Recent content by mosyslack

Sweet! In!!!!

I brewed Christmas Ale a few years ago with cloves. It took just over a year for it mellow. On thing I have learned is to be cautious about throwing things out unless there are glaring issues (infection, off flavors, etc...).

I have a question about my first brew. Do I have to boil the extract and water and everything? How a bout the yeast? haha I guess just enter me in the drawing, thanks!

+1 Quite a few of the starters I have made showed little sign of fermentation for several days. One sign to try, if not already, is to close the lid and shake vigorously..aerate. If it forms a good size head and there is a good bit of gases escaping once the lid is open, viola, you have...

Those are 2 different things. Typically, O2 is added prior to/while you add yeast, so that the yeast have the required oxygen. Degassing is the process of shaking, stirring, etc to release CO2 after the fermentation process has begun. Co2 inhibits the yeast from performing their jobs to the...

Dry Hopping is the primary reason for the big hop nose. Late additions (flame out) help out a bit, but primarily it's the dry hopping with fresh hops

Generally, I dry-hop for 7-10 days at most and discard the spent hops. I'm sure they might be fine to re-use but they are not going to add as much to the next batch as this one. Just buy new and go with something that you know works

First rule of fight club... No, not really. Airlock activity (or lack of) is not necessarily an indication of fermentation or the lack of. Draw off a sample and take a hydro reading, that is really the only way to determine if the fermentation is going according to plan. Shaking the...

I only entered one competition, the AHA regional, but I did place second for a Blonde Ale. It then went to the national final (ok, so actually that's 2 I guess), but I did not place there. It actually scored worse than the first round. I am getting furloughed in 2 weeks and I am going to be...

As long as it's all powder and labeled, you should have no problem. Liquids... that's another story. You may get an extra search where someone goes thru your bag, and swabs for the explosive sniffer, but that would be about it...in my best, educated guess. Let us know how things go.

The problem that I had was that I had no head retention...barely even a head, actually. I draw my water from the out door faucet (not on the softener) and have never had a problem since. I don't believe I had much of an aftertaste, but I was still new and learning.

cold crashing works well in beer and should do the same for a mead. I have not done this yet with my mead, but i have only finished one batch. I have just gone thru the thread about the burnt mead and really want to try this when I return home.

I've been using an AL pot as my brew kettle for over a year and there is no black coating. There is some minor discoloration that occurred due to use, but no discoloration. The only time I have seen a black residue is when I accidentally left and oxidizing cleaner solution in overnight. To...

The chili beers that I have sampled have all had a slight head, but they dissipate very quickly. I recently made a Chocolate Jalapeno Stout which has a great creamy head which only last for a min or 2 at most. I'm sure the chocolate has a greater effect on the head retention than the chilis.

+1 to the dry hopping, but also late additions work well.