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HOMEBREW Digest #1798
This file received at Hops.Stanford.EDU 1995/08/03 PDT
HOMEBREW Digest #1798 Thu 03 August 1995
FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
Rob Gardner, Digest Janitor
Contents:
Re: Stirring w/ Immersion Chiller (Wim Hielkema)
Sparge now, boil later? /Best Corny $ /When order extract? (Brian Pickerill)
Low $$ Thermostats (Don Put)
Counterflow Wort Chiller (blacksab)
Recipe editor (Ed Hitchcock)
Zymurgy Counterpressure Filler Review (Kirk R Fleming)
bottles available (S M Casagrande)
Gambrinus wheat (Jim Busch)
RE: Strike Temperature Problems (david lawrence shea)
Hop utilization... ("Matthew W. Bryson")
Patron Saint of Brewing ("Edmund C. Hack")
Low cost aeration (Kinney Baughman)
Comments, please!! ("Harney,Alan")
RTV108 Silicone/High-class problems (Eric Peters (919) 405-3675)
Accessing the archives with ftpmail ("Stephen E. Hansen")
Stirring with an immersion chiller (Steve Armbrust)
Lambic Digest Address (Terry Terfinko)
sparging: worth it? (Eamonn McKernan)
Is There a Wine Digest? (Steven W. Schultz )
Superb gas burners (harry)
Good Places ("Laughlin-Linda")
HBD Browser for Windows (DHatlestad)
Mea Culpa! ("Patrick E. Humphrey 708-937-3295")
Tansy (Rolland Everitt)
gelatin asst; Patron of Brewers; Heineken Dark Clone ("Fr. Bradley A.M. Barber")
Clarifying with Gelatin (Tel 202-622-0079 )
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----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Tue, 1 Aug 1995 22:57:21 +0100
From: betonh@xs4all.nl (Wim Hielkema)
Subject: Re: Stirring w/ Immersion Chiller
Hello all,
Warning: This is my first posting to this forum.
In HBD 1996 Timothy P. Laatsch wrote about cooling wort with an immersion
chiller:
>Well, I'm a believer. Having been repeatedly frustrated with the poor
>chilling rates I was getting with my immersion chiller, I decided to bite the
>bullet and stir while chilling. The risk of contamination had made me
>>hesitant, but I took every effort to minimize the risk. With 10 min
>remaining >in the boil, I popped in my immersion chiller to sanitize it.
After long considerations I finally decided to build an immersion chiller a
few months ago. Realizing that stirring the wort is essential for efficient
cooling with this type of chiller I came up with the following construction
which at the same time minimizes the risk of contamination. I wound 5
meters of 5/16 inch copper tubing into a double coil which was mounted
permanently into a (plastic) spare lid of my 30 liters enamel kettle. For
the mounting I used two plastic swivels (? I don't know if that's the
correct name for those things, they are normally used for fixating
electricity cables in junction boxes) with rubbers rings inside, so that
the chiller can swing freely in the kettle. When cooling the wort I just
wiggle the chiller at the hose connections to stir the wort. It takes 15-20
minutes of wiggling to cool 25 liters of boiling wort to 20 C this way
WITHOUT ever having to remove the lid. The lid/chiller is sanitized by
putting it in/on the kettle about 10 minutes before the end of the boil.
There is just one other hole in the lid through which the siphon is
connected, during the final boil and cooling this hole is covered with some
alumina foil.
I found this construction working so well that I don't consider building a
counterflow chiller anymore. No clogging problems and tedious cleaning of a
CF-chill for me :-).
FWIW, Wim.
PS. A good test to see the effect of stirring is to put the outgoing hose
of the chiller in a small glass together with a thermometer and watch the
temperature of the cooling water drop rapidly if you stop stirring and go
up again directly after resuming stirring, thus indicating that the heat
transfer is increased.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Wim Hielkema, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Organic chemist & homebrewer.
betonh@xs4all.nl, http://www.xs4all.nl/~betonh/
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 01 Aug 1995 16:31:04 -0600
From: 00bkpickeril@bsuvc.bsu.edu (Brian Pickerill)
Subject: Sparge now, boil later? /Best Corny $ /When order extract?
