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HOMEBREW Digest #0598
This file received at Mthvax.CS.Miami.EDU 91/03/18 03:21:32
HOMEBREW Digest #598 Mon 18 March 1991
FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
Rob Gardner, Digest Coordinator
Contents:
Hard Cider recipe wanted (S94TAYLO)
Spruce Beer (DENVER/BOULDER) (TSAMSEL)
Re: Homebrew Digest #597 (March 15, 1991) (Keith Morgan)
Spruce beer (James P. Buchman)
Culturing yeast -- I'm having problems (as usual :-) (Chris Shenton)
Adding flavor/color... (Dave Beedle)
Brewpubs in Cincinnati area (ems)
Re: Fermenting in Kegs (bob)
How to use Isinglass?? (bob)
Sassafras and Cancer ("DRCV06::GRAHAM")
Engine rebuilding, cams, etc. (Rick Myers)
Copper counterflow chillers ("Eric Roe")
Misc. ("Olzenak,Craig")
Whitbread Ale yeast (Carl West x4449)
US Open Homebrew Competition (BAUGHMANKR)
Sassafrass (Kent Forschmiedt)
Cream Ale Recipes, anyone? (Lynn Gold)
Re: Homebrew Digest #594 (March 12, 1991) (Kent Forschmiedt)
evaporative cooling (Pete Soper)
Terms of Embeerment (ugh!) (Martin A. Lodahl)
More On Extract Efficiencies (Martin A. Lodahl)
6 oz bottles (Kent Forschmiedt)
Starting up ("Jeffrey R.")
Send submissions to homebrew%hpfcmi@hplabs.hp.com
Send requests to homebrew-request%hpfcmi@hplabs.hp.com
[Please do not send me requests for back issues]
Archives are available from netlib@mthvax.cs.miami.edu
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Thu, 14 Mar 91 18:26 EST
From: <S94TAYLO%USUHSB.BITNET@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU>
Subject: Hard Cider recipe wanted
I'm sure I will be deluged with responses to this request, but I like to get
mail. I want to make up a batch of lightly sweet sparkling hard cider using
something snappy like MacIntosh apples with a high alcohol content (10-12%!)
probably for a halloween bash, or an end of summer party if I get too anxious.
Since I have no cider press (come on now, let's be honest, how many of YOU out
there actaully have a cider press!?), I am wondering if apple juice might
work just as well, and certainly it's much easier to go buy 10-12 cans of apple
juice than to find a press and then press out five gallons of cider. I might
also like to throw in some cinnamon (sp?) and really impress my non-brewing
boozer friends. Please help!
Also, I have some sage (where did they come up with that phrase?) advice for
beginning homebrewers out there. Some of this comes from various published
sources (TCJoHB, Zymurgy, primarily), some from my limited experimentations
aimed at making things simpler. In sum, these tidbits have significantly
improved my beer enough to convince me to enter this years National
Competition and not be embarassed.
1) Sanitize EVERYTHING. A good soak in household bleach (.25-.5 cup/5 gallon)
works is great for everything but the bottle caps.
2) Boil ALL your water before adding any ingredients. This drives off the
chlorine before it gets a chance to get at and react with anything in the
wort. I have started using ozonated bottled water for the same reason and
also for greater convenience. Cooling it in the freezer for a couple of
hours is an EXTREMELY fast and simple way of cooling your wort to close
to a pitchable temperature.
3) Forget about the hydrometer until it's time to bottle. I never get my
wort mixed well enough after adding the ice-cold (and more dense) water
to get an accurate reading anyway. I just check it at the end to make
sure that it hasn't changed in 2 or so days.
4) Stick with long-neck returnable beer bottles. They are cheap ($1.20/case),
they will always work, they conveniently travel, will always be accepted
in competitions, and allow for a greater variety of inventory of beers
(imagine having 10 half-full (or is it half-empty?) kegs for who knows
long).
Some of these pieces of advice are sure to be questioned by some more
experienced brewers out there, and I am happy to discuss differences of opinion
with them anytime, maybe we will both learn something. However, if I started
doing this stuff from the beginning, my beer would be much better today. Give
it a try and good luck!
