no posts in a few days

[757Hokie83]

is no one drinking/brewing?

getting settled into the new house, i think probably next weekend ill be brewing my Fat Tire clone (might need to order ingredients for another batch, as the keg i intended to have on tap with the Fat Tire clone is started to run a bit low) hate having one keg vacant

 

[wartyOne]

is no one drinking/brewing?

getting settled into the new house, i think probably next weekend ill be brewing my Fat Tire clone (might need to order ingredients for another batch, as the keg i intended to have on tap with the Fat Tire clone is started to run a bit low) hate having one keg vacant

I was just coming here to say the same thing. Blonde getting kegged in an hour. Bavarian Hefe getting kegged this weekend. Brewing an IPA this weekend.

 

[Cobrabit]

Bottled my amber ale on Sunday and will bottle the zinfandel sometime next week or so.

 

[757Hokie83]

nice, as far as the wine making goes...how long do you plan on aging that before popping open a bottle?

 

[Cobrabit]

nice, as far as the wine making goes...how long do you plan on aging that before popping open a bottle?

The majority of them will be used as Christmas presents. However, I'll probably open one or two a month after a month in the bottle depending on how the first one goes. This wine doesn't really need the aging like a good merlot or cab.

The next one I'll make after this carboy is bottled is a Shiraz.

 

[Sleepy T]

Just moved my Brown Ale to the secondary. A little sip actually shows that it was very good tasting but maybe I thought it was going to be a bit more balanced (hoppy). Tasted and looked VERY much like Newcastle which isn't a bad beer IMO, maybe a little boring. It was a little blander than I was hoping, I know time, carbonation, and more time can change that alot. Think at the very least it will be VERY (easily)drinkable with some sweetness and nuttiness. After this slight taste, I actually decided to try and experiment a bit and split the primary into two small secondary batches (which I had thought about doing initially anyway).

1) 3+ gallon batch that I dry hopped a little bit with some more Fuggles (.5 oz) for a little extra aroma. Will prime with the normal Corn Sugar (approx. 2.5-3oz.)

2) 2+ gallon batch that I left as is..but will prime with Maple Syrup (about 3-3.5 oz.)

One question I had for you old pro's is...

I tried to go for my first full boil with this batch but was never able to get the boil "rolling". I believe boiling point is around 210 deg..I was able to get just over 200 deg. for 1+ hours. Since I could not get it quite as hot, I went a little bit longer than the typical 60 minute boil (around 70-75 minutes). I don't believe it affected the gravity, but I think maybe it did affect the bitterness. Any thoughts on how not completely reaching 210+ degrees could affect the outcome of your wort from a standpoint of fermentables and IBU's???

 

[Darkstone42]

I went back to half mash on Saturday after a couple unsuccessful attempts at full mash and brewed an American Pale Ale. It's probably going to end up being a slightly-hoppier-than-usual amber ale, though, due to the malts I used. It tasted great before pitching the yeast, so hopefully it ferments well. Early on, it's been fermenting pretty steadily and occasionally somewhat intensely, which is a nice sign.

The gravity was higher than expected, but I decided not to dilute it much because, hey, who's not in favor of a little extra alcohol?

 

[wartyOne]

Just moved my Brown Ale to the secondary. A little sip actually shows that it was very good tasting but maybe I thought it was going to be a bit more balanced (hoppy). Tasted and looked VERY much like Newcastle which isn't a bad beer IMO, maybe a little boring. It was a little blander than I was hoping, I know time, carbonation, and more time can change that alot. Think at the very least it will be VERY (easily)drinkable with some sweetness and nuttiness. After this slight taste, I actually decided to try and experiment a bit and split the primary into two small secondary batches (which I had thought about doing initially anyway).

1) 3+ gallon batch that I dry hopped a little bit with some more Fuggles (.5 oz) for a little extra aroma. Will prime with the normal Corn Sugar (approx. 2.5-3oz.)

2) 2+ gallon batch that I left as is..but will prime with Maple Syrup (about 3-3.5 oz.)

One question I had for you old pro's is...

I tried to go for my first full boil with this batch but was never able to get the boil "rolling". I believe boiling point is around 210 deg..I was able to get just over 200 deg. for 1+ hours. Since I could not get it quite as hot, I went a little bit longer than the typical 60 minute boil (around 70-75 minutes). I don't believe it affected the gravity, but I think maybe it did affect the bitterness. Any thoughts on how not completely reaching 210+ degrees could affect the outcome of your wort from a standpoint of fermentables and IBU's???

