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Brewers, I recently brewed a Fat Tire Clone and I am ready to keg it. After kegging the beer and cooling the keg over night at 10 psi, can I over carbonate the beer by rocking the keg back and forth to force carbonate the beer? Or will the pressure just stabilize? Thanks for any...

Brewers, Today I harvested my hop bines. The cones are drying in the garage. I would like to use these in a beer that I am presently brewing. My questions are: 1. How long after harvest are they ready to use in dry hopping? 2. Which cones are best for dry hopping, the larger ones, or...

Brewers, A few months ago I purchased a new kegerator from the Beverage Factory. As I used it, I kept turning the temperature dial higher to get my beer cooler. It is now on the "maximum" setting and the fridge temperature is 39 degrees. I would like my beer a few degrees cooler. I...

Brewers, Last week I kegged a batch of Caribou Slobber. I then proceeded to pour off the yeast cake and wash it for future beers. It seems like I retrieved a lot of yeast. How much of it do I need for the next beer I make? Is there a problem with over pitching? I also will be making a...

Brewers, I recently purchased a kegerator. Do you place the CO2 tank inside the kegerator or outside? What are the reasons for either? Thanks. NRS

Brewers, Last month I bottled an amber ale and conditioned it for three weeks. The beer seemed crystal clear. I then put one in the fridge to cool and absorb the carbonation. I checked it after two days in the fridge and noticed what appears to be chill haze. My question is will this...

Brewers, I am thinking of buying a freezer versus a fridge to put kegs in. My question is: Do you need special equipment to keep the temperature at around 40-45 degrees in a freezer? Will the standard temp. regulator allow for these high of temperatures? All responses appreciated. NRS

I just checked the SG of my latest Porter. My hydrometer read 1.026. That seems quite high. The original SG was 1.060 and it has been fermenting for 3 weeks. The SG was 1.027 at two weeks. Am I jumping the gun for not waiting longer for fermentation to complete or is there something...

Hop growers, I found quite a few of these bugs on my hop plants. They don't fall off the leaves and appear to be attached to them. Any idea what they are and if they will do any damage? They don't look like lady bugs. I plan to begin harvest soon..... Thanks, NRS P.S. The title of my...

My hops appear to be nearing the time of harvest. Some cones are large and some are small. When they are ready, do you harvest the whole bine or do you harvest the individual cones that are ready? I know commercial harvesters cut down the whole bine. NRS

I know this may sound miserly, but does anyone, besides me, re-use your bottle caps? I have an opener that doesn't bend them with opening, so I have re-used them on several batches. Opinions please....... I can take it.....:o NRS

Brewers, I just finished brewing an AHS Porter kit. It included 4.5 oz. of priming sugar. A priming sugar calculator stated that a Porter should needs 3.3 oz. of sugar to achieve 2.1 volumes of CO2. Seems like 4.5 ounces is half again too much. What are your opinions? Thanks. NRS

Homebrewers, I was brewing a batch of beer today. When I went to sanitize my equipment, I noticed several patches of mold on the inside of my sanitizing bucket below the solution level. Anyone else had this issue. I tossed the solution out. The sanitizer was Saniclean. NRS

Brewers, I'm getting aphids on my hop plants. I have lots of spiders in the garden also. Do spiders eat aphids? If they do, I will move some up on my hop plants. NRS

Hop Growers, Since my hops are now fully loaded, my question is how to harvest them when they are ripe...... 1. Do I cut the whole plant at the ground and remove all the hop cones? Or 2. Do I get a ladder and pick the "ripe" individual cones and pick the others when they ripen up? I guess...

Homebrewers, I recently attended a fancy wedding, then a reception at an upscale fitness club. Steak and salmon were served for the sit-down dinner. Wine and beer on-tap were served. However, the beer they had on-tap was........... "Bud-Lite" ! ! ! I could hardly believe it! Is it just...

Hopgrowers, Just asking if anyone has an estimate on how many "hop cones" it takes per ounce of dried hops? NRS

Brewers, I opened a beer that had been bottled for 3 weeks. Foam slowly welled up into the bottle. The beer then foamed up big time as I poured it into the glass. Decided I must have bottled it too early. Nope. Brewed on June 4th. OG =1.056. FG was 1.011 on 6/22, 6/25, and 7/1 when I...

Wow! It seems like overnight my hops are covered with aphids. Frustrating. It just doesn't seem fair. I only have two plants. How do the big production farms deal with the little critters without using poison? I've sprayed with soapy water since that's all I have right now. Any opinions...

Brewers, Yesterday I brewed up a mini-mash kit from AHS. It was their Anniversary Amber. I had read about doing a late extract addition to reduce carmelization and thus reduce darkening of the beer. I steeped 3+ lbs. of grain, added 1oz. of Palisades hops at the beginning of the boil...