HOMEBREW Digest #3468 Thu 02 November 2000

[Prev HBD] [Index] [Next HBD] [Back]


	FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
		Digest Janitor: janitor@hbd.org


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

          Northern  Brewer, Ltd. Home Brew Supplies
        http://www.northernbrewer.com  1-800-681-2739

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


Contents:
  Vote Early. Vote Often. Vote Gump. ("Rob Moline")
  water salts to style (Tom Meier)
  Re: Wyeast Lag ("Abby, Ellen and Alan")
  bulkhead ftg (PVanslyke)
  Keg conversions ("Grant Stott")
  yeast starters ("gontar00")
  Enzyme Kinetics - part 1 ("Stephen Alexander")
  Pitchable yeast field report ("Bev D. Blackwood II")
  Gott Bulkhead Fittings ("Houseman, David L")
  Re: Re: Aireation with Venturi tube (Jeff Renner)
  not the plastic debate again! ("Pannicke, Glen A.")
  Reusing Yeast Bed (cmmundt)
  RE: glass carboys ("Brian Lundeen")
  Re: Advice Heeded/All-Grain Easier Now (Jeff Renner)
  Gott grain capacity /  White Labs performance ("james suchy")
  Cutting Kegs (Rod Prather)
  yeast culturing and re-using yeast (djazzie)
  High mash-in temperature (Brian Watson)
  Welding, Dremel, Venturi (LaBorde, Ronald)
  Re: Alcohol % (Chris Cooper)
  Venturi Dedecarbonation ("Philip J Wilcox")
  solution for dry hopping in keg (Chris Hofmann)
  Eureka! Bulkhead Fittings Solution for Gott/Igloo/Rubbermaid (John Palmer)
  Follow-up:SG to Alcohol (Jeff Lutes)
  Clarigfication on CPVC bulkhead for a Gott (Mark Kempisty)
  What to do when your lager freezes. Re: Yeast (John Palmer)
  Ode (Crossno)

* * 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 canoot reach you. We will not correct your address for the automation - that's your job. 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 at hbd.org. JANITOR on duty: Pat Babcock and Karl Lutzen (janitor@hbd.org)
---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 31 Oct 2000 23:21:46 -0600 From: "Rob Moline" <brewer at isunet.net> Subject: Vote Early. Vote Often. Vote Gump. Vote Early. Vote Often. Vote Gump. The Beer Party has been formed as a less than serious attempt to provide levity to the current political season. Our platform is deliberately designed to provoke controversy, at least on one point, with the hoped for result being more page hits. This Presidential Campaign is a Zero Cost, No Endorsement, Seven Day effort that we hope will bring at least a grin. PLEASE, visit http://www.jethrogump.com/gumpforprez/ and send this URL to everyone in your address book, and ask that they do the same! No animals were harmed in the creation of this website, and we pledge that should we lose this election, which is more than likely, any invitations to the Inauguration of the winning Candidate shall be graciously accepted! Cheers! Jethro Gump "The More I Know About Beer, The More I Realize I Need To Know More About Beer!" Return to table of contents
Date: Tue, 31 Oct 2000 23:20:15 -0600 From: Tom Meier <tom.meier at mindspring.com> Subject: water salts to style Paul Kensler writes about a headless wheat beer.. >I experienced this once, on a Bavarian wheat beer.....never could >hold any sort of a head, even thought it was >50% wheat and highly >carbonated. Think alcoholic wheat pop. I had the same problem with a dunkelweizen. I had chilled a 2 liter of it in a coke PET bottle. The person drinking it did not realize it was beer until tasting it. The foam died immediately when poured, so it was a dead ringer for coke. ================================================= For the enterprising water chemists out there, I would like to pose a suggestion for a new homebrewing product. I would pay to have a product that would virtually guarantee a great water profile with little thought or trouble, (i.e. preboiling, measuring 8 different chemicals, etc. etc.) Lets face it, we've all got enough to worry about .. oops I mean reLAX about when brewing. So. Is there a product that can do this, and if it not, why not? What I would like to see, is a tiny bag of mixed salts that I could dump into my deionized strike water that would give me the exact water profile of say, Munich. The key is that water would have to be deionized (perhaps using a fish tank deionizer). The other catch is the sparge water would need a different treatment if you are of the 'low ph to avoid tannins' mindset. Perhaps this could be as simple as adding a few Tsp of DME. The brewing salts I've seen add to hardness. Thats no good for those of us who have 200 ppm as CaCO3.. I've been told that most public water is not very consistent and changes considerably with weather and seasons. I would like to see something that is predictable, repeatable, no fuss, no muss, no rant or cuss. The salts could even be labeled by style. Think of the profit margin on this product. A few cents material cost for something I would personally pay a convenience premium of 60, 65, neh even 70 cents for. A virtual gold mine. Am I the only one out there that doesn't want to understand water chemistry or own a pH probe? Is this a plausible idea? Till then I am living with my astringency and long conversion times. Tom Meier Decatur, AL Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 01 Nov 2000 06:39:33 -0400 From: "Abby, Ellen and Alan" <elal at pei.sympatico.ca> Subject: Re: Wyeast Lag > Date: Tue, 31 Oct 2000 09:52:43 -0700 > From: "Richard B. Dulany Jr." <RDulany at co.el-paso.tx.us> > Subject: Pitchable