What did you learn this week?

CornyKegs 728
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Doctor_Wily said:
I learned about combining DME with water to create a slurry before adding to the boil. Haven't tried this yet but plan to give it a shot during my next brew day.
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Picked up 6 lbs of DME today for a stout and to have some on hand. I'll give this a shot when I brew (hopefully tonight) and report my experience.

Cheers
 
Erich8 said:
...there is better information online and in forums than the information I got at my local home brew shop...
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I learned that despite my best intentions I'm going to find it hard to support my LHBS. It's hard to trust someone who says "an airlock? What do you want that for? I don't bother".

I also learned (just now) that the iPad app for reading this forum is seriously lacking in functionality... such as the 'like' feature!
 
jakeperks said:
I learned that despite my best intentions I'm going to find it hard to support my LHBS. It's hard to trust someone who says "an airlock? What do you want that for? I don't bother".

I also learned (just now) that the iPad app for reading this forum is seriously lacking in functionality... such as the 'like' feature!
Click to expand...

but it works just fine under Safari on the ipad.

something i learned, sitting in an airport.

:)
 
i learned that having decent beer in the house for 'research' reduces the urge to open bottles of home brew that aren't quite ready yet.

i learned to leave the dayumed bottles alone until "it's time".

it's worth the wait.
 
I learned the tip comes off my bottle filler so I can clean the valve, and replace the o-ring and/or spring if necessary.
 
what i think i learned -- part of the process of cooling down your boiling wort to 70-80 degrees is to sink all the **** in it. if you get impatient and/or run out of ice (whistles innocently) and try to transfer anyway you suck up a bunch of ****... especially if it's your first imperial IPA w/ 6 oz of hops pellets...
 
dadshomebrewing said:
I did not know that... Does it unscrew, or just pop off and on?

Will need to look when I get home
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Mine just popped off. In fact what happened is I was running sanitizer thru it and when I pulled the filler out of the can I was using I caught the end a little bit on the lip of the can. then I had a constant trickle and poor seal. Upon inspection I found the end had pulled slightly off the tube, so I pulled it the rest of the way, inspected it and popped it back on. No issue after that.

Cheers
 
dadshomebrewing said:
i learned that having decent beer in the house for 'research' reduces the urge to open bottles of home brew that aren't quite ready yet.

i learned to leave the dayumed bottles alone until "it's time".

it's worth the wait.
Click to expand...

i have found myself "researching" a lot more lately. the wife agrees i need to make educated decisions about the next batch. education is fundamental.
 
so the slurry thing probably works best if you are doing a combination of LME and DME. with 4.5 lbs there was no way I'd be able to do it, I didn't have a bowl big enough to mix it all in!
 
I learned that WAITING on fermentation SUCKS! I then learned that I have to wait LONGER after its bottled. Oh, waiting...why do you haunt me?
 
  • Verify your LHBS is pulling the ingredients you asked for if you hand them a recipe. I asked for light DME, but I didn't notice until brew day that what I got was light pilsen DME. I went with it as I was already invested in a yeast starter.
  • If you brew with a valveless kettle, and you don't use a hop sack in the boil, it is NOT a good idea to auto siphon to the fermenter with a hop sock pushed through a funnel and into a glass carboy so that it catches all the break and hops. This results in a ship in the bottle. Not fun to try to get back out. Alcohol may have clouded my judgement:ban:
  • A weldless brewmometer is a good investement if you use a turkey fry kettle.
 
Hamsterbite said:
  • Verify your LHBS is pulling the ingredients you asked for if you hand them a recipe. I asked for light DME, but I didn't notice until brew day that what I got was light pilsen DME. I went with it as I was already invested in a yeast starter.
Click to expand...

Whats the difference between light and light pilsen?
 
Doctor_Wily said:
Whats the difference between light and light pilsen?
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From what I understand, Pilsen is the lightest color and body you can get in a DME. Using Briess brand as an example, they say the two have exactly the same 2 row base malt, but the non Pilsen also has a very small amount of specialty killed malts.
 
This past summer I learned to be patient and cool my wort down to proper pitching temperature before pitching my yeast. I've learned this lesson every summer for the past 4 years and will probably learn it again next summer. Now I have 5 gallons of a fruity Northern German Altbier.
 
Doctor_Wily said:
I learned the tip comes off my bottle filler so I can clean the valve, and replace the o-ring and/or spring if necessary.
Click to expand...


i learned today that the end pops off.

i also learned that there is a little tiny spring in there that falls out into the sink.

i learned that having the sink full of water (or star san), and stopped up, is a very good thing.

oh yeah, before you take it apart, take a good look at it so you know how to put it back together.

let's just consider this a Public Service Announcement.



