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HOMEBREW Digest #3532
HOMEBREW Digest #3532 Wed 17 January 2001
FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
Digest Janitor: janitor@hbd.org
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THIS YEAR'S HOME BREW DIGEST BROUGHT TO YOU BY:
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Contents:
Banks Ale (Tom Smit)
Brown Ale ("Cade Morgan")
re: StarLink contamination found in beer ingredient-FDA ("Stephen Alexander")
Asking Steve Alexander For Advice ("Phil & Jill Yates")
re: grinding malted barley with coffee grinder? ("Tom Lombardo")
RE: Fridge Problems ("Steven Parfitt")
Gott coolers (Jacob Jacobsen)
RE: Frig evaporator ("Steven Parfitt")
Re: grinding malted barley with coffee grinder? (Steve)
Clicking fridge & reusing fridge lines (fridgeguy)
Bottles ("Jones, Steven T")
loaf mashing (steven thomas)
No need to buy mediocre beer ("Daniel C Stedman")
Re: Kegs (Doug Hurst)
Question: Higher gravity (secondary) than expected..... (leavitdg)
15th Annual Big & Huge Competition (Mark Garthwaite)
Re: homemade peristaltic pumps (Bret Morrow)
*
* Beer is our obsession and we're late for therapy!
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* Bluebonnet Brew-Off Entry Deadline is 2/9/01!
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Date: Mon, 15 Jan 2001 18:00:44 +0930
From: Tom Smit <lunica@ozemail.com.au>
Subject: Banks Ale
Hi All,
Anyone have a recipe for Banks Mild Ale, from the Black Country?
TIA
Tom Smit
Tiny Horses Brewery
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 16 Jan 2001 09:33:25 +0200
From: "Cade Morgan" <Cade.Morgan@eskom.co.za>
Subject: Brown Ale
I brewed a brown ale containing sugar. Will more sugar make it stronger?
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 16 Jan 2001 03:17:55 -0500
From: "Stephen Alexander" <steve-alexander@worldnet.att.net>
Subject: re: StarLink contamination found in beer ingredient-FDA
Dan Leavitt posted the article about the FDA finding Starlink, the
genetically modified corn in brewing products. Back in late October I
posted ...
.>BIOTECH CORN PROBABLY IN FOODS
>>from The Washington Post
[...]
>The corn involved is Aventis(UK) StarLink(tm) which has a gene to produce
>a protein toxic to corn borers and another which makes it immune to their
>Liberty(tm) herbicide.
>
>"Dawn of a New Age CAP" anyone ? 8^o
Hopes of keeping this difficult to distinguish but commercially advantageous
product out of the human food supply are dismal. Not being a corn borer
or a European I am not alarmed. Do GMO CAPs go well with the GMO tortillas
?
-S
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 16 Jan 2001 22:20:56 +1100
From: "Phil & Jill Yates" <yates@acenet.com.au>
Subject: Asking Steve Alexander For Advice
Graham Sanders writes
>Now I bought a new drill bit for everyone operation. Thats >all
>except Phil- I recon I will use a ball hammer. Thinking about >it,
>his head should crack open like coconut - and what flows >out
>will be similar.
Okay Steve Alexander, I'm asking you for some advice.
Given that I am working hard this year to write "beer content" posts, just
how do I deal with the Mango Man from up north?
Graham is the only person I know who after fitting an "idiot filter" to his
computer, had to disenable it because he was continually being denied
access!
I won't make further comment (not in this post anyway). I'm back home in
Burradoo and pleased to see that primary fermentation of the Yates/Pivo
Czech pilsner is all but complete and ready for its lagering stage. I
thought the three hour boil may have raised some eyebrows in here but so far
not a comment. Taste trials of this beer will commence in February and a
full report will follow.
BTW, I'm not the HBD spy Andy Walsh made reference to in yesterday's digest.
Andy never spoke to me again after I suggested to him that pumping pure
nitrogen into his grain storage shed was a tad on the side of overkill.
I hope he is not blaming me for his current run of lousy beers!
Cheers
Phil
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 16 Jan 2001 06:25:05 -0600
From: "Tom Lombardo" <toml@ednet.rvc.cc.il.us>
Subject: re: grinding malted barley with coffee grinder?
Paul writes:
>I'm still a novice brewer, but I'm hoping to use less
>extracts and more grains. Does anyone know if it's
>okay to use a coffee grinded with the grains?
