Homebrew Beer Howto

BeerNut

On such things are loyal O'Hara's customers made Gotta say I'm not a fan of bottle conditioning in 33cl bottles anyway, unless it's something strong and dark.

Ratsathome

I use cooking oil on the stubborn ones.Use a piece of paper towel and wet it with oil and start rubbing.:D

The Scratcher

I've my stout bottled in 33cls at the moment. It's a fairly eclectic mix of bottles. I found actually that Tiger beer bottles are next to impossible to cap, they break very easily at the neck. I try my best to get as many Fransiskaner bottles as I can for the 50cl bottlings, I think they look very nice with the label off, something elegant about the shape, plus the labels slip right off and leave no mess.

BeerNut

German bottles in general have very easy-to-remove labels. The bottles are mostly intended for re-use, and even the ones that aren't go through the same labelling machine.

rubadub

Some labels do best with a double steep. You steep first in water and the label can just fall off, or peel off easily. Then it might need another long steep to loosen up the remaining stuff underneath. It is like the outer layer is fairly waterproof.

If you hold a stanley blade at an angle (careful!) some can be scrapped off, some hardened plastic type glue and just pop off in 1 piece.

kierank01

The Scratcher wrote: »

I try my best to get as many Fransiskaner bottles as I can for the 50cl bottlings, I think they look very nice with the label off, something elegant about the shape, plus the labels slip right off and leave no mess.

Maybe its my capper, but I thought Fransiskaner were very hard to cap, and I hate the tinfoil around the neck can't get the stuff off.

The Scratcher

What kinda capper have you? I just have the bog standard lever capper and it works a treat on them. Having said that it took a while to get the technique down so that it caps right every time and doesn't mangle caps. I found the tinfoil slips right off if you steep it in warm water for a while. I landed a couple of hundred bottles for recycling one day, filled up the bathtub and sunk them all in and left them for an hour.

daithi55

the vratislav beer in tesco is very easy to take the labels off in 500ml bottles
ive a stack of them done just soak in warm water for a minute and the whole label comes off in one go

kierank01

The Scratcher wrote: »

What kinda capper have you? I just have the bog standard lever capper and it works a treat on them. Having said that it took a while to get the technique down so that it caps right every time and doesn't mangle caps. I found the tinfoil slips right off if you steep it in warm water for a while. I landed a couple of hundred bottles for recycling one day, filled up the bathtub and sunk them all in and left them for an hour.

mine is a regular hand capper also. I find that the clamps that hold the neck would slip off with those bottles.

The Scratcher

That's odd, I don't have that problems with those bottles but there are other bottles that that happens to me with. I noticed bottles that have a very rounded lip (I dunno what the technical term for that part of bottle is? possibly the shoulder?) or none at all are impossible to cap as the clamps get no purchase on the bottle.

Baneblade

i found blue moon bottles hard to recap, just does not feel like it closes properly

pbowenroe

Could I get a recommendation for a first home brewing kit?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Home-Brew-Ba...7396684&sr=8-1

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Home-Brew-Ba...7396684&sr=8-6

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Home-Brew-Ba...396684&sr=8-10

http://www.homebrew.ie/proddetail.php?prod=415&Premium-Starter-Kit-(keg-option)

If I do buy a kit I would plan on keeping this hobby up, so I would like one that I could use for a while and for the more technical types of brewing after I have brewed some extract kits, which I have read is a good way to start.

BeerNut

Amazon links no worky.

This is what I started with and I still use pretty much all of it. I've added a boiler and chiller, and I see that can now be included as a whole extract starter kit.

And start collecting bottles now, if you haven't already

pbowenroe

Thanks for replying. Here are the amazon links:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Home-Brew-Balliihoo%C2%AE-Equipment-Injection/dp/B001RZYJJ0/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1347396684&sr=8-10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Home-Brew-Balliihoo%C2%AE-Equipment-Injection/dp/B001S05H6S/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1347396684&sr=8-6

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Home-Brew-Balliihoo%C2%AE-Complete-Equipment/dp/B001RZYJI6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1347396684&sr=8-1

What do you need the boiler and chiller for? The whole extract starter kit is a bit pricey but if I will need the boiler and chiller at some stage anyway, do you think it's good value?

BeerNut

Ahh, by "extract kits" you just mean kits. Extract kits are these: different thing altogether.

Two observations on the Amazon links:
- I don't know anyone who is happy with those plastic pressure barrels or stuck with them for any length of time.
- Get a second fermenter.

pbowenroe wrote: »

What do you need the boiler and chiller for?

One's for boiling the wort and the other's for chilling it . There's a very good step-by-step guide to extract brewing here which explains it all. (For kit brewing, see here.)

pbowenroe wrote: »

The whole extract starter kit is a bit pricey but if I will need the boiler and chiller at some stage anyway, do you think it's good value?

If you're starting with kits it's probably best to get the basic equipment starting out and leave the boiler and chiller, and mashtun , to later.

pbowenroe

BeerNut wrote: »

Ahh, by "extract kits" you just mean kits. Extract kits are these: different thing altogether.

Two observations on the Amazon links:
- I don't know anyone who is happy with those plastic pressure barrels or stuck with them for any length of time.
- Get a second fermenter.

One's for boiling the wort and the other's for chilling it .
Now that makes sense.

There's a very good step-by-step guide to extract brewing here which explains it all. (For kit brewing, see here.)

