Recent content by UberHasselhoff

Refractometers are great when there's no alcohol present. EDIT: Bit hasty on the post button. You CAN use it for FG, it's just a little more tricky / dependent on your refrac.

Hey Madcow - I am happy with the results. I use it regularly as my main yeast strain. I've found that the Draft Ale Yeast is comparable to S-02 in terms of attenuation and produces a clean finish. I get a good fermentation going in a day or two, then let it ride for 3 or 4 weeks. There's a...

Hello P_P. I can only speak to my experience here using hard water. I follow Strong's methodology regularly and have good results. Any steeping grains I add to the last 15 minutes of the mash. I know Strong isn't a huge fan of brewing water spreadsheets, but I use the EZ Water Calculator and...

Awesome. Thanks for coming through, IslandLizard. I found the beersmith podcast that was mentioned as well, if anyone is interested. It goes into more depth about steeping dark grains: http://beersmith.com/blog/2012/05/31/advanced-home-brewing-with-gordon-strong-beersmith-podcast-39/ In the...

Hey IslandLizard - I know it's been a bit, but I'm interested in giving your steeping of the dark grains a shot. Can you describe how you did this in a bit more detail? (Like temperature and amount of water as well as how long you steeped). Thanks! @CraigKing - how did this turn out for you?

I'm learning my way through kegging issues as well, so I'm no expert. Your foundation looks solid and the setup should work so... With the gas line turned on, try the ole dishsoap in a spray bottle to check for leaks. Spray every gd inch of that thing and look closely for leaks. Most of my...

Heh, yes friend is no longer an appropriate term. Believe it or not, there is not a single LHBS in Berlin, Germany. There are numerous online stores but I'm not going to wait any longer because of his incompetence. @day_trippr: Thanks for the tip. I'm about to head there right now...

Hey there HopRocket owners... need some help. I borrowed my much beloved HR to a fellow brewer. Ended up getting it back a month later and my brews had been delayed. Much to my dismay my friend had lost the long bolt and wing nuts. To make things more difficult, I'm brewing tomorrow and need...

That's the spirit, bud. It's important to keep in mind that you can clean and sanitize the hell out of everything, but you're never going to brew in a 100% sterile environment. The goal is to give the yeast the best chance to overtake any invaders. If your cleaning regimen was good, you...

Ha! It was a quick transition from GF to SWMBO. Oh boy.

I bought a 500g package of Mauribrew Draught (dry) yeast at what seemed like a deal. I was wondering if anyone has had experience with this yeast? I've been searching the internets but haven't come up with much of substance. I should mention that to make things more confusing, Mauribrew Draught...

I was going back through my threads and realized I never posted an update. So better late than never, right? :drunk: Took all the advice (thank you) into consideration and ended up sticking with bottling. I hired a friend of a friend that happened to be a bartender to pour beers at the...

FWIW, Moon Man is one of my favorites but I've had a couple bottles that clearly sat around for awhile and were horrendous. It's one of those beers that really does need to be fresh.

@gunfighter04: I completely agree! Working the keg supplies into the budget would be fan-f'in-tastic. Unfortunately we are moving to Berlin afterwards so I can't take them with me. <Solitary tear rolls down face.> @homebrewhaha: I think you're spot on about the bartender idea. It's relatively...

Hello everyone. I've been brewing for a couple of years now and like most of you, I love it. I probably spend far too much time on it to be honest. I am getting married in 10 weeks or so and the future SWMBO agreed to homebrew for the wedding! Score. Our venue allows it and there are no problems...