Wyeast--lag time. > > I brewed a 5 gallon batch of stout from extract (OG 1048) on Sunday, Oct. > 22. I pitched a tube of Wyeast Irish Ale #1084 directly into the 72 deg. F, > well-stirred wort. Trusting the beer fates, I decided not to make a starter > although the yeast was packaged on August 30, 2000 and was almost two months > old. I just took the tube out of my refrigerator the night before I brewed > and let it warm to room temperature. > > There was no visible fermentation for the first 36 hours. But, sometime > between 36 and 48 hours (while I was at work), the yeast "erupted" and foam > spewed through the airlock. I racked to a carboy on Friday, Oct. 27. Bubbles > are still escaping through the airlock every minute or so as of this > morning. > > I was concerned about the lag time too, but the beer seems ok. I'm hesitant > to use the pitchable tubes again though because of the lag time. The > slap-packs seem safer. > > Richard Dulany > El Paso, TX I am in the 36th hour of a 1275XL Thames primary and am waiting for the explosion of fermentation myself so the format of the yeast may not be the critical factor. It was also a 30 August batch which I left out of the fridge overnight. It ballooned up so much before I opened the pack that I thought the pack risked springing a leak. I pitched it in the mid-60's well aeriated SG 1.034 bitter and left it in a warm room. It warmed at a good pace and is sitting at 72 degrees now. There is a head has slowly built in the primary so I do not believe sanitation is an issue. The action of the pack after I released the nutrient has not yet paralleled the primary but we shall wait and see. I hope five inches of space in the pail suffices should the explosion actually show up. This is my first use of Wyeast or any liquir so I will be interested to see what happens. Alan McLeod New Glasgow PEI Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 06:24:40 EST From: PVanslyke at aol.com Subject: bulkhead ftg Good morning, A couple years ago I made a bulkhead fitting from a "thin wall shower & tub elbow". I don't have the item at hand to describe in detail. This item is made by B&K Industries (usual disclaimers). It is a combination inlet 1/2 in. female sweat or 1/2 in. NFS. Outlet is 1/2 in. NPT. Requires a 1-1/8 in. hole. The locknut is of undetermined material but could probably be replaced with brass or nylon if you can find it. I don't remember how much the item was (I think around 5.00 or less) but I can let you know as I will be buying another in a couple days. Because of the curvature of the keg, I flattened the area slightly (tapped lightly with large hammer) before drilling. If anyone is interested, email me directly and I will get a photo and attach to return email. Cheers, Paul VanSlyke >> brewin' and relaxin' in Deposit, NY Return to table of contents
Date: Thu, 2 Nov 2000 11:38:48 +1100 From: "Grant Stott" <gstott at primus.com.au> Subject: Keg conversions Having just scored a keg to convert to a boiler, its great to see the recent discussions on converting kegs. Can anyone tell me if there is any real reason to add a tube & false bottom to a converted keg used solely as the kettle. I can understand the reasons if you are using it as a mash tun, but I'm thinking that adding a ball valve is all I need for a kettle. I saw a 10gal Rubbermaid cooler for the 1st time last weekend (also the 5 gal for the 1st time) The price over here is $123.00 I think I will continue mashing in my rectangular cooler. Grant Stott Geelong Vic. Australia Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 08:23:39 -0500 From: "gontar00" <Richard_R_Gontarek at sbphrd.com> Subject: yeast starters There has been a fair amount of people complaining lately about dead yeast, long lag times, and high final gravities. All I've got to say is that if you are going through the trouble to make your own beer, you owe it to yourself to make a starter if you're using liquid yeast! Yes, I know there are yeast suppliers that claim their product is ready-to-pitch, but since making a small starter is so easy and cheap, there is absolutely no reason not to go the extra yard (more like an inch). Your beer will thank you for the extra bit of TLC. Rick Gontarek Owner/Brewmaster of The Major Groove Picobrewery Trappe, PA Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 09:12:21 -0500 From: "Stephen Alexander" <steve-alexander at worldnet.att.net> Subject: Enzyme Kinetics - part 1 There are very tiny bits of background knowledge that will make this paper more readable. Some basic chemistry and a trivial knowledge of differential calculus is useful in appreciating the detailed argument, but I have tried to convey the meaning in word as well as equation and so a skipping over any confusing equations should not impair an understanding of the larger issues. I have tried to strike a balance between the assumption that the audience understands the basics and that it does not. I am sure that this balance is imperfect. Enzymes -- rate of reaction as related to brewing Enzymes are proteins which act as catalysts for certain chemical reactions. Enzymes are an intimate part of virtually every biological pathway. When one hears the term gene, or genetic property, one should think 'enzyme', since genes are principally DNA encoding for the proteins that represent enzymes. Plant and animal metabolic processes involve systems of thousands of distinct enzymes to accomplish the various functions