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gwrtheyrn posted:Awesome, they seem to largely be just around the right size. They seem to come in packs and come in a variety of materials. For other kitchen use, is glass or metal particularly more advantageous? Like is there a world where you'd actually microwave tiny bowls? Glass does seem more flexible in that regard, but they're bigger, heavier, and breakable. They're both useful honestly. Just depends if you use a microwave ever or not, but I don't. So I like the metal ones, but it's really up to personal preference. They're really useful for setting out small quantities of things and they keep larger bowls out off my counter top when I'm cooking too. Also a good size for weighing out pellet hops sometimes, but mostly for the smaller 1tsp sort of things like irish moss or gypsum.
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Aug 5, 2021 16:59
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Sounds like most of the glass ones aren't actually microwave safe anyways, and I'm not sure I'd ever actually microwave anything in them. Just going to get whatever is cheap I guess
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Aug 5, 2021 19:28
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In my keezer, I keep my probe (on a Johnson temp controller, which was the standard prebuilt one before the inkbirds became popular) in a 1L bottle of StarSan, since I figure it won't get moldy (at least not as quickly). It's been fine for 5 or 6 years. I do change the StarSan occasionally.
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Aug 6, 2021 00:08
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gwrtheyrn posted:Sounds like most of the glass ones aren't actually microwave safe anyways, and I'm not sure I'd ever actually microwave anything in them. Just going to get whatever is cheap I guess There are pyrex ones (called custard cups I think) that would be fine in the microwave if you needed it. A bit bigger maybe, like 6 ounces and probably more expensive. To be honest I'm not quite sure if I've ever microwaved anything in them, I usually just use my small soup bowls if I need to microwave something.
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Aug 7, 2021 15:54
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Eeyo posted:There are pyrex ones (called custard cups I think) that would be fine in the microwave if you needed it. A bit bigger maybe, like 6 ounces and probably more expensive. To be honest I'm not quite sure if I've ever microwaved anything in them, I usually just use my small soup bowls if I need to microwave something. Custard cups are quite a bit bigger than those 1oz bowls. I do have 2oz ramekins that are microwave safe if that’s something really needed. They’re ceramic like a coffee mug. There are lots of options out there really, just most stores don’t carry it and you’ll either get lucky finding it or are standing in a restaurant supply store.
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Aug 7, 2021 17:05
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Anyone have experience with Belgian style bottles for higher carbonation levels? Looks like my choices are cap style, and would have to buy a bench capper, or cork and wire cages and I'd have to buy a corker. Cap sounds nice since it's cheaper in the long run. Cork sounds cool too because it would be fancier for giving away as gifts. If one has a major downside it'll make it an easy choice.
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Aug 8, 2021 01:35
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Caps are only good to about 4.5 volumes, but that’s plenty for Belgian styles. I like the 500mL brown ones, but that’s because they’re the right size for me. My corks don’t fit in them. I have 750mL champagne and Belgian style as well, and the corks will mushroom in them both. You can use #8 corks in a normal crown cap neck on the 500mL bottles if you need the cork, but you need to cap it still. Bench cappers are cheaper than a corker, and I wouldn’t recommend a hand version. The floor corker is good for the corks, and then only for things you’re corking. I’d suggest starting with caps and if you want to be fancy get some bottle wax and go with a thin layer to be fancy. Caps are also just easier to deal with in general, so they’re a good place to start. You can probably find someone giving away a wing capper on Craigslist too.
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Aug 8, 2021 03:00
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Tried my hand at rice wine making and so far it's a total bust. Managed to get maybe a liter of product out of about 2 kilos of rice, 4 liters of water. I did try and follow as closely as possible to the recipe, ordered rice, tried to take extra care to be sanitary including a fuckton of gloves. Smells sour, looks infected, gonna give it a few weeks to see if it clears but I'm not hopeful. I don't see how the process can be anything but huge infection risk after huge infection risk constantly opening and stirring and loving with the must, and in the end it just would not loving filtrate. All in all a huge disappointment and a massive waste of time compared to beer and mead.
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Aug 9, 2021 18:28
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Filtering is the worst part of it. I find that stirring isn’t really necessary, but I’m pretty sure sake makers would disagree. I will say that 4 layers of cheese cloth on a false bottom kettle does a good job of filtering. It’s expected to take quite a time and big makers will make stacks of the stuff folded into cloth to filter. What yeast and enzyme method did you use? And did you cook the rice (steam or wet)? Depending on the yeast choice it may well have come with bacteria too.