Al Taylor
Uniformed Services University
School of Medicine
Bethesda, Maryland
s94taylor@usuhsb.bitnet
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 15 Mar 1991 8:18:08 EST
From: TSAMSEL@ISDRES.ER.USGS.GOV
Subject: Spruce Beer (DENVER/BOULDER)
Re: Spruce beer.
A month or so ago I read a great historical novel, BENEDICT ARNOLD.
(I can't remember the authors name) but there was a character, sort of a
Maine fropntiersman who would at the drop of the hat, brew spruce beer
for the exceeding thirsty Continental Army and in one section of the book
spoke at great length on his recipe ( which to me sounded quite authentic
re: the time and place)
Also I will be in DENVER/BOULDER and will hit Wynkoops and the Walnut BP.
Are there any others? Also, are there any good brew supply stores so I can
check out the raw materials? Adios Ted
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 15 Mar 91 08:38:48 EST
From: morgan@dg-rtp.dg.com (Keith Morgan)
Subject: Re: Homebrew Digest #597 (March 15, 1991)
In HBD #597 guy@bevsun.bev.lbl.gov (Aran Guy) writes:
> Guinness is the largest single purchaser of carageen in the world, so
> it is quite a proper ingredient for homebrew.
They may soon have some competition for the title of Carageen Kings;
I heard that McDonalds has announced a new barfburger consisting
of de-fatted beef extract glued together with carageenan (named
the "McLean burger"?). If this latest marketing ploy succeeds
sufficiently well for this derivative-burger to take over any
significant fraction of their zillions served per year, we may
be facing a seaweed shortage crisis! :-)
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 15 Mar 91 09:39:30 -0500
From: jpb@tesuji.dco.dec.com (James P. Buchman)
Subject: Spruce beer
Eric Roe writes
> . . . Since spring is almost here and
> I've got a Norway spruce in my backyard, I figured I'd harvest a couple of
> ounces of sprigs. Anyone got any advice. Should I steep it or add it to
> the boil. How much should I use -- in TCJoHB there's a recipe for a beer
> called Kumdis Island Spruce Beer. Papazian says to use 4 oz and boil for
> 45 minutes. Anyone tried this or something similar?
I'm trying this now; the "Spruce Juice" went into the carboy on Saturday.
I followed Papazian's recipe to make a five-gallon batch of Special Red
Bitter using malt extract, then cut enough twigs from the blue spruce I
planted after Christmas to loosely fill a 20-oz cup. The twigs were rinsed
off, then tossed into the wort for the final twelve minutes of the boil.
I didn't want to overdo it the first time, especially after reading in
this digest how easily a small amount of exotic additives (ginger, tree
bark, coffee, etc.) can overpower the brew.
Yesterday, I tasted the sample which I took to measure the SG. The pine
taste and smell were definitely present but not excessive; they added extra
sharpness to the brew on top of the hops. Hard to say more from a flat, sweet,
yeasty sample only halfway fermented, but I'll keep you posted.
One question: on reviewing the recipe, I see that I omitted the 1/8 lb. of
roast barley which should have been in the wort. Would it hurt the brew if
I added it at this point? I was thinking of boiling the barley in a quart of
water, cooling it to room temp, and straining it into the carboy. Reasonable?
Jim Buchman
------------------------------
Date: 15 Mar 91 08:46:19 CST (Fri)
From: b17d!uucp@uunet.UU.NET (uucp)
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 15 Mar 91 09:46:16 EST
From: Chris Shenton <chris@endgame.gsfc.nasa.gov>
Subject: Culturing yeast -- I'm having problems (as usual :-)
I got some test/culture tubes and Agar Agar (from a health food store), and
am trying to culture some different flavors of Wyeast.
I mixed up some wort, added the agar agar (why the repetition, by the way?),
filled the tubes, then capped and steamed them for 30 minutes. I cooled them
at an angle to get the classic slant. All seems fine so far.
After using the contents of a package of Wyeast for my latest batch, I
flamed a sewing needle, swished it in the yeast package and inoculated the
slants with the residual liquid in the pouch. On the final slant, I just
poured the dregs from the pouch into the tube. I then let them hang out on
top of the fridge.