involved. Plants store their energy reserves as carbohydrates, and many of the more advanced plants create complex carbohydrates such as starch as part of a long term storage strategy or a reproductive success strategy. The feed grains fall in this last category. These starch making plants also have enzymes which help reduce those carbohydrates to simple sugars, especially glucose, which fuels the primary energy mechanism available to higher plants and animals. The catalysis by enzymes of chemical reactions is a simple yet remarkable thing. The chemical reactions involved must be thermodynamically favorable, or exothermic. Catalysis does not provide energy to the system, but it lowers the threshold energy level needed for a reaction to take place. By analogy, catalysis is like lowering the level of a dam and permitting the water to flow downhill at an increased rate. Catalysis does not cause water to flow uphill, tho' be aware that the reverse reaction rate, or 'splashback', can occasionally be significant. It cannot be said that catalysis is necessary for the reaction as some water flows over the dam anyway. In biological systems tho' catalysis often increases the rate of the reaction by 3 to 6 orders of magnitude and sometimes much more. In our primary example system using amylases to produce sugars from starch it is easy to understand that the natural rate of starch degradation into sugar is thousands of times lower in the absence of enzymes. Another aspect of these systems of enzymes is that they are often part of a regulatory system that is involved in keeping some chemical or product at an appropriate level in a living organism. Not only must the enzymes be available for driving the reaction forward, but it must also be possible to stop or inhibit the reaction from going too far. A barley seed needs glucose to fuel its growth, but the entire endosperm is consumed over a few weeks, not an hour. There are several ways in which this is effected, but product inhibition, in which an enzymes ability to catalyze is reduced in the presence of either its immediate product or more often the product several steps beyond the current one is very common. The enzyme proteins are long chained linkages of the 20 basic types of amino acids, and the resulting molecules may consist of up to several thousand amino acids. The protein molecule is not necessarily a single strand, but may contain doubled or tripled sections. The molecule is unlikely to be a straight chain, but instead spirals and folds back on itself repeatedly, often looking more like a jumble of ribbon. There are several sorts of relatively weak bonds which may occur between crossing strands. These can act to fix the ribbon jumble into a fairly fixed shape. The individual amino acids do not carry uniform electrical potential, and so various parts of the molecule attract and repel each other based on this local potential. The pH of the medium and the availability of free ions (e.g. salt solutions) impact the effect of these charges and so the shape and solubility of the proteins. Some enzyme co-factors, agents which permit or improve the catalytic effect, act to 'improve' the enzymes molecular shape so that it catalyses its reaction better. One example is that many plant alpha-amylases require calcium as a co-factor. If no calcium is present the alpha-amylase converts into an unusable shape. (denatures) after which it no longer catalyses its reaction and so ceases to be an enzyme. Most cofactors impact the rate of the reaction, and are not absolutely required, as is the case for alpha-amylase and calcium. When we brewers speak of enzyme catalyzed reactions in the mash tun the discussion often becomes obscure due to a lack of careful terminology, especially about rates of reaction, so incorrect conclusions are often derived. The concepts behind the reactions and their rates are so basic that a Socratic dialog could lead even the least scientific brewer among us to the correct conclusions. Unfortunately a history of catch phrases and statements drawn upon out of context make erroneous conclusions more common than correct ones in this area. Some basic terminology will be introduced as needed. - Substrate: The term 'substrate' refers to the source material that is acted upon. The substrate of beta-amylase is linear 1-4 linked glucose units of length 3 or greater and water. The substrate of beta-glucanase are the 1-3 and 1-4 linkages in beta-glucans + H2O. - Concentration, or number of molecules per unit volume, of a molecule 'M' will be written as [M]. Often units of moles per liter are used by chemists, where a mole represents 6.022*10^23 molecules. -S Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 08:17:10 -0600 From: "Bev D. Blackwood II" <blackwod at rice.edu> Subject: Pitchable yeast field report I've never had a single problem with White Labs yeast. Unless I need a strain they don't carry, I'll pick the tube over a smack-pack any day. My one caveat is that I haven't tried out the Wyeast "shampoo bottles" yet, which I've heard mixed reports on. -BDB2 Bev D. Blackwood II http://www.bdb2.com/ Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 09:34:08 -0500 From: "Houseman, David L" <David.Houseman at unisys.com> Subject: Gott Bulkhead Fittings The recent flurry of postings on bulkhead fittings for a Gott, particularly John Palmer's on PVC, reminded me that I've been using one I made for several years without problems. I