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Aug 9, 2021 18:44
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Jhet posted:Filtering is the worst part of it. I find that stirring isn’t really necessary, but I’m pretty sure sake makers would disagree. I will say that 4 layers of cheese cloth on a false bottom kettle does a good job of filtering. It’s expected to take quite a time and big makers will make stacks of the stuff folded into cloth to filter. I used a basic Koji from a kit and special ordered a White Labs WLP705 sake yeast. 0,5 kg of completed koji rice, 1,5 fresh rice. I steamed it all after proper washing and hydration and used proper glutinous rice.
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Aug 9, 2021 19:40
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i tried making sake a few times and have never been successful. it seems to start out ok and smelling good but then they go south rapidly and idk what I'm doing wrong.
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Aug 9, 2021 19:52
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If you're doing sake you may want to check out parallel fermentation methods in your momori, but for me the most important part on a small scale is managing your koji or enzymes. And because my batch sizes are so small, I don't ever bother with stepping up the momori, but you absolutely can to pump up the ABV. So after growing the koji and yeast and adding the water and rice, I don't open it for a month which helps with sanitation immensely. Spray bottle of starsan doesn't hurt either. I've still had problem batches, but that was from using an old yeast ball instead of fresh. But this way you really only need to touch things twice, once to make the koji and then once to mix the mash together. The key to it really is using very active culture and koji and they'll out compete the bacteria that it might pick up. The other thing to remember is that filtration is known to take hours. You can make a press, or cobble something together, but it'll need to drip for hours through a cloth. Or multiple cloths and a fruit press. I've liked multiple layers of cheesecloth in a strainer, but you could scale that up to cheesecloth on a false mash tun bottom (which is what I'll do for my 5 gallon batch this autumn). Then after a cheesecloth filter, I tend to stop and just leave it to settle itself, but did go through a nut milk bag once too. That worked pretty well for a mostly clear wine, but would be terrible for a first filter. Bentonite works for a final clarity step, or you can run it through a activated charcoal filter too.
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Aug 9, 2021 21:26
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Jhet posted:Caps are only good to about 4.5 volumes, but that’s plenty for Belgian styles. I like the 500mL brown ones, but that’s because they’re the right size for me. My corks don’t fit in them. I have 750mL champagne and Belgian style as well, and the corks will mushroom in them both. You can use #8 corks in a normal crown cap neck on the 500mL bottles if you need the cork, but you need to cap it still. Sounds like caps to start then, I like the wax idea. Just pulled the fist batch of hops down. Seems early but it's been dry and they passed all the feel/smell tests. Hopefully they spit out a second round.  They're in the dehydrator now. Outside. Bags only sealed up for bugs. Edit: I spell bad. honda whisperer fucked around with this message at 01:43 on Aug 10, 2021 |
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Aug 10, 2021 01:18
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I'm going to try using my Sterling hops for the first time this year to make a pilsner with my newfangled inkbird fridge, really looking forward to it. Also friendly reminder to start your eggnog soon! It's become a holiday tradition for me, I end up giving away a ton to friends and family. I've always used that chow recipe. Any others people like?
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Aug 24, 2021 00:45
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BaseballPCHiker posted:I'm going to try using my Sterling hops for the first time this year to make a pilsner with my newfangled inkbird fridge, really looking forward to it. If you haven't dried them, be prepared for them to soak up lots of wort. Fresh hops are delicious, but hold onto a lot of liquid. Don't squeeze them out either, you'll pick up a bunch of chlorophyll that tastes terrible. I use the same eggnog recipe on chowhound from Clyde Common in Portland. Good eggs, good liquor, great eggnog. The whipped egg whites and cream make it super smooth and awesome. I usually only leave it for about a month, so making it in November works great for me. Also saves space in the fridge.
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Aug 24, 2021 01:26
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Thanks for the advice. I plan on picking mine pretty soon then putting on a dehydrator and bagging. I’ll keep that in mind though, and hopefully adjust the wort correctly. I think 3 months is the sweet spot for aging nog personally. I do keep a “Brewers reserve” though which is just a 16oz bottle I age for a year. It definitely tastes great but it’s more just for fun to bust out at holiday parties. I saw a new Good Eats episode where he makes a rum Dram and a Thrush holiday recipe recently, and am going to at least try Dram this year as well.
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Aug 24, 2021 01:53
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I'd like to see these eggnog recipes you guys are using!
