Search results

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
  1. Nikkimaija

    Restarting Woes

    Could it be osmotic shock? Too much sugar = too much pressure on yeast cell walls = unhappy yeast. Water it down a little, repitch with plenty of nutrient & energizer, keep oxygenating. Recently had to do this on a batch of dandelion wine which stalled out. If part of the problem is too much...
  2. Nikkimaija

    Do I have stalled fermentation?

    One of the strains of Saison yeast, I forget which one, is infamous for taking forever. I had one fermentation that took forever but finally finished at 1.008. Patience, warmth & rousing = good combo. FWIW I love saisons fermented at high temps...mine got into the mid 80's and was totally delicious.
  3. Nikkimaija

    Spitballing a summer-drinking recipe...

    No thoughts, never put honey malt in a recipe of my own (think I may have used it in a kit?) Question though: why mixing pilsner and pale malt? Just cuz it's what you have on hand? I sub pale for pils when I'm feeling cheapskate, but don't usually use both in the same beer...it seems you might...
  4. Nikkimaija

    wheat beer w/ mullberries?

    I think 1 to 1.5 lb of fruit per gallon is usually good. I freeze the fruit first, which makes it easier to smush and should kill most critters. Or you can heat the fruit with some water to 165 (pasteurization temp) but I prefer not to risk setting the pectins. Or you can mush the fruit at room...
  5. Nikkimaija

    Highly Hopping a Wheat Beer -- Do It?

    That sounds pretty good. You don't necessarily have to use a hefe yeast either. There's a local brewery that does a pretty-well-hopped-for-wheat beer with a lager yeast and it's quite nice. You could also brew and hop moderately, taste after primary, and dry-hop or not according to how it is then.
  6. Nikkimaija

    Grassy/Soil Flavor from 3711?

    Grassy sounds like hops to me. Never gotten that flavor from 3711. Did you dry hop at all? How old were your hops? I have heard but not experienced that pellet hops are more likely to create those sorts of flavors than whole hops, but I've never dry hopped with pellets, so cannot confirm. It...
  7. Nikkimaija

    BDSA - help with candi syrup additions

    Typically I add sugars at the very end of the boil, just long enough for them to dissolve. This is less of an issue when you're adding dark sugar to a dark beer with the intention of it adding a caramel flavor, but when I add the extra light stuff to a tripel, I don't want caramel typically...
  8. Nikkimaija

    I need help calculating percent of alcohol

    Just average it out...1 gal @ 1.1 + 1qt @ 1.055= 1.091 starting gravity of your blended product. So just run your calculator with OG 1.091 and FG .0995 and you got it. You don't even need to know the intermediate 1.035 gravity.
  9. Nikkimaija

    Getting a Taste for Belgians

    Maybe you could do your favorite amber, but use Saaz or some kind of Goldings instead of American citrusy hops, & a Belgian yeast. Wyeast Ardennes is one of my favorite yeasts of all time...described as spicy but balanced. It's actually pretty subtle if fermented cooler but gets all kinds of fun...
  10. Nikkimaija

    how to make munich malt???

    Does Munich maybe have something to do with how long they let the endosperm grow in malting, and whether they kiln it wet or dry? I also don't know if it's a 2-row or a 6-row.
  11. Nikkimaija

    Can You Prime With Honey?

    I've heard people say honey is antimicrobial. In any case its osmotic pressure is almost definitely high enough that there shouldn't be any bugs growing in it. (I had a friend who made mead with 30-year-old honey that hadn't "gone bad" in any way in the interim.) But I echo the folks who say add...
  12. Nikkimaija

    Wyeast 3724 (Belgium Saisan) in a WitBier

    I've used 3522 Belgian Ardennes in a Wit with good results. I love 3724 but have had wonderbread's experience with it taking an eon or so to finish fermenting. Good luck.
  13. Nikkimaija

    Tripel Mistake - Should I be worried.

    It'll still be beer. Obviously, it will taste a little different. If you want the Saaz-y flavor you could maybe dry hop with it?
  14. Nikkimaija

    Never Made Cider Before

    I just keep tasting the stuff until I find that I like it. I press my own cider, and it's always a random blend of whatever apples anyone gives me or I can scavenge so there's obviously less consistency than using the stuff you get in a jug. My first batch was unpalatably tart, almost sour, and...
  15. Nikkimaija

    Never Made Cider Before

    My straight ciders seem to take upwards of 6 months to be ready to drink. They finish fermenting earlier than that, but the sitting process seems to help the flavor. Possibly something to do with malo-lactic fermentation (turning malic acid into milder lactic acid). I think you get about 5-6%...
  16. Nikkimaija

    Is 80Qt. too big for a brew kettle?

    I have a 7.5ish gallon pot and 5gal batches barely cover my chiller.
  17. Nikkimaija

    Oatmeal Stout - Didn't grind the Carafa III !!!

    I'm thinking as the carafa is mostly for color not fermentables the crushing is maybe less critical than with your base malt. Good luck.
  18. Nikkimaija

    Elderberry wine with unripe/green flavors

    I just tasted my late Sept elderberry wine. It's fermented out to .998, has a beautiful hot mauve color & that oh-so-distinctive elderberry scent. It's very dry & pretty puckery, but in a different way than just tart. I'm getting those neat "raw green pepper" tastes in the middle. I'm know for a...
  19. Nikkimaija

    Blackberry Mead

    I've used the backsweeten to taste method with cider, then add campden tablets so it doesn't keep fermenting. There are also yeasts out there that give up the ghost while there's still some sweetness left - Wyeast has a "sweet mead" strain. Haven't used it so can't speak to whether it's REALLY...
  20. Nikkimaija

    Appalachian Trail Mead

    Everyone I know who has thru-hiked the AT has taken around (or at least!) 6 months...isn't it something like 2000 miles? I personally love blueberry mead and I bet it would age well. I've made huckleberry wine and it only gets better with age. I think the tannins in blueberry would help it hold...
Back
Top