never ended up using PVC or CPVC; but perhaps others would like to use this simple approach as well. I removed the spigot from the Gott and replaced it with the following (description, not ASCII art): 1/2"x1-1.5" closed SS nipple placed through the hole where the Gott spigot was. I believe I had to trim out the hole a little to get this to fit but it is a tight fit. I rubber gasket on each side of the Gott wall. On the inside is a brass (yes, de-leaded) 1/2" hose barb to 1/2" female NPT adapter (readily available about everywhere). On the outside is a 1/2" brass ball valve that has female NPT threads on each end. The ball valve and adapter, when tightened together, seal the Gott. This has not leaked and has been mechanically stable. On the other end of the ball valve I have a 1/2" NPT to garden hose adapter and use garden hose to hose barb (3/8" and 1/2") connectors to connect various hoses --- far cheaper than tri-clover clamps and for the homebrewer, works just as well. On the inside of the Gott I use a standard Phils Phloating Phalse Bottom but replaced the 3/8" connector with a 1/2" nylon adapter and connect that to the 1/2" hose barb on my bulkhead with a piece of 1/2" Teflon tubing that's very stiff; this helps hold the Phalse bottom down. David Houseman Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 09:04:36 -0500 From: Jeff Renner <nerenner at umich.edu> Subject: Re: Re: Aireation with Venturi tube I used to use a venturi tube when I siphoned, but now that I have a pump and a RIMS, I have a new trick. Well, it's been maybe five years now. After the immersion chiller has taken the temperature below 80F with recirculation, I loosen the hose fitting from the boiler to the pump while I recirculate, and this loose fitting sucks air which the pump beats into tiny bubbles. I suspect virtually all of the O2 that could dissolve does. I continue to recirculate and aerate a while even after I've reached pitching temperature, and sometimes pitch right in the boiler. Since I'm recirculating through hops, I'm a little concerned that some of the yeast may get filtered out, so I usually don't. Then I pump to the fermenter, still with the loose fitting adding air. Jeff - -- -=-=-=-=- Jeff Renner in Ann Arbor, Michigan USA, c/o nerenner at umich.edu "One never knows, do one?" Fats Waller, American Musician, 1904-1943 Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 01 Nov 2000 10:00:33 -0500 From: "Pannicke, Glen A." <glen_pannicke at merck.com> Subject: not the plastic debate again! Scotty wrote: >Cant believe the anti-plastic brewing debate has reared its ugly head again. >Personally I cannot believe people brew in glass...hot wort, slippery glass >and a very small hole to clean with. I can't believe that people brew in either plastic OR glass. With all of the advantages of stainless steel why not go that route? [note: tongue very much in cheek!] In all seriousness, I brew using all three and have found that the pros and cons of each make it a pretty close race. I use plastic for the occasional open fermentation and have two dedicated to lambics in which I WANT the scratches. I use glass mostly for secondary fermentation and aging. Stainless is great for my lager beers since the handles make it so easy to lift the kegs in & out of the chest fridge. Also transfers can be done under pressure, so I can eliminate much of the lifting anyway. So I'd say I really couldn't pick one over another. They all seem to have their own specialized use in my homebrewery. >I vote also for resurection of the HSA arguements to accompany this line of >discussion.... Wait a minute... where's my helmet and shoulderpads? OK, I'm ready... and that's just to READ - not participate! Carpe cerevisiae! Glen Pannicke http://www.pannicke.net "He was a wise man who invented beer" - Plato Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 10:28:38 -0500 From: cmmundt at AircraftBraking.com Subject: Reusing Yeast Bed Hi All, I have a question for all the yeast ranchers of HBD. I plan on brewing again within the next two weeks and I would like to reuse the yeast that is presently brewing my ESB. What would be the easiest/best way to collect as much of the yeast bed as I could and save it for two weeks? Someday when I am allowed more space and gadgets for my brewing I plan on getting into culturing yeast, but now I need a way to preserve yeast for a couple of weeks. If successful at repitching the yeast I expect to use this procedure in the future. This next brew session I hope to show a fellow brewer the art of all-grain. I was talking to him last night (Tuesday) about this last batch of all-grain and how simple it can be. It does take a longer time, but not much more work when using a single temp infusion mash. He became interested in the process. So I hope to introduce him to all-grain and drink a few of my other extract beers and what some football while the mash in taking place. Chad Mundt cmmundt at aircraftbraking.com Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 09:38:59 -0600 From: "Brian Lundeen" <blundeen at rrc.mb.ca> Subject: RE: glass carboys Scott Morgan displays a certain amount of silicaphobia when he writes: > Personally I cannot believe people brew in glass...hot wort, > slippery glass > and a very small hole to clean with. While a healthy respect for the potential dangers of glass is called for, I don't consider using glass on a par with some of the really dangerous things some brewers try