Now, after 4 days, I'm seeing some odd results. The one which got the juice
poured in shows obvious signs of fermentation: small bunch of bubbles on
top of the agar^2 at the bottom of the slant. The others don't seem to be
doing anything. I don't see mold or any other signs of life.
Any thoughts? have I screwed things up? did I add to much extract to the
agar? I only want them to reproduce, not make beer-jello.
PS: did anyone else notice in the latest Zymurgy (I got mine yesterday)
that *all* the winning recipes used Wyeast? Nice market to corner!
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 15 Mar 91 8:56:29 CST
From: dbeedle@rs6000.cmp.ilstu.edu (Dave Beedle)
Subject: Adding flavor/color...
Hi Ho! Welp, my first batch (entitled Digital Dregs: Power Down Dark)
is in the bottles (and on the counter, floor. wife, etc ;-) ), however
it should really be called Brown Out Ale! How does one add color? I also
tried a little of the stuff while bottling and found it pretty tame. I
figure next time I might add some roasted barly? Maybe some hops?
What is the bitterness rating of extracts and is there a list or
something?
My second batch is happily bubbling away now...Great Midwest Vinyards
Barley Wine is its title. I took the advice of my local hombrew store in
making this, thought I'd see what others think...
I use: 2 900g cans of Tom Caxtons Barley Wine extract
3lbs light dry malt
10g Casscade (finishing - You can still smell the hops at my
house!)
3-3.5 gallons of water
2 5g packets of Tom Caxton yeast
I have this in a 5 gallon carboy. The foam, etc can't reach the
top so there is no blow off. I understand the blowoff gets rid of some hop
resins and stuff, how much of a problem is it not to have any blow off?
Mind you I'm not at all worried; just curious!
TTFN
- --
Dave Beedle Office of Academic Computing
Illinois State University
Internet: dbeedle@rs6000.cmp.ilstu.edu 136A Julian Hall
Bitnet: dbeedle@ilstu.bitnet Normal, Il 61761
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 15 Mar 91 8:46:16 CST
From: ems!ems@uunet.UU.NET
Subject: Brewpubs in Cincinnati area
>From brewpub listing:
Ohio -- Cincinnati:
Wallaby Bob's - Australian Brewpub. "Wallaby Bob's is in a mall, and
might technically be a microbrewery, since they do (apparently)
bottle and sell their beer at least for takeout. I have not yet
sampled their wares."
Kentucky -- Ft. Mitchell (Northern Kentucky)
Oldenberg Microbrewery - Buttermilk Pike. "Take I-75 south (from
Cincinnati) to Buttermilk Pike. The Brewery is visible from the
expressway. Features a full-bodied premium and a very drinkable
blonde. The beer is a bit pricey from the tap at $2.00 a mug,
$7.00 a pitcher. The premium has a robust taste and finishes
smooth. This beer is among the countries 5 finest beers, a
definite must try. The brewery also has a fine collection of
beer paraphernalia and a German style beer hall with live
entertainment." The AHA national conference was held here a few
years ago.
Ed Sieja Keep On Brewing !!
- -----------
------------------------------
Date: Fri Mar 15 10:46:21 1991
From: semantic!bob@uunet.UU.NET
Subject: Re: Fermenting in Kegs
In HBD597 Chris Shenton asks:
> Bob> For the blow off tube:
> Bob> Remove the CO2 inlet as to leave the threaded nub. Then a
> Bob> piece of 1/2" tubing can be slipped over and held tight with
> Bob> a clamp. Works great.
>
> Seems like the diameter of the CO2 tube and hole would be too small to pass
> much gunk, especially hop leaves. (Same problem which convinces people to
> use 1 inch diameter tubing for blow-off.) Have you had any problems?
Yes, the hole is rather small, actual size for blow off is about
3/8". I am very careful to strain all of the hops from my wort.
I have never had a problem with a plugged hole (in my kegs).
As a matter of fact that is the reason I know ferment in kegs. I
once had a nasty experience with a carboy that got it's blow-off
hole plugged with hops.
