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


Contents:
  Bell's Beer ("Spencer W. Thomas")
  (Oops!) Brewclub membership survey (Stephen Russell)
  cold water "momily" ("Spencer W. Thomas")
  azeotropes, NA beer (A MESSAGE FROM STIV)
  re: Carbonation (key)
  "Beer Across America" (ingr!b11!mspe5!guy)
  Homebrew Club Newsletters Electronically (John DeCarlo)
  Re: Creamy feel on porter (martin wilde)
  Re: Force Carbonation (larryba)
  EXPLODING KEG (ALTENBACH)
  German brewery names (radavfs)
  Cold Condition, not ferment  (Jay Hersh)
  Sanitization (radavfs)
  Re: Toffee notes (korz)
  Barleywine Questions (Greg Winters)
  re: Wine and UPS (John R. Pierce)
  Re: Bell's Porter (Tony Ernst)
  NA Beer, Slimemold (Jack Schmidling)
  re: coffee in beer... (John R. Pierce)
  Yeastie Beasties (John R. Pierce)
  re: Anchor Porter (John R. Pierce)
  A humble apology (Chuck Coronella)
  various bottling methods (Chad Epifanio)
  fennel spice beer (Chad Epifanio)
  REQUEST: Millet Beer (sic) (Chad Epifanio)


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

Date: Mon, 3 Feb 1992 09:19:49 -0500 (EST)
From: "Spencer W. Thomas" <spencer at guraldi.itn.med.umich.edu>
Subject: Bell's Beer

The beer in question is produced by the Kalamazoo Brewing Co., a
microbrewery.  In general, it's pretty good, but somewhat variable.  The
sediment must be yeast, as I believe he bottle-conditions.  (The owner is
Larry Bell, thus "Bell's".)

=Spencer W. Thomas 		HSITN, U of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109
spencer.thomas at med.umich.edu	313-747-2778

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Date: Mon, 3 Feb 92 9:32:10 EST
From: srussell at msc2.msc.cornell.edu (Stephen Russell)
Subject: (Oops!) Brewclub membership survey

Sorry about that, folks, yesterday's post SHOULD have started out:

(1)	ARE YOU IN A HOMEBREW CLUB?

(2) 	Do you NOT mind if people are given your e-mail address for referral?
	       ^^^
	
If the answer to both of these questions is 'yes', read on.

[SO....continuing from before]

If you are in a homebrew club, nationally or internationally affiliated or 
not, and wouldn't mind being the subject of a referral, be it to someone
potentially interested in joining your club or someone looking to inform
your club about an upcoming contest or what-have-you, please send me your
e-mail address and club membership as follows:

On the subject header put your state or province and club name first, such as:
CA/San Andreas Malts or WA/Brews Brothers.  Keep the body of your message 
to your name and e-mail address (no .sig 's, please).

Thanks,

STEVE

srussell at msc2.msc.cornell.edu 	(internet)
srussell at crnlmsc2		(bitnet)



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Date: Mon, 3 Feb 1992 09:30:32 -0500 (EST)
From: "Spencer W. Thomas" <spencer at guraldi.itn.med.umich.edu>
Subject: cold water "momily"

(Oooh.  There's that word again!-)

Recent conversation with a British friend perhaps sheds some light on the
hot versus cold water issue.  (I first ran into this in brewing tea, where
the proper method starts with cold tap water.) Apparently, standard
plumbing practice in Britain is to run the water main to a cistern in the
attic, and to supply (almost) all the water taps in the house from the
cistern.  The only exception is a single cold water tap in the kitchen. 
Now, you may not want to drink water that has been sitting in a tank for
some unknown period of time before you get it, so you typically will drink
water only from the kitchen cold tap, and not from any of the hot taps. 

Why the cistern?  Well, apparently in many places, the ancient water mains
just aren't large enough to handle everybody turning on their showers at
the same time.... (Or so he said.)  The cisterns provide a measure of
buffering. 