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Aug 24, 2021 03:19
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Jo3sh posted:I'd like to see these eggnog recipes you guys are using! There is an eggnog thread that is probably a better resource for this. Obviously it's a bit buried since the season for consumption is a ways away, but I suppose it'll maybe see activity since people who age their eggnog might be thinking about it soon. https://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3869227
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Aug 24, 2021 04:10
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Jo3sh posted:I'd like to see these eggnog recipes you guys are using! https://www.chowhound.com/recipes/best-eggnog-10758 This is the one I have used in the past. I use the standard Elijah Craig bourbon, and some cheaper cognac, but went for the nicest tasting and looking eggs and cream I could find. I also froze the whites in a silicon ice cube tray and pulled out what I would need for how much eggnog I would be drinking. Fresh nutmeg was also indeed a very good addition. I'm going to search up those Dram and Thrush recipes too, but could only find the Dram on a website anywhere. I may just go see if I can VOD the Good Eats episode too and just write it down.
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Aug 24, 2021 05:02
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Jhet posted:https://www.chowhound.com/recipes/best-eggnog-10758 Here is the episode link - https://www.foodnetwork.com/shows/good-eats/episodes/holiday-spirits. My bad it was shrub recipe.
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Aug 24, 2021 05:31
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BaseballPCHiker posted:Here is the episode link - https://www.foodnetwork.com/shows/good-eats/episodes/holiday-spirits. My bad it was shrub recipe. Haha, I just finished watching it. I've made shrubs before and that looks like a good recipe. They're very tasty.
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Aug 24, 2021 06:03
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The Alton Brown recipe is good. I loving love egg nog, and have tweaked a couple recipes over the years with a mix of brandy, bourbon and dark rum. I'll type it up once I figure out how many gallons I'm making. From past experience, making it in August turns out spectacular results by December. Don't skim on fresh grated nutmeg.
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Aug 24, 2021 11:20
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I also use a slightly modified version of the Alton Brown recipe.
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Aug 24, 2021 12:18
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Went to a local homebrew club meeting yesterday and was extroverted.. talked to lots of cool folks will go back again. Tried to not get drunk due to all the sharing's of products.
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Aug 25, 2021 12:11
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I was given a small home brewing kit for my birthday, from Northern Brewers. No idea if that company is a quality company, but it was a gift, and I like beer, so why not, right? It’s been over a week now, and I can’t really tell if it’s working. It basically looks the same as it did at the beginning. No foam, no color change, no obvious yeast growth, nothing. Airlock is pretty quiet. Did something go wrong? I did spill a little bit of cleanser into the wort when I was putting everything together - could that possibly have caused any problems?
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Aug 25, 2021 14:09
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Pollyanna posted:I was given a small home brewing kit for my birthday, from Northern Brewers. No idea if that company is a quality company, but it was a gift, and I like beer, so why not, right? When I brew something the yeast starts bubbling after about 5min and it will start foaming big time after 10
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Aug 25, 2021 14:24
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 I assume it’s just cold-rear end wort now? What do I do with this? Can I open it up and add more yeast? Any idea what could have gone wrong? Any way to tell if the mixture is somehow hostile to yeast? Maybe the yeast was dead? Also, if I try again, I know I need the following: - Some sort of yeast. I want brewer’s yeast and not baker’s yeast, correct? - Some sort of yeast food. The kit came with I think “malt extract”, but any reason not to use honey, berries, apple juice, etc.? - Some sort of cleanser, to clean and sanitize the equipment (all of it, yeast packet included!). The kit came with some sort of no-rinse cleanser I can’t find info on, what sort of cleanser should I use otherwise? Apparently Campden tablets? Anything else? Sugar or something? Pollyanna fucked around with this message at 14:33 on Aug 25, 2021 |
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Aug 25, 2021 14:26
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Pollyanna posted:
Hard to say for sure. Did you see any foaming or activity at any time? Was it exposed to really low temperatures? If it was me, I'd say go ahead and try to bottle it. You may have missed any activity in the carboy and its perfectly fine wort. Dont worry about getting sanitizer in it. Most brewers use no rinse Star-San on their equipment and the beer turns out fine. Assuming you didnt spill like 1/2 gallon into your wort at least! Other things that I've done that have ruined batches of beer that could've effected this: Pitching yeast while wort is way to hot. Having temps to low for yeast to get going. Trying to make a starter and killing yeast. Others with more experience may chime in, but I would at least try bottling it and see what happens.
