Recent content by tomclifton

Use another magnet on the outside of the flask to hold the stir bar while you pitch the starter. You can buy coated magneic spinbar retrievers (looks like a swizzle stick) but it is just one more thing to stick in your brew, and they cost $10 to $20 from places like Cynmar

Regarding beechwood. The >>ONLY<< thing it does for the beer is to provide a neutral/sanitary substrate for yeast cells to sit on so there is more surface area to contact the beer as it conditions. They are pretty gnarly - rough, bent and twisted so beer circulates freely between them as they...

Will work fine. I placed a 40 watt light bulb on a ceramic base inside a #10 can to do the same thing in my garage fridge for fermenting and lagering during the winter. If you want to be really nice to your beer, put a 12v computer fan (powered by a wall wart) in the fridge to keep the air...