our web site at
http://www.siebelinstitute.com/course_desc/homebrewing.html .



Return to table of contents


Date: Thu, 26 May 2005 09:00:33 -0400
From: Nathaniel Lansing <delbrew at compuserve.com>
Subject: re:festbier malts

>>Now, in reading the Fixs' Classic BeerStyle Series
text on this style, they state that that vienna and munich malts are
not good choices due to a grainy harshness they impart (even the
well-regarded European varieties)<<

 Working from memory, I'm sure the Fixs were referring to
the 6-row American Munich and Vienna malts available
at that time of publication. It was difficult (impossible?) to
find imported Vienna or Munich at that time. But it was easy
to find imported (English) crystals.
 There are plenty of imported Vienna or Munichs now,
and I wouldn't hesitate to use them or even Briess
"Bonlander" (r) 2-row Munich.



Return to table of contents


Date: Thu, 26 May 2005 09:27:47 -0400
From: "Spencer W. Thomas" <hbd at spencerwthomas.com>
Subject: Dunkel came out clear?

I'm not sure I understand your confusion.  In my mind, a dunkel should
be clear (I assume you don't mean Zima-clear, but "not hazy" and
dunkel-colored).  Is it because you put wheat malt in the grist?  Wheat
by itself does not cause cloudiness.  Hefeweizens are cloudy because of
the suspended yeast, not because of the wheat.  After all, a Kristal
weizen is merely a filtered hefeweizen.  (Hmm... Did you mean
dunkelweizen?  The yeast choice indicates this.  Ok, I'm a little more
on board here.)

I suspect it's the fact that you're repitching the yeast.  Weizen yeasts
are notoriously unstable and will "mutate" fairly easily.  If you've
been harvesting the yeast from the bottom of the fermenter to repitch,
then you've been selecting those yeast that flocculate and settle out.
After several times through this cycle, you've left most of the
"powdery" yeast behind.  And it's exactly those "powdery" yeast that
cause the cloudiness in your hefeweizen.

I haven't brewed with WLP300 in a while, but at least some weizen yeasts
top-crop nicely.  If your fermenter permits top-cropping, you might try
it, and you might find that the yeast is more stable and continues to
produce cloudy beer as you reuse it.

=Spencer in Ann Arbor, MI




Return to table of contents


Date: Thu, 26 May 2005 08:41:35 -0500
From: Michael Owings <mikey at swampgas.com>
Subject: re: festbier base malt help

Fix's book is fairly out of date as regards munich quality. I routinely 
do dunkels with almost 100% munich, and perhaps a couple of ounces of 
whatever black malt I have on hand -- the last such beer took first 
place at the AHA first round in my region.

Having said that, personally, I like the recipes in his book, and 
generally use little to no munich in my octoberfests -- maybe a pound or 
so, tops. I generally use a good continental pilsener as the base malt. 
Vienna is also a popular base malt for this style.

Hope that helps -- m
- -- 
Teleoperate a roving mobile robot from the web:
http://www.swampgas.com/robotics/rover.html


Return to table of contents


Date: Thu, 26 May 2005 09:00:33 -0500
From: Eric Schoville <eric at schoville.com>
Subject: Cantillon Faro

As a side note, when I was at Cantillon last August, they had a faro 
which they said they do not bottle and only make for consumption on 
premises.

Eric Schoville
Madison, WI
http://www.schoville.com/brewing.php


Return to table of contents


Date: Thu, 26 May 2005 08:00:06 -0700
From: "Michael O'Donnell" <mooseo at stanford.edu>
Subject: Re: McMaster Shipping costs

Doug points out that he paid more for shipping from McMaster than for his 
part. This can definitely be a problem from them; they really don't like 
small orders, in fact, until the advent of the web, individuals couldn't 
even get a catalog.

In Doug's case, the problem was certainly exacerbated by an odd-shaped 
piece, over 8 feet long.  Once you have an idea of the sizes of boxes they 
use, you can generally estimate from the UPS site what they might charge.

