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Angry Grimace posted:Yeah, I just bought a pack of 10 on Amazon because I wanted to use my Prime shipping since I'd like to get the beer on the beans tomorrow or Thursday as opposed to next week sometime. I really only needed like 4, but that was the lowest order I could do and still get them this week. Use the other 6 for some serious vanilla mead. I REALLY Like vanilla.
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Jul 2, 2013 21:07
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Angry Grimace posted:Not if I paid the $4 to get it tomorrow (which I totally did because gently caress waiting) but now you blew the margins and you are paying WAY too much per item! (also good move) ^^^ speaking of, i always wanted to do a mead, but i think i never have even tried one. I dont see it around locally, so i have nothing to go by on the subject of dry vs sweet vs taste. i need research mead!
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Jul 2, 2013 21:07
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Since we're on the topic of vanilla beans, I couldn't find a solid answer to my question by Googling... I want to add a splash of vanilla to my ~5.5gal of strawberry/lemon mead. Are two beans (split/scraped) going to be too much in secondary if they sit for 2+ months? I'm not looking for a strong vanilla flavor, just something nice to compliment the strawberries.
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Jul 2, 2013 21:13
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hellfaucet posted:Since we're on the topic of vanilla beans, I couldn't find a solid answer to my question by Googling... I want to add a splash of vanilla to my ~5.5gal of strawberry/lemon mead. Are two beans (split/scraped) going to be too much in secondary if they sit for 2+ months? Unfortunately in the world of Vanilla Beans, Freshness is a big factor. Start with 1.5 per gallon or so, and see where it's at after the 2 months, and add more if necessary. Also Vanilla Ages out pretty fast (relative to to other spices) So don't be afraid to go a bit over if you're looking for some long aging reserve mead.
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Jul 2, 2013 21:18
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I guess the next question is, now that I have 10 beans, how many to use in this porter? I'm looking for something more like the older versions of Victory at Sea, so maybe I'm thinking like a person who wants a vanilla bomb?
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Jul 2, 2013 22:23
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Roundboy posted:^^^ speaking of, i always wanted to do a mead, but i think i never have even tried one. I dont see it around locally, so i have nothing to go by on the subject of dry vs sweet vs taste. i need research mead! If your profile location is accurate and you still live in Drexel Hill I will be running a Mead making demo and a Mead sharing event at the Philadelphia Honey Fest this September: http://phillyhoneyfest.com/schedule/mead-event/
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Jul 2, 2013 22:37
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For a beginner trying to figure out ways to chill a fermentor down (I'm in Texas, it's hot), what are the pros & cons between a son of fermentation chiller and an old craigslist fridge? I'm throwing together a swamp cooler right quick, but figured I should get something a bit more consistent.
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Jul 2, 2013 22:44
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Deviantfish posted:For a beginner trying to figure out ways to chill a fermentor down (I'm in Texas, it's hot), what are the pros & cons between a son of fermentation chiller and an old craigslist fridge? I'm throwing together a swamp cooler right quick, but figured I should get something a bit more consistent. Well, the biggest one is that a fridge is set it and forget it, which is key for someone like me (read: lazy)
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Jul 2, 2013 22:50
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Marshmallow Blue posted:I think the McCormick crap beans run $12.45 for one or two dried up nasty crap beans.
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Jul 2, 2013 23:17
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nmfree posted:McCormick vanilla beans won the last America's Test Kitchen taste test, even beating out several mail-order boutique brands. Still not worth $16.99/2 beans, though. I'm guessing they got some fresher product rather than the stuff that's been sitting on the shelf in my local supermarket forever. PS - Mead Day is coming up on August 3rd.
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Jul 3, 2013 00:10
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I'm thinking of taking my brewing equipment home for the weekend to brew at my parents' house. I figure it would be something fun to do with my dad and little brother, but there are two logistic sticking points in my mind. 1. It's not illegal to drive with a sealed container of unfermented wort, correct? I mean it's basically just sugar water. I pass a border patrol checkpoint on the way back from home (Texas) and I have a feeling they might ask questions. 2. Would the sloshing around of the wort during the drive cause any problems? My thoughts are that as long as the yeast isn't in there it should be fine. What's the longest some of you have let your wort sit before pitching?
