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HOMEBREW Digest #1786
This file received at Hops.Stanford.EDU 1995/07/20 PDT
HOMEBREW Digest #1786 Thu 20 July 1995
FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
Rob Gardner, Digest Janitor
Contents:
Re: Welding Gases. (David and Carol Smucker)
Decompressing HBD files (Philip Gravel)
Orberdorfer Weiss ("Milton John Hodgson")
God (sorry) bless the collective (TRoat)
Challnger/foamy bottling/ChemPro (TRoat)
Dirty Demi-John (DocsBrew)
Does Cara-Pils Contribute to High FG? (Steven W. Schultz )
Liquid gauge on corny keg (Matt_K)
Cloudy Icky Beer (James Brill)
Posting (Dan.D.Murphy)
homebrew on campus (FLATTER)
us open (WOLFF)
Airlocks/Gott false bottoms (Sandy Cockerham__Mc625__6-0412)
Increasing Alcohol Content (Drago James MAJ)
RE: homebrew on campus (Jay Weissler)
Maltmill RPM? (Jeffrey B. Bonner)
Judging - Addendum (Ray Daniels)
Wort Dilution (Don Rudolph)
Great Brit Beer Fest (Ray Daniels)
London water (Algis R Korzonas)
Using the HBD Archives ("Stephen E. Hansen")
RE: Wheat and Wyeast 3944 (Randy M. Davis)
Beer in Space (Mark Parshall)
Reusing trub from first generation... ("Bessette, Bob")
Mycobrewery FungiCider (krkoupa)
Re: #1(2) Homebrew Digest #1783 (July 17, 1995) (GeepMaley)
Aeration and religeon (PERSAND)
Munich 1 (A. J. deLange)
re: 100% unmalted grains (Andrew J Donohue)
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----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Mon, 17 Jul 1995 20:53:11 -0400
From: smucker@use.usit.net (David and Carol Smucker)
Subject: Re: Welding Gases.
>Watch out, I am about to spout heresy. I oxygenate with oxygen from
>my cutting torch and NO filter. I have not had any sort of infections
>or off flavors.
>
>dion
>
>Dion Hollenbeck
I am with Dion, here too. I have been using welding oxygen for several years
with
very good results. In fact going to pure O2 rather than air has been the single
most important improvement I made in my brewing. It really helps that yeast get
growing.
I using welding CO2 also for what it is worth. I have a 50 pound tank,
lasts about
a year and I use it for lots of things.
For oxygen, in general, there are three grades, Industrial, USP, and Aviator's
breathing. All three grades are 99.5% minimum purity with the Industrial and
the USP being the same gas with a maximum moisture of 50 ppm. and a dewpoint
of -54 F. The aviator's breathing O2 has a maximum moisture of 6 ppm and a
dewpoint of -83 F. So what is the difference between the Industrial
(welding) and the USP. Nothing except that
by law the cylinder that contains the O2 can never have been used for anything
except O2. Since the other possible welding gases that use the same type of
cylinders
are argon, helium and nitrogen I don't worry very much.
Almost the same story for CO2 but that is for another tread.
David E. Smucker, Knoxville, Tennessee, USA
<smucker@use.usit.net>
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 17 Jul 95 20:51 CDT
From: pgravel@mcs.com (Philip Gravel)
Subject: Decompressing HBD files
===> TRoat@aol.com asks about decompressing HBD archive files:
>Q1: I can not seem to successfully decompress the HBD archive files. They
>have .z extensions (Lempel-Ziv encoding) but the ZOO program I was told to
>use keeps telling me ALL the HBD asrchive files are corrupted (fatal error).
When you do the FTP get from the archives, leave off the .Z from the
file name and the FTP server will automatically decompress the file
before sending it. Thus if the file is named "my_file.txt.Z", use the
following command:
ftp> get my_file.txt
- --
Phil
_____________________________________________________________
Philip Gravel Lisle, Illinois pgravel@mcs.com
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 17 Jul 1995 22:46:00 -0400 (EDT)
From: "Milton John Hodgson" <hodgsonm@pilot.msu.edu>
Subject: Orberdorfer Weiss
Orberdorfer Dark Weiss: I'm looking for a recipe for this beer. I think it is
great stuff but the price is outragious. If anyone has a recipe I would in in
your dept if you could send me a copy via privat e-mail. If anybody is
interested in my results drop me a line and I'll send along any resopnces I
get.
Thanks in advance.
Milt
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 1995 07:56:13 -0400
From: TRoat@aol.com
Subject: God (sorry) bless the collective
No religious thread support intended. Thanks for all the "Trouble
decompressing HBD Archive file" responses. I got alot. Will try each
suggestion in order and go with the first one that works. Also, alot of
support for my moldy beer situation. I was encouraged. Several e-mails
asked that I keep them posted. So....while generating positve thoughts, I
popped off the airlock to bottle the beer and, despite the thin top layer of
mold (or possible yeast stuff as one suggested), the beer smelled GREAT!