I really wanna do all-grain, but it's very difficult for me to get 6 or 7
hours free with my two kids (one's a newborn, so he's pretty demanding). I
always brew at night, and I usually can't get started untill around 9:30 or
10:00 so I'm up quite late. So, I was wondering if it would be possible to
get a decent brew by sparging one night and boiling the next. I could keep
the sparge in a couple of corny kegs until boiling time the following
night. I can't see where this would be a problem, but am I missing
something? Does
anyone do this? Maybe I should just stick to extract until the kids are
older.
Kudos to CWGT22C@prodigy.com (MR HENRY B BANKS) who sent me 2 soda kegs for
$15/each. Shipping was $13.50, but that is still a lot cheaper than any
other source I could find. He even sent them to me up front with an invoice!
Otherwise, I might have been nervous ordering from an individual, especially
since it took a couple of weeks for them to get here from New Mex. in the
huge box via UPS ground. (Standard disclaimer applies.)
Should I wait until after the crops come in before I order a case of NW
extract? Do they wait and malt some of the grain later so that it's fresh
all year, or what? I thought that extract was pretty stable, until I read
that some get slightly stale (and mostly just get darker) here on the HBD.
Being a homebrewer has meant that I appreciate the cold weather a LOT more.
Now I think I know why so many Germans settled in Indiana! I know that
beer is cited as an impetus for civilization, but I wonder how much it has
affected demographics? Hummmm. I'm eagerly awaiting for the fall brewing
season!
Cheers,
- --Brian K. Pickerill <00bkpickeril@bsuvc.bsu.edu> Muncie, IN
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 1 Aug 1995 16:42:58 -0700 (PDT)
From: Don Put <dput@cello.gina.calstate.edu>
Subject: Low $$ Thermostats
Douglas R. Jones is looking for some temperature control.
Here's the surplus buy of the month:
A BRAND NEW Johnson Controls walk-in reefer temperature controller with the
following specs.:
SPDT switch that closes on temperature rise OR temperature fall (it can be
used as a heating or cooling thermostat). The range is 20-90F with a fixed
differential of 5F (which is more than adequate for a beer frig). It can
handle 10 amps, 125 VAC, and it comes with a 15ft. capillary tube for
remote installations. It does not come with the metal box covering, however.
If you need to cover it, you can find an inexpensive gadget box at any
electronics supply store. This can be wired in place of your existing
reefer's thermostat, or you can wire and extension cord to it and use it like
a Hunter Airstat. The price? $7.95. It's item number 11-1868 on page
160 of the latest catalog from the Surplus Center (800) 488-3407. I have
used this type of thermostat for years without a problem. Actually, I
bought three and just installed one on a friend's (hello, Janice) frig
while I was up in Portland for the conference. It took all of about
10 minutes with a pair of pliers and a screwdriver (it's all I had; sorry,
Janice ;-).
don
"A long time ago, being crazy meant something."
-Charles Manson
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 01 Aug 1995 19:02:08 -0500
From: blacksab@siu.edu
Subject: Counterflow Wort Chiller
Hello again. I've been lurking in the Digest for a coupla months now, and
have finally given up on trying to solve all my problems by myself. I'm
starting to worry about inconsequential things--and since I've recently
moved and am building a new brewery (in a dedicated room), I don't have any
homebrew to relax with.:) I can handle the hardware part (I'm a remodeler, a
dumpster-diver, and an incurable packrat), but some of you all posess the
science that I don't have (I 'wasted' my time in college studying English
Lit and Philosophy).
Here's my question: I'm building a counter-flow wort chiller using scrounged
hardware along the lines of Phil's Phittings. Sitting before me are the
parts to build it with either 1/2-inch or 3/8-inch OD copper tubing. My head
is spinning with pros and cons--1/2-inch would be less likely to clog, and,
I suspect, easier to clean; but 3/8-inch would provide a greater relative
percentage of surface area in contact with the cooling water. I can't
decide. Does it really matter, and can I increase the efficiency of the
1/2-inch tubing by increasing the size of the outter-shell tubing? There's
got to be a formula, but none of my books get that specific. Any ideas,
suggestions? TIA!