Now, If for some reason, I do end up with hops in my keg and it
does get plugged up, I have two courses of action. First the
pressure relief valve, and second the out tub which reaches to the
bottom of the keg. Between the two I should be able to reduce the
pressure enough to safely fix the block. Of course one could
always take a coat hanger to the plugged up hole, but this would
result in beer on your ceiling.
Also, If you fear a vigorous ferment you could attach blow-off
tubes to both the in and out connectors. This is what is
recommended in the Zymurgy special issue "Brewers and their
gadgets".
> Also, are you primary-fermenting in the keg? what do you do about all the
> trub? or do you transfer from your boiler in a way which leaves it all
> behind?
Sad to say, I don't do anything about the trub. I just ferment on
it for three days. I primarily make heavy ales and don't notice
any nasty side effects. If I was to make a lighter beer I would
think more seriously about racking off the trub.
This again brings up the main downside to fermenting in a keg.
When you rack the beer off the trub or yeast you can't see where
the beer ends and the gunk begins. So you either loose some
precious beer or you drag along some gunk. I've found one inch to
be a happy medium. I usually run the first liquid into a glass
until it runs clear of debris. Of course one could experiment
with different length tubs for different stages of fermenting and
for different recipes. But that's a little to nerdy for me.
Overall I much prefer fermenting in a keg than a five gallon glass
suicide device. Your choice.
- -- Robert A. Gorman (Bob) bob@rsi.com Watertown MA US --
- -- Relational Semantics, Inc. uunet!semantic!bob +1 617 926 0979 --
------------------------------
Date: Fri Mar 15 11:00:18 1991
From: semantic!bob@uunet.UU.NET
Subject: How to use Isinglass??
All this talk about isinglass brings up an old question of mine:
"What's the proper way to prepare, store and use isinglass?"
I've done some research in my homebrew books and most say to follow
the directions on the package. I bought some in bulk form (not
pre-packaged). One makes reference to adding an acid to help
dissolve the isinglass.
Anybody know anything about isinglass other than that it comes from
fish guts?
- -- Robert A. Gorman (Bob) bob@rsi.com Watertown MA US --
- -- Relational Semantics, Inc. uunet!semantic!bob +1 617 926 0979 --
------------------------------
Date: 15 Mar 91 12:34:00 EDT
From: "DRCV06::GRAHAM" <graham%drcv06.decnet@drcvax.af.mil>
Subject: Sassafras and Cancer
When I was getting my masters in public health, I was alarmed at the amount
of things that were being discovered as carcinogens. I am naturally the
suspicious type, so I started investigating the research methods. What I
fuond was a sad state of affairs. I don't want to digress too far here,
and I don't want to start a war. (If you dislike what I'm saying, flame me
personally, I'll be happy to debate you.)
I would go ahead and use sassafras with impunity, just as I would use red
dye number two and cyclamates, were they available. Just because some
substance produces cancer in lab rats when administered in absurdly huge
quantities does not mean they are unfit for human consumption. All this
is, of course, strictly my opinion, but in my opinion, the only thing that
causes cancer in rats is experimentation itself.
Dan Graham
Relax, have a homebrew and some aldebutyl pyrenes. (produced when steaks
are char broiled, supposedly carcinogenic, and delicious!)
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 15 Mar 91 11:04:19 MST
From: Rick Myers <cos.hp.com!hpctdpe!rcm@hp-lsd>
Subject: Engine rebuilding, cams, etc.
Full-Name: Rick Myers
> I believe the problem at the low end has something to do with
> a process called scavenging, where the departing exhaust gasses
> help pull in the fuel mixture. I always changed to a cam with good
> overlap when I was doing performance machines, and never had
> a problem. Then again, I never *just* added headers.
> Steph
>
Cams with much overlap are designed for power, not low-end torque.
High torque (RV-type) cams usually have no overlap whatsoever, at the
expense of losing power at higher RPM's. With no overlap, there is a
good vacuum produced in the cylinder before the intake valve opens,
thus, when it does, it really sucks in the fuel/air mixture. This is
especially important at very low RPM. If the fuel/air velocity is
not kept high at low RPM, then the mixture condenses on the walls of
the intake manifold, causing stumbling and rough running (i.e. low
torque). Cams with a lot of overlap do not run well at low RPM - hence
the familiar 'loping' idle of 'fast' cars...