Paul,
Don't use the coffee grinder - you only want to crush the grain, not grind
it. Alternatives:
1. Use a rolling pin - it's messy and a pain, but for small quantities,
it works.
2. Spend a little extra and buy the grain pre-crushed.
3. Your HB shop may have a mill - ask if you can crush it when you buy it.
4. Buy a malt mill. I've got a JSP MaltMill, and I'm very happy with it.
Tom
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 16 Jan 2001 09:04:53 -0500
From: "Steven Parfitt" <the_gimp98@hotmail.com>
Subject: RE: Fridge Problems
Mark Kellums Posts:
>Uh oh, I'm worried that my lager fridge/hop freezer is on the blink. >The
>fridge is still running but it won't freeze or cool. I can hear >the fan
>running. About once every minute it will make a "click" noise >like
>something's trying to turn on but isn't. Is my fridge fried?
.....
Mark,
>From the description, I suspect your compressor motor is shot. Since the fan
motor is running, I believe the click noise is the thermal overload
protector in the compressor.
Steven
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 16 Jan 2001 09:10:09 -0500
From: Jacob Jacobsen <brewer@cotse.com>
Subject: Gott coolers
I am trying to locate a Gott distributor in Asia. I looked at Rubbermaid's web
site but only found smaller coolers marketed under the Rubbermaid name. Does
anyone know the URL for the Gott portion of Rubbermaid (or whatever). I
searched Rubbermaid's site for Gott and didn't find much (some old references).
I'm building a mash/lauter tun (of course). If I can't find a Gott, can
anyone recommend another suitable round cooler?
Jake
- ----------------
Without question, the greatest invention in the history of mankind is beer. Oh,
I grant you that the wheel was also a fine invention, but the wheel does not go
nearly as well with pizza. -- Dave Barry
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 16 Jan 2001 09:16:18 -0500
From: "Steven Parfitt" <the_gimp98@hotmail.com>
Subject: RE: Frig evaporator
G'day Mate,
Presuming I have use the greeting correctly,
You posted that you want to use the copper evaporator from a fridge to make
a cooler.
If I understand you, you are going to strip the evaporator, clean it, and
run your hot wort through it to cool it.
If this is the case, you would be better off purchasing copper tubing and
using it.
The reason is that wort is acidic. the lead in the joints of the tubes will
react with the acid in the wort, and may procuce a lead salt which is
poisonous.
Best wishes,
Steven Parfitt
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 16 Jan 2001 07:10:33 -0800 (PST)
From: Steve <gravelse@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: grinding malted barley with coffee grinder?
Paul writes:
<<I'm still a novice brewer, but I'm hoping to use less
extracts and more grains. Does anyone know if it's
okay to use a coffee grinded with the grains?>>
Don't do it Paul. Using a coffee grinder will result in pulverizing the
malt. This will cause several problems,
1. The shredded husk will result in an increase in tannis in the wort,
2. You won't have a filter bed for your mash thus causing a stuck sparge,
3. Pulverized grain kernals will contribute to the stuck sparge, and
4. The pulverized grain kernal will can cause a haze in your beer.
These are just a few of the things I can think of I'm sure there are more
reasons. I'm sure that your question will generate a good response from
the collective. If I were you I would look into purchasing a decent grain
mill(not a Corona mill). It's a good investment and worth the cost.
SteveG
"Homebrew, it's not just a hobby, it's an adventure!"
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 16 Jan 2001 11:05:56 -0500
From: fridgeguy@voyager.net
Subject: Clicking fridge & reusing fridge lines
Greetings folks,
In HBD #3531, Mark Kellums asked for troubleshooting help for his
beer fridge that doesn't cool and clicks every minute or so.
The clicking heard is the thermal overload on the compressor opening
and closing. The compressor is unable to start for some reason and the
overload opens to protect the compressor motor windings.
If the fridge is located in an area where the air outside the fridge
is colder than the air inside the fridge, unplug the fridge and warm
the compressor for 12 hours before trying to restart it.
If the fridge is located in a warm area several things are possible.
I'll list a few of them here. If you feel comfortable working with
electrical circuits and have a multimeter, you can test the various
components to verify the cause of the trouble. Unplug the fridge
before working on any electrical parts!
The compressor motor uses two windings, one used when the compressor
is running, and the other to help bring the motor up to speed during
startup. A relay is used to select which winding is energized. The
relay is usually pushed onto the S and R terminals of the compressor.