to get away with, like using a propane cooker in their basement without ventilation. Why would you be putting hot wort in a carboy? This is your fermenter, the wort going in should be at or near pitching temp. Otherwise, you will get hot side aeration. ;-) If your CF chiller can't get it to at least lukewarm, then it should go first into a plastic or s/s container. The worst thing you can do with a carboy is direct a stream of hot liquid into it. This will stress the glass and eventually it will give way in a most satisfyingly catastrophic manner. This is why I won't buy used carboys, you don't know how the previous owner treated it. DRY glass is not slippery. Make sure both the glass and your hands are dry, make sure you have an unobstructed path between where it is now and where you want it to be, grip firmly around the neck with one hand and under the base with the other (or use a good carrier like the strap devices or milk crates), and you should not have a problem. The hole size is only a problem if you feel that elbow grease is a necessary part of a thorough cleaning. Use a good CIP cleaner such as PBW in a warm water solution, fill it up and let it do the work. I usually let mine sit overnight, and the next day drain and rinse. I'm sure there are horror stories out there of carboys failing, even when everything was done right. Manufacturing defects are always a possibility. It happened to a friend of mine, fortunately without personal injury. His carboy had a section of glass at the base that, upon examination of the post-catastrophe shards, turned out to be paper thin. The carboy was fine as long as it sat flat on its base, but when he tilted it slightly on just the wrong spot to wipe off some spillage around the base,... WHOOSH. Now a flaw in the base is the area that poses the greatest danger in terms of loss of product and risk of injury should it fail while being lifted. This is easy enough to check with a new carboy. Fill it with water, grab by the neck, tilt and rotate so that the entire rim of the base gets tested with the weight of a full carboy. As long as it's treated properly after that, not assaulted with hot liquids or banged against hard objects, it should serve you well for your brewing lifetime. Cheers, Brian Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 10:40:53 -0500 From: Jeff Renner <nerenner at umich.edu> Subject: Re: Advice Heeded/All-Grain Easier Now Chad Mundt <cmmundt at aircraftbraking.com> has smoothly brewed his second all grain batch. Congratulations, Chad, and I hope your success inspires other brewers who are trepidatiously standing on the sidelines >Is this indicative of the style, >as I am brewing all-grain I have become more concerned about staying true >to style. > > 9 lbs of Muntons Pale Malt > 1 lb of Crystal 20 L > 0.7 lbs of Weyerman Vienna > 0.5 lbs of Carapils 10 L > >Infusion mash at 153 F for 1.5 hours, passed the iodine test. Boiled >for 60 minutes First, I'll bet you could have saved 30 minutes on the mash as I suspect it was converted after an hour. But regards the grain bill, my personal preference would be to darken this a bit with a little chocolate malt. Not much, as you don't want any drying effect, but an ounce or a little more would do, especially if you pulverized it in a blender (you'd probably have to blend more than an ounce to get it to work). That way you'd get maximum color and not too much flavor. It would add a bit of nutty flavor too that would be appropriate, I think. Assuming that Fuller's ESB is the Ur-ESB, then you might want to consider their grain bill, which is reported in the CAMRA _Real ale Almanac_ as 90% Alexis and Chariot pale ale malt, 3% crystal, 7% flaked maize, and caramel. Graham Wheeler and Roger Protz's CAMRA _Brew Your Own British Real Ale at Home_ repeat this and add 34 grams black malt per 25 liter batch to make up for the caramel. I don't think this is a good substitute, as black malt can have a very dry bitterness, not a caramel richness. A better choice, other than chocolate malt, might be some dark crystal, something that may not be widely available in England but is for us. I have had good success with Durst 90L crystal and DWC Caramunich, and I'm sure other dark crystals would work. Another recommendation is to use Briess's Ashburne malt, also called Extra Special Malt and at one time called ESB malt, as your base malt. This is my first choice for the maltier British styles such as mild or ESB. It's a really nice malt. They have some suggestions for its use on their web page http://www.briess.com/. Do a search for Ashburne and you'll get some old newsletter articles. Hope it turns out well. Jeff - -- -=-=-=-=- Jeff Renner in Ann Arbor, Michigan USA, c/o nerenner at umich.edu "One never knows, do one?" Fats Waller, American Musician, 1904-1943 Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 10:56:02 EDT From: "james suchy" <grayling at provide.net> Subject: Gott grain capacity / White Labs performance Bob asked about 10 gallon Gott Cooler lauter tun capacity. My friend Craig and I brewed a 10 gallon batch of Bigger and Badder than Nearly Nirvana at at Chris Frey's house for national hombrew day. For that 10 gallon batch we used 23 lbs of malt which fit to the rim at 1.1 qts per pound. Note that this just barely fit into the tun. For mashout, we drained the tun, heated to boil and added it back to the tun. (I don't wanna hear about HSA from anyone.....this batch turned out