Even tasted like beer. Final proof to come in 2 weeks at tasting. Who said
a little mold was a bad thing (smile). As usual, patience and a worry-free
attitude prevail.
Thanks all
Todd (Cincinnati)
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 1995 08:11:11 -0400
From: TRoat@aol.com
Subject: Challnger/foamy bottling/ChemPro
Each question answered seems to generate three new ones:
Q1: used Challenger hop plugs for a Bass bastardization (thanks Pumazed!)
but could only order 7 oz from Williams Brewing. Now I have 5 oz left over
with no idea what recipe to use them in. Anyone have a good ale recipe that
uses Challenger?
Q2: "A run for cover ferment" caused me to lose almost one gallon of beer
to blowoff. Woke up in the A.M. to find the kitchen counter covered in
blowoff beer. Ouch! Gestimated priming sugar for the now only about 4
gallons at 1 cup DME (since 5 gal gets 1 1/4). However, at bottling each
bottle was topped by a head; no matter how carefully I filled. Never had
this happen before using a filler. Anticipate problems or just good beer?
Q3: Am I the only one in the world to use Chem-Pro cleaner/sanitizer. Its
what my local store carries (also Williams Brewing) but I never hear of
anyone else using/referencing it. Anyone have an opinion (silly question
asking homebrewers if they have an opinion). Is it an effective sanitization
choice?
P.S. In response to the blowoff liquid thread, I was told to use, and so do
use, Potassium or Sodium metabisulfide in my blowoff vessel water. It
"inhibits" bacterial growth. Anyone use this? And why should I continue or
discontinue using it?
If you all come over, I've got a good Bass Bastardization for you to try -
not enough chairs though.
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 1995 08:22:05 -0400
From: DocsBrew@aol.com
Subject: Dirty Demi-John
In the July 17 hbd, harry bush asked how to clean up this glass:
>I have a 15? gal. glass Demi-John that will not come clean. It has
>milky-white (mineral?) stains on (or in, I can't tell) it. I haven't tried
Well, caustic soda is a good thing to try, but if yo don't have any, or don't
want to lose a part, try this:
Sprinkle in some ajax (no affiliation, blah) and a little water, then add a
handful of BBs, and swirl it 'round. They provide enuf grit, and enuf
control, to help scrub it away. Good luck - and let us know how you handled
it.
Doc.
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 95 8:37:42 EDT
From: Steven W. Schultz <swschult@cbda9.apgea.army.mil>
Subject: Does Cara-Pils Contribute to High FG?
I recently made a batch of brew involving two 3.75 lb. cans of
Cooper's Real Ale, and two packets of the dry kit yeast, re-hydrated. Had
vigorous fermentation for 2-3 days, then it stopped at 1.024. I have
re-aerated the wort (probably to the point of terminal oxidation), but
still-- 1.024. I've also added more dry yeast. Tonight I'm adding a 1.5
qt. yeast starter, made from Wyeast Ale Blend (1087?). This is my final
attempt. After this I will just bottle it, irrespective of FG, and take
my chances.
In a recent edition of Zymurgy, someone tested this recipe and
had, if I remember correctly, an FG of 1.012. My only deviations from the
recipe were adding 4 oz. of wheat malt (my standard addition to every
recipe, for head retention), a pound of crystal malt, and about one-half
pound of cara-pils. I know cara-pils adds body - that's why I tried using
it for the first time - but does it make for a high FG?
One more question-- what, exactly is in the Wyeast Ale blend?
Steve Schultz
Aberdeen, MD
P.J. O'Rourke was right...
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 1995 09:46:26 est
From: Matt_K@ceo.sts-systems.ca
Subject: Liquid gauge on corny keg
Greetings!
A friend asked me the other day is there is a gadget which would tell
him how much beer is left in his keg. I usually tell either by weight
or by the condensation that forms when you take the keg out of the
fridge for a while but he still wants some kind of gizmo. So,
gadget-heads, anyone know of anything?
TIA
Matt
in Montreal
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 1995 09:06:48 -0500 (CDT)
From: jbrill@unlinfo.unl.edu (James Brill)
Subject: Cloudy Icky Beer
The subject describes it. I recently made a Cream Ale with Wyeast,
etc. It has not settled out in about four days now. It remains
orangish and cloudy. It has a heavy taste that is a little bitter to
the smell and taste. You would not want to drink the stuff, it is
that bad. This is about the 15th brewing attempt and only the very
first one and this one have had this problem. The first one I drank
because I didn't know any better but this one I will not. It was
suspected that the problem with the first batch was the yeast. Can we
say this for sure, given the sketchy description? I don't have any
reading on the beer. It fermented for 10 days in glass at about 69
degrees. I waited until the bubbles in the airlock were more than one
minute apart. As I said, this method worked flawlessly on 13 previous
batches so I am hoping it isnt something I did. If it is I would sure
like to know. I hate pouring beer down the drain. Thanks, Jim
- --
James A. Brill Jr. \\ //
jbrill@unlinfo.unl.edu \\ \\// // If you're not outraged
University of Nebraska \\//\\// you're not paying attention.
