Recent content by phillipv

Another option to consider is keg hopping. Once you notice hop aroma starting to fade, pack about 3/4 ounce of your favorite aroma hop (leaf would be better, but pellet works as well) into a small sanitized muslin bag and drop it in the keg. It will almost certainly result in a few more...

Dude, you totally stole the name I was gonna use for my Black IPA. Well played, sir. Now I have to try and come up with something else. Also, that's a killer label you made.

I have mashed on one day, collected runnings in my brewpot, covered, and boiled the next day a few times, and so far I have always had good results. As a family man, its alot easier for me to slink away for a couple hours on Saturday and Sunday to brew, rather than spend 6 hours at once. I...

My understanding (and I very well may be wrong) is that there is no need to make a starter for Brett. Those little buggers are very motivated self starters and they will eat just about anything. Also, unlike saccharomyces (your regular brewing yeast), standard pitching rates dont appply, so I...

I think you will pleased with the Hallertau hops. As for the yeast, if you are going for a traditional German style dunkelweizen then the Wyeast Bavarian Weat or the White Labs WLP 300 will both treat ya right. Plenty of banana esters and clovey goodness. I don't have any experience with...

For a 5 gal batch, I would just use an ounce of Hallertau at around 3.5 to 4.5% AAU for 60 mins and call it a day. Like hefeweizen, this is a style in which the taste is derived primarily from the yeast, so you don't want to overpower that with tons of hop bitterness. While Hallertau is my...

There are several hop varieties that give off grapefruit flavors. You might want to try dry hopping with something like Cascade, Centennial, Simcoe, or Amarillo instead of actually using grapefruit. Just my 2 cents.

Let me start off by saying that I too am a noob, so any more experienced brewers feel free to correct me if I am wrong. What I have done in a few batches that called for sparging specialty grains in extract recipes is heat 1/2 gal. of water to 150 degrees and slowly rinse the grain bag with the...