Your IBUs will definitely go up a bit (not dramatically), but a longer boil (even if it's not rolling) will give you a higher OG as you're displacing more water. If you're only talking 10-15 minutes, than both of these will be fairly nominal. You might have gained .002-.004 in OG. Depending on the alpha acid percentage of your bittering hops, you may have picked up anywhere from 2-5 extra IBU's.

Neither is a bad thing, in my opinion. There used to be days when our boil (all-grain) had to go 90 minutes because we overshot our sparge water. Since we upgraded our boil kettle and mash tun, we rarely go over 60 minutes (more efficient at heat transfer with the new kettles) in the boil, but that's not a bad thing. It just makes for a longer mash.

 

[wartyOne]

I went back to half mash on Saturday after a couple unsuccessful attempts at full mash and brewed an American Pale Ale. It's probably going to end up being a slightly-hoppier-than-usual amber ale, though, due to the malts I used. It tasted great before pitching the yeast, so hopefully it ferments well. Early on, it's been fermenting pretty steadily and occasionally somewhat intensely, which is a nice sign.

The gravity was higher than expected, but I decided not to dilute it much because, hey, who's not in favor of a little extra alcohol?

Budweiser.

 

[Darkstone42]

The aroma of fermentation has a hold on my entire apartment now.

It's never smelled so good in there.

 

[Sleepy T]

I went back to half mash on Saturday after a couple unsuccessful attempts at full mash and brewed an American Pale Ale. It's probably going to end up being a slightly-hoppier-than-usual amber ale, though, due to the malts I used. It tasted great before pitching the yeast, so hopefully it ferments well. Early on, it's been fermenting pretty steadily and occasionally somewhat intensely, which is a nice sign.

The gravity was higher than expected, but I decided not to dilute it much because, hey, who's not in favor of a little extra alcohol?

I think my next recipe, I am going to go for a "True" partial mash. Up to this point I have just used DME and LME + specialty malts. Going to either mash munich or vienna malt + Pale DME/LME OR Munich LME + 2-row + Pale DME for a Marzen type Ale...

This will be my first attempt at "mashing" versus "steeping". How do you guys go about mashing base malts?? The sources that I have read is leading me towards using my igloo cooler,
1) heating up about 1.25-1.5qts/per lb. (approximately a gallon to 1 1/2 gallons per 3 lbs of grain) to approx. 158-160F. Dump in the cooler.
2) Adding crushed grain slowly (and gently poking at the grain bag) to the water in the
cooler, this should bring temp down to around 150-155F?
3) Let it sit for an hour. Dump the wort in the boil pot.
4) Sparge bag of grain with another set of pre-heated water (165-175F) in the cooler. Leave for about 10-15 minutes, dump this water in the brew pot.
5) Start boil.

Any tips you guys have for mashing base malts?? I hear the temperature AND water:grain ratio is pretty crucial. Also read that you want as much "Open" area in your grain bag as possible to allow all the water that can get in as possible and to avoid clumping..which supposedly hurts your efficiency..

I would imagine that if your temperature is not quite where you want it after adding the malt, you could add small ice cubes to bring it down a degree or two at a time??

Anyone have experience with the round barrel-like, w/spigot Igloo coolers (I have a larger square one too)? I hear they hold hot water temperatures plenty good enough for an hour.
and begin your boil.

 

[olympicoscar]

Don't make any beer or wine, just drink it. I had a Tsingtao last Friday in a Chinese restaurant.

Best American beer: Coors

Foreign beers: Tsingtao, Kirin, Amstel, Lowenbrau

Wine: Santa Margharita Pinot Grigio, Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc.
Don't like red wine.

Not a big drinker.

 

[wartyOne]

Don't make any beer or wine, just drink it. I had a Tsingtao last Friday in a Chinese restaurant.

Best American beer: Coors

Foreign beers: Tsingtao, Kirin, Amstel, Lowenbrau

Wine: Santa Margharita Pinot Grigio, Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc.
Don't like red wine.

Not a big drinker.

I realize it's all about taste, but the bold is just flatly wrong. What else have you tried?

Although, I find it interesting to note that you have picked all beers that are considered "Standard American Lagers" by the BJCP (beer judging that classifies beers in a certain group; example, when Coors Banquet competes, it competes against Heineken, Corona, Red Stripe, Kirin and Amestel). Maybe it's just that this is the style of beer you really like.

