Recent content by jmhbutler

Wow, thanks Soulshine2. I guess there is a definitive answer. Good to know!

...depends who you ask. Some believe that the direct exposure to the acidity of the wort kill a large percentage of yeast cells when you do not rehydrate. But either way I don't think yeast hydration is a contributing factor.

"Sweet, honey/malty" is bang on!

Haha, so... my fermentation practice is probably the weakest aspect of my brewing. I do have a controlled fermentation chamber but it only fits one 20L carboy and I usually brew 40-60 litres. I usually just cool the beer to the temperature at which I intend to ferment, put it in the house in a...

Thanks RPhguy, I considered Brett. contamination because I do brew a lot of funky weird stuff and I've stopped using isolated plastic gear between my clean and wild batches (drink it too fast for contamination to occur). That being said I feel confident in my ability to distinguish bacterial...

Did you change the recipe at all? No. Are you repitching yeast? No. Using fresh packages rehydrated in water before pitching. At what point in the brewing process does the off-aroma first occur? Coming out of the primary into the keg I did not notice the aroma. It wasn't until the beer...

Hey everyone, hope somebody might be able to help me out with an issue thats been bugging me. I have a house blonde recipe that I've been brewing for some time: 1.048, 30IBU, 2-Row base, 20% Marris Otter, 20% Wheat, 5% Carapils. Centennial and Cascade, US-05 (usually on the colder side). The...

I recently installed a compression fitting on my HERMS coil after realized I had the internal rings in the wrong order. I filled the pot with water and blew air threw the coil and saw no bubbles. Should I be concerned or did this still probably seal?

Thanks Max384. As a matter of fact I have no fear of accidental souring. Lactobacillus Delbrueckii cannot produce lactic acid in an environment with an IBU above 5. Lactobacillus Brevis and Pediococcus are a little more hop-tolerant but still are severely limited beyond 10 IBU. It is only...

I've been brewing for about a decade and several years I got into mixed fermentation brewing which reinvigorated my passion. While brewing, I have been very diligent to maintain separate "clean" and "wild" gear, taking every precaution to eliminate cross-contamination. I run with about 6...

Really? I'm using star-san in my 3-piece airlock and have to top them up every couple weeks.

A couple years back I got into wild brewing. I now have 6 carboys around with beers again on Brett. and bacteria - some as old as 18 months. Maintaining airlock levels can be a pain in the ass! My question is, at what point would it be advised to throw an un-drilled bung on and forget the...

Last year I bought and planted four hop rhizomes. I built a structure - a 12 foot 4x4 beam concreted into the ground with four strings hanging upwards. The rhizomes were planted in a square with a length/width of about 3 or 4 feet. Two of the rhizomes took off and grew very large while...

1. Noticing a plastic taint in first pour. Tired of throwing away first couple ounces. Changes lines to polyethylene. Taste problem resolved. 1B. Repairs hole punched in drywall while angrily struggling to install 3/8 polyethylene lines for several hours. (kidding... but almost) 2...

AAAAAHHHH. I just bought one and threw it on my wild/brett tap. It has been working great so far but I just read that you're not suppose to use it with sour beers of low pH because the stainless may react and cause a sulphur smell!!! Meanwhile, others say this may be caused by air being...