:)
 
Doctor_Wily said:
Whats the difference between light and light pilsen?
Click to expand...

i bought the light pilsen DME by accident once.

now it's all I buy. It is excellent as a replacement for the basic 2 row, light, DME, and I can also use it for a pilsner and other such.

works great
 
GeorgiaTiger said:
I learned that WAITING on fermentation SUCKS! I then learned that I have to wait LONGER after its bottled. Oh, waiting...why do you haunt me?
Click to expand...

somewhere in here there is a post about the value of having some decent "commercial" beverage around the house for "research" during that bottle time.

i'm not sure, but i think i was a bigger PITA for the three weeks waiting for my first batch to bottle than I was in the last 3 weeks waiting for my children to be born.
 
dadshomebrewing said:
i learned today that the end pops off.

i also learned that there is a little tiny spring in there that falls out into the sink.

i learned that having the sink full of water (or star san), and stopped up, is a very good thing.

oh yeah, before you take it apart, take a good look at it so you know how to put it back together.

let's just consider this a Public Service Announcement.



:)
Click to expand...

Sounds like the same components in mine, amazing! lol. The little black valve will come out if you shake the end enough and there's a little o-ring on it.
 
Doctor_Wily said:
Sounds like the same components in mine, amazing! lol. The little black valve will come out if you shake the end enough and there's a little o-ring on it.
Click to expand...

yep, good thing i was doing it over a sink full of star san.

and i bet you know EXACTLY what i mean
 
I did my first full 5 gallon boil in a cheap turkey fryer and almost had some serious boilovers several times. I learned that because the pot is so much taller than it is wide, that the temperature difference at the bottom versus the top can be a big difference. I cranked up the burner to full blast and it would boil violently with that extra hot water at the bottom working its way up to the top. Next time I plan to be a little more patient!

This is a great thread! I have learned a lot reading through it! :mug:
 
actually, that's a good one, because i bet there are a bunch of people in here who will try to use a turkey fryer for the boil (like me, for example).
 
i learned i make good beer.

not sure what has changed in my process in the last couple batches but everything i have been brewing recently has been awesome (to me at least)
 
I learned:
  • Don't be in a hurry
  • Measure gravity before/while adding additional top-up water
 
I learned that I routinely do not give my beer enough conditioning time in the fridge. I found a beer that I gave someone that had been sitting in their fridge for a year and 8 months. After I cracked it open (a pale ale), it was crystal clear like a commercial pilsner lager and tasted wonderful. I did not know that level of clarity was possible. I was truly proud of it. From now on, no drinking homebrew until it clears to the same level.
 
I learned after spending a crapload of money that you can brew just as good a beer and have more fun with out all the fancy equipment. Brewing without all the bells and whistles makes ya pay more attention to detail and makes it a work of art.
 
I learned that when fermentation stops, don't bottle it. Wait an extra week, then bottle it.

I bottled half of my very first brew after about 10 days, then dry hopped the other half for another week before bottling. Now that I've tried both, the second half is much nicer, and I would like to think it's not just because of the dry hopping. The first half has a slight taste of apples and yeast to it, the second half doesn't.

Also, I learned that even with a simple no-boil hopped LME extract kit, I can make homemade beer that (to me) tastes better than most commercial brews.
 
I will not open the beer too soon.

I will not open the beer too soon.

I will patiently wait the whole time, and I will not open the beer too soon.

This particular lesson I must not forget.

It is absolutely amazing what a difference it makes when I just wait.

Oh boy, what a lesson.
 
posted this in another thread but it seemed fitting here too...

"accidently learned that my ESB is so clear (after only being brewed 3 weeks ago and kegged already) that i could watch tv through it (granted it was upsidedown through the refraction of the glass and beer) but i was able to even read text on the screen though it with smaller crystal clarity"
 
I learned to cool the wort in the METAL POT w/ a cold bath in the sink and not in the fermenting bucket.

I learned that the above meant the difference between 15 minutes and 6 hours of cooling to the desired 75 degrees :confused:
 
fear992 said:
I learned to cool the wort in the METAL POT w/ a cold bath in the sink and not in the fermenting bucket.

I learned that the above meant the difference between 15 minutes and 6 hours of cooling to the desired 75 degrees :confused:
Click to expand...

^^^^ That

I had one of those moments a couple batches ago when i learned the value of temperature control, and proper aeration, from the point when the yeast is pitched, through primary.

it's amazing what these small little break-through moments accomplish, isn't it
 
I've learned that using wyeast liquid packets should be used with a blowoff tube.

Woke up to a small mess this morning. I truly did not think this spiced ale would go crazy like my imperial stout did. Lesson learned I'll NEVER use that yeast and NOT use a blowoff tube.

This batch now has a blowoff tube and things are going as planned.

blowoff.jpg
 
i would suggest a blowoff tube for the first couple days, but also a bigger carboy. from the bottom of that pic it doesnt look like you gave yourself a lot of headspace for the krausen to expand into, it obviously had nowhere else to go but up and out.

always fun cleaning up after the first explosion! haha
 

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