There is a third terminal on the relay which receives power from the
temperature controller. The relay relies upon gravity open the "start"
contacts when the motor reaches full speed. If the contacts stick, or
if they never close properly, the motor will draw excessive current
and the overload will open.
Replacement relays are available, as is a "hard start kit" which
increases the starting torque of the compressor motor to compensate
for a worn compressor or a weak start winding.
It's possible that the compressor motor windings themselves could be
bad. The two windings are connected end to end, with the center
connection point labelled "C" (common) on the compressor terminal
block. The other ends of the windings are labelled "S" (start) and "R"
(run), also on the terminal block.
With the relay and common wiring removed from the compressor, the
resistance of each motor winding can be measured with a multimeter.
Resistance values vary from model to model but there should be one
winding with high-resistance, and the other lower, as measured between
the C terminal and each of the other two. A resistance reading lower
than 3 ohms likely means a shorted winding. A reading of infinity
indicates an open winding. Also check resistance from each of the
three terminals to ground. Each should indicate infinite resistance.
Toss the fridge if there is less than 10 megohms resistance to ground
from any terminal.
If you're not comfortable sticking your fingers into electrical
equipment, call a tech to check the fridge for you. Let us know what
you find out.
Also in the same digest, Graham Sanders asks about reusing a fridge
evaporator as a beer chiller. In short, I wouldn't recommend it since
there is a potential for some real nasties in refrigeration tubing.
If the refrigerant used in the system was R12, R22 or R134a, the
refrigerant is inert. Oil would either be mineral or polyol synthetic.
I can't comment on whether this could be removed thoroughly enough
from the tubing to render it food safe.
The really bad stuff is hydroflouric acid. This is a common byproduct
of moisture in a system reacting with oil, refrigerant, and other
materials. It is particularly nasty since it can't readily be
neutralized.
I'm neither a metallurgist nor chemist and I hope others with more
expertise in these areas will offer their input on the subject.
Hope this helps!
- ----------------------------------------
Forrest Duddles - Fridgeguy in Kalamazoo
fridgeguy@voyager.net
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------------------------------
Date: Tue, 16 Jan 2001 10:28:38 -0500
From: "Jones, Steven T" <stjones@eastman.com>
Subject: Bottles
Greetings, brewers.
Glen Pannicke wrote:
><cut>
>Unfortunatley about 25% of the returnable bottles I've come across are
>usually pretty ratty -AND- to get them I have to buy mediocre beer ;-)
Glen, you don't have to buy that @#$%^* beer just to get the bottles! I go
to my local budmilloors distributor and ask the guys in the warehouse if I
can buy some cases of empty bar bottles. I usually bring a 6pak of assorted
homebrews along for good measure. I get the heavy waxed cardboard cases with
empties for $1.20 each. Some of the bottles are pretty ratty, and I have to
clean and de-label them, but you can't beat the price. For a nickel each, I
can toss the ratty ones if I so choose. YMMV
Hope this helps.
Steve
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 16 Jan 2001 13:10:09 -0500 (EST)
From: steven thomas <drstrangebrew@mail.com>
Subject: loaf mashing
Fellow brewers: I have been interested in the archaic (Sumerian to Roman
period) method of mashing by baking in a loaf for some time. I recently
made a test mash to see what sort of starch conversion effeciency can be
achieved.
My procedure was to mill about 1 1/2 pounds of pale malt as for a standard
wet mash; the grain was dampened with water to the point where no free water
was evident at rest, but squeezing a handful expressed a bit. This level of
wetting yields friable bits, nothing like a cohesive dough. The grain was
packed into a breadloaf pan, covered with aluminum foil, and baked at 300
degrees Farenheight for an hour, and left to cool in the oven for an hour.
The resulting loaf mash, a stiff paste about the concistency of peanut
butter, showed a slight positive for starch when tested with iodine.
Diluting down the paste for extraction about 1:1 with water, raising the
temperature to 150 F, and resting 20 minutes with no particular effort to
maintain temperature converted the remaining starch to sugar. (The paste
broke up readily in the water.) The red-brown produced by the iodine test
indicated an abundant supply of dextrins. No husk astringency was apparent
in the taste.
There seems to be no need for a separate wet mash step, unlike the proposal
in Papazian's second book. Loaf mashing may be the ultimate in low-tec
mashing, an ideal first step toward mashing. Given the high levels of
dextrins it seems most suited to big bodied beers.
