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Cpt.Wacky posted:I'm just curious, what is it about bottling that is so much work for you? I did 1 or 2 batches a day over the course of a few days and it wasn't bad at all. The worst part was probably delabeling a few cases of bottles. The bottle tree with sanitizer injector is the most important thing to get for easy bottling. It could just be that the fiance turned the AC off even though it was hot as balls yesterday. But its a pretty monotonous process. Here's my typical Bottling day. 1. Get all the bottles out 2. Rinse all the bottles (some have been sitting around a while ya know) 3. sanitize all the insides 4. put priming sugar in all the bottles 5. Move all the bottles to their positions in the bath tub. 6. fill the bottles while bending over the tub (tiny bathroom, no sittin space) 7. Grab bottle, cap, put bottle in case or 6pack box, repeat.
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Jun 24, 2013 17:04
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Bottling is just one of those things, I think. For some brewers it's a methodical, almost soothing experience that they really don't mind in the least. For others it's the last, stupidly labor intensive part of a batch before they get to enjoy the fruits of that labor. While I love the process of recipe formulation and brew day, I have always hated bottling day and so for me kegging was the right choice. While my kegerator is sometimes a massive PITA I love being able to package a growler whenever I want to share my brews and never having to worry about bottle bombs or storage space for 10-15 gallons of beer in my tiny NY apartment. Anyway, in the end I imagine that the two options balance each other out very closely, it's just a matter of what irks you less.
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Jun 24, 2013 17:04
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Splizwarf posted:When I spend money on equipment, I try to scratch whatever itch has been bothering me the most. I've decided that gravity is currently the most irritating part of my setup. Everyone I know with pumps have gotten them at Harbor Freight which is a bit more tool focused than the home improvement big boxes so that's your best bet for brick and mortar today sort of thing. I forget the exact brands and sizes but that's probably googleable, I think there's a choice of 3 that run about $50? Your Harbor Freight probably only has 1 of the three so if that's your path that will probably make your decision for you. People use aquarium sump pumps too if that will work for what you are planning but I think you run into temperature issues since those tend to be plastic?
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Jun 24, 2013 17:06
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i dont have a dishwasher  I oxyclean 8-10 bottles at a time in the sink, then after rinsing i dip about the same in my 5gal home bucket full of starsan. Then i set them to drain on a drying rack. a bottle washer or dishwasher, or even a 2nd pair of hands would all be a huge benefit. But my current limitations are starting to be batch size.. Im giving beer away too quick, i should have gone to 10 gal :/
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Jun 24, 2013 17:07
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No it's easier. I have somewhere around 16 kegs. The amount of time you spend replacing o-rings and washing them is less for each individual keg then the equivalent volume of bottles. In fact, you can do several in the same time period, once they are kicked, you wash them in a utility sink or with a hose, and leave them to dry. Prepping consists of adding some star-San, shaking the keg, then pushing the starsan through your outlet line. Basically, once a keg is set up, keeping it clean and ready to go is far less then bottle prep time, and you just siphon, no lost beer, no bottle overflow, etc. Even the setup for my 16 kegs was less Time then I would have spent in bottles. Unfortunately, too many of those kegs are empty I need to finish school and get a grow up job so I have more money and free time.
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Jun 24, 2013 17:09
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Pretty sure I'm going to brew this recipe this weekend: 100% Brett Trois IPA Recipe Really excited to try this out as my first beer using Brett, it sounds amazing. I can harvest, save, and reuse this strain, right? Since, it's seasonal I'd like to keep it around if this brew works out well.
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Jun 24, 2013 17:20
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hellfaucet posted:Pretty sure I'm going to brew this recipe this weekend: 100% Brett Trois IPA Recipe Really excited to try this out as my first beer using Brett, it sounds amazing. I can harvest, save, and reuse this strain, right? Since, it's seasonal I'd like to keep it around if this brew works out well. I'm brewing that once my stir plate arrives hahaha. Except putting some Mosaic in. I absolutely plan on saving the yeast. The fruit character of the yeast seems like it'd work well in a lot of beers.
