Home brewing in Japan

WOW that sounds awesome! I will be gone on an Operation but I would have been totally down for that. I hope there is another one one next year and that I can go to that one. I am stationed in Iwakuni but I haven't found anyone else here that brews so it would be cool to be able to go up there and meet some brewers. I hope the attendants is great. Good luck with the event and it is defiantly ok to post that on here and let us know if there is any other Home brewing events!

Hey everyone,

I was thinking about putting an order in for FastFerment Conicals you can check them out at FastFerment.com

Does anyone have any experience with this product?

They look pretty cool, and appear pretty suitable for Japan as they hang off the wall. I also like the bulb for collecting yeast- the stuff is expensive here!

The best thing? They are doing a preproduction sale for $90 each (200 regular). I would be interested in two, and they are even cheaper if you buy 4 ($80 each).

I have emailed the company and they appear to be amenable to shipping them airfreight which should be cheaper than UPS. I'm still waiting on a quote but is anyone interested in buying a couple?

I've also been hanging out on Alibaba lusting after stainless conicals, so if there was more demand for that maybe we could do a group buy through china. I have some Chinese friends that could help with the sale. I think we'd need to order at least 10 to make it happen though.

I'd be happy to clear either order through customs and then send them out from Fukuoka if anyone is interested.

Guzzibrewer

Guzzibrew said:

Hey everyone,

I was thinking about putting an order in for FastFerment Conicals you can check them out at FastFerment.com

Does anyone have any experience with this product?

They look pretty cool, and appear pretty suitable for Japan as they hang off the wall. I also like the bulb for collecting yeast- the stuff is expensive here!

The best thing? They are doing a preproduction sale for $90 each (200 regular). I would be interested in two, and they are even cheaper if you buy 4 ($80 each).

Guzzibrewer

Click to expand...

Well a couple of bad points for me. 1) temp control. How do you do it if its hanging on the wall? 2) while they are going to have a stand for it so you don't have to hang it on a wall they don't have one NOW and won't have it for several months. 3) how big is it? Will it fit in my fermentation chamber? Don't know and it doesn't say. I can't get something that won't fit my chamber. 4) okay did find out how bit it is: Air Lock to Bottom Collection Ball Height: 39" - Width: 16.5". That is 99 cm x 41cm. That definitely won't fit in my fermentation chamber...meaning my chest freezer or the new one I am going to get.

So while it looks good I think they need more time to develop it. With the limited space and all that we have to deal with here, I just don't see it working really, at least not at this time.

Agreed,

Temperature control is something to worry about, but since I don't have a fermentation chamber yet I can rig something up.

I was thinking you could build a fermentation chamber with a wall to hang it on. All I know is that floor space is at a premium in my closet where all my beer stuff is. It's the right temperature for ale in there most of the year (summer is the exception) so I could just use the closet most of the time (I don't brew lager).

I'm sure a stand would not be too difficult to make- I think a wooden box of the right size would work, but if it doesn't fit the fermentation chamber you've got then it's definitely not for you.

I think the best thing about this fermenter is the wall mount, and the collection bulb for collecting yeast. I do have one question though, what happens to the air in the replaced bulb when you open the valve to collect the trub prior to secondary fermentation? It would bubble up through the beer right? That's a problem right?
I suppose you could just dump the trub slowly through the valve into a collection bucket and not worry about the bulb at that point? When you are dumping trub through a bottom valve you are introducing a lot of potentially 'dirty' air into the fermenter to make up for the lost volume right?. Does this air stay isolated from the beer because it comes in from the top and the CO2 is heavier and thus blankets the beer?


MPearce, how is your new fermenter working out?

If the FastFermenter is out I'll have to keep lusting after stainless stuff. Sigh.

Guzzibrew said:

MPearce, how is your new fermenter working out?

If the FastFermenter is out I'll have to keep lusting after stainless stuff. Sigh.

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It is AWESOME! I want another one already. I love this thing. It is pricey but so worth it. I haven't used my carboy since.

Hi!

