Recent content by kriso77

I did a Brewer's Best Stout kit and its been in bottles for almost a month. Although it tastes good, it has a hint of that young beer bitterness to it. On average, how long should a Stout stay in the bottles before it is at its prime?

I aerated by shaking the hell out of the carboy for a few minutes before and after the yeast was pitched. I am not working with any type of aeration kit.

Right now the carboy is at about 68 degrees.

The yeast is called Superior Lager. I just took a reading and Fermentation has definitely not started. Its still at 1.044, which is the same as my first reading. The recipe states that it should be approximately 1.045, so I'm ok there.

I did one one AHS's Gold Seal California Common Ale kits. AHS describes the Gold Seal kits as: "The Gold Seal line has been designed with the beginner in mind: they are economical and easy to make. Each kit includes our special Gold Seal Add Pack that helps to ensure a successful fermentation as...

Every single day. Get used to it. There's nothing that you can do to stop the addiction.

Sweet! Very encouraging.

Cool. Fermentation was a little slow to get started. It took about 24 hours for anything noticeable to happen. About 2 days in, it slowed down and on day 3 it took off like a bat out of hell. I really think I need to do a better job with aerating, but that is a whole other subject. I'd rather...

I did Austin Homebrew Supplies' Belgian White mini mash kit a week ago. I decided to go against the recipe instructions and keep it in the primary instead of moving it to a secondary after a week. My plan, hydrometer permitting, is to move to bottles after it has been in the primary for 2 weeks...

Did you find that your beers took on a fruity flavor? In my case my first brew was a Bavarian Wheat beer that tasted like sour bananas. Granted, I think the sour part is just because its young. I'm just hoping the 2nd batch comes out a little more balanced.

I'm sure it depends on the brew, but I'm trying to get a general rule of thumb for how long I should aerate my wort. I have been taking the "shake the carboy" road. I just finished my 2nd batch. I shook the wort in the carboy for about 2 minutes and then another minute or so after the yeast was...

Here's a question. I just brewed my first mini mash with a AHB kit. I steeped my grains in my main 20 quart pot and left the lid on to keep the temp consistant. Once that was done, the lid was removed and brought to a boil. I can understand removing the lid for the boil, but is it ok to leave it...

Another noob stupid question to confirm something that wasn't answered in my previous post . Just made my first starter with a White Labs Wit yeast. This does not get refridgerated like the vial of yeast, correct? The starter is currently sitting in a flask at room temp with a bung and airlock...

When she left, did she use the back door? Awesome!

I have a vial of White Labs Belgian Wit yeast that has been in my refridgerator for 2 weeks. I am going to use it on Sunday. The instructions say to just bring it to room temperature and pitch. Should I make a starter? If I make it tonight, am I giving it enough time to do its thing? I've never...