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HOMEBREW Digest #4156
HOMEBREW Digest #4156 Tue 28 January 2003
FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
Digest Janitor: janitor@hbd.org
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Contents:
Re: starters ("greg man")
ON THE LENGTH OF THE BREW DAY... (Hayes Antony)
good HB shop in Boston/providence area. (whiplash)
HSA in starter (whiplash)
Canadian Cream IPA (Alan McKay)
RE: Canadian Belgians ("Stephen Silverthorne")
LHBS Chatter ("Haborak, Kevin")
Re: Hefe ("Gavin Scarman")
Priming Choices ("Jodie Davis")
St. Patrick's Cascadia Cup Homebrew Competition ("Jim Dunlap")
Re: HERMS Question (Bill Tobler)
Update on Ceske Budejovice yeast (Paul Shick)
re: Yeast Question/bottle culturing ("Steve Alexander")
Leffe Clone Recipe ("Jay Wirsig")
Re: HERMS question (David Towson)
Re: Stop Carboy Chugging (Jonathan Royce) (David Towson)
Re: Evaporation rate and Mass Transfer (Bill Tobler)
Re: business ethics ("Dave")
Re: Corny keg o-ring replacement (David Towson)
Precision Brewing Systems ("fljohnson@portbridge.com")
Re:Stop Carboy Chugging (Jennifer/Nathan Hall)
new Yeast DB feature (Alan McKay)
Re: Electrical activities?? ("Mike Sharp")
WZZ Homebrew Competition ("John C. Tull")
RE- Simple HERMS and Carboy Chugging (Rod Tussing)
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Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 01:39:59 -0500
From: "greg man" <dropthebeer@hotmail.com>
Subject: Re: starters
>From: "Dan G." <daniel@buffnet.net>
>Subject: yeast question
>
>To: Greg Man
>
>Here's another question for you (or anyone else) on starters.
>What is a good time to let starters work? Hours? Days? I usually do a
>starter a couple of hours before the batch and have had good luck but how
>much time do you allow?
>Thanks.
There are a few local geniuses that post here that are much more qualified
to answer this question, an no doubt the "best" time to pitch is still
debated in many circles.
My experience: There are a few factors that come in to play when making a
starter that will contribute to how long before it's ready to use.
For example the gravity, temperature you ferment at, amount to ferment,
yeast strain used, And if step ups are done.
Also there is the matter of when to pitch? The major debate seems to be
either at high kraeusen or after the yeast have dropped out. Personally I've
done both an either works good. However what seems like the most logical is
the one that says pitch at high kraeusen. An that's they way I usually try
to do it.
Now to answer your question. If I use a wyeast 50ml smack pack, I'll make
about a 1/2 gallon starter with DME at 1.040 Lightly hoped at say 15-20
IBU's. I make the starter about 2 to 3 days before brew day an let it
ferment at 68-70F.
NOw If I use a white labs tube I make a smaller starter maybe 1/4 gallon.
If I grow off one of my petri dishes then I'll step it up. First a beer
bottle with 8 ounces of wort, then after 3 days I dump the contents of the
bottle into a 1/2 gallon starter. ( yes I ranch yeast but will not join the
thread about the right or wrong of doing so!!!!!)
Keep in mind these are all figures for ale's an lagers will all be larger
starters I think the rule of thumb is something like 1 1/2 times larger then
the volume for an ale? I use about a gallon or so.
The problem with you current practice I would think is your not waiting
enough time for the starter to ferment? Making a starter the same day as the
beer kind of defeats the purpose of making a starter at all. Forgive me If I
read your post wrong but that's what It seemed to suggest.
You make a starter for many reasons but the greatest is to create a large
enough volume of yeast cell's to do the job of converting the wort to beer.
That's not to say you can not under pitch, you can, an most of us do, but
the taste of the beer may be adversely affected.
I'm sorry for rambling but the super bowl was terrible. The only good
thing is everyone liked my lager :)
If your gonna pitch your yeast try to time it at high or low kraeusen
that way some to most of the beer is fermented. There will be more of them
to do the job, and they will be hungry for more food at that point. I'd say
2-3 days in advance of making a beer make the starter. An Guys feel free to
explain the technical aspect of starter making if you like as well as
correct me for any errors in my post.......
