|
LaserWash posted:For a Märzen/Oktoberfest I've done WLP 820 which I liked. WLP 833, which I've never tried, has the reputation of being the "go to" for Southern German lagers. The naming on a lot of those lager strains is deceiving, because my understanding is that lager strains vary a lot less in characteristics than ale strains do. In some sense, continental lager strains are fairly interchangeable. Word. I didn't think the yeast would make TOO much of a difference... by the BJCP 2015 guides, the festbier is basically just a beefed up helles, not quite as toasty as a märzen, and that's all taken care of by the grist, not so much the yeast. edit: Actually the only thing I'd really care about as far as the yeast goes is being able to take it down to 45ºF if possible. My chamber has to pull double duty and I'll be lagering my baltic porter at the time this will be fermenting. So from the looks of it, the wlp833 might be the better bet. Scarf fucked around with this message at 14:51 on Aug 6, 2015 |
#
?
Aug 6, 2015 14:23
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 19, 2024 22:21 |
|
|
Scarf posted:Word. I didn't think the yeast would make TOO much of a difference... by the BJCP 2015 guides, the festbier is basically just a beefed up helles, not quite as toasty as a märzen, and that's all taken care of by the grist, not so much the yeast. When it's done, I want to know how you liked WLP 833. I've been thinking of switching out my "in house" lager yeast and have been really thinking about going toward the 833, Ayinger strain.
|
|
#
?
Aug 6, 2015 16:59
|
|
|
Fluo posted:Most you'd ever pay for a beer engine is £120 (unless you get a new custom made one from angramltd or whatever etc) Cool, thanks. I'll keep an eye out. I don't need an engine next week or anything, but it would be cool to have one around. I'll watch for one with reasonable shipping to the States.
|
|
#
?
Aug 6, 2015 17:04
|
|
|
LaserWash posted:When it's done, I want to know how you liked WLP 833. I've been thinking of switching out my "in house" lager yeast and have been really thinking about going toward the 833, Ayinger strain. Will do! Do you recall the 820 being slow? They flat out say it's slower in its first generation, so that was a bit of a turnoff since I'd like to get this to glass by Oct. 1, and I may not get to brew it until Aug 23 or so. Jo3sh posted:Cool, thanks. I'll keep an eye out. I don't need an engine next week or anything, but it would be cool to have one around. I'll watch for one with reasonable shipping to the States. BYO had an article on building one, looks pretty neat: http://byo.com/hops/item/346-build-a-beer-engine-projects
|
|
#
?
Aug 6, 2015 17:12
|
|
|
Scarf posted:BYO had an article on building one, looks pretty neat: http://byo.com/hops/item/346-build-a-beer-engine-projects I actually did build one like that, and won my club's stout comp with it. But a real one would be nice to have instead of the hack job I banged together.
|
|
#
?
Aug 6, 2015 17:18
|
|
|
Scarf posted:Will do! Do you recall the 820 being slow? They flat out say it's slower in its first generation, so that was a bit of a turnoff since I'd like to get this to glass by Oct. 1, and I may not get to brew it until Aug 23 or so. No longer than any other lager strain I've worked with. I usually let my lagers ferment for at least two weeks, do a week long dactyl rest, then lager for at least 3-4 weeks, so I'm probably a bad person to ask.
|
|
#
?
Aug 6, 2015 17:44
|
|
|
LaserWash posted:No longer than any other lager strain I've worked with. I usually let my lagers ferment for at least two weeks, do a week long dactyl rest, then lager for at least 3-4 weeks, so I'm probably a bad person to ask. Gotcha. Actually I have a question about diacetyl rest too... I'm expecting a FG of around 1.018 on this porter I've got going now, when should I start the rest? When it hits 1.028?
|
|
#
?
Aug 6, 2015 17:53
|
|
|
I am also planning to use 820 for the first time, on what I think is more "oktoberfest" than "festbier". Malt bill is split into thirds with Vienna, Munich, and Pilsner. I'm probably being overly optimistic in thinking that if I brew it on Monday it'll be ready to drink in 6 weeks.
|
|
#
?