Im currently gathering equipment, tools and ingredients to start my very first home brew. good thing i bumped into this forum and got some inputs where to buy stuff and all.

Hopefully will able to start by 2nd week of august once materials are complete but its summer and temperature control is really a big problem.

Hope I can meet other home brewers to give this noobie pieces of advice.

Welcome. Hope you enjoy your brewing journey. Yes temp control is paramount...but there are ways to do it without a big set up. Check out the forum for ideas. I used to keep my beer in the bathtub with ice during the summer.


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

Blue-Frog said:

​

No current plans, but the last week of July is one possibility I am looking at...

Whenever it is, I will let you know.
(Warning: It might be after the summerheat!)

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Well it is official; I won't be going to Tokyo the last week of July
I will try to get out when the humidity is down to comfortable levels.

In the mean time...
Any one use a Johnson 419 digital temp controller here?
I am wondering about power source problems
120v vs 100v and the cycle thing...

The weather is cooling off and I have brewing on my mind again! Early summer was too busy with the new job to even consider spending my free time brewing. Who wants to boil wort in a 40C kitchen anyway when you just want to cool down?

My equipment has changed up since my last brew, so I am going through the items and cleaning and prepping it for return to service.

Things I changed:
Mpearce hooked me up with a Igloo-type round mash tun (Thanks!) - this replaced my rectangular cooler mash tun, with a loss of volume but the benefit of a better drainage system and probably less loss to deadspace.

I cut my copper immersion chiller coil in half and made two smaller length coils out of it. Each coil receives fresh, cool water so the overall flow-rate is doubled. My coil was thin (refrigerator cooling coil sized) and the slow speed of chilling was a time-consuming part of my brew day. Chilling should be done quickly to reduce contamination risk and to reduce any DMS buildup that might occur when the wort drops below (80?).

Added a bulkhead thermometer to the brewkettle so I don't need to scald my hand with steam-heat.

Coming up soon: I will be picking up a one-way pub-keg from work. The empty bottle will be used for a fermenter, with an airlock. It is brown PET with a gas-barrier coating. I will not be pressurizing or using this for kegging, and the rubber stopper that currently holds my airlock fits perfectly. I may use these for long term storage during the winter... Anyway it is a 20L fermenter that costs me nothing and may be better than my current rectangular fermenters, less corners to clean...

I picked up a CO2 tank at the neighbourhood Sake-ya so I will have gas for purging O2 from conditioning tanks. This should help with quality.

I have cleaned up my 4 corny kegs, and now with the gas, I will be able to keg and serve on my single faucet at home. Looking forward to that! Currently my kegs are being used for making original sodas and serving them on tap at work, so they are def in working condition and ready to go.

Picked up a couple stainless ball lock bottle tops so I can force carb some beers in soda bottles. Perfect for "to go" containers without worrying about spending so much time bottling.

I will be getting rid of most of my 330ml bottles if anyone wants them and can pick up in Oppama let me know! Most have had the labels removed so that is a benefit. You can have a free hand-capper with the bottles if you can pick them up!

Happy brewing!!!

Anyone know the translations for:

"Alkalinity as CaCO3"
"total alkalitity"
"bicarbonate ion concentration"

and / or have any experience interpreting the local water reports for brewing uses?

BF

---
((Which sodas have you got lined up?!))
---

Hi everyone, here's an excuse/motivator to get your brew on!
We are going to be doing a fun people's choice type of brew contest at Nawlins in November. Its a good chance to meet up and get some feedback on your brewing from other homebrewers. There will be prizes!
Please keep the event semi-secret as it is intended for homebrewers not everyone and their cat. Please refrain from posting publicly about the event. Sign up and Details in the google docs links here:
English: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/10MefR6yxrxntaWhGUwVlRVYlNFG5ypTM158UAl29JbY/edit#gid=0
Japanese: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1MCq_sjAcLzvbsWKu869MFtm6pWaUGPan6AFloR2VJXM/edit#gid=0

New to Yokosuka Japan. I do not bottle...no interest or patience in bottling. I keg my beer. Where in the hell do I get my CO2 Tank for my Kegerator filled? My tank is a U.S. Tank. will I have to buy a Japan CO2 Tank instead..if so...where do I buy one...will I have to buy new regulator? if so where? I have 9 Kits sitting here in my brewing room and can brew until I know that ill be able to Keg. Any advice? are there any homebrewing stores here in Yokosuka or surrounding areas?