For some good Info about making starter when an how? Go to Howtobrew.com,
there John palmer does a good job of explaining the technical data in an
easy to understand manner. Also It's free!!!! gotta love John for that!!!!
It was the first book I ever read about home brewing. And I sincerely
believe It helped me to avoid making many mistakes in the
beginning.....................sorry for the long
post.....................how did the raiders loose?????????????????????
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 09:45:36 +0200
From: Hayes Antony <HayesA@aforbes.co.za>
Subject: ON THE LENGTH OF THE BREW DAY...
Marc Sedam wrote,
"Assuming I crush the
grain and measure out the water prior to the actual brewing day (taking
maybe 20 minutes) I can brew up a 10 gallon batch of all-grain beer in
just over four hours."
Mark listed a Cajun burner, a pump, and a counterflow chiller as having
shortened his brew day.
I can brew comfortably in six hours from crushing the grain to everything
cleaned up. This involves a 90 minute mash programme, a 60 minute sparge, 90
minute boil, 30 minute whirlpool, and 25 minute heat exchange.
Three things that reduced my brew day were:
1. Quick disconnects: I use John Guest on the cold side, and dairy fittings
on the hot side. I used to use clamps, which took time to tighten, and
invariably leaked, or popped off, requiring clean ups, deep breaths, etc.
2. Hot liquor tank with thermostat. I have a 120 litre tank which I fill the
night before, and set to 76C. This suites my mash in and sparge, and is warm
enough for any additions to the boil.
3. A cleaning basin/bath with ball valve taps (faucets). At my previous
house I had a laundry basin, I now have a bath. Being able to clean things
as you go in a basin big enough to take your whole boiler helps a lot. I
attach Gardena fittings to the tap, and use a hose with a spray gun.
Ant Hayes
Johannesburg; RSA
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------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 06:55:57 -0500
From: whiplash@juno.com
Subject: good HB shop in Boston/providence area.
Sorry this is late but Jim williams asked about a good HB shop in
Boston/providence area.
If it's not too far of a drive, I would recomend Strange Brew in
Marlboro.
They have a good selection of grains, extract, equipment, hops and most
yeast (does not seem to carry White Labs but has a good selection of
Wyeast).
I used to live in Marlboro and have been going there for a few years.
You should be able to find a adress and directions at www.home-brew.com
Just a satisfied customer blah blah blah.
Jay
Now brewing Rehab HomeBrews at the BoilOver Brauhaus in Walpole, MA
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 06:56:38 -0500
From: whiplash@juno.com
Subject: HSA in starter
All this recent talk about starters gives me a window to ask a
question
about something that came up in my brewing practice the other day. Let me
preface this by saying that I do not intend to start an argument about
wether
or not Hot Side Aeration is actually a real problem or not. So please
keep that
in mind when responding.
I was making a starter the other day and I poured the hot wort
right
into the wine jug I use for starters before I realized what I was
doing... It's
easier to cool it when it's in the jug, that's why. Anyway, there is a
question
here somewhere, I'll get to it. I know that they say that problems (such
as a
bacterial infection) with a starter can get carried over and thus
multiplied in
the batch of beer you pitch it into but I wondered if that was true about
things like HSA? If my starter has off flavors caused by HSA will that
multiply
in my full size batch (that is hopefully otherwise not suffering from
HSA)? My
guess is no, that the off flavors would simply be diluted in the full
size
batch and would therefore probably not be a problem, but I thought I
would pose
the question to the group and get the opinion of others more
learned/expirianced
then myself.
Jay
Brewing Rehab HomeBrews at the BoilOver Brauhaus in Walpole, MA
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 06:59:43 -0500
From: Alan McKay <amckay@neap.net>
Subject: Canadian Cream IPA
David Crafts talks of the "Cream IPA" he had in Canada.
Yes, unfortunately that was probably Alexander Keiths, which
was probably a very fine IPA 150 years ago when Keith himself
(first mayor of Halifax) was brewing it. But that would all
change when Labatt and then later Interbrew got their hands
on the beer. It's been about the same as it is now for roughly
60 years (and I have confirmed 5% corn from the brewmaster
himself, so you are right-on with the Cream Ale comment)
It reminds me of that episode of Star Trek, The Next Generation
where the crew ended up going back in time onto the original
Enterprise ship. Some fancy photography tricks were done to
put the new Star Trek crew into the scenes from the old series.