free-lance homo sapien \/ \/
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 1995 15:27:05 +0100
From: Dan.D.Murphy@itb2.itb.itb.eirmail400.ie
Subject: Posting
See attached
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 1995 10:17:13 -0640
From: FLATTER%MHS@mhs.rose-hulman.edu
Subject: homebrew on campus
Greg Shannon writes:
What is far worse is that a college campus is a huge pit of IRRESPONSIBLE
BEHAVIOR! The most likely suspects for homebrewing IMO would be the Frats
which would greatly worry me.
The equal toleration of all religions...is the same as atheism.
Leo XIV
++++++++++++++
One of the fraternities came into the brew shop, looking for supplies for
a party they were having next weekend; but left when they found it
wouldn't be ready in a week. There are four colleges close to Terre
Haute. One had members that brewed, but I don't know it was ever served
for a party. From the limited view I have, it seems to be more effort
than any of them are willing to put forth just to save a few dollars. If
there's a resource more limited than money for college student, it's free
time.
- --------------
Neil Flatter Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
Chemistry - Math Chemistry Facilities Technician
Novell Supervisor 5500 Wabash Avenue 73
(812) 877 - 8316 Terre Haute, IN 47803-3999
FAX: 877 - 3198 Flatter@Rose-Hulman.edu
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 1995 11:22:00 -0400 (EDT)
From: WOLFF@eclus.bwi.wec.com
Subject: us open
I wish to publicly thank the Carolina Homebrewers, who sponsored the US
OPEN held 29 April 1995,for making a concerted effort in sending me
my ribbon and award for their competition. The original was lost
somewhere in transit and the president of the club ( Bruno W.) went
to great lengths to re-order my ribbon, etc. It is very
satisfying know that this competition was professionally managed and
I would recommend it highly to all brewers. Thanks again.
Bob Wolff
wolff@eclus.bwi.wec.com
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 17 Jul 1995 08:38:14 -0500 (EST)
From: Sandy Cockerham__Mc625__6-0412 <COCKERHAM_SANDRA_L@Lilly.com>
Subject: Airlocks/Gott false bottoms
Hi brewers,
I also use cheap vodka in all my airlocks. When placing one in a 'fermenting'
fridge or in a water bath where it is likely to "suck back", a good tip is to
fill your airlock with sterile cotton. (We use a sterile cotton plug in
laboratory settings for growing cultures.) Later you can change it over to
cheap vodka (or bleach if thats your choice.)
I use a plastic colander that I trimmed to fit inside my 5 gal. Gott for a
false bottom. Not a perfect fit (read- I don't whittle well.) but it works
for me. Cheap, too!
I just finished my summer school Criminal Law final. I am ready to brew!!
I will probably be making my first mead as my house is around 75 degrees F.
Hope to be able to set up a water bath, towel, fan evaporation bath and do
a pale ale yet this summer. I am really excited to have some brewing time!!
Good luck and good beer,
Sandy C.
From: COCKERHAM SANDRA L (MCVAX0::RX31852)
To: VMS MAIL ADDRESSEE (IN::"homebrew@hpfcmi.fc.hp.com")
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 95 12:44:44 EDT
From: tj2996@WESTPOINT-EMH2.USMA.ARMY.MIL (Drago James MAJ)
Subject: Increasing Alcohol Content
I am a relatively new extract brewer. I received an extract kit through the
mail for a wheat beer, and the instructions point out that it should yield a
beer with about a 3.5% A/C. It uses about 5# of liquid malt extract. I would
like to boost the alcohol content somewhat (maybe to 4.5% or so) without
significantly altering the flavor the recipe is designed to attain. Some
reading I have done has lead me to believe the easiest and most inexpensive way
to do this is to add corn sugar. I have about 1# available and I am considering
doing this. Do I need to add extra hops to keep the brew balanced? Is this
enough corn sugar to make a difference? Any other thoughts? Thanks.
JAMES P. DRAGO
MAJ, FA
ADMISSIONS MEDIA OFFICER
X5701
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 95 11:54:26 -0500
From: jay_weissler@il.us.swissbank.com (Jay Weissler)
Subject: RE: homebrew on campus
Greg Shannon said
>I felt that as a long-time college student (10 years worth) I
>needed to respond to Harry Bush's recent post. In fact, IMO, a
>college campus IS a breeding ground for communism, atheism, etc.
I guess that's a good a reason to hang around college for 10 years as
any. Really though, was this flamebait, tongue-in-cheek or what? I
can see the HBD getting spammed with this thread. (It pulled me out
of the wood work).
jayw
College motto: He came for the books but stayed for the beer.
