Your current / planned brews

Herb Powell

tteknulp wrote: »

yeah the T-58 is very good for Belgian types i got the brewferm Diabolo from 1068 to 1002 in 2 weeks it finished 9.2% with priming if i remember correctly, as 90g to 9ltr is mad but thats what is called for ,No bombs yet even with warm spell , so i highly recommend T-58 , Safele W06 is good for wheat types i find .

:eek::eek::eek::eek:

Seriously???

sharingan

Mr Benevolent wrote: »

Overall a fair selection, costing €27 in total. Next up is a malty 7-10% dark extract beer (no space or money for grain brewing). Any other cheap suggestions?

Keep your beer strength reasonable. Beer is a social drink, and making it strong for the sake of it brings in a number of issues, like flavour balance, fairness on your drinking friends, and brewing challenges.

Gervin Ale Yeast is a cheap beer yeast that is really good (actually rebadged danstar nottingham). Dont use bread yeast or anything else like that, beer is actually quite sensitive to the yeast involved.

You can get into grain brewing really cheaply, if you can locate a 19L stock pot that will maintain a rolling boil on a stove top, if you go Brew In A Bag. Also, Home Brew West have a really cheap own brand LME that is really good for extract brewing.

You can make *nice* country wines with a bit of skill, but for the same skill and investment you can make outstanding beers.

tteknulp

Herb Powell wrote: »

:eek::eek::eek::eek:

Seriously???

Checking back on my excel doc ,it finished 8.7 % with priming 9%ish its what belgians all about : )

dasdog

First try at extract: Munich Helles

Added 100g Admiral Hops (16% Alpha acid) towards end. They were previous dry hop intentions in the fridge as the vaccum bag was pierced.

Spent about €20 the garden hose and tap adapter but at least the kitchen floor is clean. Enjoyed it though. Cooling the wort moving the chiller to induce convection currents.

loyatemu

loyatemu wrote: »

bottled a Youngs Harvest Lager kit yesterday, used HBW's cheap LME instead of sugar and primed with brewing sugar - hopefully should give a decent result (I know it won't actually be a lager).

this has turned out fairly disappointing - don't know if its the kit or something I did (or maybe the warm weather while it was fermenting/conditioning?).

It hasn't carbonated well, and tastes very much like homebrew (in the bad sense). Might improve with a bit more time in the bottle, but its already had a month...

blueshed

loyatemu wrote: »

this has turned out fairly disappointing - don't know if its the kit or something I did (or maybe the warm weather while it was fermenting/conditioning?).

It hasn't carbonated well, and tastes very much like homebrew (in the bad sense). Might improve with a bit more time in the bottle, but its already had a month...

same problem myself, last few brews infected and looks like it was caused by the warm weather.
a bitter grapefruit taste from the beer.

loyatemu

blueshed wrote: »

same problem myself, last few brews infected and looks like it was caused by the warm weather.
a bitter grapefruit taste from the beer.

might give me a kick towards smaller-scale extract brewing - not sure I need 40 pints of any single beer, particularly if its bad.

Herb Powell

tteknulp wrote: »

Checking back on my excel doc ,it finished 8.7 % with priming 9%ish its what belgians all about : )

Yeah but, did you mean that much yeast, or was it a typo and you meant 9 grams?

90 grams is scary!

tteknulp

Herb Powell wrote: »

Yeah but, did you mean that much yeast, or was it a typo and you meant 9 grams?

90 grams is scary!

90 grams is dextrose , yeast is 12 g i think

Herb Powell

tteknulp wrote: »

90 grams is dextrose , yeast is 12 g i think

There we go, 12 grams of yeast sounds way more normal

sharingan

loyatemu wrote: »

might give me a kick towards smaller-scale extract brewing - not sure I need 40 pints of any single beer, particularly if its bad.

Nobody *needs* that much beer, but its a great buzz when you can lift up a house party or BBQ with your own home made stuff.

40 Bottles doesn't last long when its good, and it is nice to keep beer for months and compare and contrast it with newer batches. It helps if you brew to quantity.

sharingan

In Primary:
- light belgian blonde in primary, taking its sweet time to clarify in this heat

Going in the Kettle tonight:
- light US centennial blonde: http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f66/centennial-blonde-simple-4-all-grain-5-10-gall-42841/

Going in after that:
- home brew club specialty malt trial
- a stout of some kind, depending on what roasty malts are in the house (lots)
- a honey & ginger IPA for christmas extreme beers
- another US style (hops) beer
- some other belgian (maybe a belgian brown)

mayto

I made up a Galway Hooker clone at the weekend, fermenting away in temp controlled fridge now. It came in a bit stronger at 1050 as I used 10% evap in stead of usual 15% for my two element kettle, but will be fine .