Aug 6, 2015 17:58
|
|
|
Glottis posted:I am also planning to use 820 for the first time, on what I think is more "oktoberfest" than "festbier". Malt bill is split into thirds with Vienna, Munich, and Pilsner. I'm probably being overly optimistic in thinking that if I brew it on Monday it'll be ready to drink in 6 weeks. From everything I'm reading, as long as you've got a good starter, it's entirely doable.
|
|
#
?
Aug 6, 2015 18:02
|
|
|
Scarf posted:Gotcha. I think the rule on gravity is to do it when you are about 80% fermented out. I think conventional wisdom is that it's a safety precaution and you can do it whenever as long as most of your wort has fermented out. I wait two weeks for my lagers to ferment out and then do a slow rise to room temps before putting it in the guest tub at 70-73 F for a week. I then crash down to lager temps. I've found that a secondary at the end of lagering also helps my clarity and gets all the hop junk and trub out of my beers.
|
|
#
?
Aug 6, 2015 20:12
|
|
|
LaserWash posted:I think the rule on gravity is to do it when you are about 80% fermented out. I think conventional wisdom is that it's a safety precaution and you can do it whenever as long as most of your wort has fermented out. I wait two weeks for my lagers to ferment out and then do a slow rise to room temps before putting it in the guest tub at 70-73 F for a week. I then crash down to lager temps. I've found that a secondary at the end of lagering also helps my clarity and gets all the hop junk and trub out of my beers. Word, thanks! Anyone planning on trying this Fast Pitch® no-boil-wort-in-a-can for starters? http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/fast-pitch-canned-wort-4-pack I mean, I kinda like the smell of boiling DME, but the stuff seems pretty useful. Obviously it's cheaper to just cook up the wort yourself.
|
|
#
?
Aug 7, 2015 14:47
|
|
|
I'd whinge about the cost maybe? Why not bottle/can extra boiled wort? And if you no chill, you can just use your wort for a 24 hour starter
|
|
#
?
Aug 7, 2015 14:53
|
|
|
Nanpa posted:I'd whinge about the cost maybe? Why not bottle/can extra boiled wort? And if you no chill, you can just use your wort for a 24 hour starter Eh, I'd pick up a pack as kind of a "just in case" purchase since I'm a slack rear end, often don't keep track of how much DME I have on hand, and the appropriate time frame for getting my starter going... "Oh poo poo, it's 10pm, I'm out of DME, I have to get this starter going if I'm going to brew on X date, and my lhbs is closed." But yeah it also seems to be geared towards the homebrew crowd that wants to do as little work as possible (then why homebrew at all?). See also the PicoBrew Zymatic automated
|
|
#
?
Aug 7, 2015 15:07
|
|
|
That looks like an excellent way to troll a drunk as gently caress dudebro HERE CHUG THIS
|
|
#
?
Aug 7, 2015 16:04
|
|
|
Nanpa posted:I'd whinge about the cost maybe? Why not bottle/can extra boiled wort? And if you no chill, you can just use your wort for a 24 hour starter Don't do this unless you know what you're doing. To make it safe (i.e., not Brett, but botulism, which can Kill You Dead) you need to pressure can at 250F for about 30 minutes. Boiling is not sufficient, and this is stuff you really, really shouldn't gently caress with.
|
|
#
?
Aug 7, 2015 16:19
|
|
|
Syrinxx posted:That looks like an excellent way to troll a drunk as gently caress dudebro Maybe get that LA Beast guy on youtube to see how many he can drink before he vomits due to cloying.
|
|
#
?
Aug 7, 2015 16:21
|
|
|
Scarf posted:Word, thanks! I think that's pretty cool and not that much more expensive than making it yourself. e: Though with their shipping cost, probably only worthwhile if you were already ordering something else. Thufir fucked around with this message at 17:11 on Aug 7, 2015 |
|
#
?