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 95 10:05:29 PDT
From: Jeffrey B. Bonner <t3345@fel1.nfuel.com>
Subject: Maltmill RPM?
I am considering motorizing my Maltmill. Does anyone know the ideal speed (RPM)
should be? The mill in the Special 1992 issue of Zymurgy (Vol. 15, No.4) is
100 RPM. Is this the speed in general which the rollers rotate independent of
roller diameter (length, etc.)? Any all help would be appreciated. Private
email is ok. If I get a concenus, I will post the results. Thanks!
- --
Jeffrey B. Bonner - BWR Nuclear Engineering
SIEMENS POWER CORPORATION-NUCLEAR DIVISION
Engineering and Manufacturing Facility
2101 Horn Rapids Road, PO Box 130
Richland, WA 99352-0130
Office: (509)375-8741
Fax: (509)375-8006/8402
email: jbb@fred.nfuel.com (work)
nukebrewer@aol.com (home)
Current Project: KS1 Spent Fuel Pool Criticality Analysis
It often shows a fine command of language to say nothing.
------------------------------
Date: 18 Jul 95 13:38:14 EDT
From: Ray Daniels <71261.705@compuserve.com>
Subject: Judging - Addendum
Rick Garvin points out that scores should not be cast in stone before the
judges' discussion begins and I agree. In my original post, I didn't mean to
imply that the scores written down before the discussion begins can't be changed
- -- after all pencils are the weapon of choice when judging.
Scores can and should be changed on the basis of the discussion when wide
variances exist. I just believe that judges should go through their complete
evaluation process before the discussion begins. Seems like Rick and I are both
on the same wavelength here.
Regards,
Ray
------------------------------
Date: 18 Jul 95 13:51:12 EDT
From: Don Rudolph <DON@nova.mhs.compuserve.com>
Subject: Wort Dilution
Friends,
I am brewing an English Mild for a friend's wedding. I have a 5 gallon
brewery, but needed to brew a larger batch to get at least eight gallons.
My recipe yielded (after racking losses) about 6 gallons of 1.056 wort.
My first question is, how much water do I add to get a wort of final
gravity 1.035? Second, if I add 2.5 gallons of water, what would be my
starting gravity? Third, should I dilute before or after fermentation,
and why?
For those of you attempting to scale up to larger batches with the same
equipment, be VERY conservative in your estimate of extract efficiency.
Mine went WAY down when using my mash/lauter tun to full capacity. I
didn't have enough room in kettle to adequately sparge. Also, when
racking a high gravity wort, you leave behind a lot more extract than a
more dilute wort.
Thanks for your help!
Don Rudolph
Seattle, WA
don@nova.mhs.compuserve.com
------------------------------
Date: 18 Jul 95 13:49:30 EDT
From: Ray Daniels <71261.705@compuserve.com>
Subject: Great Brit Beer Fest
Five or six folks from the Chicago Beer Society are headed to this year's GBBF
in London. (Aug 1 - 5.)
Anyone else going?
Anyone have sites, pubs, breweries, etc. to recommend for our agenda?
Also, if you have any recommendations regarding accomodations, please contact
me.
Thanks,
Ray Daniels
71261.705@compuserve.com
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 95 12:56:50 CDT
From: korz@pubs.ih.att.com (Algis R Korzonas)
Subject: London water
AJ writes (I edited a bit):
London City Desired
ION WT DESIRED
Ca 1.00 90.000
Mg 1.00 6.000
Na 1.00 22.000
K 1.00 0.000
CO3 0.00 82.000
SO4 1.00 24.000
Cl 1.00 10.000
H 1.00 2.831
But I think that the CO3 is far too low. I'll tell you my reasoning.
London was famous for its dark beers and this was because they had
trouble making pale beers. The CO3 was presumably too high (at least
I believe that's why -- does someone have other data?). Now, I have
about 105ppm of CO3 in my water, less Ca than the listed London City
water and can make perfectly good pale ales without any additions of
any brewing salts or acids. Great conversion with nothing but water
and Pale Ale malt and 30+ ppg. So what gives?
Al.
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 1995 13:02:39 -0700
From: "Stephen E. Hansen" <hansen@hops.Stanford.EDU>
Subject: Using the HBD Archives
Almost every ftp site of any size has a README file. The HBD archives
at ftp.stanford.edu has one (actually it has several, but that's another
story). If you do what it asks (i.e. download and read it), it will
tell you about the compression techniques used and how to go about
getting the ftp server to decompress some of them for you. It also
lists the available files. Get /pub/clubs/homebrew/beer/README.
[ The only thing that annoys us software types more than having to
write documentation is questions from users who won't read the
documentation. :-) ]
Stephen Hansen
homebrewer, archivist
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Stephen Hansen, homebrewer | The church is near, but the road is icy.
