beerman1957
Well-Known Member
My brewing advice. Take it or leave it. There is NO SILVER BULLET. Pun intended.
Equipment:
Propane Burner at 100,000 BTU at the altitude I am at (4700 Ft).
Full LEGAL 15 gallon ABucsh Keg Cut to allow as a boil vessel. Has a Blichmann Dial and a weldless tap. Nice.
2 Gott Coolers
2 March Pumps
One really badly designed stand that works.
One commercial grade NEW upright Freezer with Johnson Analog Controls dialed in to 2F deviation
Hobby Brew 14 gallon conical. My most favorite thing... ever.
14 Cu foot used chest freezer with 4 gauge separate dials for pressure to 4 kegs.
7 Corny Kegs. One of which is a fermentation keg, just in case. Yes, I can fit the HB and the Corny Keg.
One stainless chrome plated tap mounted on the chest freezer.
A hop garden with 3 varieties. All are over 12% AA. I just cut them back if I need less AA.
A Few Grolsh Bottles just in case...
-------------------------------------------------
I don't bottle but I do keg. I transfer from the Conical directly to the keg. I don't pay much attention to it all, since I don't have to. Being lazy is one of my strong suits. I rarely use hydrometer and just go by experience and how the wort "looks". I think it just comes from years of practice.
I don't advocate all my practices, btw. But I do have some hard and fast rules I ALWAYS follow:
1. Clean it. And Clean it as soon as possible.
2. Sanitize. I use Iodophor but I have used Clorox for those stubborn trubs. I rinse very well after Chlorine then let dry in the sun. Chlorine dissipates quickly but I do rinse several times. Most of the time, it is Iodine.
I also spray iodine solution just before a brew. Since the fermenter will not be in use for some hours, I feel okay doing this. I do drain out.
I also seal the fermenter with a gasket. I have the Hobby Brew system.
3. I use LME for base and whole grains for added specialties. I use a modified partial mash. It works for me. I just put the grain into my Gott cooler with the false bottom and lauter for 45-60 minutes. I don't sparge. I just pour the wort back into the grain bed once and then use it. Again, lazy.
Hey, it works! It is exceptional, actually. Again, I don't preach this technique. It is really not recommended but I have perfected it. I do take a starting gravity when I remember. I don't always do it but it is a good idea to see if you have a good brewery technique.
4. I boil a full 6.5 gallon. I get full hop utilization. I am really attentive to the hop addition schedule here. I try to hit the recipe exactly. This allows me to know that at least I can reproduce the results. I also boil hard to hot break, then turn the burn down. I notice I get MUCH less caramelization of stagnant wort.
5. I cool with Jamil's Chiller w/whirilpool. Super nice. Super quick. Super results. I can cool a batch in about 15-20 minutes to 65F depending on ambient conditions. On a 100 plus day here in Arizona it could take 30 minutes and 30 lbs of ice. Handy items are the two March Pumps I have.
6. I feel the next step is probably THE most important in obtaining excellent brew. I ferment under strict conditions with conical stored in a regulated upright freezer. This thing is dialed in to no less than +/-2 F. Now, yes I have read this is a good idea. But in practice I think it takes my beer to the next level. Of course the previous steps are important, but I the fermentation CAN be the most difficult because it is hard to obtain the equipment $$$$$$. I have over $600 in just fermentation equipment. You have a lot of leeway in the above steps... but not in the ferment stage.
This is MY OPINION. I think the data backs me up. However, an excellent brew is POSSIBLE with much less strict fermentations. I just wanted to express how much BETTER things got when I started this technique.
7. I dump trub several times but depending on the brew, it can be more or less 4 times. I really should be taking FG here. I don't. I am lazy that way. If it looks good, it usually is. And 99% usual. If I am unsure I know for a fact that I can just let it set 3 more days.
8. Pour Direct to keg from fermenter. then keg to another conditioned freezer. Temps here are not so highly regulated but I try to keep under 35F (4-5C). No less than 32F however (0C).
9. Force Carb at style. I usually force carb on day 5 because the beer is getting to the desired temps. This means I use MUCH LESS C02. Regulated gauges on a manifold give me the desired carbonation. I have a manifold with 4 separate gauges and a 20 lb CO2 tank.
10. Lastly, cold conditioning patience. The hardest part for me. For example the beer I had last week was good. This week it is outstanding. Next week will be probably the best it will be. Patience is not my virtue.
I would recommend that new brewers really focus on NOT being as lazy as I have been. I have been doing this over 15 years, which is a lame excuse.
As a new brewer, I know it is hard to do all these things. I have been blessed to be able to get to this level. In the end, if you can do your best, then things will work out. Try to get the fermentation to the stable temps throughout the beer cycle. If it goes up or down, just correct it as soon as you can and you should be golden.
These, AGAIN are my experiences. If you find something that works, then by all means DO IT. There is some pretty unconventional things I do like fail to take gravity readings. I advise all new brewers to do gravity tests.
In the end, I have found brewing quite a forgiving sport. You can really mess up quite a bit and still walk away with a good beer. Getting the the GREAT BEER level will probably take some time.