Another suggestion is to get your order shipped to a business address, 
especially if the company involved orders a lot from McMaster.  I have been 
pleasantly surprised to find that they give me the same shipping deal that 
they give to my employer just because it was coming to the same address 
(but billed to my credit card)... On one order, a big chunk of 1/2" thick 
aluminum and a bunch of heavy stainless bolts showed up at my office within 
24 hours of ordering. Shipping cost was $5.

cheers,
mike
Monterey, CA



Return to table of contents


Date: Thu, 26 May 2005 11:36:14 -0400
From: "Spencer W. Thomas" <hbd at spencerwthomas.com>
Subject: Faro

A friend reports "just-in-time" faro at a Belgian cafe thusly: a glass 
of (flat) lambic with 2 or 3 cubes of sugar added.

=Spencer in Ann ARbor


Return to table of contents


Date: Thu, 26 May 2005 12:22:57 -0400
From: Jeff Renner <jsrenner at umich.edu>
Subject: Re: festbier base malt help

Tad, who used the email of Richard Seyler <rseyler at gmail.com>,   
wrote:

> In anticipation of brewing an Octoberfest, I bought a bag of
> Weissheimer Munich at a recent club bulk buy.  My plan was to use this
> and Dingeman Pilsner malts in percentages to yield a dark orange
> (9-11L) color.  Now, in reading the Fixs' Classic BeerStyle Series
> text on this style, they state that that vienna and munich malts are
> not good choices due to a grainy harshness they impart (even the
> well-regarded European varieties) (pp.35-36)

That fine book was written in 1991, and within even five or six  
years, that advice was no longer valid.  George himself said so.  I  
suspect you can find something from him to that effect on the HBD  
archives.  A second edition was on George's list of things to do.

You can brew with up to 100% German Vienna or Munich malts with no  
worries.  I have brewed a wonderful, easy drinking golden lager with  
95% Durst Vienna and 5% carapils.  My standard Dunkel has been 100%  
Durst dark Munich, but for my last brew, I used about 30 Pilsner malt  
and a touch of debittered chocolate.  I did this to get a little more  
fermentability from the Pilsner malt.

I would think that you could make your Oktoberfest with a large  
percentage of Munich and the balance Pilsner.  Choose the proportions  
based on color.

Be sure not to overbitter it.  It should shout MALT! and whisper (hops).

Jeff
- ---
Jeff Renner in Ann Arbor, Michigan USA, jsrenner at umich.edu
"One never knows, do one?"  Fats Waller, American Musician, 1904-1943
***Please note new address***



Return to table of contents


Date: Thu, 26 May 2005 13:41:33 -0500
From: "Berggren, Stefan" <Stefan_Berggren at trekbikes.com>
Subject: McMaster Carr Orders

With regards to shipping for the sight glass material, 
As them to cut it in half ( as you can still work with that length) 
And your shipping costs will fall dramatically....

Cheers, 

Stefan Berggren
 

In taberna quando sumus, non curamus quid sit humus. 
When we are in the tavern, we spare no thought for the grave



Return to table of contents


Date: Thu, 26 May 2005 21:13:43 -0400
From: Ricardo Cabeza <expunged at gmail.com>
Subject: Re: Festbier base malt help

Two suggestions regarding your question:

1)  You could decoction mash.  Decoction mashing will extract more
color from the grain, allowing for the use of more lighter malts and
less 'harsh' kilned malts.  All of this stuff about the 'harshness' of
kilned malts is of course opinion and should be taken with a grain of
salt.  I understand that decoction mashing isn't usually practical. 
This 'harshness' theory is the number one argument I can see in favor
of decoction mashing in modern times.  Supposedly, malt these days is
well modified enough so that decoction & multi-step infusion mashes
aren't usually required for the traditional reasons of
undermodification, temperature control, etc. (except in the case of
wheat malt).

2)  You could use the Munich malt, but mash at a lower temperature
than usual, maybe in the mid - 140 F range.  You could also batch
sparge at lower temperatures than usual too.  This should help
minimize extraction of the grainy flavor you're concerned with.  Batch
sparging should theoretically extract less harsh components from the
grain.  Since Munich malt is naturally higher in dextrins / flavor
compenents, you theoretically shouldn't require the action of alpha
amylase to provide a beer with more flavor.

I personally have never noticed the 'harsh effect' of kilned malts,
but I guess I haven't really tried too either.  Given that you already
have the Munich Malt, I would go with option #2.  Best of luck with
your brew!

 -Ricardo Cabeza



Return to table of contents

---