=Spencer W. Thomas 		HSITN, U of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109
spencer.thomas at med.umich.edu	313-747-2778

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Date: Mon, 3 Feb 1992 09:42 EST
From: A MESSAGE FROM STIV <STROUD%GAIA at leia.polaroid.com>
Subject: azeotropes, NA beer

I can only chuckle at some of the recent postings regarding whether Jack's NA
beer procedure will work or won't and why, lots of handwaving, vapor
pressures, equiilibrium mixtures, blah, blah, blah......

My advice to Chip H. and Chuck C. is that if wish to apply Raoult's Law to a
system, make sure that the system you're looking at obeys the law before you 
start making generalizations.

In the case of ethanol/water, it is not an ideal system and all of the
calculations you performed are meaningless.  Due to molecular interactions,
ethanol and water form a minimum boiling mixture called an azeotrope which, at
atmospheric pressure, boils at 78.2 degrees Centigrade (lower than either EtOH
or water) with a composition of 95.6% ethanol and 4.4% water.  (At lower
pressures the percent of alcohol in this azeotrope actually increases).

In practice this means that if you boil a water/ethanol mixture, what will boil
off initially is this azeotrope (4.4 : 95.6) until one of the two components is
totally distilled, then the remaining component will distill.

In Jack's system this ratio may be slightly different since there are small
amounts of other components in the beer and since Jack doesn't quite hit the
boiling point (172.8 deg. F) of the azeotrope.  However, as Jean Hunter
pointed out, the ratio is at least 10:1 EtOH:water and is probably even
higher.

If Jack is getting >1 cup evaporation from 1 gallon of beer (assumed 5%
alc./vol) by his procedure, he is more than likely making NA (<0.5% alc.)
beer.    I'll leave it to you to do the math. I'd be very interested in seeing
any results that Jean might get from an HPLC analysis of Jack's NA beer.

Steve Stroud



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Date: Mon, 03 Feb 92 11:09:21 EST
From: key at cs.utk.edu
Subject: re: Carbonation

In HBD #815 JS says: 
> Well, I'm not a programmer and all the geek talk about this chart is leaving 
> me out in the cold.  Why doesn't someone just post it instead of talking 
> about it?

I didn't post it because it's bad netiquette to drop large files
(esp. postscript) into mailing lists.  There are a lot of weak mailers out 
there and MTA's that truncate long files.  It's now available from the 
homebrewer's archive via FTP and E-mail service (thanks aem!)  Drop me 
E-mail if you want a copy (and which version, text or postscript).

> Just how much CO2 does it take to carbonate a 5 gal batch?

I, too, am curious what mileage other folks are getting.  I've been a wastrel
with my CO2, so I think my back-of-envelope numbers should be a good 
outside guess.  I've kegged, carbonated, and dispensed two (2) 5-gal soda
kegs.  I also used the CO2 to force sanitizing and rinse water through the
pickup-tubes on 12 keg-cleanings.  Toss in as many pressurizations of the 
empty tanks for storage.  I also put a blanket of CO2 down before siphoning 
into the keg.  My 5lb tank has gone from 800PSIg to 760PSIg.  It is grossly 
unfair to say that each keg cost 20PSI but using that as another outside 
approximation shows the tank's good for 35-40 kegs (cleaning, kegging, and
dispensing), my guess is closer to 60.  My refills are $7, so $.20 a keg is 
chicken feed to me.  But my  sample is admitedly too small and is statisticly
inconclusive.  I've heard you're not supposed to empty the CO2 tank, how far 
down have folks taken it?

Ken Key  (key at cs.utk.edu)
Univ. of Tennessee, Knoxville - CS Dept.

PS.  It's interesting that a lot of modern-day statistical methods were 
developed for Quality Control in breweries.  I know whenever I did
statistical analysis, I needed a drink...




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Date: Mon, 3 Feb 92 10:20:18 CST
From: ingr!ingr!b11!mspe5!guy at uunet.UU.NET
Subject: "Beer Across America"

    For those in close proximity to this neck of the woods, I called "Beer
Across America" Friday to see if they would ship to the state of Alabama.  Fat
chance I know that Alabama would allow this without getting their exorbitant
tax out of it.  Anyway, I asked the lady on the phone if they shipped all over
the country.  She said "No, we ship mostly to the midwest".  So, it is really
"Beer Across the Midwest".  FYI.

