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I've developed an apparent system-wide issue with my beers. Acetaldehyde. This is a relatively new problem, so I'm trying my level best to ferret out how it's popping up in my beer. Here's the skinny... Two beers in a row... both have that green apple jolly rancher smell and flavor, almost...

I think I'll start a humanist tradition. It will be a kind of anti-Lent, in which every indulgence of the flesh is explored for 40 days, followed by the remainder of the year looking back and realizing why it is we don't indulge the flesh to excess. I think I'll call it "Bent". I'll even...

For my birthday, I thought I would try to do something a little different for a brew day. And that something would be to try my first decoction mash. However, the recipe I chose to brew weeks ago was a Kolsch (I've got nothing but dark beers... I need something blonde in my basement!). I...

I just acquired a chest freezer, and bought an analog Johnson Control unit for it last weekend. Before I plugged in the controller, I tested out the freezer. Just plugging it in and letting it run for eight hours, I put a themometer inside for about ten minutes, and registered the air temp...

Recipe Type: All Grain Yeast: Safale S-04 Yeast Starter: none Batch Size (Gallons): 5.5 Original Gravity: 1.048 Final Gravity: 1.010 IBU: 30 IBU Boiling Time (Minutes): 60 Color: 22 SRM Primary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp): 14 days @ 70F Secondary...

Grist: 6 lbs 8 oz 2-row Pale Malt 2 lbs 8 oz Malted Rye 8 oz Crystal Malt 120L 8 oz Crystal Malt 60L 2 oz Roasted Barley Hops: Willamette Hops (4.5% AAU) 60 min boil Yeast: Safale S-04 Mash @ 150F for 70min. Taste notes: This is a spicy Irish red with a strong rye presence...

Out of curiosity, if I brewed up a dunkleweizen, and neglected to add any chocolate wheat, what would you call it? The color came out around 13 SRM, or roughly the color of an Alt.

I recently acquired a keggle from another homebrewer. First time I used it was at a group brewday, and I ended up borrowing a burner from someone else. However, when I got home and checked it out on my own Bayou Classic burner I was using (9" diameter I think), the keggle doesn't sit on it...

I'm planning on a Cream Ale for my next batch. I'm working largely off of the BJCP guidelines for the style, and have determined that the primary grain ought to be American 6-row, with no more than 20% corn adjunct. Also, I'm not wanting a significant hops presence on the nose or palate, so I'm...

Almost, anyway. So, the SWMBO and child went down south to visit relatives, leaving me here on my own. First mistake. I then decide to surprise her by replacing the kitchen sink and faucet, since the old one had developed a slow leak and was so bowed down that you couldn't set a glass in...

Not precisely sure what autolysis is supposed to taste like, but I'm pretty sure I'm going to find out in three weeks. I just bottled my oatmeal stout. I brewed it the week after Thanksgiving. It's been on the yeast since then. When I popped open the bucket, it didn't smell too bad...

For my next brew, I was wanting to play with rye. I don't want a classic roggenbier, per se... just not a fan of the weizen yeasts. I was wanting to make a beer that is a little thin, quaffable, with a nice rye punch that isn't convoluted with too many other flavors. I was thinking it might also...

I got SWMBO to cook this up for me yesterday: I dig it. It's about half the size of a full label wrap, so I can add a beer name to the top, and then do info on the back.

I've had a couple really bad pints from a local brewpub, and I was wondering what might be causing it? It started when I tried their blueberry wheat last summer. It tasted like I gargled with Dawn dish detergent. It happened again a few months later, only it was supposed to be a cream ale...

Took some photos of my Saturday brewday. Thought I'd share. Here's the bucket o' grist. Bought this batch from the LHBS rather than online. I found the crush to be finer. The guy also gave me and my bud a free dixie cup of hefe, which was awesome. Dough-in. The guy at the LHBS...

Some of my friends are going to take me on a pub crawl for my birthday. We have four pubs on the itenerary, all in a walking U-turn up and down the main drag of downtown. Most of the people who said they are coming are kind of introverted, quiet types. Also, they are more of the "sipping good...

Ever have a huge brew day planned out, just to have freak thunderstorms totally wash it out? It can be crushingly depressing. :(

Based on the conversation on the "Maris Otter" thread, I've decided to brew up a Single Malt Single Hops recipe, to give ye olde Maris a kick in the balls. What I'm shooting for is something inherently English Bitter-y. I wanted to favor the malt, as well... I'm not that big a hop head. But the...

I've read in a few places that potassium metabisulfite can be used to bind the chlorine and chloramine out of municiple water. My tap water is not to shabby (the water report I got a couple weeks ago didn't mention chloramine, so I'm not sure if they consider it "chlorine" or not), but I am...

Ok, so. I've done three AG brews so far. The first and third were Biermuncher's Centennial Blonde ale. Both times, I ended up with a final gravity of 1.032, which is about 16 points less than what Brewsmith says it ought to be (1.048). The recipe is 8-3/4lbs of grain, with a 11 qt mash at...