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I just received a new Robobrew with pump and am reading up on it prior to doing my first brew. One piece of information that I can't seem to find is regarding doing a whirlpool at the end of boil using the pump. How do you rig it up to whirlpool? Do you need to connect a piece of pipe to the...

If doing a 75 minutes boil, just be sure to add your hops at the 60 minute mark so that you get the proper IBUs as the recipe intends. If they boil for 75 minutes you'll get more bitterness.

With this being a Scottish ale, they are looking to create more depth of flavors and thus the reason for pulling off some of the wort and putting it through a more intense boil. That being said, a 75 minute boil should benefit the beer. What I would do is after steeping, bring it to a boil...

I'm making a 5 gallon batch of Belgian Blonde Ale and I was thinking about splitting the batch and making 2 different beers with the same base recipe. This is the base recipe: 3 lbs Pale Malt (2 Row) UK 6 lbs Briess Pilsen Light DME 4.0 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt - 20L 4.0 oz Caravienne Malt...

I ruled out infection because the beer tasted fine in most cases. However in retrospect I think the bottle bomb batch was an infection after all. These batches were over the past few years, so I don't have a lot of the details. However I always go at least 3 weeks before bottling. I am...

That fermentation schedule looks pretty good to me. You had plenty of time in the d-rest to finish the fermentation. I am not familiar with that yeast, but I would say it's done and it finished higher due to the higher OG. I always look at the delta in OG to FG, not the FG of the recipe.

I have been trying to identify why some of my beers are coming out over-carbed while others are fine. They all were fine after inital bottle conditioning, but then over time they got really too carbed. One batch turned into bottle bombs. I have ruled out infections for the most part, and...

For me I would pitch now because it's evident that there is an underpitching problem. I'm not an expert by any means, but I think that it would be better to get the ferment going faster now rather than waiting another week or so to see where you stand and then pitch at that time.

I don't have an answer for IR thermometer question or the 3944 yeast, but it seems to me that a drop in gravity to only 1.048 in 2 weeks is extremely slow - most likely due to the underpitching. I would probably get another smack pack of the yeast and toss it in there.

I use my dishwasher rack to dry my bottles. I run the dishwasher and then spray the rack with StarSan before using it. I would spray your bottle tree before using it. I also dip the bottle capper in StarSan like you. For bottle priming I will boil the water for about 5-10 minutes, then add...

+1 on the starter being essential for a lager Also, on a recent Jamil show he talked about not wanting to drop the temps during active fermentation. He is a proponent of starting lower than target then raising temps to target. The temperature rise helps kick start the yeast while a drop...

Thanks for the information about bacterial infections - that's good to know. Would wild yeast impart any funky flavors? I know there are many Belgian styles which are made with wild yeast and those have a distinct flavor, but I'm not sure if there are other types which are flavorless?

So are you thinking that the lack of a rocky, uneven head points more towards over attenuation vs. infection? That would be easier to fix as opposed to chasing down the source of an infection.

I poured it into a glass and the head is fairly even across (i.e. not rocky looking) but the bubbles larger than normal. Once the initial foaming stops it settles into a pretty normal looking head although the head stays for a long time - not like a typical porter where it would be gone after...

I think I may have an infection issue but want to get some more opionions. I brewed a bourbon oaked porter back in January. The beer finished up at 1.017 FG (target according to my BeerSmith recipe was 1.018). I used Wyeast London Ale #1968 yeast, no starter due to small batch size. Left the...

I just finished assembling my new fermentation setup with chest freezer and a Ranco single stage temp controller. It's in my basement where the temps fluctuate from 70 in the summer to low 50s in the winter. It recently occured to me that I will need heating in the winter if I want to ferment...

I am making my smoked porter for the second time. I had entered it into a local competition and got feedback that it was a bit thin. I read somewhere that flaked oats improves mouthfeel and body. I am making a small 3 gal. batch - how much oats do you think would add just a touch more body?

They did a FW series on The Brewing Network Can you Brew It recently and talked abou the TJs beers. All of the Mission Street beers across the country are FW - you can tell by the bottle shape and the fact that they say brewed in Paso Robles, CA. There was some discussion about how TJ's...

Mission Street Pale is outstanding! The IPA is also excellent - made by Firestone Walker as well. Tastes like Union Jack to me but not sure if it's the same recipe. FW is not distributed here in Mass., so this is a great way for me to get some of their beers. Only problem is that there are...

Lagunitas is just a little south of Russian River - that's a good take. I visited N. Cal this past June and hit both of those places while touring Sonoma wineries. Nothing like a fresh Pliny!