Agreed, *just* adding headers is not the right thing to do. Headers
are just one part of the whole system. Changing one part of the system
will usually require tweaking of another part of the system. If you change
the camshaft, then headers will make more sense since the engine will
be able to 'breathe' better. This means that a carburetor jetting
change will be required, too!
Rick 'amateur mechanic with some engine building experience' Myers
- --
Rick Myers rcm@hpctdpe.col.hp.com
Hewlett-Packard
Colorado Telecommunications Division
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 15 Mar 91 13:19 EST
From: "Eric Roe" <KXR11@PSUVM.PSU.EDU>
Subject: Copper counterflow chillers
Regarding the use of copper tubing for wort chillers, I believe it's the
way to go. As mentioned in other posts, copper has a much better heat
exchange rate that stainless steel. Copper is also easy to work with. If
you're making your own chiller, sweating connections is a fairly simple
procedure (not to mention kinda fun). Stainless is hard to work with and
expensive. Also, I don't believe you can solder stainless -- you either
have to weld it, use a compression fitting, or have the ends threaded.
Since copper has had quite a long history with brewing I see no problems in
using it. I just wish I was lucky enough to have an eight gallon copper
kettle.
Also in HBD #597 Mike Zentner writes about using 1/4" OD tubing in his
chiller. I made the same mistake (Greg Noonan must be nuts to recommend
such small diameter tubing). Once I got the chiller assembled I decided to
test it by putting water through it. The flow rate was incredibly slow.
I was using 22' of tubing and I calculated it would take over an hour for
5 gallons of water to flow through. I didn't even think about the fact
wort would have a heavier gravity -- luckily I didn't try using it for my
beer. After the disappointing results I took it apart and replaced the
1/4" OD tubing with 3/8" OD tubing. The chiller worked much better with
the larger diameter tubing. Now I can cool 5 gallons in about 20 minutes.
The flow rate would be even faster if I just made a minor modification to
my system. I too would recommend using 3/8" OD tubing for making
counterflow chillers.
As for sterilizing, I fill the chiller with water and start a siphon. Then
I put the wort-in end into a pot of boiling water and let this flow through
the chiller. After the boiling water has flowed through I simply place the
wort-in end into the hot wort. I turn on the counterflow cold water, the
siphon continues, and voila, cold wort starts coming out. No muss, no
fuss; just make sure you don't interrupt the siphon at any of the above
stages.
Eric
<kxr11@psuvm.psu.edu>
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 15 Mar 91 10:06:46 cst
From: "Olzenak,Craig" <OLZENAK%GRIN1.BITNET@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU>
Subject: Misc.
Greetings All!
Thanks for the personal responses. My trip to the Pacific Northwest looks
full! Much to see AND taste.
John (Polstra) - I'm looking forward to our afternoon (Sun., 24 March). I'll
give you a call when I get into Seattle. Cooper's, the Red Door, Big Time,
et al!!!
Norm (Hardy) - Many thanks for the note on your winning pale ale. Hard to
beat the combination of pale and crystal malt (O.G. 45-50), Hawaiian golden
brown, cascade and goldings; all crisply perked through with Wyeast 1028. A
winner! To those out there who haven't seen the published recipe, see
Zymurgy Special Issue '89 (vol. 12, No. 4).
Mark (Castleman) - the Heartland club recently had a meeting in West Des
Moines. Damn, just missed you! Next one - Sunday afternoon, April 7. Drop
me a note with a street address and I'll post you a map. You and your
partner are very welcome. I'm sorry to say that I won't be at that meeting.
I'll be up judging in Madison's Big and Huge regional competition. Also put
this date - Saturday, May 4, National Homebrew Day - in your book. We'll
meet at that time.
