Recent content by TNTurkey

Thanks for the great tips. The directions on the package say to use acid if you feel it’s clogged. I believe that star San is a phosphoric acid but I wonder if the normal strength would be strong enough.

Yeah When it comes to the internet “trust but verify”.

I've had some problems with clogging of my 0.5 micron stainless steel aeration stone despite the fact that I cleaned and then dried it by running air from an aquarium pump through an online filter. (I use an O2 tank to aerate the wort). On the advice of a fairly reputable DIY site, I put my...

Thanks. I did put a bottle in the fridge today and will give it a try tomorrow. Maybe I’ll try one a month and see how it progresses.

I brewed my highest gravity beer so far about 7 months ago. It's a Belgian Tripel, OG 1.081, ABV 8.2%, bottled after 2 weeks in the primary and 2 weeks in the secondary. It took a LONG time for the beer to bottle carbonate-it's just now gotten acceptably carbonated. I used corn sugar recommended...

I brewed a seasonal (Christmas) ale last December and was very disappointed in it. It had a distinctly sour taste that I originally attributed to a contamination in my equipment. Never was very happy with that explanation because the beers before and after were really good. I'm also careful...

Interesting that you say this. The original recipe called for a double decoction mash. I've tried a single decoction before and ended up burning the mash. My inexperience of course, but I've been a little gun-shy since then.

Thanks for all the great info. That opinions on this run the gamut from simple to fairly complex doesn't surprise me-it's what I've found from my reading on the forum. I did end up doing a protein rest on this batch, mostly because I had the hot water ready to go and needed to thin my mash a...

Thanks That will simplify things a lot

Should I do a protein rest for my Munich Dunkel (Base grains below)? I've read many of the posts on protein rests on this forum as well as a couple of articles. It seems to be the general consensus that this rest is only needed for less well modified grains. There does seem to be some...

Anybody had these problems with glass? I'm seriously thinking about skipping both the flavor packet and the sweetener and drinking it as a lightly hopped stout.

That's bizarre! No offense to the OP, but I have to wonder if there weren't other factors involved. With all the stuff that we put in these fermenters, it's hard to believe that a little root beer flavor extract could do that much damage. I'd hate to think what it does to your gut! Mine is glass.

Thanks for the replies. As I was reading them, how about increasing (doubling?) the root beer extract? I'm wondering if it would add sweetness and intensify the root beer character at the same time. I'm assuming it's non-fermentable.

I'm in the process of brewing the above kit from a on-line retailer. Most of the reviews on the site were positive but a few mentioned that the artificial sweetener to be added to the secondary imparts a diet soda (i.e. saccharin) flavor to the beer. I'd like to avoid this. What would be a good...

Makes sense. Thanks for the link for the starter.