rodwha

Recipes 

How much Carapils is needed for a 4.5 to 5.5 gal batch for good head retention?

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Glynn

Recipes 

1 to 5 % but i actually prefer to use wheat for good head and carapils for body

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rodwha

Recipes 

I have been using ~1 lb of wheat in all of my beers, but have also been using pilsen LME that has Carapils in it, which isn't really to style for the ales I make.

I was reluctant to use the "ultralight" LME (6-9 L*) until I was able to get definite info on the PPG and color. I'll be trying it soon. But I figure I'll need to start using Carapils to help out.

I also found out that washing my bottles/glasses with liquid dish soap wash harming it too. I tried scrubbing my glasses in Star San and rinsing them and noticed a slight difference. The last batch I bottled I also scrubbed them in Star San. Hopefully I'll see a big difference.

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"Anyway on the wall was this sign. People who drink light beer don't really like beer. They just like to piss a lot."

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rodwha

Recipes 

What else works for head retention?

Would 4 oz be plenty for a brew 4.5-5.8 gals?

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"Anyway on the wall was this sign. People who drink light beer don't really like beer. They just like to piss a lot."

"Were I to leave where else would I go? Your words of life and of truth You hold." - Third Day

pjj2ba

Recipes 

Any ingredient with high protein levels, which includes the wheat mentioned above. Oats can also improve head retention - and also adds a slickness to the mouthfeel, which you may or may not want

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rodwha

Recipes 

How about rye? Just made a rye pale last week, and noticed how slimy my grain bag was.

What is a minimal and maximum amount of carapils you'd want to use in a typical 5 gal brew?

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"Anyway on the wall was this sign. People who drink light beer don't really like beer. They just like to piss a lot."

"Were I to leave where else would I go? Your words of life and of truth You hold." - Third Day

dcp27

Recipes 

none

rye is very good for head retention

rodwha

Recipes 

Outside of soap/rinse aid residue what hurts/kills the head retention?

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"Anyway on the wall was this sign. People who drink light beer don't really like beer. They just like to piss a lot."

"Were I to leave where else would I go? Your words of life and of truth You hold." - Third Day

dcp27

Recipes 

fat/oils, adjuncts, lack of hops, poor yeast health, old ingredients, etc

maybe these articles will help

http://www.byo.com/stories/article/indices/35-head-retention/625-fabulous-foam

http://byo.com/stories/article/indices/35-head-retention/697-getting-good-beer-foam-techniques

rodwha

Recipes 

Thanks for the articles!

From them I'd have to guess that it's the use of dish soap in my bottles and glassware, which I was recently told was a no-no.

I tried a quick scrubbing of my glasses in my Star San and noticed a slight difference. I'd guess that my rinse job wasn't enough to get rid of the residue from the soap. I scrubbed my bottles with Star San that had been scrubbed with soap before I bottled my last batch. It'll be a while before I can tell if it's the sole culprit.

I generally add 1 lb of wheat DME and use Briess pilsen LME, which contains Carapils. Maybe upping the IBU's would help too as I've been designing them to be at the low end of the spectrum unless it's an IPA, which I go for 70.

__________________
"Anyway on the wall was this sign. People who drink light beer don't really like beer. They just like to piss a lot."

"Were I to leave where else would I go? Your words of life and of truth You hold." - Third Day