Please no flames to me for my bad practices. I have admitted them!
:0
Equipment:
Propane Burner at 100,000 BTU at the altitude I am at (4700 Ft).
Full LEGAL 15 gallon ABucsh Keg Cut to allow as a boil vessel. Has a Blichmann Dial and a weldless tap. Nice.
2 Gott Coolers
2 March Pumps
One really badly designed stand that works.
One commercial grade NEW upright Freezer with Johnson Analog Controls dialed in to 2F deviation
Hobby Brew 14 gallon conical. My most favorite thing... ever.
14 Cu foot used chest freezer with 4 gauge separate dials for pressure to 4 kegs.
7 Corny Kegs. One of which is a fermentation keg, just in case. Yes, I can fit the HB and the Corny Keg.
One stainless chrome plated tap mounted on the chest freezer.
A hop garden with 3 varieties. All are over 12% AA. I just cut them back if I need less AA.
A Few Grolsh Bottles just in case...
-------------------------------------------------
I don't bottle but I do keg. I transfer from the Conical directly to the keg. I don't pay much attention to it all, since I don't have to. Being lazy is one of my strong suits. I rarely use hydrometer and just go by experience and how the wort "looks". I think it just comes from years of practice.
I don't advocate all my practices, btw. But I do have some hard and fast rules I ALWAYS follow:
1. Clean it. And Clean it as soon as possible.
2. Sanitize. I use Iodophor but I have used Clorox for those stubborn trubs. I rinse very well after Chlorine then let dry in the sun. Chlorine dissipates quickly but I do rinse several times. Most of the time, it is Iodine.
I also spray iodine solution just before a brew. Since the fermenter will not be in use for some hours, I feel okay doing this. I do drain out.
I also seal the fermenter with a gasket. I have the Hobby Brew system.
3. I use LME for base and whole grains for added specialties. I use a modified partial mash. It works for me. I just put the grain into my Gott cooler with the false bottom and lauter for 45-60 minutes. I don't sparge. I just pour the wort back into the grain bed once and then use it. Again, lazy.
Hey, it works! It is exceptional, actually. Again, I don't preach this technique. It is really not recommended but I have perfected it. I do take a starting gravity when I remember. I don't always do it but it is a good idea to see if you have a good brewery technique.
4. I boil a full 6.5 gallon. I get full hop utilization. I am really attentive to the hop addition schedule here. I try to hit the recipe exactly. This allows me to know that at least I can reproduce the results. I also boil hard to hot break, then turn the burn down. I notice I get MUCH less caramelization of stagnant wort.
5. I cool with Jamil's Chiller w/whirilpool. Super nice. Super quick. Super results. I can cool a batch in about 15-20 minutes to 65F depending on ambient conditions. On a 100 plus day here in Arizona it could take 30 minutes and 30 lbs of ice. Handy items are the two March Pumps I have.
6. I feel the next step is probably THE most important in obtaining excellent brew. I ferment under strict conditions with conical stored in a regulated upright freezer. This thing is dialed in to no less than +/-2 F. Now, yes I have read this is a good idea. But in practice I think it takes my beer to the next level. Of course the previous steps are important, but I the fermentation CAN be the most difficult because it is hard to obtain the equipment $$$$$$. I have over $600 in just fermentation equipment. You have a lot of leeway in the above steps... but not in the ferment stage.
This is MY OPINION. I think the data backs me up. However, an excellent brew is POSSIBLE with much less strict fermentations. I just wanted to express how much BETTER things got when I started this technique.
7. I dump trub several times but depending on the brew, it can be more or less 4 times. I really should be taking FG here. I don't. I am lazy that way. If it looks good, it usually is. And 99% usual. If I am unsure I know for a fact that I can just let it set 3 more days.
8. Pour Direct to keg from fermenter. then keg to another conditioned freezer. Temps here are not so highly regulated but I try to keep under 35F (4-5C). No less than 32F however (0C).
9. Force Carb at style. I usually force carb on day 5 because the beer is getting to the desired temps. This means I use MUCH LESS C02. Regulated gauges on a manifold give me the desired carbonation. I have a manifold with 4 separate gauges and a 20 lb CO2 tank.
10. Lastly, cold conditioning patience. The hardest part for me. For example the beer I had last week was good. This week it is outstanding. Next week will be probably the best it will be. Patience is not my virtue.
I would recommend that new brewers really focus on NOT being as lazy as I have been. I have been doing this over 15 years, which is a lame excuse.
As a new brewer, I know it is hard to do all these things. I have been blessed to be able to get to this level. In the end, if you can do your best, then things will work out. Try to get the fermentation to the stable temps throughout the beer cycle. If it goes up or down, just correct it as soon as you can and you should be golden.
These, AGAIN are my experiences. If you find something that works, then by all means DO IT. There is some pretty unconventional things I do like fail to take gravity readings. I advise all new brewers to do gravity tests.
In the end, I have found brewing quite a forgiving sport. You can really mess up quite a bit and still walk away with a good beer. Getting the the GREAT BEER level will probably take some time.
Please no flames to me for my bad practices. I have admitted them!
:0
