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I just bottled my Bourbon Barrel Porter (based off of the Northern Brewer one recipe). I used oak wood chips soaked in Maker's Mark. My question is, can I re-use the wood chips? Can I just dry them out and store them until the next time I want to do a bourbon barrel beer? What have other...

I bought the Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar kit, and it came with Hazelnut extract. The directions that came with the kit (which are generic directions, and not specific to this kit) say that if the kit came with flavor extract, to add it at the end of the boil. However, the bottle itself says...

I just went to start cleaning my primary and other equipment (airlock, etc.) and realized that I'm out of Star San. The problem is I've already started brewing, and the LHBS is closed today! I've got some OxyClean free, can I use that as a sanitizer? That or bleach are my only options at...

I typically use the Wyeast "smack packs", and have never had a problem. Last night I brewed a Belgian ale. For this batch, I got the 1214 Belgian Ale yeast. Before brewing, as always, I broke the nutrient pack inside the yeast pouch. First sign of trouble: I had no problems breaking the...

My wife and I are going to a concert at Alpine Valley this summer (Phish, if you must know - kick ass seats, too!). We haven't been to Alpine since 2000 (again, Phish). Anyway, I was wondering: Does Alpine still have a ****ty beer selection? Last time all they had was Bud and Miller (and I...

I haven't been here in a while, mostly because the internet filter at my new job blocks anything alcohol related. When I came home today, I checked on my Oatmeal Stout that I'm planning on bottling tomorrow. Much to my surprise, there's something floating on top. I've never had this happen...

I brewed a Saison two weeks ago and I'm still waiting for it to finish fermenting. This is my first time with this yeast - the Wyeast Saison - so I'm not sure what to expect. I was told this yeast could take a while, but after two weeks it's only down to 1.026 (O.G. was 1.058). My expected...

I'm brewing a Saison today, and I was struck with a thought: What if I set aside some of the belgian candy sugar to use for priming instead of using corn sugar? Has anyone tried this? Does anyone see any drawbacks to doing it? If I do it, how much should I use?

I'm thinking of doing a Saison next, and I'm thinking of using lemon zest. What's the best way to go about doing this? How much would one use for a 5 gal. batch? Thanks.

Okay, for the longest time I've just thoroughly rinsed out the syphon tube after use. And, of course, I sanitize it before use. Last week I was bleaching my primary bucket to get rid of that stain/smell that seems to set in after a while. I decided to toss the syphon tube in there as well...

I've got a belgian ale going right now, and I've been debating on whether or not I should skip racking it to the secondary and just go straight to the bottle. Any thoughts? FWIW, here's the recipe: .5 lbs Munton's Extra Light DME 6.6 lbs Munton's Light LME (late addition) 1 lb corn...

Does anyone know if they sell Kronenbourg 1664 in the USA? I drank it when I was in France a couple of years ago (and I liked it). This weekend I'm going to a work party where the theme is to bring a dessert or beverage from a different country that you've been to. I thought it would be...

Where can I order blank 6-pack holders from? My LHBS doesn't carry them. Thanks! :mug:

This is my first time trying Campden tablets to sterilize my "top off" water. How long does it take this little suckers to dissolve? I'm quickly chilling the wort, and it'll be ready to pour into the bucket soon. The little tablets are still sitting there at the bottom of the bucket, they...

Okay, I checked on the Wheat Ale that I have in the secondary, and there are little "things" floating in it. The best I can describe is that they look like little, tiny seeds floating in the beer. What the hell? I've never seen this before. Can anyone tell me what this is? Is it some kind...

I'm thinking of joining, and I was curious about the "Thrist Fursday" tomorrow night. I've got a couple of brews that I'm iffy on, and wanted to get more experienced pallets to taste them and tell me what's wrong, and whether or not they think the flavors will balance with age, or if I should...

I have a stout that I've recently tried a few of (after 3 weeks in the bottle). It seems I over-sparged (or over steeped) the specialty grains (recipe below), because it definitely has a bitter, astringent flavor (noticeably from the roasted barley). It's not a devastatingly horrible flavor...

Alright, I've got a spiced ale that's been in the bottles for nearly 5 weeks now. It tastes a little weird to me, but I don't know if it's bad, or if it just needs more time to age and mellow. My sanitation is good, and I haven't had an infected batch yet. The only batch I had to send down...

I want to brew a Wheat Ale this weekend, and the recipe I'm working from calls for Fermentis SafBrew S-33 yeast. I want to keep costs for the batch down, so I'd rather use one of the yeasts I have on hand. I have a couple of packets of Danstar Nottingham and a vial of Wyeast 1338 European...

Okay, I've never had this happen before, but when I went to rack to the secondary today, the beer still had krausen on top. It's been in there a week. The airlock bubbled good for the first couple of days, and I really haven't noticed much activity since about Tuesday. This isn't a high...