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


Contents:
  Mash-Out (Martin A. Lodahl)
  Brewing with bad eyesight ("DRCV06::GRAHAM")
  re: Dry Beer (olson)
  re: mead + light (Michael Tighe)
  mead recipe (Michael Tighe)
  dry hopping (mcnally)
  Re: grains and hops (Eric Pepke)
  Lacto-baccilus, Weizen and Belgian beers (Mike Thome)
  homebrewers in central New York State (Stephen Russell)
  Grain storage info for Pete (Jueal, Stacey)
  New Owner at Beermakers of America (David Gibbs)
  shock the yeast? (Russ Gelinas)
  Bulk supplies ("DRCV06::GRAHAM")
  Oats...as in Oatmeal Stout ("Gary Mason - Image ABU - 603-884[DTN264]1503  25-Feb-1991 2056")


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[Please do not send me requests for back issues]
Archives are available from netlib at mthvax.cs.miami.edu


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Date: Tue, 26 Feb 91 8:05:48 PST
From: Martin A. Lodahl <pbmoss!malodah at decwrl.dec.com>
Subject: Mash-Out

In HOMEBREW Digest #585, Ken Johnson asked:

>Could someone please tell me the reason for a mash out. Is it to 
>deactivate the enzymes?  To raise the mash to sparging temp.?  What?

Yes.  All of the above.  Plus, sugars simply flow more readily at
the higher temerature (168F), which makes the sparge go much more
smoothly.

= Martin A. Lodahl   			  Pacific*Bell Staff Analyst =
= malodah at pbmoss.Pacbell.COM       Sacramento, CA       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: 27 Feb 91 08:27:00 EDT
From: "DRCV06::GRAHAM" <graham%drcv06.decnet at drcvax.af.mil>
Subject: Brewing with bad eyesight

I'm collecting the equipment I need to start brewing and have a few oddball 
questions.  I can't see much at all, (taste buds NOT affected), and have 
some questions about things y'all probably take for granted.

1.  Can I successfully do all extract batches without using a thermometer.  
This presupposes that I can tell when liquid is boiling.  How about 
introducing some speicalty grains, can I still work without a thermometer?  
(I haven't found a talking thermometer yet.)

2.  Filling bottles could be a comedy of errors if one can't see the level 
of beer in the bottle.  One answer, of course, is kegging, but I'll ask 
about that in a separate post.  Is there a device that can premeasure 12 
ounces so I can just fill and pour into a bottle without having to see the 
liquid level?

3.  The only place in my house that has decent fermenting temperatures is 
the basement.  I don't fancy carrying a 5 callon carboy down the cellar 
stairs when I can't see where I'm going.  Is there any reason that I can't 
divide the batch in two and pitch half the yeast in each, thys only 
carrying 2.5 gallons downstairs at a time?  

4.  Does anybody know if Zymurgy is available on tape?  [just kidding, I 
don't think so, but it WOULD be nice!]



Thanks for the help.  

Dan Graham

(Don't ask about my reading labels, I like the mystry of what I'm gonna get 
when I op en the bottle.)



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Date: Wed, 27 Feb 91 10:24:06 EST
From: olson at antares.cs.virginia.edu
Subject: re: Dry Beer


As a way of emulating a dry beer, Rad suggests using rice (for
that distinctive lack of flavor and body :-)

>Date: 26 Feb 90 08:48:00
>From: Rad Equipment <Rad_Equipment at rad-mac1.ucsf.EDU>
>Subject: RE>Homebrew Digest #585
>
>        Reply to:   RE>Homebrew Digest #585
>Regarding Dry Beer and Randy Tidd's request@ how it is made:
>
...
>The mash-in puts the mash at 40 deg. C for 20 minutes then the temp is raised
>to 55 deg. C for another 20 minutes and then raised again to 70 deg. C for a
>final 20 minutes.  Normally the mash goes directly from the 40 deg. mark to the
>70 deg. mark where it sits for 40 minutes.  The temp changes occur when the
...
>
>I don't think you will be able to reproduce this with extracts since I don't
>know of any which include rice.