awesome!) I would assume if you were using 17 lbs of grain and 1.1 qts per pound strike water, you would be able to do a mashout with about 2 gallons of boiling water. =================================== Regarding White Labs..... I have always used White Labs pitchable tubes with great success. I have never had a lag time greater than eight hours. I mainly use the Cal. Ale yeast, but I have also used the Kolsch, the Irish, the Edinburgh and the East Coast yeast strains with great success. All of this with no starter. I use one tube for a 1.050 - 1.058 starting gravity batch. If it is a bigger beer, I brew a 1.050 beer first, rack off the yeast cake in a week, brew the bigger batch and add to the yeast cake from the first batch. Works like a charm and the second batch takes off like a rocket. Cheers! Jim Suchy Ann Arbor Brewer's Guild (90, 21 miles Rennerian) - -- http://www.provide.net Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 01 Nov 2000 11:16:32 -0500 From: Rod Prather <rodpr at iquest.net> Subject: Cutting Kegs Cutting Kegs? You can purchase a cheap 4 1/2 inch electric die grinder for less than $20 U.S. at many large hardware outlets (made in China). Takes one disk and about 15 minutes to cut the lid out. Be careful, most of these grinders come with a masonry disk. You will have to buy metal cutting disks. WEAR SAFETY GLASSES if you value your eyes. Touch up with a little 240 grit emery cloth. TADA! - -- Rod Prather, PooterDuude Indianapolis, Indiana Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 11:33:47 -0500 From: djazzie at juno.com Subject: yeast culturing and re-using yeast I'm interested in knowing how to go about yeast culturing, if there are any good books out there that aren't too technical in explanation (I nearly failed just about every science class I ever took, not because I'm dumb, I'm just scientificly challenged). Also, what can people tell me about re-using yeast from the fermenter. How can I save it? I've read about people simply pouring new wort right on top of the old yeast, but isn't usually a good idea to clean and sanitize out your fermenter entirely before another fermentation? Lastly, what would be a good all around yeast to culture, i.e. something that might be usable in more than 1 style of beer. Thanks for your help - --Daniel Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 01 Nov 2000 08:59:48 -0800 From: Brian Watson <bmw4re at earthlink.net> Subject: High mash-in temperature The other night I brewed a batch of Red-Tail-like ale. It's been at least 2 years since I last brewed anything so I was definitely a bit rusty. I opted for a partial mash as I'd had success in the past with this technique. The recipe didn't specify a mash-in temp yet it did specify a cooking temp of 152 deg F. I ended up mashing in at the 152 F. When I consulted the Dave Miller book it specified significantly lower mash-in temp's. Also, due to my tired state and the sequence of Mr. Miller's instructions, I ended up just pouring the hot wort into my fementer with abandon ( I missed the part about not aerating the hot wort). I used an immersion cooler which seemed to take about 45 minutes to get the wort to pitching temp (Unfortunately, it was 11 PM and my aforementioned tired state caused me to break my &^%#$ at ^ thermometer so I was forced to use my pool thermometer to check the temp of my cooling water. ) The good news is that the following day I racked the wort off of the trub and active fermentation started less than 20 hrs. after pitching. What type of trouble might I be in for due to the possible high mash-in temp and the aeration of the hot wort? Failure is not an option. Thanks. BMW Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 11:46:57 -0600 From: rlabor at lsuhsc.edu (LaBorde, Ronald) Subject: Welding, Dremel, Venturi Bernd Neumann mentions welding to his keg. I have not used any welding for any fittings. Bulkhead connectors work well, are much easier to install, and I figure cheaper than any welding job. What is this fascination with welding? Most kegs I have seen with welds, also have rust, black areas, and other signs of abuse. If the weld is not done by an expert, it is an open invitation to problems. If Bernd has his spigot welded to the bottom of his keg, he will not be able to heat from the bottom without overheating the spigot. ==== Stephen Alexander talks about homebrewing vessels. >Let me explain the reason. Used keg $15, cutting tool wear $1.70, ability >to make experimental tuns for <$20 - priceless. I can also get choosy and >only pick the keg dimensions and gauge that I want (some Sabco's are pretty >thin & light). >My cutting method is simple. Abrasive metal cutting blade in a circular >saw. People have been using circular saws, sawzalls, and abrasive cutoff wheels. Me, I use my Dremel with the cutoff fiber reinforced wheels. It works great, uses two or three wheels, and makes a very clean cut. I recommend this above all other methods, why?, because it is so darn quiet, so darn easy, and safe (provided you use goggles and face mask for dust). On a nice day (rare lately with this unbearable summer heat), I just pull up a chair, put the keg between my legs and Dremel away for about 30 minutes or so. No birds, dogs, cats, neighbors, etc. are frightened by the noise. Afterwards a little rub with a very heavy sandpaper, and It is so smooth, you can run your finger around it with no sharpness. If you use those metal blades, you