NavyChief2012 said:

New to Yokosuka Japan. I do not bottle...no interest or patience in bottling. I keg my beer. Where in the hell do I get my CO2 Tank for my Kegerator filled? My tank is a U.S. Tank. will I have to buy a Japan CO2 Tank instead..if so...where do I buy one...will I have to buy new regulator? if so where? I have 9 Kits sitting here in my brewing room and can brew until I know that ill be able to Keg. Any advice? are there any homebrewing stores here in Yokosuka or surrounding areas?

Click to expand...

It's rather difficult to get your own tank refilled here. What every one usually does is to pick up a Japanese tank at a liquor store (usually 2500 for the gas and about 5000 as a deposit on the tank). Most guys use the Japanese regulator, but the guys down in Okinawa have figured out a workaround adaptor to use the US regulators. Check out facebook group https://www.facebook.com/groups/229146713798200/ and post this question there and see if anyone can help you with the adaptor.

You are asking about homebrew stores in Japan. You need to catch up on some things here. Homebrewing over 1% is illegal as far as the tax office is concerned, so homebrew stores just don't physically exist in Yokosuka or the surrounding country.

Tek mentioned the same thing I suggest; just get a Japanese tank and regulator for ease of use, or go through the adapter adjusting. You will probably have to use JP CO2 tanks, but the benefit of that is that when they are empty you just swap them out for a full one, no time wasted refilling your own. On top of that, you can ask and get a "Guinness" blend from them if you want to serve on a nitro blend at home.

Hello. Ive been hiding in the background for some time now. I was wondering if anyone has tried Kirin stout? I want to make a stout quite similar to this. It might be a coffee stout but not to sure? Any help will be appreciated


Drink more coffee and do stupid things faster

Hello!
I don't think it was a coffee stout but its been a while since I tasted it.
I wouldn't even call it a stout but that's what they write on the can/bottle.
It is a schwarzbier but stout is easier to fit on a can and something most beer drinkers in Japan will be able to get. I had a schwarz on tap and my customers didn't exactly jump at it, but when you call the same thing a "black lager" it moves quick.... Find a schwarz recipe with a good rating and it will probably turn out better than the Kirin.

Schwarzbier is actually a fairly popular style in Japan if you look at the number of craft breweries that produce one. Harvest Moon and Shonan Beer (Iksperia and Kumuzawa), are a couple of breweries in the Kanto area that make decent versions. Sorry I don't have much experience brewing lagers and can't help with the actual recipe but there should be some pre-tested in the forum.

Thanks! I will have a look around, just Ive been drinking it for the past 5 years and finally decided I want to make something similar


Drink more coffee and do stupid things faster

Well, crap. I made a big introduction post, but I wasnt logged in on this tab, so I lost it.

I finally decided to join you guys after lurking for over a year and more or less just popping in from time to time to catch up. I'll be brewing my first batch in several years this Sunday. Last time I did any homebrewing I was still in college up in Kawasaki. Planning on doing a partial mash IPA with Chinook (2.5 oz) and Centennial (1.5 oz) in the boil and 1oz Cascade for dry hops. Looking forward to it.

Just a couple tips if anyone is interested.
Recently I found 30L steel pots with lids on Amazon.co.jp and rakuten for about 3500en. If anyone is looking for a larger main kettle or a backup, its a pretty damn good deal. The walls of the pots are thick enough, but the bottom is a little thin. Not restaurant grade stuff, but so long as you aren't letting anything settle, scorching shouldnt be a big deal.