I must tell you all that I've been telling all my beer friends back in
Chicago to check out HBD--this is BY FAR the best, most detailed information
on brewing that I've seen anywhere. You all have helped me greatly in the
design of my new brewery. The theory's the easy part, but the devil's in the
details. Thanks to all,
--Harlan Bauer
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 1 Aug 1995 22:06:14 -0300 (ADT)
From: Ed Hitchcock <ehitchcock@sparc.uccb.ns.ca>
Subject: Recipe editor
Version 1.4 of BEER Builder (aka BEER.EXE aka recipe-edit) has
been uploaded to the archives. It can be found at ftp.stanford.edu in
the pub/clubs/homebrew/beer/programs directory under the name
recipe-edit.zip. Thanks to all those who replied with comments on the
old version. It will now do Litres, US gallons or Imperial gallons, Kg
or pounds of malt, grams or ounces of hops, and extract in specific
gravity or degrees Plato. The glitch that locks you in an endless loop
in the ingredient database has also been fixed, as have a few other minor
glitches.
It is free, it runs under DOS, and no there is still no UNIX version
available :-)
ed
----------------
ehitchcock@sparc.uccb.ns.ca
the Pick & Fossil Picobrewery
Because there's more to life than just coffee
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 1 Aug 1995 23:22:57 -0600
From: flemingk@usa.net (Kirk R Fleming)
Subject: Zymurgy Counterpressure Filler Review
After having read subject review I drew the following conclusions:
1) There is no apparent correlation between the price of the various
counterpressure fillers and the amount of air they introduce into
the bottle
2) There is no apparent correlation between the price of the various
fillers and the amount of CO2 retained in the bottled beer, and
3) By far the best performance in limiting introduced air into
solution is obtained with the $.20 tube-in-the-faucet solution
4) All the commercial fillers have 2 to 3 orders of magnitude
higher cost than the tube-in-the-faucet solution
I found the only shortcomings of the tube-in-the-faucet system to be
a) highest lost CO2 of all systems reviewed
b) more mess (presumably) than all systems reviewed
c) very low "tech factor" (it's not cool)
I think one could effectively compensate for the lost CO2 by simply putting
more condition into the beer while in the keg and accepting the loss of CO2
during bottling.
Finally, I again raise the question of the value of the bottle oxygen purge.
Assuming flow into the bottle is not turbulent at the surface OR that the
surface of the beer going into the bottle is covered with a foam head, how
could purging the bottle of air be of any value whatsoever? After you remove
the filler (either type) from the mouth of the bottle, the remaining cavity
will contain a mix of air and CO2 in any case--you've just exposed it to the
atmosphere. The higher you fill the bottle, the greater the likelihood the
two will be the same--that is, the tube-filled bottle and the counter-pressure
filled bottles will have increasingly similar mixes of CO2 and oxygen as you
fill the bottles closer to the mouth. Arguments, anyone?
KRF Colorado Springs
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 1 Aug 95 15:54:05 EDT
From: smc@hotsa.att.com (S M Casagrande)
Subject: bottles available
I've got several cases of clean bottles (labels off) for anyone who
wants to pick them up in Colts Neck, NJ (no shipping, please). Most
are brown (Bass/Sam Adams), others are green (Becks). There are also a
few Grolsch (sp?) bottles and a few large (32oz?) brown bottles.
I'm moving out of the country for a few years, and they'll just hit the
trash if nobody wants them. I also have a few cans of M+F malt and
assorted goodies that I'll let go for the price of a six pack or two of
your brew.
Email, or call 908-946-0725 (H), 908-949-6737 (W). I'm not on the
HBD anymore.
Steve Casagrande
smc@hotsa.att.com
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Aug 1995 09:12:25 -0400 (EDT)
From: Jim Busch <busch@eosdev2.gsfc.nasa.gov>
Subject: Gambrinus wheat
> Gambrinus also makes a wheat malt that varies according to the wheat
> available. There was a local farmer grwoing a genetically low-protein
> wheat called Frankenmuth and it made the best wheat malt I've ever
Baltimore Brewing uses this for their weizen (or used to at least). It
is indeed excellent.