The Home Brewery sells a mixture of light dry malt and rice solids in a
size handy for 5-gallon batches of "American Pilsner", might be appropriate
for Randy's project.  They're reachable at 1-800-321-BREW (no connection,
just satisfied customer etc.) and centrally located, so shipping to anywhere
continental isn't prohibitive.  I haven't tried the mix, but their other
house brand "Yellow Dog Amber" makes an interesting pale ale.

Thanks for the interesting details.  Protein rest at 55 and conversion
at 70 sounds ok, but what's that 40-degree rest for?  Comments from
the experts?

- --Tom Olson


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Date: Wed, 27 Feb 91 10:33:38 EST
From: tighe at inmet.inmet.com (Michael Tighe)
Subject: re: mead + light


In Homebrew Digest #586 (February 27, 1991), jpaul at lccsd.sd.locus.com 
(James Hensley) asks:

> Does light adversely effect mead as it does beer?

My understanding of "light" and brewing is that stong light activates 
bacteria and harms yeast.  So my answer to your question is yes.

I brew mead almost exclusively, making much like a standard single
fermentation beer.  I'll post my favorite recipe in a separate note.

 - Michael Tighe
 - Intermetrics Microsystems Software Inc.
 - Cambridge, MA 02138 (USA)
 - email: tighe at inmet.inmet.com                  

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Date: Wed, 27 Feb 91 10:52:45 EST
From: tighe at inmet.inmet.com (Michael Tighe)
Subject: mead recipe

In reply to a mead question on the Homebrew Digest, I thought I'd post my
favorite recipe.  I've edited it down to the minimum, since it was originally
written for novice brewers.  Being new to this group, I assume from what I've
read that y'all are more experienced than I am.

To make a one gallon batch: 

	2 pounds honey - three if you like it sweet
	one gallon of water
	two teaspoons of washed and thinly sliced ginger (use a piece
		of ginger about the size of your thumb)
	lemon-peel (orange peel) about 1/2 of the peel on the fruit
		(don't keep much of the white "pith" of the rind - just the
		yellow(orange) part)
	mead-yeast (buy it in powdered form in the store)

Cook the honey and water together till it starts to boil.  All the while,
skim off the white and brown foam that forms on the surface.  This step is
very important!  Once it is boiling, add ginger and lemon-peel.

Boil for a few minutes (five).  Don't boil away the liquid too much!

Work it with mead yeast (strain out the ginger and lemon peel when putting it
in the primary fermentation vat).  If you can't find mead yeast use champagne
yeast or "general purpose wine yeast".

Work it in the primary fermentation vat for two or three weeks.
pBottle.  I don't usually charge the bottles, I just bottle before the
fermentation is complete.

Wait a week (to get the "charge"), then store in a cool, safe place.  
Warning: The yeast is still active and there is lots of residual sugar.
This can make explosive bottles!  The resulting drink should be fizzy 
with a relatively sweet taste.  (You can run it dry as well.)
Remember to refrigerate it for at least a day before you drink it to
force the yeast to settle out.

If it tastes bad or smells bad - throw it all away and start again.  

Send me a sample if you are successful!  :-)

Enjoy, and may your bottles never burst!

Michael Tighe
Intermetrics Microsystems Software Inc.
Cambridge, MA 02138 (USA)
email: tighe at inmet.inmet.com                  

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Date: Wed, 27 Feb 91 08:24:22 PST
From: mcnally at wsl.dec.com
Subject: dry hopping


In HBD 586, Gerald Winters asks about dry hopping.  I too was intrigued,
and somewhat worried about sanitation.  However, given that Dave "Wash
the Drapes" Miller doesn't worry about contamination from hops, I
figured I should go for it.  The first batch I dry hopped was a variant
of Miller's Steam beer; it came out well, though the hop nose was muted.
I have a batch waiting patiently for an upcoming week-long party that's
basically a pale ale made with Chimay yeast (bizarre, I know) that was
dry hopped with 2 ozs. of Kent Goldings.  Early samples revealed a
*fabulous* aroma of fresh hops.  Seriously, sticking my nose in the
top of the beer glass was like sticking it in a bag of hops.  I can't
wait for a few (dozen) more . . .