There was one scene with a bunch of the old Klingons, which
as you may recall were just guys with their faces painted
green and look nothing like they do today. Someone looked
at Warf in amazement and said "THOSE are Klingons?!"
to which he simply replied "We don't like to talk about it".
cheers,
-Alan
- --
http://www.bodensatz.com/
The Beer Site (tm)
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 07:40:02 -0500
From: "Stephen Silverthorne" <s_silverthorne@sympatico.ca>
Subject: RE: Canadian Belgians
Hi David ->
Unibroue brews a range of craft beers from Chambly, Quebec (just outside of
Montreal). You can find a wealth of information about the company, and their
beers at http://www.unibroue.com/english.cfm.
In particular, information on the company:
http://www.unibroue.com/brewery/historique.cfm.
Fact sheet for La Fin Du Monde (translates as "The End Of The World") here:
http://www.unibroue.com/products/fin.cfm and for Maudite (translation is
impolite): http://www.unibroue.com/products/maudite.cfm.
The whole range of their beers are worh sampling if you can find them near
you. I'm lucky enough to live in Quebec and so they are stocked at the
corner store. These are the beers I reach for when my consumption has
outpaced my brewing!
Good luck finding them near you.
<- Stephen
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 04:59:50 -0800
From: "Haborak, Kevin" <KHaborak@golder.com>
Subject: LHBS Chatter
Sorry for the late post, but I have been out of town for the past week.
Mark Vernon wrote:
Wow Wil you sound like almost as big a jerk as our guy
Actually Mark, Wil is a great guy I think you just struck a nerve. He does
alot of things for his regular customers. I don't think I ever saw any
fliers about clubs in his shop when I lived in Charleston (a few years
back), but he did handle the email distribution list that notified everyone
of upcoming meetings. Also, he has sposored a brewing day where he supplied
the grain for the batch to anyone that showed up to the store with their
eguipment to brew. I'm sure he's done other things, but I was only in the
area for a year and a half. In fact, earlier this year he helped me to get
the upgrade for my version of promash. I had not registered it and did not
still have the little paper insert that came with the disk to do so, but he
worked with me (eventhough I am now over 300 miles away and support a new
LHBS) so that I could get the upgrade.
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 28 Jan 2003 00:10:35 +1030
From: "Gavin Scarman" <suba2@bigpond.net.au>
Subject: Re: Hefe
>A recent poster stated that the Wyeast 3068 should be fermented at the
>lower end. Does this same advice hold for the WhiteLabs 300 / Hefe?
Yes, tho that is not a pure weizen yeast, but a blend. However, I have had good
results at 18C.
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 09:08:52 -0500
From: "Jodie Davis" <JodieDavis@adelphia.net>
Subject: Priming Choices
To date I've been following recipe instructions for priming using corn
sugar or DME as instructed. Does it matter which one uses? Do they lend
any flavor to the finished product? I expect not since it's such a small
amount.
Jodie Davis
Canton, GA
P.S. My first all grain batch, an English Bitter, is FABULOUS! I popped
one last night in honor of the Super Bowl. Yum!
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 06:46:48 -0800
From: "Jim Dunlap" <jdpils@attbi.com>
Subject: St. Patrick's Cascadia Cup Homebrew Competition
Greetings Beerlings,
Below is the announcement of my club's annual competition. Last year we had
over 150 entries some from states as far east as PA.
Cheers,
Jim Dunlap
Woodinville WA
The Cascade Brewers Guild announces the 7th Annual World Renowned St.
Patrick's Cascadia Cup Homebrew Competition.
The competition will be on Saturday March 8, 2003 at Bear Creek Brewing Co.
/ Northwest Brewhouse & Grill in Redmond, WA.
(http://www.bearcreekbrewing.com/) The competition is BJCP and AHA
sanctioned, and as always, we can use as many judges as possible.
The competition features cash award certificates for the top three finishers
in each flight and more great prizes for first place and Best of Show
winners. Up to three winning beers will be brewed by our region's local
microbreweries. This is the largest industry-sponsored homebrew event in
the State, if not the Pacific Northwest!