Stanford University | The bar is far away, but I will walk carefully.
hansen@Hops.Stanford.EDU | -- Russian Proverb
http://www.stanford.edu/~hansen
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 1995 14:44:25 MDT
From: Randy M. Davis <rmdavis@mocan.mobil.com>
Subject: RE: Wheat and Wyeast 3944
The other day Mark Kirby asked a couple of questions about the use of
unmalted wheat and wyeast 3944 in Witbier. I have very limited experience
with the use of unmalted wheat (two batches so far) but I have learned
a bit along the way.
I aquired about 30 pounds of wheat direct from a prairie farm and that is
what I used n my first attempt. I can only assume that this will be a very
hard variety as that is what we grow here. I crushed the wheat about the same
as I do malt and soaked it for an hour in hot water prior to mashing with
Canadian 2-row 40%/60% along with some flaked oats as per most recipes. The
result was a trouble free sparge but very poor extraction, almost no
contribution from the wheat. I used rests at95, 120, 126, 130, 154 and 168
deg.F. My usual yields are very respectable but I just could not seem to
convert the wheat.
On the second try I used wheat from a Health Food store and not only crushed
it but boiled the 5 pounds for 15 minutes in 8 quarts of water prior to
mashing in. This time I simplified the mash schedule with rests at 128, 140,
158 and 168. For the extra trouble of boiling I achieved a fractional
improvement in yeild but the result was still dissapointing.
In both cases, an iodine test indicated complete conversion. (??)
The first batch was fermented with Wyeast 3944 which does Not contribute
any "tanginess" as you suspected Mark, but has the usual clove etc. of wheat
beer yeasts. I am sure that there is no lactcobacillus present in this product.
The second batch was fermented with Blanche de Bruges yeast that I grew from
a bottle. This yeast behaves exactly the same as Wyeast 3944 which is to say
very actively with a large crop of yeast on the surface that lasts for days
and days. I would say that there is a good chance that they are the same.
I am still experimenting at this point but I would say that the wheat should
not be crushed to flour or sparge problems might result. I would also say that
to come up with an authentic tasting Witbier some lactic acid should be added
(pick your own method) or the result will not be sufficiently tart. If anyone
has any ideas on the poor yield I am experiencing with the wheat I would be
grateful for suggestions.
- --
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Randy M. Davis rmdavis@mocan.mobil.com Calgary Canada (403)260-4184 |
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 95 13:44:16 -0700
From: markus@pyramid.com (Mark Parshall)
Subject: Beer in Space
Truth is funnier than fiction...
To boldly drink what no man has drunk before...
This week, a million fraternity brothers rushed to join NASA. The
reason: scientists have discovered beer in space.
Well, not beer exactly. But they did find alcohol: ethyl alcohol, to be
precise, the active ingredient in all major alcoholic drinks (antifreeze
Jell-O shots, quite obviously, are exempted from this category). Three
British scientists, Drs. Tom Millar, Geoffrey MacDonald and Rolf Habing,
discovered this interstellar Everclear floating in a gas cloud in the
constellation of Aquila (sign of the Eagle, the mascot of Anheuser-Busch!
Hmmmmm).
Millar and his compatriots have estimated the size of this gas cloud at
approximately 1,000 times the diameter of our own solar system; there's
enough alcohol out there, they say, to make 400 trillion trillion pints of
beer. These guys are British, mind you; if you were to translate this in
terms of American beer (which the British, with some justification,
regard as fermented club soda), the amount of potential brewski just about
doubles.
In human terms: remember that double-keg party you threw at the end of
your Junior year in college (the second Junior year)? Imagine throwing
that same party, every eight hours, for the next 30 billion years. You'd
STILL
have beer left over. And boy, would YOUR bathroom be a mess! Simply
put, no one could ever drink 400 trillion trillion pints of beer, except
maybe L.A. Raiders fans.
The sheer volume of all this alcohol begs the question of how it
managed to get out there in the first place. Despite the simplifying effect
it has on the human brain, ethyl alcohol is a reasonably complex molecule:
two carbon atoms, five hydrogen atoms, and a hydroxyl radical, all cavorting
togetherin beery camaraderie. It's not a compund that is going to
spontaneously arise
out of the cold depths of space. It can lead to speculation: What is this
cloud?
1. It's God's beer. After all, He worked for six days creating the
universe, and on the seventh day, He rested. And after you've had a hard
week at the office, don't YOU grab a beer? Since man is made in God's image,
it could be that this cloud is the remaining evidence of the first,
best Miller Time.
2. It's Purgatory ("400 trillion trillion bottles of beer on the wall,
400 trillion trillion bottles of beer! Take one down, pass it around,
399,999,999,999,999,999,999,999,999 bottles of beer on the wall!")
3. Proof of an undeniably highly advanced but chronically dipsomaniac
alien society. This particular theory is shaky, however: it's reasonable
to assume that if the aliens were going to construct a nebula of alcohol,
they'd also have large clouds of Beer Nuts and pretzels nearby for snacking.
Advanced spectral analysis has yet to locate them.