- --
Guy McConnell
PS - So do PS lines


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Date: Monday, 3 Feb 1992 13:48:17 EST
From: m14051 at mwvm.mitre.org (John DeCarlo)
Subject: Homebrew Club Newsletters Electronically

>From: srussell at msc2.msc.cornell.edu (Stephen Russell)

>I think it would be useful for there to be a listing of the
>e-mail addresses of people in various homebrew clubs, in order
>to promote club membership, inter-club activities, and the like.

Which reminds me.  Is there anyone out there affiliated with the
newsletter of a homebrew club?  I will be getting electronic
copies of the newsletter for BURP (Washington, DC area) and
hopefully converting it to ASCII as well.  Would be interested in
obtaining/exchanging/sending electronic copies of newsletters
from/with/to other people in other clubs.

Disclaimer:  proper rules will be followed as soon as they are
established.

Internet: jdecarlo at mitre.org
           (or John.DeCarlo at f131.n109.z1.fidonet.org)
Fidonet:  1:109/131

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Date: Mon, 3 Feb 92 19:32:33 GMT
From: martin at daw_302.hf.intel.com (martin wilde)
Subject: Re: Creamy feel on porter


Bryan Gros at bgros at sensitivity.berkeley.edu writes:

> But how do I get the creamy feel?  more malt?

I noticed you were using Wyeast English Ale yeast.  Is this
1028 or 1084?  I would suspect 1028.  Try using 1084.  I have
made porters/brown ale with 1084 and the creamyness is there.

Wyeast has told me that 1084 is great for porters and fruit
beers since it adds a touch of creamyness.  You will get a
slight amount of diacetyl from the 1084, but not that 
woody/bold/mineral taste which 1028 leaves.

Hopes this help....

martin at daw_302.hf.intel.com

- --- A pint a day keeps the doctor away....

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Date: Mon, 3 Feb 92 09:53:34 PST
From: larryba at microsoft.com
Subject: Re: Force Carbonation

I have a 5lb bottle of CO2 and it lasted for around 18 kegs o
beer (firestone).  I forced carbonated most of them (around 12).

I got the bottle refilled at a local welding supply for $8.
Actually I traded in my bottle for an refilled one - that way my
gas supply was "down" for only 15 minutes.

Question:when you carbonate, do you have problems with beer being
forced back into the gas line?  Does carbonating through the "out"
tube prevent this from happening?  The reason beer is forced back
out the gas line is due to inertia (hammering) from the sloshing
beer.

    - Larry Barello

P.S. Great idea, Jack, on using a cardboard tube to see the marking
inside the kettle.  I had been using my spoon to "feel" the dents...



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Date: Mon, 3 Feb 1992 12:02 PDT
From: ALTENBACH at CHERRY.llnl.gov
Subject: EXPLODING KEG

The following is excerted from an article in the Stockton Record, 
a reputable daily rag from Stockton, CA, dated 2/2/92, byline Sarah Williams.
The title is:   STOCKTON NATIVE'S BEER-KEG DEATH STUMPS FAMILY
"     The family of a Stockton native killed by a ruptured beer keg is trying
to sort through the freak accident. 
      Clinton Richard Doan, ... died Wednesday at his Kethcum, Idaho, home
after he opened a refrigerator in his garage.
      "When he went to put his lunch in the refrigerator, the beer keg exploded
in his face and killed him," said Doan's mother, Dorothea Doan Evans of
Washington.
      Evans said her son's wife, Donna, had tried to put his lunch in the
refrigerator but was unable to because the keg had expanded. When he tried,
he was killed.
      The family has not determined whether it will sue, Evans said.
      According to sheriff's reports, a faulty regulator could be to blame
for the extreme pressure inside the keg.
      The keg shot upward and hit Doan in the head after its bottom cracked..."