[size=+2]galway hooker[/size]
[size=+1]10-A American Pale Ale[/size]
Date: 06/07/2013



Size: 29.0 L
Efficiency: 80%
Attenuation: 76.2%
Calories: 138.29 kcal per 12 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.042 (1.045 - 1.060)
|====#===========================|
Terminal Gravity: 1.010 (1.010 - 1.015)
|=======#========================|
Color: 17.12 (5.00 - 14.00)
|==============#=================|
Alcohol: 4.16% (4.50% - 6.00%)
|====#===========================|
Bitterness: 31.3 (30.00 - 45.00)
|=========#======================|

[size=+1]Ingredients:[/size]
4.33 kg (85.6%) 4.33 kg Maris Otter Malt - added during mash
0.51 kg (10.1%) 0.51 kg English Wheat Malt - added during mash
0.22 kg (4.3%) 0.22 kg Crystal 75 - added during mash
17 g (20.9%) 17 g Warrior® (17%) - added during boil, boiled 60 m
32 g (39.3%) 32 g Czech Saaz (5.00%) - added during boil, boiled 10 m
32.4 g (39.8%) 32.4 g Cascade (8%) - added during boil, boiled 1 m
12.26 fl oz 12.26 fl oz Fermentis US-05 Safale US-05

[size=+1]Schedule:[/size]
Ambient Air: 70.0 °F
Source Water: 60.0 °F
Elevation: 0.0 m


[size=+1]Notes[/size]
2l,2l,10% big boiler,34 l m/t

mash vol 12L
top up 10L
sparging 15L
DO NOT FORGET CAMPDEN TABLETS!!!!!!!!
so 12L(x0.47ml crs=5.6ml) for mas
25L for sparging(11.7ml crs)

17.4mls crs for 37L
3g gypsum in mash
6g gypsum in boiler
6.4g epson salts in boil



[size=-1]Results generated by BeerTools Pro 1.5.22[/size]

fitzywill

fitzywill wrote: »

Last night I used the Coopers Home Brewing kit for the first time and used the Canadian Blonde malt extract with enhancer 1. I think it went ok but the temp was a little high at first (28C) but it is down now to 24C.
When I have bottled the beer how long should I store it at room temp. and how long can it then be left in the fridge for?
Any tips / advice are welcome.

Thanks:)

Hi All,
My Coopers Blonde has now been in the fermenter for 14 days but the SG is still around 1014, and the temp has dropped the last fews days to 20C (green). Should I just wait it out and hopefully bottle next week?, increase the temperature with the brew belt?, or if the SG reads 1014 again tomorrow just bottle it?
It smells great and is getting clearer.

mayto

fitzywill wrote: »

Hi All,
My Coopers Blonde has now been in the fermenter for 14 days but the SG is still around 1014, and the temp has dropped the last fews days to 20C (green). Should I just wait it out and hopefully bottle next week?, increase the temperature with the brew belt?, or if the SG reads 1014 again tomorrow just bottle it?
It smells great and is getting clearer.

The chances are its finished fermenting at 1014 as many kits do. Fermenting at 20C is ideal so no need for a heatbelt. If its a constant 1014 for a few days I would think its ready for bottling.

sharingan

Or shake it up. That can get the yeast working again. But it will also mess with your clarifying obviously.

Zetes

Hi all, I am new here and would appreciate your advice.

I have been thinking about getting into home brewing for awhile now and have decided to get this kit http://www.homebrewwest.ie/brewsmarter-premium-starter-beer-kit-best-value-844-p.asp was wondering if I need all that stuff or is a simpler kit would do?

My main question is actually about the type of Ale I wish to brew. I am wanting to do a easy brew to start off with but am looking for a nice ale, with a strong hoppy taste, like the HopHead in the Porterhouse. I also enjoy their TSB Ale.

Any help would be appreciated.

Kind Regards

Zetes

Any recommendations on a easy brew that is similar to HopHead in the PorterHouse or their TSB?

I am really new to this and something easy and simple would be great. I enjoy good ales with a nice hop flavour.

Regards

Zetes

BeerNut

Zetes wrote: »

was wondering if I need all that stuff or is a simpler kit would do?

You'd need most of it, though not the brewbelt and you don't really need a bubbler. The kilo of sugar that comes with it isn't a great idea (spraymalt or liquid malt extract is better), and the Cooper's Canadian Blonde isn't a very good kit IMO.

Zetes wrote: »

I am wanting to do a easy brew to start off with but am looking for a nice ale, with a strong hoppy taste, like the HopHead in the Porterhouse. I also enjoy their TSB Ale.

Hophead is a fair bit bitterer than most of the kit beers I've done. But you can get good TSB-like results from, say, Cooper's Real Ale or their English Bitter or Munton's IPA.

Zetes

Thanks BeerNut.

I suppose I could try the Coopers Real Ale and then on my next brew, I could experiment and throw in some hops in a muslin bag, from what I have read, this would increase the hoppy flavour in the Ale.

I appreciate any advice.

Regards

Zetes

BeerNut

It won't raise the bitterness though. One thing you could try -- at your own risk -- is make up two bitter or IPA kits instead of one plus extra fermentables. That should have the effect of doubling your bittering and flavour hops.