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Jun 24, 2013 17:22
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I don't have kegs, but I do keep a few growlers around for batches that might be used as shandies. My process: 1) Weeks before, fill the utilty sink with bottles. Dump in 1/3 cup of PBW and fill with hot water. Allow everything to soak for 30 minutes, remove labels, verify gunk is gone, then rinse. Store bottles upside down. 2) Bottling day, set up the bottle tree. Also have a pitcher full of star san, a small bowl of star san, bottling bucket, and a towel. Sanitize interior of bottles then place on tree. 3) Dump handfull of caps in bowl. Have wife fill bottles while I cap them. Forget to add priming solution to bottling bucket and dump bottles back into bucket before adding priming solution. Repeat with primed beer. 4) Same process for each bottle. Remove cap from bowl, cap bottle, dunk both side in pitcher of star san, place on towel. 5) Box up 24 bottles at a time after they've dried. Repeat until done. 6) Realizing that you should never bottle 15 gallons of beer at once. Longingly consider place to put keezer. Wish you had a basement. 7) Drink beer.
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Jun 24, 2013 17:23
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hellfaucet posted:Pretty sure I'm going to brew this recipe this weekend: 100% Brett Trois IPA Recipe Really excited to try this out as my first beer using Brett, it sounds amazing. I can harvest, save, and reuse this strain, right? Since, it's seasonal I'd like to keep it around if this brew works out well. You can save the strain with the caveat that Brett tends to have bacteria ride along that might not express until a few generations of low ibu beers so it can trend toward sour just repitching dregs as opposed to more controlled propagation.
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Jun 24, 2013 17:26
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Luisfe posted:This other one is overhoppy, but actually with a head! It was fun to do. Cpt.Wacky posted:I don't have direct experience kegging but I remember someone here explaining how it wasn't actually any easier if you considered more than just the part where you rack the finished beer into a clean keg Kegging is definitely easier. Cleaning a keg is incredibly trivial, as is filling it. If you force carb, you can easily hit the exact carbonation level you want, plus the turn-around time to drinkable beer is often shorter than bottling. Plus, draft beer in your living room. That being said, the initial investment is a bit  , but well worth it IMO. It's greatly increased my enjoyment of the hobby. There is a little extra upkeep associated with the CO2 tanks, cleaning the lines, etc., but none of it is nearly as tedious or time-consuming as bottling.
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Jun 24, 2013 17:31
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Quick question for those of you with keezers. I've had my beers carbing in my keezer for two weeks now and finally tapped into them. I've got my controller set to 38° which results in a bottle of water in the keezer constantly at 40°but my beer is coming out at about 49°. Is it normal for the kegs to be so much warmer than their surroundings? I'm pretty confident that after two weeks that they've pretty much hit equilibrium as far as temperature is concerned. I've begun to lower my controller setting but I'm mildly afraid of freezing my beer, particularly in the serving line. Any advice?
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Jun 24, 2013 17:45
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Sounds to me like youneed better air circulation in your freezer. You might try a PC fan or something.
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Jun 24, 2013 17:48
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zedprime posted:You can save the strain with the caveat that Brett tends to have bacteria ride along that might not express until a few generations of low ibu beers so it can trend toward sour just repitching dregs as opposed to more controlled propagation. What's the deal with that?
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Jun 24, 2013 18:18
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Jo3sh posted:Sounds to me like youneed better air circulation in your freezer. You might try a PC fan or something. Circulating the air will keep the temperature more consistent. You could also figure out a way to move your probe somewhere higher in the keezer; the bottom of the keezer might get below freezing, but it's unlikely to freeze your beer. If your collar isn't insulated, insulating it might help reduce the temperature gradient.