What a way to go! The article did not say whether the keg held industrial
Milbudiken or,(perish the thought) homebrew. And we thought bottles and
carboys were dangerous! Does anyone in Idaho netland know more of this tragedy?

Tom Altenbach

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Date: Mon, 03 Feb 1992 15:19:44 EST
From: radavfs at ube.ub.umd.edu
Subject: German brewery names

Fritz Keinert <keinert at iastate.edu> writes:

>Kaiserslautern is pretty far from Bavaria. Are you sure it is not
>"Badische Brauerei"? Baden (another region in Germany) is a lot
>closer.

Well, my guess is that the brewery is trying to imply some
sort of quality - Bavaria is known around the world for its
beer, whereas Baden is known for its wine...This is probably
why so many beers in the US have names like Augsburger (i.e.n.b.
Augsburg is in Bavaria - how many beers are called "Badenser?")
Best,  Volker Stewart  Univ. of Baltimore  RADAVFS at UBE.UB.UMD.EDUS

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Date: Mon, 03 Feb 92 15:35:40 EST
From: Jay Hersh <hersh at expo.lcs.mit.edu>
Subject: Cold Condition, not ferment 


>> ...then it's off to the lagering tanks where it ferments for 6-8
>> weeks at under 0' Celcius. (At least I THINK that's what the sign
>>said...) 

It is possible that it is under 0 Celsius since the alcohol will lower the
freezing temperature a little (how much depends on strength, but it's probably
not too much).

This isn't however a ferment it is an aging (aka lagering), by the time it hits
these cold cellars it should have done most if not all of it's fermenting.

 - JaH

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Date: Mon, 03 Feb 1992 15:25:04 EST
From: radavfs at ube.ub.umd.edu
Subject: Sanitization


Hello-
        This may have been discussed at one point but I'm afraid I am new
to the list - I am reluctant to pour a bunch of bleach into the Chesapeake Bay!
Is using Hydrogen Peroxide an acceptable substitute?  If not, then why do so
many suppliers sell stuff like B-Brite?  Good beer is important, but let's
not forget the environment...BTW, what's all this about tap water - is
this a general truth (i.e. rinsing out after sanitizing will reinfect) or
does this depend on your water...Baltimore City, while known for crime
and deep-fried foods, DOES have some of the best urban water in the country!
We use it to brew, so why not use it to rinse, post-sanitization?
Thanks, Volker Stewart  University of Baltimore  RADAVFS at UBE.UB.UMD.EDU

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Date: Mon, 3 Feb 92 14:44 CST
From: korz at ihlpl.att.com
Subject: Re: Toffee notes

In digest 815, regarding retaining diacetyl, I wrote:
>Try racking the
>beer off the trub, once early in the ferment and then once again, late in
>the ferment, two days after adding finings such as gelatin or isinglass
>to precipitate out the yeast.

What I meant was to use finings two days before the second racking and
not the first.  I don't have any data saying that you shouldn't fine
your yeast out of suspension early in the ferment, but intuatively,
it doesn't sound like a good idea to me.  I think that, to get more
diacetyl to remain in your beer, the yeast should be precipitated out
and the beer racked off it basically when the beer is almost done
fermenting.  Comments?

Al.

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Date: Mon, 3 Feb 92 13:24:56 PST
From: Greg.Winters at EBay.Sun.COM (Greg Winters)
Subject: Barleywine Questions



After trying a wonderfully delightful barleywine at a local brewpub
(Seabright in Santa Cruz) I got the bug to make one yesterday.
Unfortunatly, all I had to work from was the basic outline from the
table in TCJOHB and no recipe. I've always been one to improvise
but had a few questions I was hoping to get answered by this
knowledgeable (and relaxed) group.

Recipe:

11 lbs pale malt extract (generic)
4 oz. Fuggles (4.2%) Boiling
3/4 oz. Fuggles Finishing

I plan to pitch Wyeast Belgian Ale for primary fermentation and then
rack to secondary and pitch a champagne to finish it off.

Questions:

What is the traditional time of finishing hops? I had no clue so
compromised at 5 minutes...