All said, loaf mashing seems well worth investigating.
- --Steve Thomas
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 16 Jan 2001 12:29:23 -0600
From: "Daniel C Stedman" <"daniel_c_stedman"@uhc.com>
Subject: No need to buy mediocre beer
Glen Pannicke wrote:
>Unfortunatley about 25% of the returnable bottles I've come across are
>usually pretty ratty -AND- to get them I have to buy mediocre beer ;-)
I usually just go to the local liquor store and tell them I want to buy a couple
of cases of empties - they just give me a funny look, charge me the price of
the deposit ($2.40), and send me on my way with my bottles...
Dan in Minnetonka
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 16 Jan 2001 14:39:49 -0600
From: Doug Hurst <DougH@theshowdept.com>
Subject: Re: Kegs
Nathan Matta writes:
"Is it worth getting kegs if I can't keep them cool?"
I am a keg user and have no way to artificially cool them. Of course that
limits me to making ales only. My solutions for cooling to drinking temps
are:
1. Drink the beer warm. It's not that bad, really (repeat this over and
over).
2. Put the keg in a bucket of ice before serving. Of course this only
works temporarily unless you want to change the ice a lot.
3. Leave the keg in a cooler part of the house. This requires: winter
conditions outside or living in cooler climates, and an area that is cooler
but not freezing. I have a pantry in my kitchen which is against an outside
wall. The temperture has been between 62 and 70 degrees this winter (when
the door is closed). Of course I'm out of luck in the summer. A friend has
a basement whose temperature never gets much above 65 degrees, even in the
summer.
4. Fill a growler from the keg and stick it in your refrigerator.
5. Build an ice chest like Ken Schwartz's "Son of Fermentation Chiller".
http://home.elp.rr.com/brewbeer/chiller/chiller.html Just be sure it's
large enough to accomadate the keg and fittings.
Despite the limitations regarding cooling, I think the benefits of using
kegs outweigh the negatives. It's a lot faster/easier to keg than to bottle
and I feel that the possibility of infection is decreased due to less time
the beer spends in an un-sealed container. Plus, beer on tap is just plain
cool (That makes up for the temperature).
Hope this helps,
Doug Hurst
Chicago, IL
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 16 Jan 2001 18:59:39 -0500 (EST)
From: leavitdg@plattsburgh.edu
Subject: Question: Higher gravity (secondary) than expected.....
I recently brewed a Trappist, with a heap of slurry saved from a batch that
I brewed a couple weeks before that....and the gravity going into the
secondary surprised me...it was a bit too low, that is, I expected that
with so much yeast I could "beef it up" with malt and still get the
gravity down. Well, I was mistaken. I will present the data below....
so that anyone who has a clue....can clue me in, please.
Before presenting the info...I must say that there was a fair amount of
real good Crystal malt in there (from Fawcetts/ North Country Malt Supply),
and I know that this as well as a little Carapils, could keep the gravity
(secondary) higher .... but I didn't expect that high...
Here is what I did:
Brewed a Trappist that I made from a starter, on 12/21/00, with WLP500
Trappist Ale Yeast. Put in the secondary on 12/29/00 ( the sample that
I tried tasted wonderful) saved the slurry for later use. Collected
about 4 inches on the bottom of a 1/2 gallon growler.
I then reused this slurry (did not feed it in between)on 1/06/01, when I
brewed an experimental batch that I called "2001 Trappist" (I meant to
brew on New Year's Eve, but a huge snow storm forced me outside to
shovel....
Here is the recipe: Lots of stuff...not real efficient.,..but I was not
looking for that, just wanted to make a huge brew:
2 lb Crystal
4 lb Maris Otter 2 row
3 lb wheat malt
3 lb Flaked brown rice (I know...why...?)
1.5 lb steel cut oats
0.5 lb Belgian Caravienne
1 lb Torrified Barley
mashed in with 5 gallons of 166F water, stabilized at 149F, stayed there
for 60 min,
boosted to 156 F, for about 45 min
First runnings were 1.080
boil gravity was 1.056
original gravity was 1.068
I thought that the yeast would bring this down....but,
the
secondary gravity was 1.024!
Is this from the unfermentables....or did I do somehting wrong?
I tried to keep the carboy at the correct temperatures...under 65F,
but above 63...and think that I did so...
Enough...
If anyone has an idea as to why this was so high...please let me know.