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Jul 3, 2013 01:03
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Homebrew experts, I really want to get into lagering, but am prevented from doing so based upon my lack of reliable refrigeration in a large enough size. I have a larger, taller dorm fridge that I've been able to make stay stable at about 50-55* F, that I'm not willing to bend or tear things out of. What really limits me, like most with these size fridges is the height of a 6 gallon BB and the bubbler that is attached to it. I think I may have found a solution and I hoped someone could give me a thumbs up or thumbs down. I saw these at Wal-Mart today for $6 a piece and was thinking "fermentation carboy." They appear to be the right size. I'd have to take a 5 gallon batch and split it among two containers, each measuring 3 gallons a piece, hoping that there is enough headspace.   I'm not sure about the kind of plastic and I'm not sure if the handles would mess things up, but I figured it was worth a shot to ask if this would work. What do the experts say?
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Jul 3, 2013 01:06
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I've seen them too and was curious. They are for water so they should be food grade.
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Jul 3, 2013 01:27
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They're almost cheap enough to be disposable, really. I would worry about the permeability of the plastic. It says "rigid PVC" there on that label. Is there a little triangular recycling identifier on the bottom? It should be more precise about what kind of plastic it is. Brew buckets are made of HDPE. Better bottles are made of PET (or PETE?).
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Jul 3, 2013 01:47
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Jo3sh posted:They're almost cheap enough to be disposable, really. I would worry about the permeability of the plastic. It says "rigid PVC" there on that label. Is there a little triangular recycling identifier on the bottom? It should be more precise about what kind of plastic it is. Brew buckets are made of HDPE. Better bottles are made of PET (or PETE?). But a quick google also says only 1 and 2 (PET and HDPE) are considered food grade at non neutral pH and beer is acidic.
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Jul 3, 2013 02:04
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So PVC is only safe for water then? Darn, those would have been great for cheap fermenters.
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Jul 3, 2013 02:06
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You're all overlooking the most important thing. The company's called PIMPLASTIC. They should be patronized for the brand name alone. But yeah don't use that for beer.
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Jul 3, 2013 02:14
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What's your thinking on not using it? I don't really see a reason not to...
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Jul 3, 2013 02:23
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Gas permeability and chemical seepage, that's why.
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Jul 3, 2013 02:25
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Daedalus Esquire posted:What's your thinking on not using it? I don't really see a reason not to... nesbit37 posted:Gas permeability and chemical seepage, that's why.
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Jul 3, 2013 02:28
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illcendiary posted:I'm thinking of taking my brewing equipment home for the weekend to brew at my parents' house. I figure it would be something fun to do with my dad and little brother, but there are two logistic sticking points in my mind. 1. As long as you don't pitch the yeast yeah I can't see a problem. Also, the only reason they take issue with transporting booze across state lines is because of the taxes, and isn't under that umbrella. 2. Nope, that's just more aeration! Go for it.
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Jul 3, 2013 02:35
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zedprime posted:
So you're ok with chemicals seeping into your beer then?
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Jul 3, 2013 02:38
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Ehh, I just measured again. It's not going to fit in the fridge I was thinking about using.  Anyone have any suggestions for smaller "carboys" that might fit in a tall college fridge?
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Jul 3, 2013 02:43
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nesbit37 posted:So you're ok with chemicals seeping into your beer then? Permeability describes transport across a membrane. Leaching chemicals is a dissolution process. Which OK technically PVC and PET have relatively high water permeability which increases the surface area dissolution can occur to within the plastic, assuming the dissolved products are permeable also.
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Jul 3, 2013 02:43
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LaserWash posted:Ehh, I just measured again. It's not going to fit in the fridge I was thinking about using. As many glass juice bottles as will fit. You may need to get creative with stoppers.
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Jul 3, 2013 02:45
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nesbit37 posted:So you're ok with chemicals seeping into your beer then? If you had read his post, you would have seen that just above your response he explained why using them was a bad idea. It was because of chemicals.
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Jul 3, 2013 02:55
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zedprime posted:As many glass juice bottles as will fit. You may need to get creative with stoppers. There's a 3-gallon Better Bottle size as well which might fit nicely.