How long to age in secondary before bottling?

Expected time needed to condition in bottles?

Thanks, Greg


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Date: Mon, 03 Feb 1992 10:47:05
From: pierce at pyramid.pyramid.com (John R. Pierce)
Subject: re: Wine and UPS


Someone mentioned LonGisland Wineries shipping via UPS.  Out here on
the Left Coast, the California wineries will ship UPS instate only.
Out of state has to go via air freight (I think one of my favorite
Anderson Valley wineries uses Flying Tiger).   YMMV

    -jrp



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Date: Mon, 3 Feb 92 15:50:50 CST
From: tee at sumac.cray.com (Tony Ernst)
Subject: Re: Bell's Porter

> 
> Anybody out there had beer from a Michicgan Micro named Bell's?  It's
> readily available in the Chicago area.  There's a sediment in the
> bottle; I assume there's yeast in the sediment.  My question: has
> anybody had any experience culturing the yeast from their bottles?
> Porter in particular.
> 
> The reason I ask instead of just trying is that there's something a
> little funny - a little sour - in the flavour of the beer.  It's a 
> black, bittersweet style of porter and it feels quite creamy in the
> mouth.  If it's chilled, you don't notice the sourness, and even when
> warmish, it's not entirely unpleasant.  Does anybody know (or even be
> willing to speculate) what would cause the sourness; particularly,
> does it have anything to do with the yeast?
> 

 I've tried many of Larry Bell's different brews (Kalamazoo Brewing Co.)
 and they all have a little hint of sourness in the background.  In general,
 I do like his beers though.

 I believe it does have something to do with the yeast.  I've cultured
 yeast from one of his ales, but the starter had that same sour taste,
 so I chickened out and didn't pitch it.

 If you do try it, I'd like to know how your beer turns out.

- -- 

	-Tony Ernst
	 Senior Vice President of Salsa Development
	 Taco Appreciation CoOperative
	 Mendota Heights, MN	(612) 683-5480
	 tee at cray.com


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Date: Mon, 3 Feb 92 12:07 CST
From: arf at ddsw1.mcs.com (Jack Schmidling)
Subject:  NA Beer, Slimemold

 
 To: Homebrew Digest
 Fm: Jack Schmidling
 
 From: Jean Hunter <MS3Y at CORNELLA.cit.cornell.edu>
 Subject:      NA Beer - The Schmidling method might work
 
 >Meanwhile, if Jack will kindly send me a bottle each of the before and after
 beers, I will be happy to analyze them on my HPLC and report precisely how
 much alcohol was removed.
  
 That is a most generous offer and if you had posted your mailing address it 
 would be on the way.  However, upon further consideration, it seems not only 
 a waste of energy but hardly in the true "scientific tradition".  After all, 
 what is to prevent me from re-bottling a can each, of Old Style and 
 Kingsbury?
 
 There have been several highly technical responses that address my method 
 from theoretical viewpoints.  There was one "sure-fire" alternative that 
 boils the blazes out of the beer and several hunches that maybe, it would 
 work.
 
 The scientific tradition demands that other experimenters attempt to 
 reproduce my experiment, then evaluate and publish THEIR results.  Remember 
 "cold fusion"?  We would still be arguing about it if critics only theorized.
 
 Admitedly, the weakness of my "paper" is that the analysis of the results are 
 subjective because I have no way of measuring the alcohol other than how it 
 makes me feel.  Not very precise but a measure, nevertheless.
 
 I suggest that anyone who has the capability of measuring alcohol in beer 
 take a bottle of their own and pour half of it into a beaker.  Heat this to 
 170F (uncovered) and let it cool (uncovered) and make the tests on this and 
 the other half of the bottle.
 
 Then, tell us it DOESN'T work.  "Can't" work, simply is not good enough.
 
 The only caution I inject is that a Bunsen burner, full blast on a 100 ml 
 beaker may not simulate the heating rate of gas stove on a gallon.  I think 
 the total time is irrelevant because it is proportional to volume but heating 
 rate might affect the results.
 
