Recent content by mookie1010

No votes for Lagunita's censored?

Agree. If you have a big lots next to you they sell these huge blue tubs for $5.99. Until I got my current chest freezer set up, I was using these as the water bath mechanism. (Have I already mentioned that in this thread?) It's nice to see the sticky thermometer at 68*F. They also have...

I've found that when I very slowly drop my hydrometer into the thief, this helps. A quick drop and waiting for it to float back up seems to result in more bad readings, side stickings, etc... I fill the thief with enough wort so that I can still hold the stem once it's floating at it's...

I was in the 50's the first time I did AG too. Don't sweat it. There are all kinds of threads about what you can do, but mine improved with a good long stir at mash in. Several minutes mixing made a big difference for me. Up to 75% on most brews now.

What a great idea. As I was brewing yesterday I was thinking about starting a thread titled "what do you hate to clean / sanitize" and the auto siphon / racking cane was first on my list. I'll have to stop at the Depot this week.

My super cheap and easy "fermentation chamber" was a $5.00 blue bucket cooler from Big lots. Put the better bottle / carboy in there with a water bath and either ice cubes or frozen bottles. It helps a lot. Keeps things under 70*F for sure.

For me - there's nothing like the jarring feeling of a great IPA hitting your mouth and saying "Wake up, fool! It's time for flavor!" If you're looking for balanced IPA's -- in my opinion (which is only that) Bear Republic's Racer 5 is good, and if you can get it (dunno if they distribute in...

Too funny - I did the exact same thing on my first ever batch. Came out with exactly 36 beers and a puzzled look. I know it's impossible to wait, but for me, after 3 weeks mine were still sweet. An extra week or two really helped that batch mellow out a bit and taste a lot better.

The wine thief? I use that as my hydrometer stand.

I do mine the night before - 18-24 hours before I pitch it. I've been using wyeast 1056 and 1098 I washed from other batches and they've been doing great that way. Like others said - better to do it short than skip it altogether.

Yup. Same here. But I'm also a freak about sanitation and was even before I began brewing.

I knew I wasn't the only one!

Man - now that's a light beer!

Well, I'm not sure when you should add yeast, but I will tell you that these posts are the reason I became fully convinced to use a starter on all batches, and since then all my fermentations take off in 18 hours - visibly and audibly.

Count me as one of them. The only thing that I would recommend with them is to pay very close attention to your mash temps. Originally, I was preheating the cooler with 170*F water, and I was shooting for about 12-15*F above my mash temp with the strike water, but it seems like I need to be at...