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Aug 25, 2021 14:46
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Got it. There was some bubbling and foam and a little airlock activity in the first few days, but not much since. Bottling day is Monday, so I'll check it out then. In the meantime, I do want to try my hand at some other things: - Cider - Mead/Melomel - Wine - Maybe something else? Are these particularly hard compared to the kit I got? It's a lot easier to source apples and berries than malt extract.
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Aug 25, 2021 14:50
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So that tan ring above the liquid is leftover yeast from the krausen. I'd say you've successfully fermented something. What kind of yeast did they send in the kit? If it was something like us-05 (little red packet of dried powder) it's enough yeast for a 5 gallon batch so 1 gal would ferment fast.
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Aug 25, 2021 15:15
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Whatever's in this: https://www.northernbrewer.com/products/cascade-wheat-1-gallon-recipe-kit And its associated instructions: https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2785/6868/t/3/assets/AmericanWheatONEGALLON-1588171953463.pdf If what you say is true, it should be totally done by Monday. Half tempted to pour a bit out from the spigot and taste it to see how far it's gotten - is that going to contaminate the mixture?
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Aug 25, 2021 15:24
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Some yeast can just go nuts overnight and you missing it especially in a small batch. My yeast sometimes takes somewhere around 24hra to really kick off so it's not always a set time
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Aug 25, 2021 15:27
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The bottom of the fermenter(?) is covered in some white looking stuff, which I'm gonna guess is the yeast.  One thing to mention: it's like mid-70s or so in my kitchen, where the brew is stored. Apparently that might be too high? Do I just have to wait for fall or something, cause the AC is most certainly on and I'll be hosed if I buy one just to stick right next to the mix. Also apparently lager-style beer is brewed at like fridge/cellar temp and the instructions failed to mention that!!!
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Aug 25, 2021 15:37
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That looks like it fermented fine to me. And there's nothing wrong with drawing a sample to see what it's like. Just remember, grain wants to be wort, and wort wants to be beer. It's easy to make beer. Making great/perfect beer takes a little bit of practice. Overall, your experience sounds like a pretty standard new brewer process! Mid 70s is a touch warm, but fine for some yeasts like Belgian or Kveik if you want to go even warmer. In general, fermenting too warm can lead to some off flavors (or desired ones for Belgian), it's not going to be unsafe or anything. In my experience, Cider and Mead are easier because there's no boiling needed, though you really want to use either Fermaid K or Fermaid O as yeast nutrients for Mead, honey doesn't have much on it's own. Though I guess if your orchard/cider supplier doesn't pasteurize that might be a good idea, I've ended up with a vinegar note a few times. Wine can be trickier with regards to stabilizing the gravity, using acid, etc. But it's still not too bad. I cheat and just make a riesling kit, don't sulfite it, and toss it into a keg for sparkling white wine on tap. Some day I'll buy a nitro setup to do the same for reds.
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Aug 25, 2021 15:51
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I’m not super into wine either, but I love cider, and I’m really curious about mead and the possibility of a nice melomel. I’ll try a bit and see how it is.
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Aug 25, 2021 15:58
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Pollyanna posted:Got it. There was some bubbling and foam and a little airlock activity in the first few days, but not much since. Bottling day is Monday, so I'll check it out then. Making cider is extremely easy as well as mead, both are easier than beer. My process is kind of a hack, but it tastes great in the end and its easy as hell. First you start off with a pure sugar wash. You want pure sugar only because it will prevent the production of methanols and other side products that will be concentrated in step two: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txm7eu8KxVI Step two is freezer concentration. This get rid of 75% of the water and brings your sugar wine up to whisky strength: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rwEwVflru_g Step three is back sweetening. If you add honey to the concentrate it turns it into mead, if you add other flavors it turns into other kinds of things. Those squirt bottles they sell for bottled water are great for flavorings, as well as sodastream syrups: 
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Aug 25, 2021 15:59
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Why are you making sugar alcohol first? For mead you just need honey, water, nutrient and yeast. Are you just describing "something else"?
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Aug 25, 2021 16:06
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 why are you teaching me how to make applejack
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Aug 25, 2021 16:07
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Alarbus posted:Why are you making sugar alcohol first? For mead you just need honey, water, nutrient and yeast. Honey is expensive and sugar is cheap. I want the yeast to be eating granulated sugar, I'm the one who is going to be enjoying the honey. It tastes the same in the end 
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Aug 25, 2021 16:08
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Not to rain on your parade, but it's only mead if it's only honey. That's why they have melomel, metheglin, etc. You're making honey flavored hooch. Which is fine, but it's not actually mead.
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Aug 25, 2021 16:26
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