The truth of the matter, however, is far more prosaic. In the middle of
this gas cloud is a young and no doubt quite inebriated star. As the star
heats up and contracts, sucking the dust and gas of the cloud into
a smaller area, complex molecules form as a result of greater intereaction
between the elements. Ethyl alcohol forms on small motes of dust in the
cloud,
and then, as the motes angle in closer towards the star and heat up, the
alcohol is released from the motes in gaseous form. And there you have it:
an
alcohol cloud. Or, as Dave Bowman might say, "My God! It's full of booze!"
Enough with the science lesson, you say. Just tell me how to GET there!
Sorry, Chuckles. You can't get there from here. The gas cloud (which,
by the way, has the utterly romantic name of "G34.3") is 10,000 light years
away: 58 quadrillion miles. Even if you hijacked the shuttle and headed out
with thrusters on full, by the time you got there, the guy in Purgatory
would be done with his tune. You'd have had time to work up a powerful
thirst, but you'd also be, in a word, dead.
No, the Space Beer Cloud will have to wait for the far future, when men
can leap through the universe at warp speed. One can only imagine
what they will do when they get there:
Captain Kirk: My....GOD! Sulu! What....is....THAT?
Sulu: It's a free floating cloud of alcohol, sir.
Kirk: And we've just run out of Romulan Ale! Could it be a trap, Bones?
Bones: Damn it, Jim! I'm a doctor, not a distiller of fine spirits!
Kirk: We need that booze! But if we fly through that cloud, we'll
be too drunk to drive!
Spock: May I remind you, Jim, that I am a Vulcan. We are a race of
designated drivers.
Kirk: Well, all righty, then. Spock, drive us through! Bones and
I will be out on the hull. With our mouths... open!
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 95 16:54:00 PDT
From: "Bessette, Bob" <bessette@msmailgw.uicc.com>
Subject: Reusing trub from first generation...
Fellow HBDers,
I recently made a batch of all-grain Pale Ale and I used the yeast dregs
from an old bottle that I had which I had started a few days prior to
pitching. Now what I would like to do is brew again in about a week and just
pour my cooled wort over my trub after I rack to my secondary. I understand
that this is a common practice. Should I expect a krausen to form fairly
quickly after pouring the cooled wort onto the trub? I usually get a fairly
quick krausen to form within 5-8 hours of pitching from the started dregs.
Is it worthwhile to do it this way? I guess I'm saving the time it takes to
make a starter and the cleaning of my carboy. Is the general concensus that
I should just use another bottle of yeast dregs and start it as I did
before? By pouring on top of the trub I would be using another generation of
yeast as well. I would appreciate experienced replies to this post. Please
send me private email and I will post results. TIA...
Bob Bessette Unitrode I.C. Corporation
Systems Analyst 7 Continental Blvd
Information Systems Dept Merrimack, NH 03054
Email Address: bessette@uicc.com
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 95 14:52:24 PST
From: krkoupa@ccmail2.srv.PacBell.COM
Subject: Mycobrewery FungiCider
This thread is from another part of the web, but I hope HBD can
address the brewing aspect. What if ... mushrooms (ordinary
edibles, nothing more) in beer?
What we know:
> You concluded that mushrooms have no sugars because they don't
photosynthesize. It's true that they don't photosynthesize, but
many mushrooms are in a symbiotic relationship (called
"mycorhizae") with host plants nearby in which they receive
photosynthetic sugars from the sap of the plant and bring water,
phosphorus and minerals to the plant in exchange. Also, mushrooms
grow through their food source and dissolve it with enzymes which
break down the source into components such as sugars and amino
acids. Most mushrooms break down cellulose into sugars and
re-assemble those sugars into long sugar chains (polysaccharides)
that form chitin, which is the main ingredient of a fungus. All
this is to say that mushrooms are constructed out of sugar! But
until the polysaccharides are broken down to mono or disaccharides,
they don't taste sweet, nor do they feed your yeast extra
fermentation food. So in considering a sweet flavoring from a
mushroom, it just won't happen. But aroma ...
Since my experience with mushrooms is mainly from eating them, not
from just sniffing them, I'll have to conjecture an answer for you.
It seems that dried mushrooms yield the most abundant aroma, and
they'd be easy to cook up/reconstitute in a more condensed form. So
here's my list of possible (but to me, mostly unlikely) candidates:
> Boletus edulis (cepes or porcini) - meaty aroma
> Polyporus sulphureus (chicken of the woods) - lemony/true
> chicken-like flavor, but also carries eucalyptus oils which
> are toxic to some people.
> oyster mushroom - fishy
> chanterelle - mild fruity/pumpkin-like Shitake (slightly
> seafoody
> Matsutake - a cross between red hots (candy) and sweaty socks -
> very prized by many mushroom hunters. (use w/ brettanomyces?)
