Recent content by Monmouth00

Right - this was the ultimate goal = to make sure my starting water results in desirable pH range when I'm done mashing. If I start with 7 gallons of distilled water, what do you think the right additions would be to get a stable pH? I think I start with the following mash bill: 9.375 Lbs...

Hello all, Is there a water profile in Bru 'n Water that you would use for a kentucky bourbon? Theoretically, should I be aiming for something low in Calcium Carbonate? Thanks for any insights you can provide. -Monmouth00

Our town has an annual bonfire to burn all the collected Christmas trees. I'm part of the committee that helps to organize it. A buddy asked me to brew a beer for the volunteers to sip during cleanup after the event, and since I had just bought some ingredients, I agreed. I had initially...

I've never really gotten that scientific about it. If I want to mash at 152 degrees, I generally just set the PID to 154 or 155 until it hits that temp, then dial it back immediately before mashing in. It sometimes drops to 150 or so before coming back up. But it usually returns to my desired...

I always use two packets. I have no idea why. Habit maybe? From what I'm reading, the fermentation temperature range upper limit for the K-97 is about 68 degrees. I'm obviously 8+ degrees above that, but the temp dropped to about 74 as of this morning. Still, I'm thinking this one is going to...

Messing around with a Moktoberfest beer, and the Safale K-97 took off on me. I’m afraid I’m going to have an ester bomb on my hands. Started with 5.5# of Munich Light, 5.5# Pilsner, and 1.25# of Caramunich. Did 60’ steep at 152deg, and another 30’ at 156. Hopped with a half ounce of Hellertauer...

There are better beers, and there are cheaper beers, but you'll never find a better cheap beer than Yuengling. Though, I did go through a Molson Canadian phase when I was traveling to Toronto and Montreal a dozen times a year. Also, when in Nashville a few years back, a bar owner I was talking...

I haven't even tried a lager yet. I'm not set up for temperature controlled fermentation. I'll consider myself a good homebrewer when I am set up, and can consistently crank out clean, clear, crisp, repeatable light lagers. My holy grail.

The New Jersey State Fair Homebrew Competition is open, and while I'm not going to enter a beer, it got me wondering. What exactly does it take to win in a competition? Can anyone who has entered and won - or the some of the judges for that matter - weigh in on what exactly the beer is being...

I use an $75 Ferroday magnetic drive wort pump I got from Amazon. Bobby from Brew Hardware put a port in my kettle lid, and sold me some disconnects and valves. Silicone tubing connects it all. Underneath the lid is a snap-loc tube that I can flex to direct the in-flow where I want it. I...

I measure the volumes by taking a physical measurement with a metal ruler and dropping that into this calculator: Man Skirt Brewing, Hackettstown NJ I don't get crazy about it. But I would like to dial it in a bit better. I just kegged a batch last night and hit my 5 gallon batch size right on...

Wow, this thread is chocked full of great information. Thanks everyone. My next hill to climb is trying to figure out grain absorption, boil-off, and overall brewhouse efficiency so I can more consistently predict gravity and final batch size. It seems to be a moving target for me to get the...

A $100,000.00 for a used 1 Bbl systems seems like a lot, no? There's a complete 7 Bbl used system for sale on pro-brewer for $65,000.00

So, I tapped the keg of the Blood Orange Gose last night! I did a quick force carb under 30 psi for about 24 hours, so it was a little flat, but I got some head and a few bubbles. Enough to see what will be when it finishes under the 10psi serving pressure over the next few days. So, it’s beer...

Hello Everyone, I haven't forgotten to update you - I'm sorry. I wanted to give the fruit some time to infuse, and also had to finish the previous keg before this fermenter could be cold crashed. The Blood Orange Gose with Philly Sour and US-05 is going into the keg tonight, and I'll force-carb...