Also, have you guys been checking Alibaba lately? Seems that a lot of homebrew stuff has been showing up on there, including new corny kegs (though after shipping they are not particularly cheap). I picked up a few things for pretty cheap off there (refractometer 25$ shipped, autosyphon 13$ shipped) and it seems to be a pretty good source for weldless bulkheads and ball valves if anyone wants to make a nice brew kettle and/or needs mash tun valves.

I'd like to get a keg setup going by sometime this winter, does anyone have any leads on cheap used cornys?

Anyway, look forward to talking beer with you guys, and if anyone is in the Nagoya/Chubu area, we should grab a beer at Y. Market or something some time. Otherwise, if anyone wants to grab a beer at one of the 10,000 beer bars that are now in Tokyo, Ill be up that way for Design Festa in November.

sabotenfighter said:

Well, crap. I made a big introduction post, but I wasnt logged in on this tab, so I lost it.

I finally decided to join you guys after lurking for over a year and more or less just popping in from time to time to catch up. I'll be brewing my first batch in several years this Sunday. Last time I did any homebrewing I was still in college up in Kawasaki. Planning on doing a partial mash IPA with Chinook (2.5 oz) and Centennial (1.5 oz) in the boil and 1oz Cascade for dry hops. Looking forward to it.

Just a couple tips if anyone is interested.
Recently I found 30L steel pots with lids on Amazon.co.jp and rakuten for about 3500en. If anyone is looking for a larger main kettle or a backup, its a pretty damn good deal. The walls of the pots are thick enough, but the bottom is a little thin. Not restaurant grade stuff, but so long as you aren't letting anything settle, scorching shouldnt be a big deal.

Also, have you guys been checking Alibaba lately? Seems that a lot of homebrew stuff has been showing up on there, including new corny kegs (though after shipping they are not particularly cheap). I picked up a few things for pretty cheap off there (refractometer 25$ shipped, autosyphon 13$ shipped) and it seems to be a pretty good source for weldless bulkheads and ball valves if anyone wants to make a nice brew kettle and/or needs mash tun valves.

I'd like to get a keg setup going by sometime this winter, does anyone have any leads on cheap used cornys?

Anyway, look forward to talking beer with you guys, and if anyone is in the Nagoya/Chubu area, we should grab a beer at Y. Market or something some time. Otherwise, if anyone wants to grab a beer at one of the 10,000 beer bars that are now in Tokyo, Ill be up that way for Design Festa in November.

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Please share some of your links on Alibaba. I personally find it a nightmare for searching. "Homebrewing" yields pages of 15 barrel brewhouse equipment. BTW, welcome! I'm next door in Shiga-ken.

tektonjp said:

Please share some of your links on Alibaba. I personally find it a nightmare for searching. "Homebrewing" yields pages of 15 barrel brewhouse equipment. BTW, welcome! I'm next door in Shiga-ken.

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Sure,
Plate chillers, valves, etc:
http://www.aliexpress.com/store/1017341

19$ Refractometer
http://www.aliexpress.com/item/Beer...avity-popular-instrument-with/1898239175.html

Cheap auto siphons, airlocks, odds and ends:
http://www.aliexpress.com/store/group/Homebrewing/530431_255189132.html

Thanks. I guess I got confused because you wrote Alibaba, the commercial site, when you meant Ali-express. No big. Thanks again for the links.

Ah yeah, sorry man. I have used the commercial in the past (large volume stuff for work), but refer to both as Alibaba.
IPA just went in primary. Initial grav of 1.067ish.

Does anybody want to do an Asahi order soon and split it? Just getting into prime brewing season.
Speaking of which, gonna make a milk stout on Sunday. Will split it and hit it with cocoa nibs and espresso in secondary.

I just got my base malt a few weeks ago, so I will pass. Coffee milk stout sounds good!

Hi Guys!

Has anyone of you attended classes at Advanced Brewing? I wanted to know how is the class like and the overall impression of it. They have this new class in Beer Tasting / Tasting Off Flavors and I am interested to join.

I would like to take that (and other classes) too.

Unfortunately, if I read the info correctly,
3, two hour sessions @ 15,000 yen a session is a bit high for me.