> Lepiota rachodes - very distinctly beef-like smell
> Lactarius fragilis (candy cap) - maple syrup
With the above list, you can make your own decisions. Personally,
I'd only suggest the last mushroom, the candy cap. Remember that
it doesn't taste sweet, it only smells sweet, and it does truly
smell like maple syrup!
What we don't know:
1. How to convert mushroom polysaccharides into fermentable
sugars. If so, then treat mushrooms as a GRAIN in the mash/boil.
If not, then treat mushrooms as a FRUIT/HERB for aroma in the
post-primary fermenter.
2. WHY we want to attempt this experiment in the first place.
(I'm not trying to create a "style" by any means.)
Ken Koupal krkoupa@PacBell.COM
DIRECT flames accepted if this thread is inappropriate for HBD.
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 1995 19:59:40 -0400
From: GeepMaley@aol.com
Subject: Re: #1(2) Homebrew Digest #1783 (July 17, 1995)
In HBD 1783, Patrick Higgins wrote (regarding a steam beer):
"My question is, if I rack to the secondary and continue fermenting at 70
degrees, will this greatly effect the flavor? Or, immediately after
bottling if I were to place the bottles in the fridge and condition at 45
degrees, would this work?"
I have made two seperate batches of steam beer now using extracts and various
types of hops (Northern Brewer - boil/Cascade - finish in first;
Nugget/Nugget in second). The first batch was made last summer here in Texas
and was fermented a room temp (75-80) all the way through, while the second
was fermented in my brew fridge at 60-65. First batch came out with a
definite fruity quality instead of the expected bitterness, primarily due to
the temperatures. Second batch came out nicely bitter, no fruit taste. Could
be a factor of the Cascade finishing hops in the first batch, but I think it
was probably the fermenting temps that caused the fruity flavors in batch
one. Still a drinkable brew, however...
Geep
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 1995 20:14:11 -0400
From: PERSAND@aol.com
Subject: Aeration and religeon
Hi, all
A question about aeriation (sp?): I syphon my chilled wort from a height of
about three feet above my 6 gallon plastic fermentor. I get a huge crop of
foam which I stir in throughout the syphoning. I pitch my yeast starter
about half way into the process and usually have about a 10 to 12 hour lag
time @80f starting temp. I'll admit that occasionally the lag time is about
24 hours but in general is reasonable. Any comments on this method?
I've got a plug for Dave Drapers' yeast culturing instructions. It could not
be easier or more self-explainetory. I used it last week with very good
results. I had one problem which I asked Dave about and received a VERY
prompt reply-Thanks again, Dave!
Regarding the religeon thread: It died on its own-Any topic of interest will
be continued until redundant. Let's keep this forum open to any topic which
may relate to brew & brewing; any that are not appropriate will and should be
ignored.
Brewing in Morris since 1990
Paul Rybak
Morris, IL
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 1995 20:39:07 -0500
From: ajdel@interramp.com (A. J. deLange)
Subject: Munich 1
Munich 1
This is the fourteenth in a series of posts on the formulation
of waters similar to those of famous brewing cities of the world. They
are based on ion concentration profiles given by Dave Draper in
his post in #1704 (10 April 95). See my post "Water Series" (#1763) for
explanatory material (correction: in the Line 3 explanation read 1.8 ml of
1 N sulfuric acid, not 18 ml). Quick reminders: all ion concentrations and
salt quantities are in ppm which is the same as mg/l. The water to
which the salts are added is assumed to be ION FREE (i.e. it is
DISTILLED WATER or REVERSE OSMOSIS WATER).
This profile is attributed to Noonan in "Brewing Lager Beer" and is also
given by Richman in "Bock". As Richman points out this water is essentially
a solution of chalk with small amounts of other ions. He points out that Munich
Helles Bock brewers precipitate the chalk (with lime) after which the water
is comparable to that of Plzen. Leaving the question as to whether it is foolish
to put something into the water which is only later to be removed to the
individual brewer we offer the following formulation:
Formulation I
n: 1050000 Temp: 0.002941 Energy (rms %): 0.717163
Munich Desired Cations: 5.310 Anions: 2.254 mEq/L Ratio: 0.425
ION WT DESIRED REALIZED ERR, % SALTS AMOUNT
Ca 1.00 75.000 73.992 -1.34 NaCl 0.569
Mg 1.00 18.000 17.888 -0.62 Na2CO3.10H2O 4.158
Na 1.00 2.000 2.002 0.12 CaCL2 0.421
K 1.00 0.000 0.000 0.00 CaSO4.2H2O 6.285
CO3 1.00 148.000 149.667 1.13 CaCO3 180.742
SO4 1.00 10.000 9.979 -0.21 MgCL2 1.854
Cl 1.00 2.000 1.994 -0.28 MgCO3 56.744
H 1.00 2.974 0.000 -100.00 KCl 0.000
Na2SO4 3.431
MgSO4.7H2O 10.650
H2SO4 0.000
NaHCO3 0.000
HCl 0.000
Carbonic: 0.4822 Bicarbonate: 2.0101 Carbonate: 0.000962 mM
Total Required Hydronium: 2.9744 Sulfuric Hydronium: 0.0000 mEq
Hydrochloric Hydronium: 0.0000 mEq
2.9744 mEq additional hydronium required to maintain pH 7.00
Solubility Products - CaCO3: 8.70E-09 MgCO3: 2.60E-05
Ion Products - CaCO3: 1.78E-09 MgCO3: 7.08E-10
Alkalinity: 1.99 mEq; 99.31 ppm as CaCO3.