Aug 7, 2015 16:56
|
|
|
more falafel please posted:Don't do this unless you know what you're doing. To make it safe (i.e., not Brett, but botulism, which can Kill You Dead) you need to pressure can at 250F for about 30 minutes. Boiling is not sufficient, and this is stuff you really, really shouldn't gently caress with. That's what pressure cookers are for. It's the route I'll move eventually. Right now my starters are small enough that I can normally just boil it in my flask. I do have a Strong Scotch Ale that will need over 400 x10^6 cells that is going to take a lot of stepping. Granted, I don't think the Brett would be the worst thing there, but botulism is bad. I'm buying a second fridge to keep hops and washed yeast in too. I have a very full brew schedule in the next 4 months that I'm anxious to get moving on. I'm just waiting on my mash/lauter and kettle to be fabricated. I'm starting a little 'drinking' club with people in my neighborhood and we have all sorts of requests. I don't think I've been this excited before about brewing.
|
|
#
?
Aug 7, 2015 18:04
|
|
|
Scarf posted:http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/fast-pitch-canned-wort-4-pack Some people obviously have more money than I do. I just make 10-12 batches of starter wort in mason jars and pitch 1-3 jars every time I need to make a starter. I do like the idea of giving a four pack of these cans to a drunk guy and see what happens.
|
|
#
?
Aug 7, 2015 19:11
|
|
|
Back to recent discussions of issues in both Brewtoad and Beersmith - has anyone tried BeerTools Pro?
|
|
#
?
Aug 7, 2015 19:32
|
|
|
Jo3sh posted:Back to recent discussions of issues in both Brewtoad and Beersmith - has anyone tried BeerTools Pro? I've looked at it, but I haven't tried it. It seems like it might be a combination of the goods/bads of the different ones. The yearly Gold membership to do anything complicated and store more than a single recipe online is an enormous turnoff, even if it is only $17/yr. I'd rather just buy BeerSmith and use that and Brewtoad for screwing around with recipes online. It just doesn't seem like their business model is one that I'd want to buy into, and it's not like it's going to do anything that the similarly priced BeerSmith isn't going to do.
|
|
#
?
Aug 8, 2015 00:02
|
|
|
Fluo posted:
You genius, I didn't even consider that. Even with Australia's hosed dollar value at the moment a good condition beer engine would run up to $250 through UK, or $500-700 at local shops 
|
|
#
?
Aug 8, 2015 04:48
|
|
|
McSpergin posted:You genius, I didn't even consider that. Even with Australia's hosed dollar value at the moment a good condition beer engine would run up to $250 through UK, or $500-700 at local shops sounds like a healthy margin for an Import business!
|
|
#
?
Aug 8, 2015 04:55
|
|
|
I still really like Brewer's Friend. The fee is low enough, and the features are great. Maybe I'm missing out and don't know it.
|
|
#
?
Aug 8, 2015 06:21
|
|
|
Glottis posted:I still really like Brewer's Friend. The fee is low enough, and the features are great. Maybe I'm missing out and don't know it. I really don't need/want much from brewing software, to be honest; one of the reasons I've always shied away from BeerSmith is that it does too much. On the other hand, Brewtoad seems to have calculation difficulties and weirdnesses.
|
|
#
?
Aug 8, 2015 06:27
|
|
|
Jo3sh posted:On the other hand, Brewtoad seems to have calculation difficulties and weirdnesses. 
|
|
#
?
Aug 8, 2015 08:02
|
|
|
AIH is having a big sale $35 pin lock kegs! what I really need is a mash tun though
|
|
#
?
Aug 9, 2015 18:04
|
|
|
Fruit beer makers! Question time! I picked up 10 lbs of fresh peaches today to throw in some beer next week. I'm going to slice them up and freeze them, and I have a few questions that I can't seem to find a solid answer to. 1. Leave the pits and skins or no? I have seen advice going either way. Since this is going into a lambic, I'm expecting that they are going to be there for at least a few months, should I worry about extracting bitterness in that case? 2. Sanitize them or not? As I said I'm going to slice them and freeze them until use, will that suffice for sanitation? Should I give them some heat or throw a campden tablet in? Any ideas or advice are welcome.
|
|
#
?