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Jun 24, 2013 18:45
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I generally wash out bottles after I drink their delicious contents. When I have enough boxes I put the bottles away clean and tape the boxes shut. On bottling day I use the little sanitizer sprayer thing to sanitize the bottles. I don't have the bottle tree so I spray Star San on the top rack of my dishwasher and put the bottles there. I built a little apparatus that holds the bottling bucket about sixteen inches off the kitchen table at a slight incline. My wife fills the bottles using the bottling wand and I cap the bottles. After the beer is all bottled we rinse the outside of all the bottles, dry the bottles, and box them up for storage in the basement. It takes about ninety minutes from start to finish.
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Jun 24, 2013 18:49
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What are some good homebrewing blogs besides the mad fermentationist? I'm in the mood for some readin. E: Yessss, thanks guys. ChiTownEddie fucked around with this message at 19:04 on Jun 24, 2013 |
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Jun 24, 2013 18:49
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zedprime posted:You can save the strain with the caveat that Brett tends to have bacteria ride along that might not express until a few generations of low ibu beers so it can trend toward sour just repitching dregs as opposed to more controlled propagation. I'm not sure, but I think that this is because your sources of Brett are usually bottle dregs of wild ales or other beers containing multiple strains of Brett and some bugs as well. In a pure culture from Wyeast, I would imagine that bacteria is not going to be as much of an issue assuming that your sanitation practices are good.
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Jun 24, 2013 18:50
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ChiTownEddie posted:What are some good homebrewing blogs besides the mad fermentationist? If you're looking for a history lesson, Shut Up about Barclay Perkins is spergy and awesome as hell. Also if you haven't seen any Brewing TV I'd definitely recommend it. It's a shame that it's pretty much dead now but there's a ton of good info there. The BIAB episode in particular is the one that gave me the confidence to try all-grain brewing.
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Jun 24, 2013 18:54
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ChiTownEddie posted:What are some good homebrewing blogs besides the mad fermentationist? I guess I'll throw my name in the hat! http://hivemindmead.blogspot.com/ It's not even 10% as good as MF but what the heck. Jack kellers is pretty good but more wine-centric EDIT: Also some weird off topic stuff... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp Marshmallow Blue fucked around with this message at 18:57 on Jun 24, 2013 |
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Jun 24, 2013 18:54
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http://zythophile.wordpress.com/ is also a wonderfully spergy blog, and http://www.ianwhitney.com/hopwise/ has some pretty good stuff as well.
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Jun 24, 2013 19:03
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PBCrunch posted:I generally wash out bottles after I drink their delicious contents. When I have enough boxes I put the bottles away clean and tape the boxes shut. I rinse after pouring too. The bottle tree is great for letting them air dry afterwards. I put them back in the box upside down when dry and don't bother taping it shut. A stand to hold the bucket at incline is a good idea, I usually just tilt it off the edge of the counter as it gets down to the last few bottles. I don't rinse my bottles after capping except for the odd bottle that gets overfilled since I keep them pretty clean to begin with. My next project is designing labels and applying them with milk, both of which I've never tried before. I got the first design finished and it's ready try out with the milk as glue. I'm not going to label all of them but I'll do a six-pack or two to have on hand when I give some away.
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Jun 24, 2013 19:29
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Cpt.Wacky posted:My next project is designing labels and applying them with milk, both of which I've never tried before. I got the first design finished and it's ready try out with the milk as glue. Oooh, can we see it digitally? I'm going to design labels for my lambic mead since I know those will be very special occasion / gift bottles. Edit: < If it doesn't turn out like poo.
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Jun 24, 2013 19:33
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Mikey Purp posted:I'm not sure, but I think that this is because your sources of Brett are usually bottle dregs of wild ales or other beers containing multiple strains of Brett and some bugs as well. In a pure culture from Wyeast, I would imagine that bacteria is not going to be as much of an issue assuming that your sanitation practices are good.
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Jun 24, 2013 19:53
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Marshmallow Blue posted:Oooh, can we see it digitally? I am not an artist and it's a first attempt but I'll post it when I get home tonight. I settled on a 3" by 6" label which fits 3 per US Letter page. The center column is 2.5" wide with a photo I found on Flickr in the background and the beer name. The left column has some text for newbies that briefly explains bottle-conditioning, how to pour without getting the sediment and a friendly warning about goddamn beer farts. The right column has the beer nerd stuff: fermentables, hop amounts and schedule, ferment temp, and OG/FG/ABV.