Zetes

I think the best thing is to do a kit or 2 in ordet to get my confidence up and then do a brew following a recipe. Thank you for your advice.
Zetes

00833827

mayto wrote: »

I made up a Galway Hooker clone at the weekend, fermenting away in temp controlled fridge now. It came in a bit stronger at 1050 as I used 10% evap in stead of usual 15% for my two element kettle, but will be fine .

[size=+2]galway hooker[/size]
[size=+1]10-A American Pale Ale[/size]
Date: 06/07/2013



Size: 29.0 L
Efficiency: 80%
Attenuation: 76.2%
Calories: 138.29 kcal per 12 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.042 (1.045 - 1.060)
|====#===========================|
Terminal Gravity: 1.010 (1.010 - 1.015)
|=======#========================|
Color: 17.12 (5.00 - 14.00)
|==============#=================|
Alcohol: 4.16% (4.50% - 6.00%)
|====#===========================|
Bitterness: 31.3 (30.00 - 45.00)
|=========#======================|

[size=+1]Ingredients:[/size]
4.33 kg (85.6%) 4.33 kg Maris Otter Malt - added during mash
0.51 kg (10.1%) 0.51 kg English Wheat Malt - added during mash
0.22 kg (4.3%) 0.22 kg Crystal 75 - added during mash
17 g (20.9%) 17 g Warrior® (17%) - added during boil, boiled 60 m
32 g (39.3%) 32 g Czech Saaz (5.00%) - added during boil, boiled 10 m
32.4 g (39.8%) 32.4 g Cascade (8%) - added during boil, boiled 1 m
12.26 fl oz 12.26 fl oz Fermentis US-05 Safale US-05

[size=+1]Schedule:[/size]
Ambient Air: 70.0 °F
Source Water: 60.0 °F
Elevation: 0.0 m


[size=+1]Notes[/size]
2l,2l,10% big boiler,34 l m/t

mash vol 12L
top up 10L
sparging 15L
DO NOT FORGET CAMPDEN TABLETS!!!!!!!!
so 12L(x0.47ml crs=5.6ml) for mas
25L for sparging(11.7ml crs)

17.4mls crs for 37L
3g gypsum in mash
6g gypsum in boiler
6.4g epson salts in boil



[size=-1]Results generated by BeerTools Pro 1.5.22[/size]

sounds good mate, what are u brewing in? a keggle?

i have a brupak stout to do this week, then i want to look at moving onto a BIAB - was gonna search out a keggle and some kettle elements

mayto

00833827 wrote: »

sounds good mate, what are u brewing in? a keggle?

i have a brupak stout to do this week, then i want to look at moving onto a BIAB - was gonna search out a keggle and some kettle elements

I have a boiler and added an extra element but only need one for boil really. I do my mash in a mash tun like this . I saw a local brewer doing batch sparging with a similar mash tun while I was an extract brerwer. He made the process seem so simple, which it really is after you do on brew:D

00833827

mayto wrote: »

I have a boiler and added an extra element but only need one for boil really. I do my mash in a mash tun like this . I saw a local brewer doing batch sparging with a similar mash tun while I was an extract brerwer. He made the process seem so simple, which it really is after you do on brew:D

so like a water boiler? Burco? that kind of thing?

mayto

00833827 wrote: »

so like a water boiler? Burco? that kind of thing?

It is a plastic boiler I bought from a brew shop a few years ago.

Devi

mayto wrote: »

It is a plastic boiler I bought from a brew shop a few years ago.

Is it one of these Mayto?
http://www.thehomebrewcompany.ie/33lt-boiler-pack-includes-hop-strainer-p-576.html

I was thinking about getting one as im only doing partial at the moment. Are they any good?

matrim

Devi wrote: »

Is it one of these Mayto?
http://www.thehomebrewcompany.ie/33lt-boiler-pack-includes-hop-strainer-p-576.html

I was thinking about getting one as im only doing partial at the moment. Are they any good?

That's the exact one I have. I've only done one beer in it so far but it worked well (even if it took a while to get to a full rolling boil). It came recommended by a few people on here

Devi

matrim wrote: »

That's the exact one I have. I've only done one beer in it so far but it worked well (even if it took a while to get to a full rolling boil). It came recommended by a few people on here

How long does it take to get going? It does seem like the best for that price range, next one up is double the price for someone without a decent hob.

sharingan

Note that for doing BIAB, you will lose a lot of volume to the grain. For a 33L boiler you will struggle to get to 18-20L of final volume if you are not doing post boil dilution, or wort recovery from the grain bag.

May not sound like much, but it is a big issue if you are doing high gravity beers.

I use a 40L buffalo boiler, which has enough head room to overcrowd it with grain during the mash. I can get 25L final volume with it even for big beers, with wort recovery only (no dilution). I regularly get about 24L into the fermenter when I am doing mid strength beers (gravity in the forties).