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HOMEBREW Digest #4550
HOMEBREW Digest #4550 Sun 27 June 2004
FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
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Contents:
Re: Better Bottles ("Roy Strohl")
DMS production ("Doug Hurst")
fear of sour; berliner weisse; aging lambic softens; dryhopping (Raj B Apte)
Home Brew Competition - Commander SAAZ ("Glenn Exline")
Apricot Beer ("Brian Dougan")
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Date: Thu, 24 Jun 2004 09:29:55 -0400
From: "Roy Strohl" <lstrohl at mwc.edu>
Subject: Re: Better Bottles
Subject: Better Bottle?
I saw the query on HBD this morning. "Has anyone tried fermenting in the
PET-based Better Bottle?"
Yes, I have been using them very successfully for the past six or seven
batches. I started out with two six gallon BBs for my primaries (I brew ten
gallon batches). I had previously chipped the neck on one of my 6.5 gallon
glass carboys, was also worried about the safety angle, and I decided to give
the BBs a try. Using them as primaries worked very well on my first two
batches, and I then ordered two five gallon BBs as replacements for my
secondaries (one of them too had a chipped neck well that I had filed down a
bit to smooth up the sharp edges). Now, after using them for several other
batches I cannot imagine brewing without them. They are incredibly light, have
great gripping surfaces, and give you a peace of mind that you shouldn't have
when working with glass carboys. The bottoms of the BBs are domed (like a
champagne bottle) so you can lower your transfer siphon onto the top of the
dome without disturbing the trub. I know that they make a variety of gadgets
such as a racking outlet (see http://www.better-bottle.com/ ) but I tend to
like simplicity, and this feature seemed to have the potential of being error
prone to me.
I have used both Iodophor and StarSan in them for cleaning and have noticed no
discoloration. I also reluctantly used a carboy brush for a persistent waxy
1056 residue yeast removal and noticed no scratching. So, they don't always
just soak clean. However, I usually use a terry cloth sleeve on the carboy
brush and would recommend that unless you run into a snag. You will need to
purchase size 10 stoppers for the BBs. On my primaries I have force fit tubing
into the drilled holes to allow for blow off and am using a triple-ripple
airlock on the secondaries.
Now, about those old glass carboys - I cut the tops off at the upper shoulder
and converted the two five gallon carboys into terrariums that my wife planted
with ferns, moss etc. that we then gave to a local grade school for a
classroom feature.
I hope you like the BBs as much as I do.
Good brewing,
Roy Strohl
Dog & Dart Brewing
Fredericksburg, VA
(659.7K, 127.1) apparent Rennerian
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Date: Thu, 24 Jun 2004 11:25:57 -0500
From: "Doug Hurst" <dougbeer2000 at hotmail.com>
Subject: DMS production
The recent discussion about Berliner Weisse brought up a concern that a
short boil may leave DMS in the final beer. I doubt that a proper boil, no
matter how short, will leave DMS in the final beer. DMS is produced from
S-Methyl Methionine (SMM) which naturally develops during the germination
process (read: malting) of barley. The SMM is converted to Dimethyl Sulfide
(DMS) at temperatures above 140F. DMS is quite volitile and is easily
driven off during a rolling wort boil. If, on the other hand, the wort is
held above 140F but not boiled for a period of time, SMM will convert to DMS
and remain in the wort. DMS will also remain in the wort if a rolling boil
is not vented. The condensation which contains DMS will drip back into the
wort. This results in Rolling Rock. It's interesting to note that DMS is
also formed during the kilning phase of malting but good kiln venting drives
it off.
Doug Hurst
Chicago, IL
[197.5, 264.8] Apparent Rennerian
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Date: Thu, 24 Jun 2004 09:35:57 -0700 (PDT)
From: Raj B Apte <raj_apte at yahoo.com>
Subject: fear of sour; berliner weisse; aging lambic softens; dryhopping
Chad,
I made a BW a year and a half ago, and the last few bottles
are noticeably LESS sour than at 3 months. This is not just
because my taste buds are damaged by lambic, but confirmed
by another taster: "its about as sour as a Belgian wit,
maybe just a tad more." It started out ferociously sour.
Several of our wild bug friends can metabolize lactic acid,
but I thought they needed oxygen. Regardless of the
mechanism, has anyone else noticed that sour ales age
softer? I have also had some 15 year lambics that seemed
pretty tame as well.
Boiling: "Designing Great Beers" mentions the no-boil. And
the color does darken with a boil. I myself am in favor of
the no-boil, but you have to be very patient. The final
beer can have a lovely, cloudy appearance--makes one wonder
why anyone would want a clear beer.
Fun: consider dryhopping with goldings two weeks before
bottling. I think a nice citrusy hops nose goes very well
with the sourness.
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Date: Sat, 26 Jun 2004 00:11:47 -0400
From: "Glenn Exline" <gexline at cfl.rr.com>
Subject: Home Brew Competition - Commander SAAZ
Fellow home brewers, The 10TH annual Commander SAAZ Interplanetary Homebrew
Blastoff is scheduled for Saturday July 31 2004. The competition is hosted
by the SpaceCoast Associates for the Advancement of Zymurgy (SAAZ) and is an
AHA sanctioned homebrew competition. The competition is open to all BJCP
categories and a Best of show trophy will be awarded for both Best of Show
Beer, and Best of Show Mead/Cider. (A picture of the trophy is posted on
the website!)
This year we hope to top the 350 entry mark (last year was 309!). To make
entering easier we're providing on-line electronic entry and will be
accepting payments via PayPal. While all this automation will make it easier
than ever to enter, you will still have to send in your beers!
More info is available on the Commander SAAZ page at http://www.saaz.org
<http://www.saaz.org/> . Start setting away some of your best brews and come
compete for the Commander's Cosmic Best of Show Trophy.
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Date: Sun, 27 Jun 2004 12:35:03 +0000
From: "Brian Dougan" <dougan_b at hotmail.com>
Subject: Apricot Beer
Ithaca Beer Company (Ithaca, NY) does an Apricot Wheat that is quite nice,
the first time I had Pyramid it made me think a bit about it.
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End of HOMEBREW Digest #4550, 06/27/04
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