An interesting note to add. Old Dominion has released their summer wheat,
which is a hefeweizen. They use Briess Wheat malt. This malt had
protein levels hovering around 16%!! While this may make production
tricky (OD used 71% wheat and decocted), the results are still outstanding.
High protein levels are a factor in brewhouse process, but they dont preclude
the production of very good weizens.
Jim Busch
Colesville, Md
busch@mews.gsfc.nasa.gov
"DE HOPPEDUIVEL DRINKT MET ZWIER 'T GEZONDE BLOND HOPPEBIER!"
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Aug 1995 08:28:21 -0500 (EST)
From: david lawrence shea <dshea@indiana.edu>
Subject: RE: Strike Temperature Problems
Bob Bessette asked about consistancy in hitting target mashing temperature:
If I were you Bob, I would start with the water a little warmer, 173-175F.
A step that you might be leaving out is to add this water to the cooler,
put the lid on and let it sit for 5 - 10 minutes. This will heat up the
cooler walls and will stabilize temperatures more. When you measure the
temperature after this short time, usually the water has cooled to around
168-170F. For my setup, I usually get about a 14 degree drop. To hit a
temperature of 152, I would keep the lid off of the cooler until the water
temperature was at 167 or so and then add my grains. I would stir
thoroughly and close the lid and let the temperature stabilize in the
cooler. About 10 minutes or so, I check my temps. If it is slightly
higher than I want, than I stir until the temperature drops to the desired
temperature. Once I have hit my target, I put the lid on and usually lose
only one or two degrees over two hours, sometimes I don't lose any.
By heating the cooler before doughing, you will get much more consistant
results with your temperature drop calculations. I would also tend to
err on the higher side by a degree or two. You can always cool your mash
temperatures by keeping the lid up and stirring. Hope this helps.
David L. Shea
dshea@nickel.indiana.edu
Indiana University
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Aug 95 10:27:23 EDT
From: "Matthew W. Bryson" <MWBryson@LANMAIL.RMC.COM>
Subject: Hop utilization...
Mark Jones mentioned the article in " Brew Your Own Beer" about the
difference in hop utilization between a 6 gal. boil and a 3 gal. boil.
Correct me if I'm wrong( and I am sure that somone will), but I think it
has to do with the hop utilization based on gravity of the wort. A 3 gal.
volume containing all of the malt sugars will have a much higher spec.
grav. than a 6 gal. volume. This will affect the hop utilization.
All of our technical beer gurus feel free to chime in with numerically
specific info on this subject.
Matthew W. Bryson
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Aug 1995 08:04:21 -0700 (PDT)
From: "Edmund C. Hack" <echack@crl.com>
Subject: Patron Saint of Brewing
In HBD 1797, Eamonn McKernan (eamonn@chinook.physics.utoronto.ca) asked:
>
> Is there a patron saint of brewing?
>
Yep. St. Arnold, bishop of Metz, was an outspoken advocate of drinking
ales to prevent disease from contaminated water. After he died his
funeral procession was going cross country and stopped at an inn for a
cool one. However, there was only one mug of ale left. To the amazement
of the party, they were all able to drink from the mug, as it never ran dry!
The above is taken from the packaging of St. Arnold's Brewery, a
microbrewery here in Houston. (They make a good Amber Ale (not as hoppy
as SNPA), a "Krystall Weizen" (not as spicy as German wheats, but not
bland either) and a new Brown Ale (nice and malty, good hop residuals) -
George Fix was said to have helped in formulating their ales.)
Edmund Hack \ "The great prince issues commands,
echack@crl.com \ Founds states, vests families with fiefs.
Houston, TX \ Inferior people should not be employed."-regnaD kciN
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 02 Aug 1995 11:16:45 -0400 (EDT)
From: Kinney Baughman <BAUGHMANKR@conrad.appstate.edu>
Subject: Low cost aeration
Several years ago on the HBD while discussing all sorts of aeration
techniques, a digest participator (whose name I've forgotten) past along
one of the great homebrewing tips, IMHO.
