Curtis2010
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- Joined
- Dec 6, 2011
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I've swapped a couple of PM's with another HBF member here in Guatemala and decided to move our conversation to a public forum for the benefit of others brewing here in Guate. Paste of most recent message thread for context below. My reply follows the quote.
Wow, you do your own malting. Where do you get the grain?
The well water at my place on the Rio Dulce is super soft (about 15 PPM). It is ideal for making Pilsners, so I have been on a Pils kick this season. I plan to brew an IPA to finish off my brewing season (time to go sailing). So, will need to treat the water. I already have various minerals to treat with. I ordered these a few months back -- very small, light and inexpensive so cheap to ship. I have used these additives for making mineral water also -- quick and easy with a kegging system.
I also use CPX for small/light stuff. They get spendy for large/heavy stuff because they use shared air freight. Quick and convenient though with excellent customer service (they forward all my stuff down to the Rio via Litegua). For heavier stuff I use TRANSCARGO. Their customer service stinks, but they get bulky stuff here at very reasonable rates (most recently a full set of partial-mash ingredients for two 5 gallon batches of beer plus a few brewing toys -- total cost $35US).
I need to expand my "cerveceria" so I will definitely track down the source you mention for cornies. Also, along CA-9 about the Rio Hondo area there are a number of beverage distributors (AmBev, Coca-Cola, Pepsi, and Licores de Guatemala). Surely cornies can be acquired there also. I plan to stop by on my return trip to the Rio.
Even more interesting than cornies, I have dropped in and talked with the folks at Licores de Guatemala and they do sometimes sell their used wooden barrels which have been used to age Ron Zacapa Centenario and other lines of the delicious rums (surely these are the origin of the phrase "elixir of the gods"!). I plan to pick-up a couple next season and maybe try them out on a Barely Wine and a Mead (I have done a small test batch of mead with some of the locally available raw honey, which is quite light, and it was tasty...now just need to make more and age it).
What has been your experience with the extract from Distribudora Caribe? Good quality? Range of products?
Re Guate Brewers group. What do you think for a name? "Guate Brewers" is pretty obvious...maybe "Mundo Maya Mashers" and encourage others in Central America to participate. Let me know what you think.
Thanks much for the reply and the great info.
Love to have other Guate brewers chime in too!
Saludos,
Curtis
Originally Posted by pacayaforhops
Hops I import through CPX, the rest I either bought from an acquaintance that used to homebrew in Antigua (met through a mutual friend, he's since left for china on work, bought all his specialty malts and a portable thermostat fridge, cornies and gas & dispensing fittings) or make myself (home-malt 6 row or wheat). The one thing I don't make myself is malt extract, which I get from distribuidora caribe in zona 11, behind colegio italiano, but I'm weaning off of it though, last sunday was also my 1st successful AG brew, small a batch as it may be.
Re the brewery, yeah they import just about everything from belgium, water's really hard all throughout the country, so they also use water softeners, I just use salvavidas and condition with with sodium sulphate & tap water. I used to work for a company that maintained some of their equipment, so I just about took the tour myself and know a few more of the inner workings. I myself prefer higher kilned malt than the belgian 2-row they use, it gives the beer a more bready taste, sadly the 6-row I make also tastes grassier but longer conditioning takes care of that, it makes for better body and head retention without sacrificing much sugar content though and it has better conversion potential for adjuncts.
I'll be trying my hand at making epsom salts (magnesium sulphate, a bit more appropriate for english beer) in a few days (car battery electrolyte and milk of magnesia), hopefully it'll filter well and the emulsifiers will decompose with enough heat (studying chemical engineering helps).
Theres a company that sells cornies, it's listed under refrigeration on the yellow pages, can't remember the company's name though.
I'm all for a Guate-brewers group, count me in.
Originally Posted by Curtis2010
Good stuff. Do you mind if I shift our conversation to a public forum? I know there are other homebrewers in Guate who could benefit from this conversation?
Thanks,
Curtis
Wow, you do your own malting. Where do you get the grain?
The well water at my place on the Rio Dulce is super soft (about 15 PPM). It is ideal for making Pilsners, so I have been on a Pils kick this season. I plan to brew an IPA to finish off my brewing season (time to go sailing). So, will need to treat the water. I already have various minerals to treat with. I ordered these a few months back -- very small, light and inexpensive so cheap to ship. I have used these additives for making mineral water also -- quick and easy with a kegging system.
I also use CPX for small/light stuff. They get spendy for large/heavy stuff because they use shared air freight. Quick and convenient though with excellent customer service (they forward all my stuff down to the Rio via Litegua). For heavier stuff I use TRANSCARGO. Their customer service stinks, but they get bulky stuff here at very reasonable rates (most recently a full set of partial-mash ingredients for two 5 gallon batches of beer plus a few brewing toys -- total cost $35US).
I need to expand my "cerveceria" so I will definitely track down the source you mention for cornies. Also, along CA-9 about the Rio Hondo area there are a number of beverage distributors (AmBev, Coca-Cola, Pepsi, and Licores de Guatemala). Surely cornies can be acquired there also. I plan to stop by on my return trip to the Rio.
Even more interesting than cornies, I have dropped in and talked with the folks at Licores de Guatemala and they do sometimes sell their used wooden barrels which have been used to age Ron Zacapa Centenario and other lines of the delicious rums (surely these are the origin of the phrase "elixir of the gods"!). I plan to pick-up a couple next season and maybe try them out on a Barely Wine and a Mead (I have done a small test batch of mead with some of the locally available raw honey, which is quite light, and it was tasty...now just need to make more and age it).
What has been your experience with the extract from Distribudora Caribe? Good quality? Range of products?
Re Guate Brewers group. What do you think for a name? "Guate Brewers" is pretty obvious...maybe "Mundo Maya Mashers" and encourage others in Central America to participate. Let me know what you think.
Thanks much for the reply and the great info.
Love to have other Guate brewers chime in too!
Saludos,
Curtis