Home Brew Forums > Home Brewing Beer > Gluten Free Brewing > Brewing Software - GF style




Reply
 
LinkBack Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 09-17-2012, 11:48 PM   #1
Feedback Score: 0 reviews
Recipes 
 
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: , MICHIGAN
Posts: 279
Liked 9 Times on 7 Posts
Likes Given: 4

Default Brewing Software - GF style

I just figured I'd mention that I have tried just about every android brewing app and have found Brewing Assistant my favorite so far. The beauty of it for us GF folks is it has GF extracts like Briess sorghum and BRS. Plus it's free!

It also links with the website brewology101.com where your recipes are saved or you can enter them there from a full browser.

What's everyone else using for brew calculators?


thanantos is offline
 
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Old 09-18-2012, 02:16 AM   #2
Gluten-Freek
Feedback Score: 0 reviews
Recipes 
 
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Oakland, CA
Posts: 774
Liked 41 Times on 29 Posts
Likes Given: 31

Default

hopville.com! They recently did a major software overhaul and they're still working out some kinks, but I really like it. You can set grains to be steeped OR mashed, which is important when calculating gravity, and it also calculates your sparge water and boil volume for you. The only thing I wish is that it had a BIAB setting. But otherwise it's great!


__________________
Bottled: Beet-Buckwheat RIS, Oatmeal Cherry Stout, Galaxy-Hopped Bochet, Oat-Pecan APA, Sorachi-Chamomile Blonde, Quinoa IPA, Black IPA, Nelson Agave Cream Ale, Buckwheat Stout, Chestnut Saison, Mosaic IIPA, White IPA
Primary: Empty
Secondary: Empty
Planning: Chestnut Coffee Stout, another IPA, Wild Rice Brown, Blackberry-Kombucha Sour, Melon Pale Ale, and plenty more!
All gluten-free, all the time!

Check out my gluten-free brewing blog, beyondbarley.blogspot.com
igliashon is offline
 
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Old 09-18-2012, 02:37 AM   #3
Feedback Score: 0 reviews
Recipes 
 
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Hookstown, PA
Posts: 316
Liked 9 Times on 8 Posts
Likes Given: 17

Default

I was a fan of hopville until they did their overhaul. Now when I visit my account it makes me angry. However, if they fix the kinks it is a great site for GF. It has sorghum, brs, gluten free grains, etc.
__________________
so whether you eat or drink, whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.
ChasidicCalvinist is offline
 
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Old 09-19-2012, 06:01 PM   #4
Senior Member
Feedback Score: 0 reviews
Recipes 
 
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Santa Cruz, CA
Posts: 131
Liked 1 Times on 1 Posts

Default

Agreed, I liked Hopville better before the change. Still, it's what I use and the GF ingredients are pretty good. Hopville has enough tweaking to be useful without so much that it's annoying. I have no idea what data they use for GF grains/malt. I should do some testing some time and see if my results reflect the attributes they have for the ingredients.
__________________
Primary: Pale Ale
Secondary: Experimental Honey Steam, Apricot Wine, Plum Wine
Bottled/Kegged: Steam Beer, Imperial Porter, All-Juice Apple Wine, Cider, GF Graff, Red Kale Ale, GF GF Ale, Another Cider, Black Ale, Scotch Ale
Coming soon:, Blackberry Wine, GF Pale
muench1 is offline
 
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Old 09-20-2012, 05:32 PM   #5
Gluten-Freek
Feedback Score: 0 reviews
Recipes 
 
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Oakland, CA
Posts: 774
Liked 41 Times on 29 Posts
Likes Given: 31

Default

The variable to mess with in Hopville for doing gluten-free all-grain or partial-mash is the efficiency. Most of the PPG data comes from people who mash the grains with barley, so it gives a theoretical maximum extraction under ideal enzymatic conditions. When I tried brewing with rice and amylase enzyme, I took gravity readings at the end and was able to calculate my efficiency by the difference between what Hopville said I would get and what I actually got. Turned out to be about ~40% efficiency, but I blame a combination of very coarse crush (lots of whole grains made in, using a food processor to crush grains is not very effective) and the fact that I didn't know I was supposed to stir frequently to ensure proper enzyme activity. I also suspect I didn't sufficienty gelatinize the grains prior to mashing in with the enzymes, and also (since I was doing BIAB) I may not have added enough water. I suspect I can get the efficiency up to at least 60% with better technique...and perhaps this promalt stuff I got from beljica will help, too. I want to do a side-by-side trial of promalt vs. EC Kraus diatase on rice to see if there's a difference in efficiency.
__________________
Bottled: Beet-Buckwheat RIS, Oatmeal Cherry Stout, Galaxy-Hopped Bochet, Oat-Pecan APA, Sorachi-Chamomile Blonde, Quinoa IPA, Black IPA, Nelson Agave Cream Ale, Buckwheat Stout, Chestnut Saison, Mosaic IIPA, White IPA
Primary: Empty
Secondary: Empty
Planning: Chestnut Coffee Stout, another IPA, Wild Rice Brown, Blackberry-Kombucha Sour, Melon Pale Ale, and plenty more!
All gluten-free, all the time!