Procedurally, all I did was put the hops into the carboy then rack
from the fermenter over them.  They tend to float, so I stirred a little 
with my racking tube.  I dosed the stuff with polyclar at the same time.
The rest with the hops was two weeks.  I siphoned it off after that
time, separating the hops by wrapping the intake end of the racking tube
in a plastic pot scrubber (actually about half a plastic pot scrubber)
and then wrapping that in a hop bag.  I let that settle for a couple of
days (I think I added another tablespoon of polyclar, just to get some
CO2 out) then bottled.

Miller suggests chopping the hops in a blender before adding them.
This seems like a bad idea to me, as it would make racking much
more difficult.

- --------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mike McNally                                           mcnally at wsl.dec.com
Digital Equipment Corporation
Western Software Lab

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Date:    Wed, 27 Feb 1991 11:31:45 EST
From: PEPKE at SCRI1.SCRI.FSU.EDU (Eric Pepke)
Subject: Re: grains and hops

Mary Jane "Pete" Kelly asks about storing leftover grain and hops.

I normally just keep leftover grain in a cool cabinet.  Hops should be very
tightly wrapped and put in the freezer, if you want to keep them fresh.

However, there's another thing to do with leftover hops.  If you have a small
amount, say a half ounce, put them in a loose open basket hanging in the
kitchen.  Add a little to the basket every time you brew.  They will lose 
their freshness and most of their bitterness by airing out, and in the process 
impart a wonderful aroma.  The best thing, though, is that after a year or so 
of airing out, they will be perfect for making a framboise.

Eric Pepke                                     INTERNET: pepke at gw.scri.fsu.edu
Supercomputer Computations Research Institute  MFENET:   pepke at fsu
Florida State University                       SPAN:     scri::pepke
Tallahassee, FL 32306-4052                     BITNET:   pepke at fsu

Disclaimer: My employers seldom even LISTEN to my opinions.
Meta-disclaimer: Any society that needs disclaimers has too many lawyers.


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Date: Wed, 27 Feb 91 12:35:18 -0500
From: Mike Thome <mthome at BBN.COM>
Subject: Lacto-baccilus, Weizen and Belgian beers

	I've recently been really enjoying some store-bought Belgian
beers (especially the cherry-flavored ones... yum!) and am now
thinking about trying to make some... Can/do homebrewers actually use
lacto-baccilus?  Hints?  Warnings? 
	I know nothing about this bug except that it seems to be
rather important in getting just the right taste - I've brewed some
weizen beer which tastes wonderful (w/out L-B), albeit not very
authentic.
	So what's the scoop?

thanks,
	-mik (Mike Thome, mthome at bbn.com)

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Date: Wed, 27 Feb 91 13:13:27 -0500
From: srussell at snoopy.msc.cornell.edu (Stephen Russell)
Subject: homebrewers in central New York State


I'm a grad student at Cornell University in Ithaca and 
I was wondering what other Cornell and area brewers
were on the receiving end of this digest.  We have a
brewclub in Ithaca that meets monthly (next meeting is
Tuesday, March 5th, at 7:30pm at the Chapter House
Brewpub, 400 Stewart Ave.);  all area brewers and
beer enthusiasts are welcome to attend.  Regardless of
your interest in the club, however, I'd like to here from
you and if possible share beer and brewing ideas.

Happy brewing,

Steve Russell
Bard Hall, Cornell University
Ithaca, NY 14850
273-7306 (home)
255-4648 (work) 
area code 607


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Date: 27 Feb 91 18:14 GMT
From: JUEAL.S at AppleLink.Apple.COM (Jueal, Stacey)
Subject: Grain storage info for Pete

Re:  HBD #586:
 
What is the best way to store left over grains and hops?
Can they be stroed?  If they can be stored how long will
they keep.  Should one store them in air tight jars out of the
light, in the fridge or in the freezer?
 
