Recent content by Mad_Milo

It's your boil kettle. As long as chunks can't stick, the burner and 60-90m boil will take care of the rest. You're only concerned about the inside. Outside doesn't matter. Relax and fire that bad boy up!

Yes, that is normal. What is happening is the controller shuts down the compressor, but the lines are still very cold and it coasts downward. Also, for your serving freezer, let the temp probe measure the air temp instead of the keg temp. This should help the overshoot, as the freezer won't be...

I brewed an Old Ale with 9097 in June 2009, and still have a few bottles. Broke another one out a couple weeks ago, and wow! They have been in my beer fridge at ~50F and have matured into something amazing. I hope we can use this yeast mix again soon. To help with the "horsey" descriptor, it's...

I do one every year and split out half for a wet harvest ale with my homegrown chinook. I love this hop. It's really a complex hop that changes every time you taste it. I also used it with N. Brewer for an interesting California Common.

I would suggest two things: 1. Consider using some hops as first wort hops to bring out a rounder hop flavor. 2. Flavor hops around the 15-20 minute mark. With just bittering and aroma additions (including the dry hops) it just won't taste like much.

I just toss my dip tube into the wallpaper paste tray I use for my racking canes, etc. I think that this thread is another show of finding what works for you. There are good reasons for both camps.

Easier than you may think, especially if you have more than one keg on that gas branch.

Only time it's safe to bottle is when the FG stabilizes. Otherwise you will have overcarbed beer at best, or bottle bombs at worst.

Only way to know if you've hit FG is to take gravity readings over a couple days. With this being fermented with cider yeast it probably won't act like an ale yeast. They are long and methodical after the initial takeoff.

I did this to one keg and I regret it. It leaves about a half pint or more in the keg. It doesn't make that much of a difference unless you ferment or rush your beer into the keg.

If you consider a true German mindset, this makes the most sense. Consider their view of form vs function. If it's not necessary, it's not there. Many Kolsch recipes are too complex for their own good. I started with the Black Widow recipe, and over the years have trimmed the excess. Last...

There's a few tried and true recipes in the HBT recipe section under Light Hybrid Ales. I just brewed one a couple weekends ago, and went basic with just Pilsner and a bit of light Munich for color and a little bit of flavor. Only hop addition was for bittering, as it's all about the yeast in...

Put the Kolsch yeast in the fridge and brew a proper Kolschy with it soon. It's a great beer for summer. If you brew in the next couple weeks, it can be ready for the dog days of summer.

You can make a pretty clean beer with WY1056 or WY1099 or it's equivalent. 1099 may taste a bit more fruity, but is a fast bugger. Really depends on what you are looking for. Another option would be to make an american wheat and embrace the cloudiness :) You could always "lager" in the keg for...

As long as your ambient temp outside the freezer is warmer that your ferm temp, a freezer will do ok (remember the freezer won't heat the inside without help.) For the ferm temp, simply tape a pouch made with a double or triple layer of bubble wrap to your carboy/bucket, and insert the temp...