You'll need a 12" long piece of copper tubing and a small (3/32" or so)
drill bit. One inch from one end of the copper tubing drill a hole straight
through (creating two holes). Stick the *drilled* end into the wort outlet
end of your siphon hose. That leaves 11" of copper tubing extending past
the holes. Start your siphon. Once the wort travels past these holes, it
picks up speed and starts sucking air into the wort through the holes
creating huge masses of bubbles in the wort.
I've been using this technique for aerating my wort both at home and the
brewery ever since. Simple and effective.
Cheers!
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kinney Baughman | Beer is my business and
baughmankr@conrad.appstate.edu | I'm late for work.
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------
Date: 2 Aug 1995 08:40:18 U
From: "Harney,Alan" <harney@mail.labmed.washington.edu>
Subject: Comments, please!!
I would appreciate comments and suggestions from the collective about the
following recipe and ways to improve it. It's a simple brew, but the results
are great!!
- --------------------------------
"Sand In Your Shorts Pilsener"
This recipe is based on Charlie Papazian's "Is-it-the-truth-or-is-it-a-lie
Pilsener". Best when enjoyed cold, by the gallon, under a beach umbrella.
Clothing is optional.
3 lbs. pale 2-row malt (I use Klages)
3 lbs. extra light DME
6 AAU Saaz leaf (bittering)
3 AAU Saaz leaf (aroma)
Wyeast #2112 ("California") - 2 packs
Irish moss, gypsum
Toast 1/4 lb. 2-row at 400 degrees for 8-12 minutes, but don't burn it.
Bring 2.5 qts. water to 110 degrees, add gypsum to bring pH to neutral. Steep
the toasted malt for 30 minutes in a grain bag.
Discard the toasted malt. Add heat to 130 degrees and add the remainder of
the malt. Should equilibrate at 119-121 degrees. Add heat to 122 degrees and
hold for 30 minutes, stirring every five minutes. Add heat to 130 degrees,
add 1.5 qts boiling water, and equilibrate at 150 degrees. Hold for 20
minutes. Add heat to 158 degrees, hold for 20 minutes. Mash out at 165
degrees for 5 minutes.
Sparge into your boiler with one gallon of water at 170 degrees. Add DME and
bittering hops, boil for 55 minutes. Add aroma hops and Irish moss and boil
for 5 minutes. Force cool to below 60 degrees and strain into primary
fermenter. Pitch a vigorous yeast starter and bring volume to 5 gallons.
After 8-12 hours, rack off the trub and fit an airlock. Ferment out at 45-49
degrees.
Rack to a glass carboy and store at 29-32 degrees for four weeks. Rack into a
bottling bucket and pitch a second smack pack of yeast, along with priming
sugar. Bottle and return to the refrig for storage at 29-32 degrees for
another 1-2 weeks. If carbonation isn't to your taste, store the bottles for
a week at room temperature, then cold storage for another week or two.
O.G. = 1.040
F.G. = 1.009
_________________________________________________________________
Alan Harney "Anything worth doing is worth
Dept. of Laboratory Medicine doing to excess"
University of Washington -Hipshot Percussion
harney@mail.labmed.washington.edu
_________________________________________________________________
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Aug 95 12:04:32 EDT
From: epeters@edasich.rtp.semi.harris.com (Eric Peters (919) 405-3675)
Subject: RTV108 Silicone/High-class problems
>From Eamonn McKernan in HOMEBREW Digest #1797
>Nick knows of a food grade high temp silicone rated to 204C. Probably
hard to
>find but worth the effort: contact GE Silcones 800-668-4644/5 about
>product #'s RTV102/103/108/109.
A quick glance at the GE RTV 108 beside me reveals, "Corrodes
copper, brass, and sensitive metals. Not for use in delicate
electrical and electronic applications. Residual sealant may
remain on fingers for several days and transfer to contact
lenses and cause severe eye irritation."
I use the stuff frequently and really enjoy it. However, I've
never tried it on copper, brass, or eye balls. A phone call to
the GE Silicone Center may produce a better suited product.
