Recent content by Mac951

For those who haven't ready Randy Mosher's Extreme Brewing Book, Today I am trying an extreme brewing technique the DOUBLE Grains: 16lbs Rahr 2-row 2lbs Munich Light 1lb CaraVienne 1lb CaraPils 1lb CaraMunich 1lb Crystal 40° Not crazy yet, but wait. Divide grain into 2...

Remember no matter what, it is going to be beer, and if you don't take any of our suggestions, you are only treading further from the "normal," meaning you are a brewing Pioneer! BETTER BEER WOOOOOO

I've successfully stored LME in the fridge for 2 weeks, but what a mess to deal with. I too usually use ALL the LME for a batch, then keep the DME for adjustments. I've sworn a blood oath to not do it again unless I am dividng the LME in half for two batches. The "problem" is that partial...

I see several people have trouble with boil-off rates. Put 7 gallons of H20 in your BK and boil it. Start timer. I live in the dry desert at 5000 ft, and I'm consistently at 20% per hour loss. I calibrated a spoon to work as a "hot dip stick" that is like a auto trans. fluid stick, only...

BIAB for sure. easy to vary mash temperatures, easy to control volumes. Second step: BIAB larger batch and divide into several worts, and do hop/yeast experiments. -Mac

Another alternative is to 2-step the mash, since you've got a small volume. Start at say 145°C for 30-60 mins, then go to 158° for another 30 mins, finish by hitting 165° for a few. IPAs do a little better dry, but if you haven't mashed before. Go for a single step between 148 and 158 and...

Wow, this thread is OLD. But that is what you get when you start Lagers... Recipe: ( I love Brewtarget, even if it isn't perfect) (end of recipe labeled with EOF if you want to skip) American Dark Lager Mac's Black - Dark American Lager (4A)Brewer Mac Date 05/31/2012 Batch Size 5.813...

BIAB is awesome, don't get me wrong. I made the choice to go right to 10gallon igloo, for more control. The decision maker was low cost (I already had a cooler) and I spend 4 hours from strike to pitching yeast. The fact that the MLT doesn't need to be sanitized made the difference, cleaning...

Another thought is to check hydrometer calibration @60°F. A few degrees is +/1 0.002, and it goes up from there. I "dropped" mine once into a sample and had the paper shift, and had to re-adjust all readings afterward. -Mac

So: To keep this more about fermentation and Yeast, I'll do a quick recipe update... American Dark Lager (doesn't matter much from here for recipe). Fermentation plan: Wort chilled to 45°F (wort chiller then overnight in chest freezer w/control) Yeast Saflager W-43/70 two packets...

I used to do the pour back and fourth and shake the carboy/bucket for my first year of brewing, not thinking much of it. I figured out the hard way that if you get enough air, the fermentation works well, but if you don't get enough that is when problems occur. I had good luck with some...

I've done a few batches of single hops as well, and found that extract based is the easiest to keep consistent. Make a small batch size using lhbs supplies, and in order to get a good feel for hops use a bittering, flavor, and aroma addition. I made 4 gallon batches using 3lbs LME, 1lb...

More Research: Munich/Vienna can be either, it has enough enzymes to convert itself. Some of the specialty malts can be steeped, and won't benefit from a full mash... Check out some of the common books. -Mac

As you said, the Vinyl tube could be a bit issue (not good for HOT wort) but also, what was your mash temp and what was the overshoot? what did you use to stir the mash, and did it aerate during that time? 180°F sparge water isn't bad, but it depends on Volume and what the grain temp...

Sounds like Good Beer to me. Might be a little off from Sierra Nevada, but it will be all your own and still BEER. How about you tell us how it comes out? -Mac