Aug 9, 2015 19:16
|
|
|
Well, attempt 1 with all grain brewing in a mash tun instead of BIAB. Lessons learned: 1) I should have done a dry run to test strike water temperature loss just from the cooler, rather than just trusting brewsmith 2) Silicone tubing is awesome, why the hell have I been wasting time fighting with vinyl transfer tubes? (Seriously other than that it costs more, is there any reason not to use silicone tubing everywhere?) 3) Have more spare DME on hand, you idiot. My mash target was 151, ended up in the lower 140s and added 5 pints of boiling water to get it up to ~148.5. Probably should have done more. Did batch sparging, ended up around 64% efficiency instead of the 72% I was hoping for/planning on. Threw in the ~1/2 pound DME I had left, fortunately my boil off rate was higher than I was planning today so I ended up at 1.066 instead of 1.070, close enough. Mash tun dead space was just about non-existant (Thanks LaserWash!).
|
|
#
?
Aug 9, 2015 22:53
|
|
|
Raised by Hamsters posted:Well, attempt 1 with all grain brewing in a mash tun instead of BIAB. Lessons learned: What I do, is I use the strike temp that Beersmith recommends, but I pre-heat my cooler first. I have an electic kettle that I set to 208F and then dump a full kettle of water into my tun, running it down the sides to preheat it all. I throw the lid on and leave it there there for a few minutes before I add my strike water and grains. It's pretty much dead-on every time when I do this.
|
|
#
?
Aug 9, 2015 22:56
|
|
|
Raised by Hamsters posted:Well, attempt 1 with all grain brewing in a mash tun instead of BIAB. Lessons learned: I use BeerSmith for everything except for the strike water/sparge water calculations. Way too much work IMHO and I can't really figure out what BeerSmith is calculating there since there are way too many profiles to choose from and configurations to pick in the "custom" profile setup. I use this instead: https://www.brewtoad.com/tools/mash-water-calculator In the menu bar choose Single Infusion, Mash Out, Batch Sparge. Since you are using the same cooler, I usually put in 0.2 gallons as my Lauter headspace, but I'm starting to think it's more like 0.3 or 0.4 to get the right runnings. quote:2) Silicone tubing is awesome, why the hell have I been wasting time fighting with vinyl transfer tubes? (Seriously other than that it costs more, is there any reason not to use silicone tubing everywhere?) Exactly. If I had a little coin, I'd buy about 20 feet of it and never worry about tubing again. quote:Mash tun dead space was just about non-existant (Thanks LaserWash!). When I was researching ways to purge myself of BIAB brewing and the crazy fluctuations in temperatures and mash efficiency, this is the setup I found that made the most sense and felt like it was super easy for a moron like myself to build. I'm glad you like it, but there's some yahoo on homebrewtalk that started with this method. My efficiency isn't the greatest, but when all said, I get about 70%, which is good enough for me since that's a "normal" number for most.
|
|
#
?
Aug 9, 2015 23:05
|
|
|
Raised by Hamsters posted:Well, attempt 1 with all grain brewing in a mash tun instead of BIAB. Lessons learned: One thing that really REALLY helps me with the heat-loss for my strike water is taking my tea kettle and boiling some water while I heat my strike water. Once it boils on the stove, I take it off and dump it in my mash tun and close the lid. It retains the heat perfectly and reduces the heat loss from my strike water by about 7ºF.
|
|
#
?
Aug 9, 2015 23:19
|
|
|
Thanks for the tips, all of you. And actually that brings up another question (that I should have had answered before brewing... oh well) When doing the batch sparge, you want you water at 168, or the water once in the grain bed at 168? You'd have to heat a little higher than that in order to raise the grain up to that 168 target. I assume the later and I sort of guestimated my "strike" temp for this step, but only ended up around 157 after the sparge water was in. (Or I took a bad reading on the strike temp, not sure on that).
|
|
#
?