Check out my gluten-free brewing blog, beyondbarley.blogspot.com
igliashon is offline
 
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Old 09-21-2012, 04:37 AM   #6
Senior Member
Feedback Score: 0 reviews
Recipes 
 
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Santa Cruz, CA
Posts: 131
Liked 1 Times on 1 Posts

Default

Igliashon, without malted grain your efficiency is really going to be low. As my unemployment stretches on my malting project may need to be revived...
__________________
Primary: Pale Ale
Secondary: Experimental Honey Steam, Apricot Wine, Plum Wine
Bottled/Kegged: Steam Beer, Imperial Porter, All-Juice Apple Wine, Cider, GF Graff, Red Kale Ale, GF GF Ale, Another Cider, Black Ale, Scotch Ale
Coming soon:, Blackberry Wine, GF Pale
muench1 is offline
 
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Old 09-21-2012, 04:47 PM   #7
Gluten-Freek
Feedback Score: 0 reviews
Recipes 
 
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Oakland, CA
Posts: 774
Liked 41 Times on 29 Posts
Likes Given: 31

Default

Why would my efficiency be lower with unmalted grains, if I'm using enzymes? Are malted grains starchier?
__________________
Bottled: Beet-Buckwheat RIS, Oatmeal Cherry Stout, Galaxy-Hopped Bochet, Oat-Pecan APA, Sorachi-Chamomile Blonde, Quinoa IPA, Black IPA, Nelson Agave Cream Ale, Buckwheat Stout, Chestnut Saison, Mosaic IIPA, White IPA
Primary: Empty
Secondary: Empty
Planning: Chestnut Coffee Stout, another IPA, Wild Rice Brown, Blackberry-Kombucha Sour, Melon Pale Ale, and plenty more!
All gluten-free, all the time!

Check out my gluten-free brewing blog, beyondbarley.blogspot.com
igliashon is offline
 
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Old 09-21-2012, 11:38 PM   #8
Feedback Score: 0 reviews
Recipes 
 
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Chewelah, Washington
Posts: 48
Liked 2 Times on 2 Posts
Likes Given: 3

Default

muench1... I'm calling you out on this one. With a proper enzyme cocktail you can get a high efficiency out a brick. I myself have made over a hundred gallons of wort using unmalted grains and enzymes. Even bud light uses a high percentage of unmalted adjuncts and I assure you their efficiency is through the roof. It takes technique, proper equipment, and PROPER enzymes... Check out my honey blonde ale thread and you'll see an example of a solid unmalted grain beer. Another example would be beers made in africa where they use sorghum and add enzymes to Boost the zyme power. There are several companies that make enzymes Kerry, SEB and, CBS are three just off the top of my head that specialize in making these zymes.
beljica is offline
 
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Old 09-21-2012, 11:43 PM   #9
Feedback Score: 0 reviews
Recipes 
 
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Chewelah, Washington
Posts: 48
Liked 2 Times on 2 Posts
Likes Given: 3

Default

Igliashon! Have you tried the cocktail yet? If you need me to write some tips down or just call and talk that would be fine. There are a few things that are different when brewing with unmalted grains. Mainly involving the cereal mash and grind. Grain weight is also calculated differently because about 5 percent (I think) of barley is husk.
beljica is offline
 
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Old 09-22-2012, 01:16 AM   #10
Gluten-Freek
Feedback Score: 0 reviews
Recipes 
 
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Oakland, CA
Posts: 774
Liked 41 Times on 29 Posts
Likes Given: 31

Default

I'm gonna try them early next week, I'm planning a partial mash with 3 lbs of bananas and 2 lbs of millet (figured that'd be a pretty safe beginning). My plan is to roast the bananas in the oven, then puree, grind the millet (untoasted) with my Corona mill, then toss the millet and bananas (mixed with rice hulls, in my BIAB bag) into 2.5 gallons of boiling water, and cook for 30 minutes. Then top up to 4 gallons with some room temperature water, let cool to 120°, add the enzymes, and do the step-mash as indicated. I have some extra amylase formula that I might add during saccharification if it seems necessary. After a nice long saccharification rest at ~153°F, during which I'll be stirring frequently and applying heat as necessary to keep the temp up, I'll pull the bag and squeeze (typical BIAB method). At this point I'll pull a sample and cool it to check my efficiency, then add enough sorghum extract to hit my desired OG, and proceed to the boil. Does this sound like it'll work?


__________________
Bottled: Beet-Buckwheat RIS, Oatmeal Cherry Stout, Galaxy-Hopped Bochet, Oat-Pecan APA, Sorachi-Chamomile Blonde, Quinoa IPA, Black IPA, Nelson Agave Cream Ale, Buckwheat Stout, Chestnut Saison, Mosaic IIPA, White IPA
Primary: Empty
Secondary: Empty
Planning: Chestnut Coffee Stout, another IPA, Wild Rice Brown, Blackberry-Kombucha Sour, Melon Pale Ale, and plenty more!
All gluten-free, all the time!

Check out my gluten-free brewing blog, beyondbarley.blogspot.com
igliashon is offline
 
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Reply

Quick Reply
Message:
Options
Thread Tools
Display Modes




FOLLOW US ON