I do however think a lot of thought has been put into the class
(I especially like the 3 stage learning process: high conc. / low conc. /then blind tasting) and suspect it would be fun and informative for anyone interested in beer at this level and in this way.

However, if there are more than 5 of us (say 6~10?) willing to do a group self-taught class, I would prefer and suggest that as an inexpensive DIY alternative.

We can create the off flavors artifically (the usual way it's done) and do our own taste testing & learning.

Plus we would be able to choose the basic flavors (like the AB course) or a more complete choice of... bad beer flavors.

Less than 6000 yen I would guess... if anyone wants to try, I'd be up for it.
Chime in here or PM me.

bf

Unless your Japanese is pretty good you might want to pass. I do know that several of us are looking at getting the tasting kit and going through the off flavors. Brendan or I will keep you posted.

Blue-frog and mpearce

thank you for your inputs.
You pointed out my two main concern: money and language. It seems it would be risky for me shelling out 45,000 JPY without fully maximizing the sessions due to barrier in language.

I would be really interested if we can organise a self-taught session for this one. I would gladly raise my hand to help organise it.

regards

You are welcome, Freshbret.

There are several options for flavor self-study.
Co-Operation & Good Planning should result in Learning at minimal cost.

I would be interested in the Taste Testing but I am gone a lot and not near anyone so I would have to travel to it. That is not to say that if you guys do set something up and it works into my schedule and you have room I would gladly attend. At the very least I would be interested in hearing about how it goes if it does.

I just racked my American Stout to keg, it was sitting on bourbon barrel chips for a week. A bit of smoked malt in there too. This is tasty! I put a liter of it in a PET bottle that I will force-carb and bring to the home brew contest on the 9th. I have some that I bottled before the bourbon chips so we can compare.

:fro:Anyone on this forum coming to the brew-off?:rockin:

I have a custom wooden tap handle as one of the prizes, and there is a drink card for in it for the people's choice winner (redeemable at Nawlins).
Just a reminder to please sign up if you can make it, the forms are here:
English: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/10MefR6yxrxntaWhGUwVlRVYlNFG5ypTM158UAl29JbY/edit?usp=sharing
Japanese: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1MCq_sjAcLzvbsWKu869MFtm6pWaUGPan6AFloR2VJXM/edit?usp=sharing
Please be discreet with who you share this with, thanks!

We will be using proper BJCP scoresheets for the contest though there will be no requirement to fill in all the details. There will be beer style guides available to reference as well. This is an informal contest so you will be free to walk around and discuss things with other brewers/judges, and you may bring any style of beer to enter (though winter warmers is the theme). The main thing we want to take away from this contest is constructive feedback on our brewing and a chance to meet other homebrewers in the flesh.

**EDIT**
Looks like the links were giving 404 errors so I think I have them fixed now.

Here's a pic of one of the prizes. This is a burnt and sanded short handle, the grain is wavy and the softer wood between "winter wood" is worn away so the texture feels really good in the grip.

Blue-Frog said:

I would like to take that (and other classes) too.

Unfortunately, if I read the info correctly,
3, two hour sessions @ 15,000 yen a session is a bit high for me.

I do however think a lot of thought has been put into the class
(I especially like the 3 stage learning process: high conc. / low conc. /then blind tasting) and suspect it would be fun and informative for anyone interested in beer at this level and in this way.

However, if there are more than 5 of us (say 6~10?) willing to do a group self-taught class, I would prefer and suggest that as an inexpensive DIY alternative.

We can create the off flavors artifically (the usual way it's done) and do our own taste testing & learning.

Plus we would be able to choose the basic flavors (like the AB course) or a more complete choice of... bad beer flavors.

Less than 6000 yen I would guess... if anyone wants to try, I'd be up for it.
Chime in here or PM me.

bf

Click to expand...

I recently took the BJCP tasting exam and qualify now for the subsidized off flavour kits. I can order 1 per year at the price of $100 USD. It takes at least two months to get from what I have read and each off flavour is enough for 20 samples.