All for now,
Craig Olzenak
Heartland Homebrew Club
Grinnell, Iowa
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 15 Mar 91 12:45:12 EST
From: eisen@kopf.HQ.Ileaf.COM (Carl West x4449)
Subject: Whitbread Ale yeast
I've sampled a number of very different brews made with Whitbread Ale yeast
and have found them all to have a sharpness that is not what I'm looking for
in my brewing. I'm looking for a `breadier' flavor from the yeast. For example,
Catamount (amber?) has the sharp flavor, O'Keef's from a corner store in
Montreal had the bread flavor. Could anyone suggest a brand of yeast that
might get me what I want?
Hmmm, I wonder, might Canadian not-for-export beers have culturable yeasts?
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 15 Mar 1991 15:00 EST
From: BAUGHMANKR@CONRAD.APPSTATE.EDU
Subject: US Open Homebrew Competition
Hey, Guys. A reminder about the U.S. Open Homebrew Competition.
-----------------------------------------------------------
THE U.S. OPEN HOMEBRREW COMPETITION
Hosted by the CArolina Brewmasters
April 27 & 28, 1991 !!! Charlotte, NC !!! Don't miss it !!!
ENTRIES: due by April 12, fee is $5.00/ENTRY, 3 bottles/entry
Send entries to: U.S. OPEN HOMEBREW COMPETITION
c/o Alternative Beverage
114-0 Freeland Lane
Charlotte, NC 28217
The Beer Judge Certification Test will be given in Charlotte
on Fri. April 26.
If you would be interested in judging (AHA & HWBTA
Sanctioned), e-mail me at BAUGHMANR@CONRAD.APPSTATE.EDU)
Should you have any further questions, contact Doug MacKay at
(704) 376-4916, out Competition Organizer, who can also help
you with lodging information.
SPRINGFEST '91 happens during our competition, which will
allow guests from out of town to join with hundreds
of thousands of people and artists from all over the country
for a weekend of music and sunshine.
See you in Charlotte!!!!
- -------------------------------------------------------------
Cheers,
Kinney Baughman : Beer is my business and
baughmankr@conrad.appstate.edu : I'm late for work.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 15 Mar 91 11:51:21 PST
From: kentfo@polari (Kent Forschmiedt)
Subject: Sassafrass
When you put tree bark or roots in your boil, you will get tannins in
your wort, producing unpleasant flavors. The thing to do is to crunch
the stuff up and put it in a nylon or cheesecloth bag the way you would
your specialty grains, and steep the stuff in the wort as it is heated
to boiling, removing it when the liquid begins to boil.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 15 Mar 91 12:33:17 PST
From: figmo@mica.berkeley.edu (Lynn Gold)
Subject: Cream Ale Recipes, anyone?
I adore Genesee Cream Ale. The local distributor of the stuff got
bought out by the Coors distributor, and I'm told it's highly unlikely
I'll ever get the stuff out here again. The only other Cream Ale I've
seen out here was Little Kings, and I'm not too thrilled with it.
Does anyone out there have a good recipe for Cream Ale? I'm due to do
some brewing again soon, and I'm running out of my Gennie supply in
real time.
Thanks,
- --Lynn
P.S.--For those of you who've tried to FTP the recipe file and have found
you can't, well, it's not your fault. Send me email, and I'll mail you
a copy of the file.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 15 Mar 91 12:09:09 PST
From: kentfo@polari (Kent Forschmiedt)
Subject: Re: Homebrew Digest #594 (March 12, 1991)
This is a very enthusiastic plug for the best brewing supply store in
Seattle, Brewers Warehouse. They have a very broad selection of fresh
Wyeast (I bought a packet of 1056 dated March in the third week of
February), a couple of dozen varieties of hops, fresh and pellet, lots
of different grains, the usual variety of extracts plus an Aussie extract
that they package in bulk, and piles of other supplies, books, accessories
and gadgets. They sell complete mashing systems, cornelius keg systems,
etc, etc...
They sell a "grain card" - you pay for 50 lbs up front, then get it in
whatever quantities you want, fresh when you want it. Grain card prices
are $.80/lb for klaages and $1.00/lb for other grains. Pay-as-you-go
prices are a bit higher.
For a catalog and accurate info, call or write:
Brewers Warehouse
4520 Union Bay Place NE
Seattle WA 98105
(206)527-5047
No affiliation, just a satisfied customer...