******
My beer fridge is too big! Fifty cubic feet! Since it won't
fit in the house, it stays in the garage. With the heat and
humidity of North Carolina summers, I get all kinds of funk
growing in the taps. Can anyone offer advise on cleaning these?
Should I break them down and soak them periodicly? Can I get by
with a high pressure rinse up the tap? So far, the growth in
my taps hasn't had any adverse effects on my health, except for
the sparks that shoot from my mouth when I hiccup.
******
Last question. What do you higher volume folks boil in? I'm
sure many of you make batches in excess of 10 gallons. When a
converted keg becomes too small, what's a good next step? My
next mash/lauter tun will be capable of mashing up to ~70 lbs.
Any kettle suggestions?
TIA,
Eric Peters
epeters@rtp.semi.harris.com
Research Triangle Park, North Carolina
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 02 Aug 1995 09:50:33 -0700
From: "Stephen E. Hansen" <hansen@hops.Stanford.EDU>
Subject: Accessing the archives with ftpmail
A couple of HBD issues ago, someone said that the ftpmail service
at gatekeeper.dec.com was no longer available and asked if anyone
knew of an alternate site. At one time I had a list of ftpmail
sites but not any longer, however, the problem at gatekeeper.dec.com
seems to have been only temporary. A help request to the address
ftpmail@gatekeeper.dec.com resulted in the usual help response along
with the following header:
>>> ftpmail is not a supported service. From time to time it stops working;
>>> we will tend to it when we get the time. Outages of a week or more are not
>>> abnormal.
So if you seem to be having trouble, be patient, and try again a bit
later.
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: Wed, 02 Aug 95 09:02:00 PDT
From: Steve Armbrust <Steve_Armbrust@ccm.jf.intel.com>
Subject: Stirring with an immersion chiller
Several posts have pointed out that stirring, either with a spoon or
with the immersion chiller itself, will cool the wort faster than not
stirring. Just remember that at hot temperatures, stirring may be OK,
but splashing is not. There's danger of hot side aeration until your
wort gets below 100F or so. So if you stir with the immersion chiller,
move it up and down to get the hot spots, but don't break the surface
with the coils.
Steve Armbrust
Steve_Armbrust@ccm.jf.intel.com
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Aug 95 12:51:54 EDT
From: Terry Terfinko <terfintt@ttown.apci.com>
Subject: Lambic Digest Address
My last two attempts to subscribe to the Lambic Digest
have been bounced back. If anyone has the current address to
subscribe, I would appreciate having it posted.
Terry Terfinko - terfintt@ttown.apci.com
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Aug 95 13:37:16 EDT
From: Eamonn McKernan <eamonn@rainbow.physics.utoronto.ca>
Subject: sparging: worth it?
Capt. Kirk informed us yesterday that we're only saving $3 per 5gal batch
when we sparge. Figure a 40min sparge, that means our labour is worth
$4.50/hr. That's pretty good in homebrew terms. After all, if we account
for all the time we spend reading the HBD, planning batches, buying
ingredients, bartering with SO's for free time to brew, building gadgets
to save time (never a time efficient thing to do), not to mention the actual
brewing, cleaning (ugh!), racking, bottling/kegging, each batch probably
takes minimum 10 hours. Though those of us who don't change their recipes/
equipment on a monthly basis might be down around 7 hours (this is a sparge
issue, so I'm referring to all-grain brewing). So overall we value our
labour at $3 CDN /hr. And I think Kirk was talking $4.50 US, so sparging
is definitely worth the effort.
Furthermore, what would life be like without the 1AM brew sessions
like Richard Hampo griped about yesterday? He'll be bragging to his friends
for months to come. What devotion!
The real reason for sparging is that sparging is an integral part
of the brewing process. To not sparge would be cheating. Kind of like I'd
feel if I only brewed extract. I know alot of you out there like extract, and
I am not dissing that. Extract brewing is as challenging as all-grain, but
I feel too far removed from the brewing experience when I extract brew. Just
like someone recently posted about wanting to malt their own grain: to prove
to yourself that you can do it on your own. We're a strange bunch. Not all
of us know much about plumbing, or electronics, but most of us that do have
put our knowledge to work building gadgets that are readily available
commercially. Biologists culture yeast. Gardeners grow hops. We sacrifice
valuable family time to the god of "I CAN do this!". I rarely hear homebrewers
suggest that they don't feel like building equipment or adopting more
elaborate brewing procedures. Our only constraints are time and money.