Competition details, including entry and judge registration wizards, are
available on our website: http://www.cascadebrewersguild.org/
Thanks in advance,
Iain Ross
Cascade Brewers Guild
7th Annual St. Patrick's Cascadia Cup Homebrew Competition Organizer
house.cat@verizon.net
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 09:48:21 -0600
From: Bill Tobler <wctobler@sbcglobal.net>
Subject: Re: HERMS Question
Greg wants to upgrade to a HERMS and has some questions like "Do your lights
go dim when you plug it in?"
Well, I hope not. That wouldn't be acceptable. My HERMS is all electric.
I have 240 volt elements in the HLT and the Kettle. Three temperature
controllers, 3 pumps one 3-way solenoid valve and more manual SS and brass
valves then I care to count.
The degree of automation depends on how close you want to watch the mash.
My system is set up just like you want to build yours. The mash wort goes
to the pump, which then pumps up to a three way valve. The 3-way valve
directs the hot wort either through the coil in the HLT or to the by-pass
and back in the mash tun. My 3-way valve is controlled by an Omega
temperature controller. The long thermocouple (18") is just slipped in the
top of the mash tun under the lid. It is a PID controller, but I use in the
on/off mode. The controller activates the 3-way until the mash reaches
setpoint, then swaps the flow to the by-pass. When the mash temperature
drops 1% of setpoint, it swaps back. (The 1% is adjustable)
The problem doing this manually, is you would have to watch it like a hawk.
You can't walk away from it if you have it lined up to the coil in the HLT.
Depending on how hot the HLT is, you would overshoot the mash temp in a
heartbeat. Using a HERMS, in my opinion, it is very important to control
the temperature of the HLT just 5-10 degrees above your mash temperature so
you don't over heat the hot wort. I'm not saying you can't do this
manually, just that you would really have to pay close attention. Your mash
could be at mashout temperatures in 10 minutes if you went and answered the
phone and weren't watching. I suppose, if you had manual valves on the
inlet of the coil and bypass, you could have a flow through the bypass all
the time and take a cut off into the coil to maintain temperature.
With good insulation on the mash tun and HLT, your temperatures would
stabilize better and you wouldn't have to do too many adjustments. The
3-way in my system goes back and forth umpteen times a session, and I don't
pay much attention to it. Every time I look up at the temperature
controller, its at setpoint, so I really don't worry about it too much. I
hope that helped. I sent you a pdf drawing of my system.
Bill Tobler
Lake Jackson, TX
(1129.7, 219.9) Apparent Rennerian
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 11:46:07 -0500
From: Paul Shick <shick@jcu.edu>
Subject: Update on Ceske Budejovice yeast
Hi all,
Some months ago I posted a question about the
White Labs seasonal Ceske Budejovice yeast, asking if
others had difficulties with excess diacetyl remaining
after the primary. After a few months of lagering, I'm
glad to say that the resulting Pils has worked out very
nicely, with no _noticeable_ diacetyl. There's enough
maltiness there that I suspect that some background
diacetyl is adding to the perceived maltiness. The
beer is now very crisp, with a very malty nose, but
the hops still shine through. Unfortunately, I over-bittered
just a bit, so that it's too bitter for a real Czech Pils
and too malty for a real German Pils, but I like it a lot.
So for anyone who was put off by my description of
this yeast, go to it. It seems to make a very convincing
Pils.
Paul Shick
Cleveland Hts, OH
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 12:12:07 -0500
From: "Steve Alexander" <steve-alexander@worldnet.att.net>
Subject: re: Yeast Question/bottle culturing
Chuck D. asks about culturing yeast from a bottled beer.
>I am looking for some advice/help on culturing a
>starter from a bottle
>of Paulaner HefeWeisin (sp?). I fell in love with this
>beer recently
Unfortunately for the yeast scavengers, most hefe-weizens use a different
bottle conditioning yeast. I don't specifically know about Paulaner. As
far as how to culture from a bottle, I've considerable expertise on that.
Live yeast cell concentrations in most bottled beers are low. If the beer
is filtered the reason is obvious. Even if there is considerable yeast
sediment, often shipping and storage have seriously reduced the number of
live cells. You can't always directly use beer to streak-out on a plate and
expect colony growth. The cell concentration is often too low.