Don't think of this as an attack. Some people like certain beers, and there's nothing wrong with that. I find that it takes time and experience to really refine a beer palate, and part of that experience is trying things repeatedly that you initially didn't like.

As for Coors being the best American beer, it isn't even considered the best American beer of its own style by a group of peers. Miller Lite consistently destroys Coors Light in competitions. I won't even bother mentioning Bud Light (in the beer judging community, it is widely regarded as a defect due to high diacetyl content which is totally inappropriate for the style). The brewery that I work at has a higher pedigree for Standard American Lagers than Coors does.

Basically, I'm inviting you to broaden your beer horizons by trying things not in the cheap section of the beer aisle. You might find a whole universe that you were previously unaware of.

 

[wartyOne]

I think my next recipe, I am going to go for a "True" partial mash. Up to this point I have just used DME and LME + specialty malts. Going to either mash munich or vienna malt + Pale DME/LME OR Munich LME + 2-row + Pale DME for a Marzen type Ale...

This will be my first attempt at "mashing" versus "steeping". How do you guys go about mashing base malts?? The sources that I have read is leading me towards using my igloo cooler,
1) heating up about 1.25-1.5qts/per lb. (approximately a gallon to 1 1/2 gallons per 3 lbs of grain) to approx. 158-160F. Dump in the cooler.
2) Adding crushed grain slowly (and gently poking at the grain bag) to the water in the
cooler, this should bring temp down to around 150-155F?
3) Let it sit for an hour. Dump the wort in the boil pot.
4) Sparge bag of grain with another set of pre-heated water (165-175F) in the cooler. Leave for about 10-15 minutes, dump this water in the brew pot.
5) Start boil.

Any tips you guys have for mashing base malts?? I hear the temperature AND water:grain ratio is pretty crucial. Also read that you want as much "Open" area in your grain bag as possible to allow all the water that can get in as possible and to avoid clumping..which supposedly hurts your efficiency..

I would imagine that if your temperature is not quite where you want it after adding the malt, you could add small ice cubes to bring it down a degree or two at a time??

Anyone have experience with the round barrel-like, w/spigot Igloo coolers (I have a larger square one too)? I hear they hold hot water temperatures plenty good enough for an hour.
and begin your boil.

Welcome to my neck of the woods, VT. Let me start by warning you that if you're married you'd best have a patient wife, because the journey you're about to embark on will make her crazy from time to time. Okay, good. On to the details.

First piece of advice: Marzens are lagers. They are brewed in March, and tapped in September. If those classifications aren't met, than you aren't technically brewing a Marzen. That doesn't mean anything to normal people, but to beer dorks (guilty) it is relevant. That doesn't mean you can't brew that style at other times of the year, it just means that beer dorks will make a big deal out of it. Kind of like I just did.

Second: Munich and Vienna can be a bit unforgiving in the setup you're speaking about. I would caution against trying this as your first mash. I would start with an ale, using pale malt (domestic or import, but make sure it's 2-row), until you get familiar with the processes first hand.

Third... you know what? I don't have time to get into this right now. PM me, and I'll drop a text book on you tomorrow.

 

[Sleepy T]

Welcome to my neck of the woods, VT. Let me start by warning you that if you're married you'd best have a patient wife, because the journey you're about to embark on will make her crazy from time to time. Okay, good. On to the details.

First piece of advice: Marzens are lagers. They are brewed in March, and tapped in September. If those classifications aren't met, than you aren't technically brewing a Marzen. That doesn't mean anything to normal people, but to beer dorks (guilty) it is relevant. That doesn't mean you can't brew that style at other times of the year, it just means that beer dorks will make a big deal out of it. Kind of like I just did.

Second: Munich and Vienna can be a bit unforgiving in the setup you're speaking about. I would caution against trying this as your first mash. I would start with an ale, using pale malt (domestic or import, but make sure it's 2-row), until you get familiar with the processes first hand.

Third... you know what? I don't have time to get into this right now. PM me, and I'll drop a text book on you tomorrow.