An interesting lot.
I very much doubt that Kirk, or anyone else is planning on dropping
the sparge. You'd only have to set aside time later in the day to finish
reading the newspaper!
Love this hobby!
Eamonn
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Aug 95 14:07:42 EDT
From: Steven W. Schultz <swschult@cbda9.apgea.army.mil>
Subject: Is There a Wine Digest?
If there is a daily wine digest on the 'net, could someone please let me
know how to subsribe to it?
Thanks in advance.
Steve Schultz
Aberdeen, MD
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Aug 1995 15:26:01 -0400
From: hbush@pppl.gov (harry)
Subject: Superb gas burners
I just received two Superb model 16-20E burners (the nice 35 kBTU ones) and
was kind of suprised to find a sticker on them saying OUTDOOR USE ONLY. I
was planning to use them in a corner of my basemement that has two windows.
I am planning to have them under one window with a makeshift fume hood and
exhaust fan and open the other window for fresh air intake. Should I be
concerned about safety here or am I just being a wuss?
Harry
.................................................................
"I don't believe that atheists exist"- God
..................................................................
------------------------------
Date: 02 Aug 1995 14:46:14 GMT
From: "Laughlin-Linda" <MSMAIL4.LAUGHLIN@TSOD.LMIG.COM>
Subject: Good Places
Hello,
Just wanted to drop a line and see if anyone knows of any good breweries
in the Tucson or Phoenix areas. I will be travelling there soon and
would sure like to throw back a few cool ones when I arrive. Also if
you could tell me of any local brew shops that I could check out, since
I'm contemplating moving their.
Thanks,
Linda
msmail4.laughlin@tsod.lmig.com
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Aug 1995 15:51:06 -0400
From: DHatlestad@aol.com
Subject: HBD Browser for Windows
I'm happy to announce, in my inaugural post to the HBD, that I'm giving
away some software.
HBD Browser, a freeware application, allows you to conveniently read
Homebrew Digest issues. Subjects are listed at the top, with the current
message displayed below. Installation instructions are in README.TXT.
Requires Windows 3.1.
HBD Browser was uploaded on 2Aug95 as hbdbrow1.zip and will be
available at ftp.stanford.edu, pending approval of the archivist. It will
also be available on AOL and on CompuServe, pending Sysop approval.
Cheers,
Don
dhatlestad@aol.com
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 02 Aug 1995 15:30:00 -0500 (CDT)
From: "Patrick E. Humphrey 708-937-3295" <HUMPHREY.PATRICK@igate.pprd.abbott.com>
Subject: Mea Culpa!
Mea Culpa!
As Doc (DocsBrew@aol.com) and others have mentioned, an ounce is 28 grams,
NOT 37 grams as I stated. I mistakenly divided 454 grams (g/lb) by 12 not
16 (duh!).
Sorry about that.
- ----------------------------
Has anyone tried to dry hop with pellets? What should I do to ensure that
contamination will not be introduced into the lagering carboy? I don't
want to boil the pellets since that will defeat the purpose of the dry
hopping.
Thanks,
Pat
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Aug 1995 18:49:23 -0400
From: af509@osfn.rhilinet.gov (Rolland Everitt)
Subject: Tansy
A few days ago I mentioned seeing a reference to tansy in one
of Papazian's books, and asked if anyone had a recipe calling
for it. I have had two responses. Both expressed a mild pre-
judice against the use of tansy in brewing on account of its
being a deadly poison. While I doubt that the amount used in
brewing would be harmful, I believe I'll give it a miss. I'm
not THAT interested in experiemnting with ancient brewing
ingredients. As Domenick Venezia pointed out, "what's wrong with
hops anyway?" Nothing, Domenick, nothing at all. As a rank
novice, I have not yet reached the stage where I am bored with
the standard ingredients.