My method is to remove about 85% of the beer - leaving any sediment intact.
then add about 40% of the bottle volume as fresh sterile wort. Aerate by
shaking & mixing with the headspace air and incubate in a warm area -
75F-80F.
Of course sanitation procedures must be comparable to those used to create
slants.
Sanitize the sealed bottle and all tools with a soak in iodophor sol'n.
The culture wort should be recently boiled or pressure cooked and then
cooled in sanitary conditions. I'd strongly recommend you use gloves -
latex disposables are nice, but dishwashing rubber gloves work too. It's
much easier to sanitize the glove surface than your skin surface. A face
mask is a good idea. Wipe down the work area w/ sanitizer. HEPA filtered
air if you have one. You have to think too - it's very easy to unwittingly
touch a faucet or a drawer handle and contaminate the work.
You pop the cap w/ sanitized opener, flame the bottle lip and pour out 80%
of the contents gently. Flame the lip again, then add culture wort to the
bottle. Seal and shake vigorously. You could add a fermentation lock,
but the growth rate will be extremely slow and a saran & rubber band (both
sanitized) make a perfectly acceptable seal.
The bubbler or the saran should eventually show a little activity - but
*very* little. Under good circumstances you'll see activity in 3-4 days.
For a well filtered beer like the Michelob it may take 2 or 3 weeks to see
the saran bulge !
Anyway after you see some activity you could streak-out the sample to create
a clean culture with good confidence you'll see colonies. If the sample
smells clean and was active fairly quickly - it's reasonably safe to step it
up through a few starter stages and then pitch it into a batch - assuming it
still smells and looks good..
For beginners you can culture from Sierra Nevada Pale Ale quite easily.
Many Belgian beers produce good working cultures readily, Chimay for
example, but it's hit & miss. I've had difficulty Unibroue - I suspect
their yeast autolyzes readily. For a challenge try a filtered beer. I've
cultured very nice smelling (low infection level) ferments from Michelob on
two occasions. Despite what you read - even filtered beer contains viable
cells.
If you have the equipment and really good sanitary conditions it's better to
place the sample+wort on a stir plate - sealed. You are doing more handling
this way and I'd so don't try it unless your sanitation is impeccable.
-S
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 14:14:08 -0500
From: "Jay Wirsig" <Jay.Wirsig@usa.dupont.com>
Subject: Leffe Clone Recipe
Does anyone have a Leffe clone recipe (I'm particularily interested in the
yeast source - the rest I can make up with Promash - a great tool for
making virtual beer).
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------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 14:46:31 -0500
From: David Towson <dtowson@comcast.net>
Subject: Re: HERMS question
In HBD 4155, Greg Collins asks about using a heat exchanger coil in the HLT
with a pump and simple bypass to control mash temperature.
I do this. The usual arrangement is to use two solenoid valves to force
the flow either through the heating coil or completely around it, but the
simple single valve arrangement does work provided there is a significant
difference in flow friction between the heating coil and the
bypass. Otherwise, there is too much flow through the heating coil, even
when the bypass is open.
I first prototyped this arrangement using a single hand-operated gate
valve, and I found that I could very easily set the temperature where I
wanted it, and have it stay there. Then I replaced the hand valve with a
single solenoid valve controlled by a Ranco digital on/off controller. I
get very good control with the HLT temperature about 10 degrees above the
desired mash temperature. My heating coil is about 47 feet of half-inch
tubing, and I arranged the bypass to be a short straight path.
Dave in Bel Air, MD
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 14:52:39 -0500
From: David Towson <dtowson@comcast.net>
Subject: Re: Stop Carboy Chugging (Jonathan Royce)
Another way to stop chugging when emptying a carboy is to move the neck of
the inverted carboy in a circular pattern for a few seconds to get the
liquid spinning. That opens an air hole in the middle of the exit stream
similar to what you get with a whirlpool.
Dave in Bel Air, MD
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 14:03:19 -0600
From: Bill Tobler <wctobler@sbcglobal.net>
Subject: Re: Evaporation rate and Mass Transfer
Thanks Dan and David for the interesting (and useful) posts on Evaporation
rates. I typed bad the other day in my first post. I wrote "My boiloff is
up around 15%" when it should have read "My boiloff is up around 15% per
hour". Sorry about that. I use Promash to help me keep my numbers
straight.