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Jun 24, 2013 22:45
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I'm getting told left and right I need to add some labels to my bottles. What are all the cool kids buying to slap on their bottles? I'm okay with non adhesive since I hear some milk acts as a great one once dried. I have access to a color laser printer as well
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Jun 24, 2013 23:07
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Requesting actual verbiage for friendly warning about beer farts.
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Jun 24, 2013 23:10
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"If you don't pour carefully, you may end up drinking the sedimented yeast, which will certainly make the beer cloudy, may change the flavor unpleasantly, and could cause massive flatulence, which will either be embarrassing or hilarious, depending on how many beers you and those around you have consumed."
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Jun 24, 2013 23:13
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Jo3sh posted:"If you don't pour carefully, you may end up drinking the sedimented yeast, which will certainly make the beer cloudy, may change the flavor unpleasantly, and could cause massive flatulence, which will either be embarrassing or hilarious, depending on how many beers you and those around you have consumed." Home Brewing Thread III: Could Cause Massive Flatulence
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Jun 25, 2013 00:47
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Yeast all through it makes it taste better  (sometimes)Also my bottling days are usually cruisy, glass bottles go in the dishwasher, plastic bottles get rinsed with sanitiser and they sit to dry for a while then I tend to fill them all at once then cap (unless I've roped someone in to help). No special bottle trees or anything, I just try to jam them in dishwasher holes/drying racks any way they'll stand up. I don't think it's ever taken more than an hour, and since I do it on the kitchen benches I can put the TV on and do it sitting on a chair so there's not constant reaching over/under to move bottles from wand to bench etc around Also a bit late for the other day's all grain discussion, but BIAB owns and anyone considering all grain should for the first time should jump on it
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Jun 25, 2013 02:59
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Bottling stopped being nearly such a chore for me when I bought a bottling tree with the pump on top-- after cleaning 45 bottles I just dump the caps into the pump's bowl of sanitizer to clean and I start bottling.Cpt.Wacky posted:a friendly warning about goddamn beer farts.
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Jun 25, 2013 03:27
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I need a recipe for saison I can brew, bottle, and drink in a month. Any suggestions?
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Jun 25, 2013 04:22
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i ordered one of those bottle trees, that should at least make drying and sanitizing easier. Also , the chai tea / milk stout experiment did not go well.. at least i didnt waste a batch of beer on it.
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Jun 25, 2013 04:24
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Jo3sh posted:"If you don't pour carefully, you may end up drinking the sedimented yeast, which will certainly make the beer cloudy, may change the flavor unpleasantly, and could cause massive flatulence, which will either be embarrassing or hilarious, depending on how many beers you and those around you have consumed." Ok, I'm not nearly as witty as you guys. And there isn't a ton of room on the label either. Here's the label design. This batch was an extract kit from MoreBeer called Ray Daniels' Snowflake Smoked Porter. I didn't want some other dude's name on my beer and then have to explain why it's called Snowflake (because I have no loving idea why he called it that). So I changed the name to Olympic Smoked Porter since I leave near the Olympic Mountains. It isn't ready to try yet but I plan to make the recipe text smaller and add some brief tasting notes. What I'm going for with the design is something that I can easily reuse for other batches by just changing the picture, serving temp, and stats. I put it together in Inkscape and can provide the file if anyone wants to use it as a starting point.  This is the video I followed to apply the labels: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=II37YITuuNU I used dry milk powder at 1:8 ratio by weight, about 80g water and 8g powder was enough to fill a saucer. The application went well but the milk seemed thicker than necessary. A lot of it squeezed out from under the label edges and I could see having to go back with a damp paper towel to wipe it off. I only have a black and white laser printer at home and apparently the fuser sucks since a lot of the toner rubbed off of the label when I was pressing the label on firmly with a paper towel. That second one from the left looks really lovely in particular.  For the last bottle on the right I experimented with painting the edges with milk with my fingertip and doing a zig-zag down the middle. It sticks to the bottle but the edges buckle up and won't stay down. If you want to make an impression with a nicely labeled bottle then this method will work, but it's not worth it to do every bottle of every batch.