=========================================================
| v
Rolland D. Everitt |\ v
af509@osfn.rhilinet.gov | \ v
| \
======| \
__@______|____\_
/| /
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Aug 1995 18:46:25 -0500 (CDT)
From: "Fr. Bradley A.M. Barber" <bbarber@tenet.edu>
Subject: gelatin asst; Patron of Brewers; Heineken Dark Clone
I am having some trouble with a batch of all-extract Cream Ale I
currently have in the secondary. Here's the scoup.
1 lb. 10L crystal malt steeped
6 lb Briess pale extract
1 oz Cluster boil
1 oz Willamette finish
Ale blend yeast (Wyeast #1087)
Sanitization, etc., went fine, except that I didn't catch the steep soon
enough and the crystal malt began to boil. I don't have a wort chiller, so
I place the entire pot in a walk-in freezer for about 4 hours, lid on, no
stirring. Pitched the yeast at 80 degres f. OG 1.045 Fermentation took
off great guns in 12 or so hours, but lasted only a day. I chalked this
up to the fact that #1087 is used for 10 gal batches. (BTW, this was a
kit from my local supplier) Then, nothing. After a day of no movement
from the airlock, I decided to go ahead and rack to the secondary.
Gravity reading of 1.015. Not bad, I thought. The brew stayed in the
secondary for nine additional days before I added 1/2 oz of gelatin. I
am kegging for the first time. I boiled 16 oz of H2O, let it cool down
to 180 degrees, mixed in the gelatin, stirred gently with a sterilized
racking cane, topped the carboy off with CO2, just in case I introduced air.
In a day, the batch began to bubble occasionally, and formed a bubbly
foam on top. Looks like it might contain some hop material. I added the
gelatin four days ago.
My initial inclination is to ignore the foam, take a gravity reading,
and, if ready, go ahead and keg. Any thoughts?
Eamonn asks who the patron saint of brewers is. According to Fr. Michael
Freze, SFO, in his book, "Patron Saints", its St. Augustine of Hippo, due
to the, shall-we-say, life he led pre-conversion.
To those who have asked me to forward and recipies I received for a
Heineken Dark, all extract clone. To date, no response.
Fr. Bradley A.M. Barber
Pastoral Institute
Diocese of Corpus Christi
1200 Lantana
Corpus Christi, TX 78407-1112
E-Mail: bbarber@tenet.edu
ppwf22a@prodigy.com
Telephone: (512) 289-5030
Fax: (512) 289-1867
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Aug 1995 10:41:34 -0400
From: Erik Larson <"/G=Erik/S=Larson/OU=EM and CA/O=Department of the Treasury/"@treas.sprint.com> (Tel 202-622-0079 )
Subject: Clarifying with Gelatin
Greetings, Brewing Colleagues!
In my last three batches (two Trappist-style fruit ales, and a
Bohemian Pilsener) I've used Knox Unfalvored Vegetable Gelatin as
a clarifying agent.
I used to regularly add a teaspoon or two of Polyclar to either
my secondary (at the midpoint of my standard two-week
conditioning period) or to my bottling bucket just prior to
bottling. However, I frequently noticed a rather funny
plastic-type aftertaste in my bottled product. I switched to
gelatin after reading about it in "Brewing Lager Beer" by
Gregory Noonan, and it has worked exceptionally well; so far, I
haven't encountered that plastic taste again.
My experience has been that two packets of Knox gelatin,
dissolved in 1 pint of 160 deg. F. distilled water, does a better
job than Polyclar at removing particulates from the conditioning
beer. Furthermore, once it settles on the carboy bottom, the
gelatin binds the settled yeast and protein together into a very
"hard-to-disturb" mass, which I find very desirable when it comes
carboy carrying and racking.
Has anyone else used Knox Gelatin, or had a similar experience
with Polyclar? Are there other clarifying agents that people
could comment upon?
Cheers,
Erik Larson (erik.larson@treas.sprint.com)
------------------------------
End of HOMEBREW Digest #1798, 08/03/95
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