Sense my post bounced the first try, I get to edit it a little. Plugging
some numbers in the Promash Evaporation Calculator, if you boil off 1.5
gallons/hr, that's 23%/hr for a 5 gallon batch. For a 10 gallon batch, it's
only ~12%/hr. And I have noticed that I boil off about the same amount for
a 5 gallon batch as I do with a 10 gallon. I use the same kettle, a 15
gallon keg with a 4500 watt element. I think I'll change my settings and go
with gallons/hr. Thanks again
Bill Tobler
Lake Jackson, TX
(1129.7, 219.9) Apparent Rennerian
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 12:04:35 -0800
From: "Dave" <brewingisloving@hotmail.com>
Subject: Re: business ethics
Hello,
Please note that in my last post in this thread, "someone" was ambiguous.
I was
referring to Eric Theiner.
Dave
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 15:08:32 -0500
From: David Towson <dtowson@comcast.net>
Subject: Re: Corny keg o-ring replacement
In HBD 4154, Joris Dallaire asks: "I have to replace the o-ring on the gas
inlet of some of my cornys. ...I wonder if these
can be replaced by standard o-rings found at hardware stores?"
I use pin-lock kegs, and have replaced the fitting o-rings , (both the
connector seals and the seals between the fitting and the keg) successfully
with hardware store items. But you need a store that carries a large
assortment. And be sure to take careful measurements. Once you find the
correct parts, record the part numbers to save having to repeat the effort
next time.
Dave in Bel Air, MD
Dave in Bel Air, MD
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 15:26:15 -0500
From: "fljohnson@portbridge.com" <fljohnson@portbridge.com>
Subject: Precision Brewing Systems
Has Precision Brewing Systems gone out of business? The web site
(pbsbeer.com)is no longer out there.
Fred L Johnson
Apex, North Carolina
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 16:53:23 -0500
From: Jennifer/Nathan Hall <hallzoo@comcast.net>
Subject: Re:Stop Carboy Chugging
Yesterday Jonathan Royce wrote:
"Today, while emptying sanitizer from my 6 1/2 gallon primary (glass carboy),
I finally figured out a solution to the "chugging" problem that occurs when
a carboy more than 1/2 full is emptied. This chugging problem has been an
annoyance to me since I started brewing because: 1) it causes sanitizer to
splash everywhere, rather than pour in a nice smooth stream down the drain
and 2) it slows the whole process of emptying the carboy.
Anyway, the solution that I "discovered" is to take a length of tubing (mine
was 1/2" ID) that is longer than the carboy is tall and insert it into the
mouth of the carboy until it reaches the bottom. (The other end of the tube
should extend beyond the neck of the carboy.) Now start pouring, keeping the
provides a path for make up air; the fluid flows out around it in a steady
and quick stream."
Another way you can empty liquid quickly from a cylindrical container with a
narrow opening is to utilize the time honored method chefs sometimes use-
swirl the liquid with the bottle held upside down by moving the base in large
circles, kinda like doing the cabbage patch with a champagne bottle held by
both hands. You have to have a little arm strength to do this with a full
carboy, but it works! Empties the bugger in about 15 seconds. This method also
works well for small bottles - saves time when you're emptying your 12 & 16 oz
bottles prior to filling.
Don't drop the damn thing!
Nate Hall
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 17:11:56 -0500
From: Alan McKay <amckay@neap.net>
Subject: new Yeast DB feature
Hey folks,
I have added an amazing new feature to the yeast DB on my site.
Users can now add their own usage comments, and view the comments
added by others.
Right now you must be logged into the site to do either mainly
because I do not think it makes sense to accept anonymous comments
(you and I both really want to know whose advice we are taking, no?)
and I am not yet sure how to separate adding from viewing. But
once I get that figured out I hope to make it so you can view comments
without being logged on, but must log in to add your own comment.
Play around and let me know how it goes!
http://www.bodensatz.com/yeastdb/
You only see the comments when viewing a full-detail of the yeast.
e.g. click on the "1056" for "Wyeast 1056"
cheers,
-Alan
- --
http://www.bodensatz.com/
The Beer Site (tm)
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 14:44:36 -0800
From: "Mike Sharp" <rdcpro@hotmail.com>
Subject: Re: Electrical activities??