 From: TSAMSEL at ISDRES.ER.USGS.GOV
 Subject: SLIMEMOLDS
 
 >  My daughter (9), wants some more "pets". She has access to slime mold
 spores via the program at the local science museum and has been badgering me
 to help get her started.
 
 WOW!  Encouraging a daughter interested in slimemold is not even on the same 
 plane as a few batches of beer.   If you have never seen slime mold grow, I 
 suggest it is worth the risk.  I spent months doing this and filming them for 
 my video on fungus.  Unfortunately, no one told me how "easy" it was.
 
 But I suspect that only a routine amount of care should allow both pursuits 
 in the same house.  Unless you are a both real slobs, the number of spores 
 getting from her area to yours would not be measurably greater than what is 
 endemic.
 
 GO FOR IT!
 
 js
 

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Date: Mon, 03 Feb 1992 14:18:17
From: pierce at pyramid.pyramid.com (John R. Pierce)
Subject: re: coffee in beer...

Guy McConnell mentions a "Monte Sano" blend of coffee that he used to brew a
"mocha-java stout".   He sez he chose it cuz its a light blend.

Why not use the real thing.  Mocha-Java as in Mocha Mattari (from Yemen)
and Java Estate (from, uh, Java).  This is one of the finest and smoothest
coffee blends ever.  It can be brewed VERY strong and stay smooth, yet is
very tasty and delicate when brewed medium light.  A note to the uninitiated
(into coffee snobbery, that is ;-), many "Moka" blends are made with either
no or next to no Mocha (the commonest substitute is Ethiopian Harrar + Java,
the worst is 10-20% real Mocha/Java blended with Columbian/Mexican generic
coffee beans).  (I know, coffee belongs in rec.food.drink, but it came up
here...  ;->  )  Another side note, dark roasts seem to have a higher oil
content in the brewed coffee than light roasts.   As I understand, you 
absolutely do NOT want to introduce any kinda oils in brewing as they
oxidise easily (read "rancid!" |~< )

    -jrp



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Date: Mon, 03 Feb 1992 14:05:53
From: pierce at pyramid.pyramid.com (John R. Pierce)
Subject: Yeastie Beasties

dave ballard asks "If it don't make C2H3OH it ain't yeast, no?"

Yeast produces CO2 also, right?  I've always wondered about this.
More specifically, does the secondary (CO2) fermenation further raise
the alcohol level?  And, if not, what triggers the yeast to produce bubbles
instead of booze?  I understand CO2 comes out during the primary, hence
the need for blowoff, etc.

Also, I seem to remember (vaguely) reading somewhere (or the other)
that L.A. beers are made with special enzymes that aid the yeasties in
reducing the sugars to other than alcohol (what? more CO2?) 

    -jrp    (just call me curious...)



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Date: Mon, 03 Feb 1992 14:23:04
From: pierce at pyramid.pyramid.com (John R. Pierce)
Subject: re: Anchor Porter

ihmo (worth $0.00) Anchor Porter is a Stout.  Try Sierra Nevada Porter
for a more representive sample of the style  (careful, tho, the SNP can
be quite stale when bought at the wrong store.  use the beer calculator ;o)

(sorry about 3 posts in a row, guess I should read the whole thing before
responding...)



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Date: Mon, 3 Feb 92 19:05 MTS
From: Chuck Coronella <CORONELLRJDS at CHE.UTAH.EDU>
Subject: A humble apology

Following the thread of boiling beer to make a nonalcoholic beer:
In response to cjh at vallance.HQ.Ileaf.COM (Chip Hitchcock) I wrote:

>Regarding the formula for vapor pressure- I think there is a units problem
>in the formula presented by Chip.  Here is a summary from Perry's Handbook
>of emprirical data: 
etc.
>The numbers put forth earlier are wrong.  The vapor pressure of EtOH is

He had written:

>This gives a vapor pressure ratio of 2.51 at 10C, 2.30 at 75C, and 2.22 at
                             =====
which I read without the word "ratio".  Ooops.  Like a lawyer chasing a
malpractice suit, I quickly pointed out Chip's "error", without even trying
his formulae.  I apologize to Chip for mistakenly accusing him of bad data,
and I'd like to thank him for pointing out my error (in great detail ;-) 

Now, can we all agree that boiling a beer just ain't gonna' make it
nonalcoholic?