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 15 Mar 91 16:48:43 EST
From: Pete Soper <soper@encore.com>
Subject: evaporative cooling
Last July I tried using a wet T-shirt for cooling. Here is a slightly
truncated repeat of the posting about that.
This is a followup about evaporative cooling of fermenters. I recently [7/90]
started a porter fermenting and since my fridge was tied up with lagering
another beer I couldn't use it. So I used the wet T-shirt trick but this time
I instrumented everything to track the actual temperatures. Note that I had a
little fan blowing air on the T-shirt constantly and the fermenter (7 gallon
glass holding 5.6 gallons of wort) was in a pan of water so the shirt was
constantly wicking water up. Also, this was in a small bathroom which was
kept with the A/C vent open fully and the door shut all the time. Outdoor
highs were generally upper-80s to mid-90s and lows were around 65. The house
A/C thermostat was set at 77 degrees. I had a thermometer under the T-shirt
and in contact with the glass of the fermenter, an electronic thermometer
probe in the wort and a third thermometer to measure the overall bathroom
temperature. In addition I took rough measurements of the time between
fermentation lock "glubs". Here is what I measured:
Day inside under in lock glubs
bathroom T-shirt wort per minute
0,1pm 65 59 75 0
0,8pm 65 59 65 1
1,8am 71 66 67 10
1,6pm 68 62 63 30
2,8am 71 66 68 120
2,6pm 65 60 62 90
2,8pm 65 60 62 40
3,8am 71 66 68 30
3,6pm 65 61 62 2
4,8am 68 65 65 4
4,6pm 64 61 61 2
5,8am 69 64 65 2
5,5pm 64 60 61 1
6,8am 70 65 65 1
I was concerned with getting the wort temperature down after pitching since
it is against my religion to exceed 70 degrees with an ale fermentation and
my tap water was so warm my chiller wouldn't do any better than 75. Anyway, I
was pouring water on the T-shirt to augment the wicking action and hoping for
the best when I put the thermometer in the wort a few hours later. I was amazed
to see that the wort had cooled 10 degrees in 7 hours. Despite the large drop
in temperature I had CO2 production after just a few hours and a nice cover of
foam a few hours after that. Except for the first few hours I relied on the
wicking action of the shirt to keep it wet. Note that it is important that the
shirt be all-cotton or as close to this as possible. The more polyester in the
shirt the less effective the wicking will be.
One observation is that when the temperature outside the house was high the
A/C ran a lot which pumped a lot of cold, dry air into the bathroom containing
the fermenter. As can be seen, the wort temperature was driven down at the
end of each day's A/C activity and warmed back up overnight when the A/C was
almost idle (and the air in the bathroom grew warm and damp).
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------
Pete Soper (soper@encore.com) +1 919 481 3730
Encore Computer Corp, 901 Kildaire Farm Rd, bldg D, Cary, NC 27511 USA
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 13 Mar 91 12:25:17 PST
From: Martin A. Lodahl <pbmoss!malodah@decwrl.dec.com>
Subject: Terms of Embeerment (ugh!)
In HOMEBREW Digest #595, Nik Subotic asked:
> ... As I looked
>over the sheet, I must admit that I don't quite understand some
>nomenclature and symbols. The questions are:
>
>Under the "Malts, Grains and Adjuncts" area, there is a column
>reserved for a quantity in units oL (degrees L)? I'm not familiar
>with this unit convention. Anyone have an idea?
"Degrees Lovibond" is a means of measuring the color contribution of
the grain to the finished wort. Crystal malt, for example, is
available in 20, 40, 60, .... 120 degree L gradations, and for all I
know, others. If you're brewing to a specific style and need to
match a color standard, you really need to know what the color
contribution of each component will be.
>Under the "Prodedure" section there are some unfamiliar terms:
>"Mash-in, Acid Rest, and Mash-out." ...
Mash-in: The initial mixing of grain & water. In thicker mashes,
also known as doughing-in. The distinction between the two, as I
understand it, is that in mashing-in, grain is added to water, and
in doughing-in, water is added (gradually) to grain. The result, in
any case, should be that all grain is wetted with warm water, and no
dry pockets remain.
