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I vote for off. Back on after the boil once it cools below 160F or so. I can't remember where I read it, but I think you have to worry about bacteria once it drops below that temp.

They aren't too bad pricewise, about $12 at my LHBS.

LMAO!! What a trippy blowoff! This thread needs more pics, but it definitely has potential! :D

My first batch was this exact same kit, and it also turned out very nice. It's not hard at all to use steeping grains, pretzelb. The kit includes a grain bag to put them in. If you can make tea using teabags, you can do it.

ouch! (is applicable, but too short to post)

I have a special fondness for porters, since my first homebrew was a Brewer's Best Robust Porter kit, and to this day it's still one of my favorite batches. My two favorites that I have tried so far are Fuller's London Porter and Anchor Porter. Sierra Nevada's is also very good. If you're...

Lately I've been using a spare fridge to control my fermentation temps. It doesn't get lower than mid 50's to mid 60's which unfortunately makes for a lousy kegerator. However, this seems to be really nice for ale fermenting. At first I was concerned with it getting a little too cold so I would...

If you can't get any replacement yeast before you leave, I certainly don't see that you have anything to lose by trying to pitch the smack pack anyway. You might want to consider keeping a few packs of dry yeast around just in case. They're cheap, and even if they end up not being the "ideal"...

A while back I bought a small bottle of stuff labelled beer line cleaner from the LHBS. It's essentially sodium hydroxide, which is one of the main ingredients in Drano. I have no doubt you can probably find it in a cheaper form somewhere besides the LHBS. Anyway, I recently let the hose to my...

Sorry to hear it, and I can understand why you're selling/quitting. The bad news is: at some point you'll have another job and probably start brewing again; then you'll have to buy all this stuff again. The good news is: at some point you'll have another job and probably start brewing again...

SmugMug's post sounds about right. Congrats on your first; it certainly won't be your last.

+1 to having either a very good fridge or a chest freezer w/temp controller before you start kegging. I have a sorry a** fridge that won't cool much below 55-60 degrees, which I really think isn't ideal for trying to force carb. In any case trying to get the beer to carb right has been a...

Nice article. :mug:

I don't know about dry hopping. Judging from the previous responses of some of the more experienced brewers on this forum, you might do better to just let it sit for a while longer before drinking it and hope the clove flavor subsides a bit. Or in my case I like wheat beers and don't really know...

I found this thread because I experienced the same thing in a beer I brewed recently. The beer is a Brewer's Best Red Ale kit from the LHBS. The clove flavor is pretty mild and doesn't make the beer taste that bad, but it does seem pretty unusual for Nottingham yeast. It could be that I got an...

Agreed, in the same way one doesn't "need" a Ferrari. You still know that you'd buy one if you could. I don't have a Ferrari or a ball valve for any of my equipment, but something tells me I'll be acquiring many, many ball valves before my first Ferrari. ;)

I've recently started using Wyeast Activatior packs on my last two batches. I smacked the first about 3 hours or so before I pitched it. The second I smacked a little earlier than that, maybe 5-6 hours beforehand. The first one had only expanded a little when I pitched it, but the second one had...

Has to be The Matrix.

LOL. Some people just have to bang their head against the wall before they will believe that it hurts. ;) Did you ever go through with your mad scientist plan? I'd be interested to know if you took gravity readings if you did.

In this economy?