Thanks in advance,
 
Pete
*****************
Well, Pete my partner & I have found that good 'ol Ziploc-type plastic storage
bags work great!  Of course, we always force out all the extra air that we can
before sealing the bag.  As for the freezer/refrigerator -- we DO store all our
grains and hops in the refrigerator.  They keep just fine!  Since we buy many
(6-8) batches worth of grains & hops, keeping them fresh is essential!
 
The latest streamlining we've done to the process has been to do our bags of
adjunct grains ahead of time.  Here's how it works.  We spend a couple hours
one evening weighing, cracking and filling bags with the appropriate grains.
We've found that we like to use cheese cloth and make our own disposable grain
bags that can be pitched in the garbage when the boil begins.  Its cheap, works
great and saves on the clean up.  ( I *HATE* cleaning the reuseable grain
bags!!)
 
Each pre-made brew bag is sealed in its own Ziploc bag. A piece of paper in
each bag lets us know which one of our favorite recipes it contains.  Since we
dedicate a page of our brew log to the evening we do this, it contains the
detailed list of what's in each bag!  It really works great for us.
 
The other process is that when purchasing bulk malt extract we use containers
that hold one batch worth.  We use two types of malt in each batch and can
pre-mix it & weigh it at the time of purchase.  At brew time, we just dump one
pre-mixed, pre-measured container into the pot!  VOILA!!
 
Doing just these two things has greatly increased the whole reason Slug & I
brew -- **TO HAVE FUN**!!!
 
Sign me,
 
The Sweetie half of Slug & Sweetie
 

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Date: Wed, 27 Feb 91 11:12:57 PST
From: pay at EBay.Sun.COM (David Gibbs)
Subject: New Owner at Beermakers of America

Please pass this info on to other aliases.  I heard this from a friend,
but I'm not doing any brewing myself!


For those of you who brew beer, a short note.

Beermakers of America, a supply store at 1040 N. 4th St. in San Jose
is under new management. Don is gone and the new owner is Rich Mansfield.
He seems knowledgeable and has won state fair ribbons for his beers. His
phone is 408 288-6647 and he's open Thurday, Friday, Saturday, and 
Wednesday and Sunday by appointment.  Prices are good, especially
on bulk malt and he's got around 75 different malt extracts. 

He did me a favor so I'm doing him one by posting this note.  If you
decide to stop in, tell him Mike Haspert sent you, just so he gets
the point.

"Life is too short to drink fake beer."--mh

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Date:    Wed, 27 Feb 1991 15:17:45 EST
From: R_GELINAS at UNHH.UNH.EDU (Russ Gelinas)
Subject: shock the yeast?

Quick question:  
    If you have a yeast starter sitting at 70 degrees F, and you pitch
it into wort sitting at 50 degrees F, are the yeast going to suffer
a temperature shock?

Russ in NH

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Date: 27 Feb 91 16:02:00 EDT
From: "DRCV06::GRAHAM" <graham%drcv06.decnet at drcvax.af.mil>
Subject: Bulk supplies

I was just reading the digest for the first week or so of January, (before 
I joined), and there was mention of an establishment in Florida, a 
warehouse that sold homebrewing supplies in bulk with a minimum order of 
$100.  The poster didn't include the name, location or phone number.  If 
anyone knows of the place I'm speaking, could you email me the name and 
phone?  Thanks a lot.



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Date: Wed, 27 Feb 91 13:42:32 PST
From: "Gary Mason - Image ABU - 603-884[DTN264]1503 25-Feb-1991 2056" <mason at habs11.enet.dec.com>
Subject: Oats...as in Oatmeal Stout

Many references here and else where to Oatmeal Stout recommends steel cut oats
or grocery store oatmeal.  I have just reread Beer and Brewing V10, and in an 
article by Randy Mosher, he recommends NOT using them, but rather using green 
or raw oats in the husk.  His rationale is that their enzymes have been made
inactive through the use of steam, thereby stabilizing them.  Comments?

Cheers...Gary

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End of HOMEBREW Digest #587, 02/28/91
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