..Darrell
<Terminally INtermediate Home-brewer>
secondary
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 16 Jan 2001 18:12:37 -0600 (CST)
From: Mark Garthwaite <mgarth@primate.wisc.edu>
Subject: 15th Annual Big & Huge Competition
The Madison Homebrewers and Tasters Guild is proud to sponsor the 15th
Annual Big & Huge Homebrew Competition. Homebrewed beers will be
evaluated by the trained palates of experienced beer judges. Evaluation
sheets with helpful comments and advice will be returned to every entrant.
Awards will be granted in five categories of big and huge beers. The Best
of Show beer will receive the coveted WOOLY MAMMOTH plaque. Come to the
competition to participate in the homebrew exchange and meet other brewers
and beer lovers. The competition is sanctioned by the Beer Judge
Certification Program and will follow its competition procedures.
*Please Contact us if you are interested in judging or stewarding*
When: Saturday, February 24, 2001 at 10:00 a.m. (Drop off of preregistered
entries) 10:30 a.m. (Judging begins).
Where: JT Whitney's Pub & Brewery, 674 S Whitney Way, Madison, Wisconsin
Entry Requirements: Three 12 ounce or larger bottles per entry. Bottles
and caps should have no labels or identifying marks. Attatch one
completed entry form to each bottle with a rubber band. Include an entry
fee check payable to the Madison Homebrewers & Tasters Guild.
Registration forms can be found at www.gdinet.com/madbrewers
Entry Fee: Guild Members- $4 per entry, All others- $5.
Categories: Category Original Specific Gravity
Big Ale 1.050 to 1.060
Big Lager 1.050 to 1.060
Huge Ale >1.060
Huge Lager >1.060
CMS (Ciders, Meads, & Sake) >1.050
Entry Deadline: Deliver entries to Big & Huge Competition, c/o Wine &
Hop Shop, 1931 Monroe Street, Madison, WI 53711 until Wednesday, February
21st. Affix a copy of the registration form to each bottle with a rubber
band. Pre-registered entries may be brought to the competition on
February 24th between 10:00 and 10:30 am. To preregister, deliver or
email a copy of the registration form for each entry by Wednesday,
February 21st, to Mark Garthwaite, Big & Huge Czar, 617 Piper Drive
Madison, WI 53711 or email: mgarth@primate.wisc.edu
Registration forms will be available at our website www.hbd.org/madbrewers
Homebrew Exchange: The day of the competition we will feature a homebrew
exchange. Bring up to three (3) different homebrews to exchange for
samples of homebrew provided by other brewers. At a minimum, put your
name and beer style on each bottle, but personal labels and recipes are
also welcome.
The Madison Homebrewers & Tasters Guild, Ltd. is a nonprofit club
devoted to the brewing and appreciation of well-made beers. Visit us at
Wonders Pub on Wednesdays or on the web at www.hbd.org/madbrewers
Further Info: Contact Mark Garthwaite (608)298-9928 or email
mgarth@primate.wisc.edu
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 11 Jan 2001 10:54:15 -0500
From: Bret Morrow <bret.morrow@prodigy.net>
Subject: Re: homemade peristaltic pumps
Greetings
I use a Multiflex peristaltic pump for brewing. Others have talked
about its advantages, so I'll let their praises stand. The only thing I
have to add to the use of these pumps is that you can use them with
vinyl tubing from Home Depot (or similar places).
Ken Schwartz suggested a nice design for the production of a cheap,
homemade peristaltic pump for Sean Richards. I have played around with
making a peristaltic pump head (before I got mine from lab. surplus).
The design Ken suggests will work but there is an easier way. Ken's
design has the tubing squeezed between a "plywood cutout" and a caster.
A simplier design (used by Masterflex) is to stretch the tubing over the
relatively slow turning rollers. In this design, 4 spindles (like empty
wooden thread spools) are placed at the outside edge a piece of plywood
that the motor would turn. The important part is to secure the tubing
to prevent it from getting pulled around with the rotating head. The
method Masterflex uses is a set of 2 "V" notches--1 "upside down"--to
hold the tubing without crimping it. By the by--other manufactures use
this design, not just Masterflex.
If anyone is interested in more details about this design--drop me a
line.
Cheers,
Bret Morrow
Hamden, CT
named after the English Lord Hampden...I guess by a really poor speller.
------------------------------
End of HOMEBREW Digest #3532, 01/17/01
*************************************
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