Sorry for the misunderstanding,
Chuck
coronellrjds at che.utah.edu

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Date: Mon, 3 Feb 92 19:35:58 PST
From: chad at mpl.UCSD.EDU (Chad Epifanio)
Subject: various bottling methods

I recently tried several bottling methods that worked
or didn't work for me.

I used a TSP soak on two cases of bottles.  The TSP didn't
quite remove all the stains from inside the bottles.  The
labels came off easily for all bottles except for one particular
brand(I think it was Bud or Bud Light).  A subsiquent soak in
bleach removed all stains from inside the bottles.

Lately I've been using my dishwasher to clean bottles.  It has
a "Sanitary Wash" cycle that consists of a long wash in 170F
water followed by a heat drying cycle.  I've not had any 
problems yet, as long as the bottles don't have any stains.

Unwilling to cap 96 bottles for a party I was planning, I 
bottled two batches in regular 2-liter soda bottles.  I
just rinsed out the soda, used a bleach soak, filled with
beer, and used the original cap.  This worked much better
than I expected, and I saw no difference between the beer in
the 2-liter bottles and the beer in the 12oz bottles, except
perhaps that the 2-liter bottles had developed a bit more
carbonation.

Of course champainge bottles work well.  Sparkling cider
bottles also make great containers.

Chad
chad%mpl at ucsd.edu

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Date: Mon, 3 Feb 92 19:49:09 PST
From: chad at mpl.UCSD.EDU (Chad Epifanio)
Subject: fennel spice beer

Just recently I brewed a batch of spiced stong lager.
The spice used was fennel(sp?), which I think is also called
anise(sp?).  The recipe is as follows:

"Bengal Butt Kicker"
15   lbs Klages				OG: 1.070
2.75 lbs Munich				IBU:  ~35-40
1    lb  Amber crystal			Color:  dark orange
 .25  lb  Chocolate
1    oz  Northern Brewers 10%AA  (60min)
1    oz  N. Brewers (15 min)
0.5  oz  Cascades 5.9%AA  (15min)
2    oz  fresh fennel (15 min)
6    oz  fresh orange peel (15 min)
0.5  tsp Irish Moss(15 min)
1    cp  American Lager yeast slurry
10       Bengal Spice tea bags, "dry hopped"
0.75 cp  Corn sugar to prime

Upwards infusion mash, low-temp conversion.
Used water with high carbonate hardness.

So far, the young beer tastes great with an unusual
taste that is difficult to describe.  I hadn't seen
mention of using fennel before, so I thought I'd
mention it.

chad
chad%mpl at ucsd.edu

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Date: Mon, 3 Feb 92 19:59:44 PST
From: chad at mpl.UCSD.EDU (Chad Epifanio)
Subject: REQUEST: Millet Beer (sic)

A friend of mine spent some time abroad(I can't quite
remember where), and he used to party with a local 
liquer made from fermented Millet grain.  Aparently
the stuff is abysmal, but he wants to make some for
a friend who is coming to the US.  

As far as I can fathom, the grain is steeped until
the seed just begins to germinate.  Then it is dried
in the sun, turning often to ensure even drying.
It is then added to enough water to make everything
damp again, and exposed to wild yeast.  It ferments
for a week or so in a vat.  When it is time to drink
it, boiling water is added to the fermenting grain,
stirred for five min, then drank with a straw.

Somehow this doesn't seem quite kosher, but this is 
the best I could do with info extracted from him 
combined with brief info from an old Zymurgy article
entitled "Beer and the Origins of Cereal Grains"

If by any chance somebody knows the real scoop on
this, please let me know.  Otherwise, I'll let you
know how my version tastes in a week or two.

chad
chad%mpl at ucsd.edu

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End of HOMEBREW Digest #816, 02/04/92