Temporary hardness: 4.99 mEq; 249.32 ppm as CaCO3
Permanent hardness: 0.18 mEq; 8.84 ppm as CaCO3
This formulation is quite accurate but requires a fair amount (3 mEq) of
external acid to bring the pH of the chalk to 7. This cannot be done
without external acid because the low allowable chloride and sulfate
specifications preclude the use of much hydrochloric or sulfuric acids
(Formulation I, given that external acid is allowed, choses to use neither
of these acids preferring to get sulfate and chloride from salts).
We don't like formulations which require more than the most readily
available salts and so do not recommend this one. As is usually the case in
these circumstances we have an alternative (from Hardwick - to be posted
next) but the alternative is substantially higher in chloride and in
sulfate to the point where we fear hops harshness. Therefore we offer the
simple salts formulation:
Formulation II
n: 1120000 Temp: 0.000958 Energy (rms %): 32.758305
Munich Desired Cations: 5.310 Anions: 2.254 mEq/L Ratio: 0.425
ION WT DESIRED REALIZED ERR, % SALTS AMOUNT
Ca 1.00 75.000 82.047 9.40 NaCl 0.000
Mg 1.00 18.000 2.819 -84.34 Na2CO3.10H2O 0.000
Na 1.00 2.000 2.003 0.13 CaCL2 0.000
K 1.00 0.000 0.692 0.69 CaSO4.2H2O 0.000
CO3 1.00 148.000 128.116 -13.44 CaCO3 204.893
SO4 1.00 10.000 11.139 11.39 MgCL2 0.000
Cl 1.00 2.000 1.992 -0.40 MgCO3 0.000
H 1.00 2.459 0.038 -98.43 KCl 1.320
Na2SO4 0.000
MgSO4.7H2O 28.577
H2SO4 0.000
NaHCO3 7.318
HCl 1.404
Carbonic: 0.4127 Bicarbonate: 1.7206 Carbonate: 0.000824 mM
Total Required Hydronium: 2.4590 Sulfuric Hydronium: 0.0000 mEq
Hydrochloric Hydronium: 0.0385 mEq
2.4205 mEq additional hydronium required to maintain pH 7.00
Solubility Products - CaCO3: 8.70E-09 MgCO3: 2.60E-05
Ion Products - CaCO3: 1.69E-09 MgCO3: 9.55E-11
Alkalinity: 1.70 mEq; 85.01 ppm as CaCO3.
Temporary hardness: 4.27 mEq; 213.42 ppm as CaCO3
Permanent hardness: 0.06 mEq; 2.88 ppm as CaCO3
We immediately see that the reason the full salt set was required was to keep
magnesium in spec and that by using the simple salt set we sacrifice magnesium
accuracy but maintain all the other ions pretty close to their desired levels.
As this formulation supplies plenty of magnesium from the point of view of
yeast
requirements and keeping Richman's remark about Plzen water in mind we feel
that
this formulation is probably a pretty good one for the brewing of Munich lagers.
We expect that the 2.4 mEq additional hydronium requirement could be met by
the malt in most cases.
A.J. deLange Numquam in dubio, saepe in errore!
ajdel@interramp.com
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 95 17:51:45 EDT
From: andy2@hogpa.ho.att.com (Andrew J Donohue)
Subject: re: 100% unmalted grains
In HBD #1781, I wrote:
>It seems that in Africa in general and Nigeria in particular quality
>malted barley is both rare and expensive due to the climate. To
>overcome this problem they have been experimenting with 100% unmalted
>grains such as sorghum corn & cassava and comercially produced
>auxiliary enzymes.
Then Bill wrote:
This is not entirely true. The grain sorghum used to brew African opaque
beer is malted. The adjuncts used in the brewing process (corn grits and
millet primarily) are indeed unmalted.
Bill Ridgely (Brewer, Patriot, Bicyclist) __o
I'm not an expert on this, but the whole subject of the cited
article is how they are now brewing with 100% unmalted grains
including sourghum. In 1988 the Nigerian government banned the
import of malt and apparently grain suitable for malting will
not grow in their climate.
I have no interest in brewing with sourghum. I posted this in
response to several requests for info about malting barley.
With auxiliary enzymes, available in your local homebrew store
maybe malting your own barley is unnecessary.
Andy Donohue
andy2@hogpe.ho.att.com
------------------------------
End of HOMEBREW Digest #1786, 07/20/95
*************************************
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