will contaminate the stainless and invite rust at this spot. === People seem to like Aeration with a Venturi tube. I guess it aerates alright, but it seems like a good way to suck up a few cubic feet of air with wild yeast, and anything else that happens to be around. === From: Ballsacius at aol.com >I am firing up the brew kettle this weekend and I want to try my first ten >gallon all-grain. I have a 10 gallon Gott cooler system and am wondering if >they will hold the necessary 17 pounds or so of grain, plus strike water (1 >to 1.25qt per pound) and still have room to add the boiling water at the >of the mash? If anybody could give me some advice, I would appreciate it . I think I used about 17 pounds once when brewing a Dopplebock, it was full, but worked - go for it! Ron La Borde Ronald La Borde - Metairie, Louisiana - rlabor at lsuhsc.edu http://hbd.org/rlaborde Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 13:15:47 -0500 (EST) From: Chris Cooper <ccooper at a2607cc.msr.hp.com> Subject: Re: Alcohol % Greetings all! A recent HBD post asked about calculating alcohol percentage given the change in SG., here is a simple table I have used for some time. The basic formula are: (OG - FG) * 105 = {% Alcohol by Weight} {% Alcohol by Weight} * 1.25 = [% Alcohol by Volume] The following table is a fast way to estimate the % Alcohol from the total number of SG points lost during fermentation: #SG % Alcohol by: points vol. weight ---------- ------ --------- 5 .66 .53 10 1.31 1.05 15 1.97 1.58 20 2.62 2.10 25 3.28 2.63 30 3.94 3.15 35 4.59 3.68 40 5.25 4.20 45 5.91 4.73 50 6.56 5.25 55 7.22 5.78 60 7.88 6.30 65 8.53 6.83 70 9.19 7.35 75 9.84 7.88 80 10.50 8.40 85 11.16 8.93 90 11.81 9.45 95 12.47 9.98 100 13.13 10.50 Hope this helps! Chris Cooper, Pine Haven Brewing (aka. Debbi's Kitchen) Commerce, Michigan Member, Ann Arbor Brewer's Guild (Approximately 25 miles from 0.0 Renerian) Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 14:29:50 -0500 From: "Philip J Wilcox" <pjwilcox at cmsenergy.com> Subject: Venturi Dedecarbonation HBD'ers, Another application of this wonderful effect is to use it to De-carbonate a beer sample. As in before you take a hydrometer sample. Just as easily as pulling air into the wort line, you can use this same effect to pull a vacuum on a closed container. If your closed container has carbonated beer in it, it will pull the CO2 out of solution, and push it out with the flow liquid. In this case, water from a tap. Materials are a few feet of 3/8 beer hose, a plastic T and a stopper sized to fit your flask, 1L PET bottle, 22oz bomber... (Why so big? More later...) Take an 10" section of 3/8 beer hose and warm it up in some boiling water. Shove one end through the TOP of the stopper just far enough through the stopper to know you have a good seal. The other end goes into the 90 degree part of the T. Next take some more tubing and cram it up your faucet about 6" this is enough to get a good seal in my basement faucet. If you cant get good flow, you could try the silver solution (Duct tape) or make a trip hardware store and figure out a better one... Next set your bottle in the sink by the drain and put the stopper in it. Bend the T over to the line coming out of the faucet and splice it into the line where ever is natural. Make sure you have at least 10" of line on the inches. Why such a big container? Foam. It foams like crazy. You can lose 50% due to foam being sucked out if your vessel is too small. I imagine there is a too big, as it will take longer, and waste more water to pull a vacuum on a bigger vessel. My best guess is you want something 5x the volume of your hydrometer sample. 2x just for the amount you would actually add and 3x for head space. Phil Wilcox Poison Frog Home Brewer Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 1 Nov 2000 12:42:02 -0800 (PST) From: Chris Hofmann <chrisrhofmann at yahoo.com> Subject: solution for dry hopping in keg I feel the best dryhopping results are acheived when hops are added directly to the keg. Problem is that most of the time you get sediment unless you contain them. I think I've found a solution for this problem. I located a company that sells pot sized tea infusers(teaballs). I bought two and have used them with excellent results for dryhopping with pellets in cornies. The company is Upton Tea Importers www.uptontea.com, the product is call Permabrew, pot size infuser. Chris Hofmann, Mukwonago, Wisconsin __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? >From homework help to love advice, Yahoo! Experts has your answer. http://experts.yahoo.com/ Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 01 Nov 2000 13:57:22 -0800 From: John Palmer <jjpalmer at gte.net> Subject: Eureka! Bulkhead Fittings Solution for Gott/Igloo/Rubbermaid Well I went back to Home Depot today (it's just down the road from work), and I could not find the CPVC fittings. But I did find nearly equivalent fittings in brass that work! Here it is: 1 3/4 inch F Hose to 1/2 inch MIP Adapter (brass) Watts AB part # A-677 $2.50 1 1/2 inch FIP to 3/8 FIP Reducing Coupling (brass) Watts AB part # A-815 $2.90 1 1/2 inch Nylon Barb to M Hose (Nylon) Watts AB part # A-386 $1.40 1 3/8 Nylon Barb to 3/8 MIP fitting $2 1 Rubber O Ring ( No. 15, .125 inch thick) 25 cents 1 Schedule 40 PVC Connecter Sleeve (1/2 inch) 25 cents 1 short Nipple (1.5 inches, 1/2 inch MIP, nylon or brass) $2 1 Ball Valve (3/8 inch FIP) $5 Total Cost = $16.30 To assemble: 1. Take F Hose to MIP Adapter and slip the O Ring over the male threads so it rests against the flange. This is inserted thru the spigot hole from the inside of the tun. Put some teflon tape on the threads. 