My wife is quite patient and she is great about letting me pursue what few hobbies I have time for ( 3 kids, 15years, 20 months, and one coming in the next few weeks) so with her permission...I am turning into a bit of a beer dork myself. My brother sparko has been working with kits (nothing wrong with that) and I have finally convinced him of going to making his own recipes with some of these nice calculators you can find online. With some research it seems that you can make a better beer, probably with fresher ingredients, and cheaper to boot. Seems like the more grain you can use..the better and cheaper too. Plus IMO..you can't really call something in a kit.."Your own"..Just my take. I understand that Marzen is typically lager, I just don't have temp. control yet and haven't gotten around to building a fermentation chiller. I love these malty beers and have heard you can make a nice "Marzen Ale" style beer that is similar. My first brew (a lager), I brewed back in the colder months and was able to have a cool room, and was able to lager it outside. Turned out great. Check your PM...

 

[wartyOne]

My wife is quite patient and she is great about letting me pursue what few hobbies I have time for ( 3 kids, 15years, 20 months, and one coming in the next few weeks) so with her permission...I am turning into a bit of a beer dork myself. My brother sparko has been working with kits (nothing wrong with that) and I have finally convinced him of going to making his own recipes with some of these nice calculators you can find online. With some research it seems that you can make a better beer, probably with fresher ingredients, and cheaper to boot. Seems like the more grain you can use..the better and cheaper too. Plus IMO..you can't really call something in a kit.."Your own"..Just my take. I understand that Marzen is typically lager, I just don't have temp. control yet and haven't gotten around to building a fermentation chiller. I love these malty beers and have heard you can make a nice "Marzen Ale" style beer that is similar. My first brew (a lager), I brewed back in the colder months and was able to have a cool room, and was able to lager it outside. Turned out great. Check your PM...

Right on, man. You're on the right track. You should have four messages. Let me know if something seems out of place. I had to break one up because of the character limit.

 

[olympicoscar]

I realize it's all about taste, but the bold is just flatly wrong. What else have you tried?

Although, I find it interesting to note that you have picked all beers that are considered "Standard American Lagers" by the BJCP (beer judging that classifies beers in a certain group; example, when Coors Banquet competes, it competes against Heineken, Corona, Red Stripe, Kirin and Amestel). Maybe it's just that this is the style of beer you really like.

Don't think of this as an attack. Some people like certain beers, and there's nothing wrong with that. I find that it takes time and experience to really refine a beer palate, and part of that experience is trying things repeatedly that you initially didn't like.

As for Coors being the best American beer, it isn't even considered the best American beer of its own style by a group of peers. Miller Lite consistently destroys Coors Light in competitions. I won't even bother mentioning Bud Light (in the beer judging community, it is widely regarded as a defect due to high diacetyl content which is totally inappropriate for the style). The brewery that I work at has a higher pedigree for Standard American Lagers than Coors does.

Basically, I'm inviting you to broaden your beer horizons by trying things not in the cheap section of the beer aisle. You might find a whole universe that you were previously unaware of.

I've tried virtually everything on the market. I'm in my late 60's so many of the beers I've tried don't even exist anymore. I just always liked Coors. Miller's would be my next favorite American. Bud is ok. Pabst I couldn't stand. Same with Schlitz. Also Samuel Adams. Drank Ballantine, Iron City, Narragansett Lager when I was younger. Ballantine was the best. Don't know if any of these still exist. I like most Mexican beers.

 

[Darkstone42]

I transferred my beer to the secondary fermenter. It still smells and tastes great. And the alcohol is right where it should be.

 

[Sleepy T]

Brown Ale is in the bottle. Ended up with about 32 dry-hopped sugar primed beers and around 16 maple primed beers. If my wife doesn't have our baby by this weekend I am either going to brew my first IPA or the Marzen type Ale...My last twelve pack of APA is almost gone and it has been the best of that batch (Cascade hops are much more noticeable..almost like a mild IPA now). IT is kind of putting me in the IPA mood...I guess I need to start being a little more patient with my beer and let it bottle and/or cold condition a little bit longer..

 

[wartyOne]

Brown Ale is in the bottle. Ended up with about 32 dry-hopped sugar primed beers and around 16 maple primed beers. If my wife doesn't have our baby by this weekend I am either going to brew my first IPA or the Marzen type Ale...My last twelve pack of APA is almost gone and it has been the best of that batch (Cascade hops are much more noticeable..almost like a mild IPA now). IT is kind of putting me in the IPA mood...I guess I need to start being a little more patient with my beer and let it bottle and/or cold condition a little bit longer..

I had that same problem. Not so much with kegging.