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Jul 3, 2013 02:57
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I'm brewing two batches of beer with some coworkers for a company event at a local U-Brew in Portland and I would like some recipe advice. We have decided on an Irish Red and an IPA, though exactly what sort of IPA is up in the air at this point. I made a batch of Red Rye Ale here before and it was pretty good, but not great. The brewers were generally quite knowledgeable and helpful and willing to hold your hand through the whole process. The U-Brew has some really nice features not normally available to home brewers, like steam heated brew kettles and a giant-rear end plate chiller, but there are some things we have less control over. The biggest one is the fermentation room, which is kept at a rather toasty 69-70 degrees. That seems a bit high for many ale styles, but they use the room for both primary and secondary fermentation of all of their beers. Boils are 60 minutes. Yeasts are limited to Wyeast Smack Packs with no starters. And I'm pretty sure that there is no ability to use a hopback or to dry hop, which will affect how we want to make our IPA. Given these limitations, does anyone have advice on recipes for an Irish Red or an IPA that would work well? Maybe general advice regardless of recipe? TIA.
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Jul 3, 2013 08:56
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LaserWash posted:Ehh, I just measured again. It's not going to fit in the fridge I was thinking about using. Go to whole foods,and in the juice isle they sell 1gal glass jugs of juice (cider really) they are delicious,and they are shaped very similar to a carboy,or even a 'moonshine' jug. I bought a $0.50 stopper and airlock from northern brewer,and I'm going to use them as experimental secondaries. Use a #6 stopper. Hare are 2000 words on the subject  
Roundboy fucked around with this message at 16:46 on Jul 3, 2013 |
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Jul 3, 2013 11:28
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nesbit37 posted:If your profile location is accurate and you still live in Drexel Hill I will be running a Mead making demo and a Mead sharing event at the Philadelphia Honey Fest this September: http://phillyhoneyfest.com/schedule/mead-event/ I am and thanks. Added to my calendar
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Jul 3, 2013 12:28
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Carlo Rossi bottles are even better. They are 4 liters in size, so they give you a little more room than a one gallon cider jug. I think they might use a different size stopper though.
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Jul 3, 2013 13:00
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I'm thinking about starting an Old Ale for fall/winter about now. Anyone have criticisms on this recipe? I based it on some random recipes I found on homebrewtalk. http://www.brewtoad.com/recipes/unnamed-old-ale
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Jul 3, 2013 14:31
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crazyfish posted:I'm thinking about starting an Old Ale for fall/winter about now. Anyone have criticisms on this recipe? I based it on some random recipes I found on homebrewtalk. http://www.brewtoad.com/recipes/unnamed-old-ale Molasses in addition to turbinado feels like a lot of sugar tar in addition to some pretty dark crystal. I don't think it'd be a problem if you really like molasses since its such a large beer but something to think about because tar can go a long way.
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Jul 3, 2013 14:38
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I've made literal molasses beer, it's fine.
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Jul 3, 2013 15:51
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BerkerkLurk posted:I've made literal molasses beer, it's fine. yeah I've made a few Mr. Beer kits myself as well. < See what I did there guys?
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Jul 3, 2013 16:10
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On chiller chat, I just leave it in my bathroom and enjoy 72F temps during the spring. Now that summer is here I'm going to invest in a chest freezer. Current candidate is this one: http://www.homedepot.com/p/t/203547578?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&keyword=203547578&storeId=10051&N=5yc1v&R=203547578
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Jul 3, 2013 16:55
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BerkerkLurk posted:I've made literal molasses beer, it's fine. I knew I was forgetting a patriotic drink for tomorrow.
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Jul 3, 2013 17:52
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PBCrunch posted:Carlo Rossi bottles are even better. They are 4 liters in size, so they give you a little more room than a one gallon cider jug. I think they might use a different size stopper though. Rossi bottles own (I use a #6 stopper for them) but I picked up a bunch of these for Christmas presents and I much prefer the screw-on cap to dealing with a rubber bung: http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/small-batch-1-gallon-fermenting-jug.html
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Jul 3, 2013 18:22
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fullroundaction posted:Rossi bottles own (I use a #6 stopper for them) but I picked up a bunch of these for Christmas presents and I much prefer the screw-on cap to dealing with a rubber bung: these look like the same thing, the only difference is the screw on cap, which i think you can get instead. Mine was about that price anyway, and i had delicious cider in it i had to drink.
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Jul 3, 2013 18:30
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illcendiary posted:2. Would the sloshing around of the wort during the drive cause any problems? My thoughts are that as long as the yeast isn't in there it should be fine. What's the longest some of you have let your wort sit before pitching? It can sit for quite a while, and any sloshing/oxygenation that happens before pitching is probably beneficial. As for "how long" just google "no chill brewing"
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Jul 3, 2013 19:33
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