2. Saw a slice from the PVC connecter to make a spacer about 1/8 - 3/16 inch thick De-burr it on a piece of sandpaper so it is smooth and parallel. 3. Slip the spacer over the male threads protruding from the spigot hole and screw on the FIP Reducer Coupling. Voila! A water tight seal on the inside of the cooler. 4. Screw in the MIP hosebarb to the F Hose fitting inside the cooler. 5. Screw the short 3/8 nipple and 3/8 Hosebarb onto the Ball Valve. 6. Screw the Ball Valve assembly into the FIP Reducer coupling and you are done! You can attach your manifold or Phils Phalse Bottom via the inside hose barb, and attach your outlet hose to the outside hose barb. Use teflon tape on the threads to insure a leakproof seal and disassemble between uses to clean. This works really well. Thanks to Mark and Eric for the ideas! -John - -- John Palmer Palmer House Brewery and Smithy http://www.realbeer.com/jjpalmer How To Brew - the online book http://www.howtobrew.com Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 01 Nov 2000 17:37:47 -0600 From: Jeff Lutes <jlutes at osprey.net> Subject: Follow-up:SG to Alcohol First, let me thank everyone for their responses...but now I'm REALLY lost. Here is a list of what I have received (some of it): OG = Starting Gravity FG = Finish Gravity By Volume: (OG-FG)*.129 (OG-FG)*133.3 (OG-FG)*131 (OG-FG)*.1275 (OG-FG)*1.25 (OG-FG)/75 (OG-FG)*105 Now, maybe my math is a bit more rusty than I thought, and I DO understand this is an ESTIMATED alcohol, but ACK! The thing that really frightens me is that most of the people who sent me these sited various brewing books...has anyone ever come up with a common formula? Gemus Brauen Haus Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 01 Nov 2000 18:52:26 -0500 From: Mark Kempisty <kempisty at pav.research.panasonic.com> Subject: Clarigfication on CPVC bulkhead for a Gott I read John Palmer's comments on my bulkhead idea and I just want to clarify that I did use and recommend CPVC. It is definitely rated for hot water supplies. I have not had any off-smells or tastes from it. it also maintains its strength at mashing temperatures. My manifold is all copper and the connection from the manifold to the inside of the fitting is vinyl tube. One side benefit from using CPVC is that it acts as a thermal break between the wort and the ball valve. Yes, the ball valve will radiate some heat but I can easily wrap a towel around it to slow that down. Secondly, what the heck happened to my ASCII art? Looks like my spaces were converted to tabs at some point, but it did look better when I wrote it. - -- Take care, Mark Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 01 Nov 2000 16:06:10 -0800 From: John Palmer <jjpalmer at gte.net> Subject: What to do when your lager freezes. Re: Yeast Hi Group, First Jeff and I wondered what Does happen to the yeast when the lager partially freezes, and then Jim wrote me back and said, Okay it's thawed, now what, and decided I better ask someone who would know the answer. I called Chris White of Whitelabs (we are in the same time zone and I have pestered him before), and he said that the partially frozen yeast may still be alive, but most likely impaired a bit. He commented that even in a frozen yeast slurry, there will be 20-30% live cells after thawing. I am sure that statement needs to be qualified a lot, but you get the idea. He agreed that adding more yeast was a good idea, since the beer in question was early in the lagering cycle. If more yeast were not added, then the beer may still taste green after lagering. I asked if the new yeast needed to be acclimated with a Starter, and he said, No, not really. Since you aren't looking to get a full batch off to a fast start, and since the yeast will have plenty of time to acclimate, one tube's worth should suffice to finish the maturation and have viable yeast for bottle priming. I am pretty sure Chris was talking in terms of his own ready-to-pitch vial, so if you use another brand or strain that is not of the ready-to-pitch cell count variety then you may want to make a Starter first and conduct that starter at your primary fermentation temperature. Using the same lager yeast strain or a similar strain is always recommended. Good info, eh? Thanks, guys! John - -- John Palmer Palmer House Brewery and Smithy http://www.realbeer.com/jjpalmer How To Brew - the online book http://www.howtobrew.com Return to table of contents
Date: Wed, 01 Nov 2000 20:30:30 -0600 From: Crossno <crossno at tnns.net> Subject: Ode Propane with apologies to J. J. Cale If you get thrown out, you've got to take her out; propane. If you wanna boil, the turkey in oil; propane. She don't lie, she don't lie, she don't lie; propane. If you got bad news, and you need to brew; propane. When your sparge is done and you wanna move on; propane. She don't lie, she don't lie, she don't lie; propane. If your temperature is low, set it to glow; propane. Don't forget the refill, it's easy as hell; propane. She don't lie, she don't lie, she don't lie; propane She don't lie, she don't lie, she don't lie; propane. Return to table of contents
[Prev HBD] [Index] [Next HBD] [Back]
HTML-ized on 11/02/00, by HBD2HTML version 1.2 by K.F.L.
webmaster at hbd.org, KFL, 10/9/96