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Jun 25, 2013 04:32
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Beer4TheBeerGod posted:I need a recipe for saison I can brew, bottle, and drink in a month. Any suggestions? I love saisons because any normal gravity recipe is ready even more quickly than a month. Last I did was a SMASH with Maris Otter and cascade. 1oz at 30m, 1 at 5m, 1 dry hop and Wyeast 3711. Ready even with the dryhop in like 3.5 weeks.
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Jun 25, 2013 04:42
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ChiTownEddie posted:I love saisons because any normal gravity recipe is ready even more quickly than a month. How much Maris Otter? I have some HBC 342 I want to SMASH and your recipe is close to what I was thinking.
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Jun 25, 2013 04:49
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Beer4TheBeerGod posted:How much Maris Otter? I have some HBC 342 I want to SMASH and your recipe is close to what I was thinking. I did extract and it was 5% ish 1.050 og. I actually think that I lied and I tossed a bit of wheat DME in too... But close enough. God I need to brew a new saison. Now that its gone...
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Jun 25, 2013 05:04
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A 2-row and some wheat is a fairly common base it seems.
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Jun 25, 2013 05:20
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Beer4TheBeerGod posted:I need a recipe for saison I can brew, bottle, and drink in a month. Any suggestions? 60-80% Pils Malt 40-20% Wheat Malt Mash at 60C for 90 mins Czech Saaz at 60, 30, 10 to your desired bittering level. Get about 60% of your IBUs from the 60min addition. Wyeast French Saison (let the temp free rise to 25C at least for best results) It's also really tasty after about 3 months if you bottle with Brett Brux.
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Jun 25, 2013 08:53
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Did my first all-grain BIAB yesterday, a SMASH using 12 lbs of 2-row pale and 5oz of Summit hops (2 at 60, 1 at 30, 2 at flameout). Cost about half as much to make as an extract batch and took about 1.5 hours longer from heating up my strike-water to finishing cleanup and pitching. Missed my target OG of 1.060 (hit 1.052), but I'm not too worried about that. It was very cloudy, and much lighter colored than when I used the unhopped pale LME from my LHBS. Smelled delicious, but again completely different from extract - very bready with less of the Summit coming through, though I've used the same additions in an extract batch before. Currently bubbling away like crazy, pitched a 2nd generation S-05 directly from the fridge after decanting, forgot to buy fresh yeast and I didn't have time to make a starter for the washed stuff, so it's good to see fermentation clipping along. All-grain is fun 
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Jun 25, 2013 08:57
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Clean your spigots! I had a batch of wheat beer that went undrinkably sour from what I believe to be an infection. I detected a note of the same sour flavor in the brown ale that I bottled the week after the terrible wheat batch. I examined all my bottling equipment and found that the valve on my bottling spigot still had some sticky residue on it. I am guessing that is where my infection problem comes from. I had been cleaning the bucket, running soapy water through the spigot after brewing and then running sanitizer through the spigot at bottling time. This was clearly not enough. Is it possible to use the same kind of ball valve I have on my mash tun for my bottling bucket? I would like to be able to completely disassemble after every use. This kind of ball valve: http://www.bargainfittings.com/index.php?route=product/product&keyword=ball%20valve&category_id=0&product_id=128 Also, am I the only person that sanitizes the hydrometer and puts it in the fermenter for gravity readings? It seems like I can do a better job cleaning and sanitizing the hydrometer than I could with a turkey baster or wine thief. Plus no beer wasting. PBCrunch fucked around with this message at 16:04 on Jun 25, 2013 |
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Jun 25, 2013 13:26
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