Hydrometer sample/wine thief video posted

Got a new Flip for my birthday so I thought I'd test it out with a quick video. Enjoy!



Has video embedding disappeared, or just changed? [youtube] tags don't work any more. Edit: Oh, they just don't show up in the preview. Carry on.

-Joe

That is a freaking sweet way to take a sample. :rockin:

Im so using that method now

Sticky!


Nick

I just sanitize my hydrometer as well and put it in the wine thief when I'm taking the sample. That way I can just pour the sample back without wasting any beer.

I don't waste it, I taste it It's 4oz of beer well spent, especially if I'm dry hopping or aging on wood or chocolate.

-Joe

I test in the thief also. I just have a sanitized glass standing by that I put some of my sample in for tasting and then return the rest.

Nice vid, and informative for new brewers. Well done.

The Fermtech Thief is, however, designed to be used as a hydrometer jar as well as a beer/wine thief. That's the point of it, really. You sanitize it and your hydrometer, dip the Thief into the carboy/fermenter, allow it to fill up, lift it up (either leaving it in the carboy or removing it entirely), and then spin and drop your hydrometer into it. One needs to hold it as perfectly upright as possible in order to get the hydro to sit in the middle. You take your reading, press the Thief's tip against the inside of the carboy neck (or against the side of your bucket if you ferment in one), and can just leave an ounce or two in the Thief for tasting/sampling. You remove it from the fermenter and either drink directly from it or empty your sample into a glass.

The genius of the Thief is a two-for-one gadget; it's basically like a combination of their bottle filler and their auto-siphon "container" part. Very smart and intuitive design on their part. Where would we be without Fermtech?

Cheers,
Nige

Thanks Nige. I do know the wine thief can be used as a hydro jar, and I used it that way for a while. However I went back to using a separate jar for a few reasons.

I find that the thief is just barely wide enough to fit the hydrometer, causing me to have to fiddle a lot to get the hydro to float properly. As you note, "one needs to hold it as perfectly upright as possible". The larger hydro jar makes it an awful lot easier.

I have had a lot of issues with bubbles at the surface of the thief obscuring my reading. With the wider mouth of the hydro jar this is easier to manage.

I can set the hydro jar down so I don't have to carry it around (dripping) until I'm done with the hydro reading. So I can take my reading right then, or put it down and finish cleaning before taking the reading.

It's all personal preference, but I found using the separate jar makes my life a lot easier.

-Joe

Nice method... It works just like the Shake-Weight!!! I see you have that motion down pretty well!!!

jpc said:

Nice method... It works just like the Shake-Weight!!! I see you have that motion down pretty well!!!

Click to expand...

Practice, practice, practice, my friend.

-Joe

Thanks, I learned a few tricks from this video.

Cool video. Thanks. I am about to finally purchase a wine thief. I have been taking readings the hard way for a couple years now (tilting the carboy and filling a glass with the desired amount). This will sure be a nice change!

Could you take a hydrometer reading for ABV after your brew has been carbinated and would it even be accurate? I have never done it I was just wondering.

nostalgia said:

Thanks Nige. I do know the wine thief can be used as a hydro jar, and I used it that way for a while. However I went back to using a separate jar for a few reasons.

I find that the thief is just barely wide enough to fit the hydrometer, causing me to have to fiddle a lot to get the hydro to float properly. As you note, "one needs to hold it as perfectly upright as possible". The larger hydro jar makes it an awful lot easier.

I have had a lot of issues with bubbles at the surface of the thief obscuring my reading. With the wider mouth of the hydro jar this is easier to manage.

I can set the hydro jar down so I don't have to carry it around (dripping) until I'm done with the hydro reading. So I can take my reading right then, or put it down and finish cleaning before taking the reading.

It's all personal preference, but I found using the separate jar makes my life a lot easier.

-Joe

Click to expand...

Ditto - I use the hydro graduated cylinder for testing for all the same reasons you stated. The thief does make pulling the sample from my sanke fermenters very easy though.

I got that sort of theif for just that reason, although I usually put the hydrometer straight in. I can however see the virtue of doing it in a seperate container - being able to set it down level would make it easier to avoid the hydrometer clinging to the walls.