Acid rest: Not commonly used now (but possibly about to see a
revival, after Papazian's "Sour Mash" article in the latest
Zymurgy), this process involves holding the grain at a mildly
warm temperature to enhance the growth of lactic acid-producing
bacteria on the grain husks. This would rather effectively lower
the pH of the mash.
Mash-out: The process of heating the mash to 168F or so, to stop
enzyme action and liquify the sugars for a more efficient sparge.
A couple of weeks ago I gave a copy of the column I'd written for
the brewclub (Gold Country Brewers' Association) newsletter to a
friend to proofread, as I value her considerable skill with the
English language. Her reaction made me aware of just how
specialized the brewer's vocabulary is ...
= Martin A. Lodahl Pacific*Bell Staff Analyst =
= malodah@pbmoss.Pacbell.COM Sacramento, CA 916.972.4821 =
= If it's good for ancient Druids, runnin' nekkid through the wuids, =
= Drinkin' strange fermented fluids, it's good enough for me! 8-) =
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 14 Mar 91 10:57:48 PST
From: Martin A. Lodahl <pbmoss!malodah@decwrl.dec.com>
Subject: More On Extract Efficiencies
In HOMEBREW Digest #595, Mike Fertsch wrote:
>I use a 5 gallon igloo cooler to do my mashing and sparging. I get around
>30 points per gallon. I've found that extract efficiency depends on grain
>type. I've had bad luck with American 2-row Klages (25-27 points per
>gallon), but get 30-31 points on English 2-row. Imported grains cost more,
>but, IMHO, are worth it because they give better extraction, and less grain
>is needed.
I do stovetop step mashing (primarily), and typically get around 35
points per pound per gallon from American 2-row pale malted barley
(presumably Klages-based lager malt), and 32.5 points from English
2-row ale malts. Clearly, different equipment & methods produce
different results. My lauter tun is made from a 7-gallon
tapered cylindrical wastebasket, with a false bottom made from
a discarded soap bucket, lined with a jellymaker's straining bag.
>In addition, I've just started tracking sparge times - slower
>sparges give better extraction. With my equipment, I've noticed that
>bigger batches (5 gallon) give a better yield that small (3 gal) batches.
>I suspect that the depth of the grain bed affects extraction.
I can't claim to have quantified it, but I have the same impression
about the relationship of flow rate and extraction. I now
recirculate wort until the flow suddenly slows, before beginning the
sparge. I get both clearer wort and better extract that way. And
I've clearly seen the same effect as Mike when brewing small batches,
and suspect the same cause.
>The real bottom line is that the taste tells the tale, and that extraction
>rate doesn't matter. I feel that beers with good extraction rates are
>cleaner and better tasting than those with low extracts.
Mike, you are obviously a gentleman, a scholar, and a lover of fine
beer; and there's damn few of us left!! ;-)
= Martin A. Lodahl Pacific*Bell Staff Analyst =
= malodah@pbmoss.Pacbell.COM Sacramento, CA 916.972.4821 =
= If it's good for ancient Druids, runnin' nekkid through the wuids, =
= Drinkin' strange fermented fluids, it's good enough for me! 8-) =
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 15 Mar 91 12:33:33 PST
From: kentfo@polari (Kent Forschmiedt)
Subject: 6 oz bottles
Try calling the Bridgeport Brewery in Portland, Oregon. They bottle
their barley wine in 6 ouncers, and might tell you where to get them,
or even sell you a couple of cases. I vaguely remember asking them
myself two years ago and being horrified at the price.
------------------------------
Date: Sat, 16 Mar 91 16:00:54 EST
From: "Jeffrey R." <ST801977@brownvm.brown.edu>
Subject: Starting up
Anyone:
Some friends and I are thinking about brewing beer at home. I would be
grateful for any information you could give me about setting up and any
stores which sell the proper equipment and the best place to get
recipes. (Preferably in the NYC New England Area - or mail order).
Also an estimate of the initial costs of starting. Thanks a lot.
JEFF
(ST801977@brownvm.brown.edu)
------------------------------
End of HOMEBREW Digest #598, 03/18/91
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