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The stout base is still sitting in a holding tank. I haven't had the time to brew the coffee yet. I'll post when it's finished and let you know how it turns out.

That looks cool.

I have a chocolate stout that has finished fermenting. I now plan to add cold brew coffee and lactose to it when I keg the beer. The plan is to make a gallon of cold brew coffee and then take that and reduce it to less than a quart in a sauce pan and then dissolve the lactose in that. Has anyone...

No, but you do have to eat some yeast cake

I understand that co2 is absorbed more quickly at low temperatures but will it still absorb at room temperature so long as the pressure is set to the correct value for the given number of atmospheres of co2 desired and temperature?

Pretty much every time I have rapidly carb my beers by over-pressurizing and shaking has given me the wild foamy beer. Impatience has gotten me nothing. I now just set the co2 pressure to the appropriate setting for the given style and temperature and have had really good results. I do set the...

For vanilla usage I suggest steeping the vanilla bean/beans split and chopped in ~ 1/2 C of vodka for as many weeks as you ferment. You can even heat the mixture in the microwave to a moderate temperature and agitate. Do this several times throughout the steeping time. Vanillins are alcohol...

Whirlfloc will produce something that looks like that. It should have settled to the bottom by now though. So probably yeast.

The .986 is with an alcohol compensation equation. The solutions I measured last night were pure sucrose and distilled water. Which calculator are you using for the 10 brix = 1.029 with alcohol? I've used pro mash and brew pal and the more beer spread sheet, they all come up with very similar...

Ok, new data. Did some more measurement tonight. Measured my distilled water at 1.002. Made some sugar solutions, 1.109 (hydrometer), 26Bx (1.101). 1.073 (hydrometer), 18Bx (1.070). 1.040 (hydrometer), 9.6 Bx 1.037. So it seems to be spot on accurate. I used the long formula for my Bx...

That's a thought. I was going to make a few more larger batches of sucrose solutions tonight to check them against the hydrometer. This was one of the ones off ebay, I think they will trade me out with a new one. We'll see.

I mixed up some sucrose solutions last night. My refractometer is WAY off. 9.8 for 10 brix (not too bad) 15.4 for 20 brix (bad) 23.2 for 30 brix (real bad) Made the solutions with a digital scale as accurately as possible. Calibrated with distilled water before each measurement. This sucks...

Thanks for all the input. Seeing as how I didn't have the refractometer at the beginning of this brew and the possibility that my OG reading may have been wrong I'll just chock it up to hmmm. Another batch right around the corner so I'll be able to take before, during and after readings and see...

The OG was a hydrometer reading

I didn't have the refractometer when I started the fermentation.

The LME could have been up to 11.75 lbs. the scales at the HB store are less than accurate I'm sure. I pitched 2 packs of Safale US-05. I don't remember the brand of the alcohol booster pack, a friend brought it over so for the hell of it we threw it in.

Ok, took a hydro and refrac reading. Hydrometer, 1.018 @ 60F Refractometer, 10 brix, yes calibrated prior with distilled water. OG was 1.128 @ 64F, 1.129 corrected. I took almost 30 hours of chemistry in college so I tend to measure correctly, however there is always a chance of making an...

Yes that is what I am talking about. white, transition (fuzzy) area, blue. Where is the reading taken?

OG was 1.129, last refrac reading was 10 brix, maybe 9.8 brix. Thanks for all the help, if you would beersmith this and let me know I will take a hydro reading this evening and we'll see what it says. Question, when reading the refractometer there is a meniscus at the line, is the reading...

That's what I figured, that the refractometer isn't good to use on a beer that is fermenting. From what I read it sounded like the alcohol compensation calculations were supposed to work. Doesn't seem to work in this case. Am I wrong to think I can use the refractometer to monitor the...