Aug 9, 2015 23:26
|
|
|
Raised by Hamsters posted:Thanks for the tips, all of you. And actually that brings up another question (that I should have had answered before brewing... oh well) I've always just heated to 170ºF for my sparge water and never really concerned myself with what it actually is once it hits the grain bed. I lauter with the lid closed (or atleast very slightly cracked open), so I wouldn't assume much heat loss...
|
|
#
?
Aug 9, 2015 23:30
|
|
|
Raised by Hamsters posted:Thanks for the tips, all of you. And actually that brings up another question (that I should have had answered before brewing... oh well) You want the water at 168, not the grain bed.
|
|
#
?
Aug 10, 2015 00:21
|
|
|
rockcity posted:You want the water at 168, not the grain bed. While this is safer, it's not optimal. You definitely want the grain bed up at 168 (76c). Just have to make sure you mix well so that your hotter sparge water doesn't heat part of your grain bed too high. On my fly sparge setup I sparge with 80c water because of the temperature loss between my HLT and MLT so that the top layer of grain is 75-76c depending on ambient.
|
|
#
?
Aug 10, 2015 01:06
|
|
|
wildfire1 posted:While this is safer, it's not optimal. You definitely want the grain bed up at 168 (76c). Just have to make sure you mix well so that your hotter sparge water doesn't heat part of your grain bed too high. On my fly sparge setup I sparge with 80c water because of the temperature loss between my HLT and MLT so that the top layer of grain is 75-76c depending on ambient. As long as you don't have a huge temp drop from your mash, using 168 degree water should get you pretty close to that at the grain bed. The main reason I said that was to mostly prevent what you talked about where you pour in water hotter than that and it either overshoots it or gets hot pockets and over extracts tannins.
|
|
#
?
Aug 10, 2015 01:19
|
|
|
wildfire1 posted:While this is safer, it's not optimal. You definitely want the grain bed up at 168 (76c). Just have to make sure you mix well so that your hotter sparge water doesn't heat part of your grain bed too high. On my fly sparge setup I sparge with 80c water because of the temperature loss between my HLT and MLT so that the top layer of grain is 75-76c depending on ambient. I'm not super great with all the info about mashing and sparging temps, but there's some rule about not going above 170 or 175 because it will cause something bad to happen with flavors in your extract(???). The idea is to get close to the number, but not to go over and it's better to err on the side of cooler than over that number (whatever it is). Edit: What rockcity said: Tannins.
|
|
#
?
Aug 10, 2015 01:20
|
|
|
LaserWash posted:I'm not super great with all the info about mashing and sparging temps, but there's some rule about not going above 170 or 175 because it will cause something bad to happen with flavors in your extract(???). The idea is to get close to the number, but not to go over and it's better to err on the side of cooler than over that number (whatever it is). On my home system, where I currently work and the last brewery I worked at all heated sparge water to 79-80c because there is a temperature drop in the transfer due to distance, sparge arm or both. Obviously ymmv depending on your system, but unless you're getting 0 heat loss to the top of your mash then you're unlikely to be getting the most sugars out of your sparge. That said, probably not a big deal in terms of efficiency, but that's how I was trained on the big systems and that's what I've taken across to my home one.
|
|
#
?
Aug 10, 2015 02:12
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 19, 2024 22:21 |
|
|
LaserWash posted:I'm not super great with all the info about mashing and sparging temps, but there's some rule about not going above 170 or 175 because it will cause something bad to happen with flavors in your extract(???). The idea is to get close to the number, but not to go over and it's better to err on the side of cooler than over that number (whatever it is). If your pH is low enough while sparging, you won't extract tannins. I've heard of people sparging with boiling water.
|
|
#
?
Aug 10, 2015 21:04
|
|