So we can definitely arrange an off flavour tasting weekend (there are 24 off flavours) sometime in the new year. If we get at least 10 people then we can probably do it for 1500 to 2000 yen each (Kit cost, venue cost if any, and base beer cost if any).

I think a weekend would probably work best with maybe a morning and afternoon session with 6 off flavours each. With a little bit of planning I think it could be a good event.

Depending on the result of my test, I will also be helping get tests done in Japan in the future so if there is any interest, please let me know.

Fastforwardx2 said:

I would be interested in the Taste Testing but I am gone a lot and not near anyone so I would have to travel to it. That is not to say that if you guys do set something up and it works into my schedule and you have room I would gladly attend. At the very least I would be interested in hearing about how it goes if it does.

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Do you know your schedule well in advance? Can you get down to the Tokyo or Izu area for a weekend?

I have been thinking about this for a while but haven't posted yet.

I have a place in Ito, up in the mountains. There isn't much parking but a couple of cars could be okay. As long as people don't mind crashing on tatami I have an 8 mat room and a 6 mat room that people could sleep in (there are three toilets though!). I won't have enough futons for everyone, so you'd have to bring sleeping bags. There are also a couple of couches.

There is a hori kotatsu that can easily sit three people on a side. So I figure 10 to 12 people would be cozy but doable.

If we did a weekend we could have a couple of days of off flavour tasting, beer sharing and BBQ'ing if the weather permits.

I am thinking some time in March of 2015 would work for me. If there is interest, I'll set it up.

CB_in_Tokyo said:

I recently took the BJCP tasting exam and qualify now for the subsidized off flavour kits. I can order 1 per year at the price of $100 USD. It takes at least two months to get from what I have read and each off flavour is enough for 20 samples.
...
If we get at least 10 people then we can probably do it for 1500 to 2000 yen each (Kit cost, venue cost if any, and base beer cost if any).

I think a weekend would probably work best with maybe a morning and afternoon session with 6 off flavours each. With a little bit of planning I think it could be a good event.

Click to expand...

Yes, that sounds like a plan.
The subsidized advantage helps reduce price per person and the spring date
seems right... March~May

I have a lengthy orginal off-flavor check-list I use sometimes
as well as various files on flavors & tasting...
&... I enjoy consolidating info; so if anyone is interested...
I can receive, sort and coordinate data for putting in pre&post event reading packets.

I am not wanting to buy any new books for a while, but if someone is -
I can suggest a title or two, and any scanned or copied sections from those could be added as well.

CB_in_Tokyo said:

There isn't much parking but a couple of cars could be okay.
As long as people don't mind crashing on tatami I have an 8 mat room and a 6 mat room that people could sleep in.... There are also a couple of couches.
~
If we did a weekend we could have a couple of days of off flavour tasting, beer sharing and BBQ'ing

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Sofa's good. I can sleep almost anywhere if its not too cold.
With 2 rooms, might want to designate one for light sleepers...
(I keep hearing complaints from people sensitive to snoring ;
Strange, I never hear anything!

If there is an oven, I could bake some German Rye Bread, Plain Pizza, or something.

Just to clarify, Tokyo, IZU, ITO are all different locations?

There is an Electric Microwave/Oven. There is an upstairs room (6 mats) and then the main floor.

Yeah Ito is in Izu, about 100 KMs SSW of Tokyo.

CB_in_Tokyo ....... I am in Vietnam right now so I am not too sure on my schedule but in February I will be in Thailand possibly so if it was the end of March I might be able to do it.

ffx2

You wouldn't be in Saigon by any chance would you?

bf

I can't really get into the specifics of were I am but I am gonna be in the jungle for the next month in the north..... won't have internet net there to get on HBT lol

But I have a copy of "Tasting Beer: An Insider's Guide to the World's Greatest Drink" by Randy Mosher to keep me company. I hope it is a good read.

OppamaBrendan said:

:fro:Anyone on this forum coming to the brew-off?:rockin:

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I signed-up as a volunteer since my beer would not make it on the 9th.
It would be a pleasure to meet fellow brewers for the first time.