If you're starting with kits it's probably best to get the basic equipment starting out and leave the boiler and chiller, and mashtun , to later.

Would you advise starting with kits or otherwise? Sorry for all the questions.

BeerNut

Mostly I would, yes. Especially if you don't have a tame brewer of your own to learn from in a live environment. At least if you mess up your first kit(s), you won't be pouring much time and effort down the drain. I mainly brew extract and always have: it's a lot more satisfying than kits and the results are better. But I started with extract because that's how my neighbour brewed so that's what I learned.

Everything you buy for kit brewing you can use for extract and all-grain, with the addition of extra gear. So if you find after a few kits that you're not getting what you want out of brewing you can upgrade your system.

pbowenroe

thanks for your help, going to order that starter kit now

Chicken Run

The Scratcher wrote: »

Quick question on bottles, more of an aesthetic thing really. I find some of the labels slip right off in some warm water but then there are others, -8degrees is one that springs to mind- where the labels just will not come off without leaving a mess on the outside of the bottle. Is there any cheat for taking off the residual glue and fluffy white paper without getting soap involved or too much elbow grease.

soak the bottles in warm soapy water and scrape off as much of the paper & glue as you can with a blunt knife.

Remove residue with white spirits on a rag. Sorted.

sharingan

pbowenroe wrote: »

Would you advise starting with kits or otherwise? Sorry for all the questions.

Basic brewing kit is unspecialised. You need all the kit no matter what you end up brewing, whether that is kit beer, extract beer, all grain beer, wine, cider or stuff you have picked wild.

Once you know what you like to brew, you can then buy more specialised equipment that helps you brew it easier, or allows you to make more sophisticated versions of the same.

For instance, my first brew, an elderflower wine, was fermented in a 22L camping coolbox. It is a surprisingly capable method for fermenting. Now I have 2 proper size fermenters, 6 Demi Johns, (there is a third fermenter in my parents house that I am not allowed bring to London), and some other kit that I use for various purposes:
- a hand corker
- a bottle capper
- a big 60L bucket for sterilising
- various mesh filters for pressing juice

I am about to make my biggest upgrade since I started - a 70L stockpot with heating elements installed so that I can go all-grain (Brew in a Bag).

KevinRyanMac

I need to rehydrate champagne yeast for a turbo cider I have planned yet I have no thermometer. Would I be better gauging the temp for rehydrating or sprinkling the yeast on dry?.

Khannie

I just sprinkle the dry yeast on top of my apple juice when doing a turbo cider. Has never failed.

pbowenroe

sharingan wrote: »

Basic brewing kit is unspecialised. You need all the kit no matter what you end up brewing, whether that is kit beer, extract beer, all grain beer, wine, cider or stuff you have picked wild.

Once you know what you like to brew, you can then buy more specialised equipment that helps you brew it easier, or allows you to make more sophisticated versions of the same.

For instance, my first brew, an elderflower wine, was fermented in a 22L camping coolbox. It is a surprisingly capable method for fermenting. Now I have 2 proper size fermenters, 6 Demi Johns, (there is a third fermenter in my parents house that I am not allowed bring to London), and some other kit that I use for various purposes:
- a hand corker
- a bottle capper
- a big 60L bucket for sterilising
- various mesh filters for pressing juice

I am about to make my biggest upgrade since I started - a 70L stockpot with heating elements installed so that I can go all-grain (Brew in a Bag).

thanks for that

avfc1874

hi ive made a few ciders and one larger. ciders turned out ok- good:) . larger still bottled:( / just been given a load of rhubarb any one any advice on an easyy rhubarb wine . thanks

KevinRyanMac

Has anybody ever used Campden tablets to prolong shelf life of a turbo cider?.
I am kinda worried that the yeast will not like the lack of O2 and it will have an effect on the quality of conditioning in the bottles.

jill_valentine

Ratsathome wrote: »

I use cooking oil on the stubborn ones.Use a piece of paper towel and wet it with oil and start rubbing.:D

Just tried this on a particularly annoying set of labels and it works like a charm. Awesome.

Quick question - what would you guys recommend for clarifying mead?

oblivious

jill_valentine wrote: »

Quick question - what would you guys recommend for clarifying mead?

time has always worked for me

jill_valentine

Ha, I had "Apart from time" in the first draft of that, and then thought "No, surely that won't be a necessary disclaimer in such august company."

It's just that I seem to be getting conflicting advice about bentonite and what have you in the context of mead, and I was wondering if anybody had any experience with it here. It's a split batch so the rest can settle in its own time, and I don't expect miracles out of the first few litres, but I would like something to be getting on with in the meantime.

Dub13

I was listening to newstalk today,they had an interview with some Irish company who has developed a new kind of plastic bottle that hold the beer well for up to 6 months.In the course of the interview your man said plastic bottles are not been used for beer now as they only hold the taste for up to 2 weeks.

So what does this mean for all the bottles I have in various stages of preparation...?If this is the case why would coopers send out plastic bottles..?

BeerNut

Dub13 wrote: »

plastic bottles are not been used for beer now as they only hold the taste for up to 2 weeks.

Nonsense. Lots of breweries use plastic bottles, for one thing.

The Coopers plastic bottles are pretty high-tech, though. They have an ox-bar layer which gives better protection than an ordinary plastic bottle would.