Joey Guy, talking about "Electrical activities??"
suggested:
"The most obvious way to get a range of control on the element is to use a
control for an electric range burner(cooktop). I think they are called
surface burner switches or infinite switches. That way you can have more
settings than just hi/lo/off and would be less dangerous. You can get these
controls at any major appliance parts store. Just make sure the ratings on
it are in excess of your theoretical amperage draw. "
Funny you should suggest this. I happened to be looking at said controls on
Saturday. The range controls might work pretty well, if you wanted to
continuously vary the wattage of your element.
The ones I saw were only rated to about 2300 watts, but I suppose you
could find them larger. If not, you could use two elements, one at 3500 and
one at 2000 watts. Switch the 3500 watt element off when boil is achieved,
and fine tune with the 2000 watt. Or, play around with series/parallel
connections for the heaters, possibly in combination with the range control.
Regards,
Mike Sharp
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 15:35:14 -0800
From: "John C. Tull" <jctull@biodiversity.unr.edu>
Subject: WZZ Homebrew Competition
Fellow Brewers,
I am pleased to announce the WZZ Homebrew Competition 2003 in beautiful
Reno, Nevada. This is both an AHA sanctioned and BJCP certified event.
We need judges, stewards, and entrants. Last year's event had 97
entries, so we expect this to be a 100+ entry competition this year.
The winner will have the opportunity to brew their winning beer at the
Great Basin Brewing Company. You can view the details online (follow
the "Competition" link), including registering as a judge or steward,
as well as registering your entries at this web address:
http://jctull.biology.unr.edu/wzz/registration.html
An Acrobat file with the details can be had here (316kb):
http://jctull.biology.unr.edu/wzz/WZZ%20Competition.pdf
NEW INFORMATION
We will be using the Barlewine Festival at the Toronado in San
Francisco, the excellent annual commercial event headed by Russ
Wigglesworth, as an additional drop-off for entries. Tom Baldwin will
be present to collect entries and bring them to Reno. This will
eliminate the hassle of shipping for anyone that will be attending that
event. Just ask for Tom from Reno. Otherwise, ship them to arrive
between 8-22 Feb 2003 to the Reno Homebrewer.
The WZZHC will be held on Sunday 2 March 2003 at the Silver Peak
Restaurant and Brewery. Lunch will be provided for volunteers. There
will also be a BJCP exam administered by Dave Sapsis on Saturday 1
March 2003. So plan on taking the test, then judging the next day if
you are so inclined. Please let me know in advance if you plan to take
the exam. We will need a head count for that as well.
Cheers,
John C. Tull
WZZ
P.S. Apologies for cross-posts.
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 16:26:41 -0800
From: Rod Tussing <RodT@pplant.UCDavis.edu>
Subject: RE- Simple HERMS and Carboy Chugging
Greg asks about "simple HERMS" experiences in HBD 4155 - I have a setup
similar to the one Greg is contemplating: copper coil in HLT tank with
manual valves to direct pumped flow into coil or bypass it. This is a
simple setup - aside from the pump there are no electronics whatsoever.
Heat is supplied by propane fired Cajun Cooker and my immersion chiller does
double duty as the Heat Exchanger in the HLT.
I generally do 10-12 gallon batches and although I can ramp up mash temps
with my system it takes quite a while to do it. I think the main reason for
this is the relatively small temperature differential between the HLT and
the Mash. Adding a stirrer to the HLT would probably help as well.
I typically brew Pale Ales, Amber Ales, IPAs and Kolsches and did not notice
any appreciable benefits to the step mashes vs simple infusion mashing.
I do re-circulate and ramp up to mash out but step mashes simply took too
long and burned too much fuel without any noticeable benefit. FWIW, YMMV,
ETC.
Jonathon mentioned a strategy to eliminate chugging of carboys when being
emptied. Another, no tool, way to stop the chug-a-lug is to swirl the
carboy while inverted and draining to start a vortex. That will make the
flow go both faster and smoother.
(BUT the best way to eliminate is to eliminate the carboy altogether and
ferment in a corny keg - cheaper, easier to carry and essentially
unbreakable.)
Rod Tussing
Sacramento, CA
1975.1 miles , 275.1 Degrees Apparent Rennerian
------------------------------
End of HOMEBREW Digest #4156, 01/28/03
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