Recent content by 29Savoy

I'm shopping for a hop spider to fit an 8gal brewpot and would appreciate any advice / recommendations on a brand and source. I think I'd like to have one that hangs on the side of the pot so I can make additions throughout the boil and not have to handle overly hot equipment. But I'm open to...

Brief question. What is "5.2 Stabilizer" mentioned in the recipe? What's its function in the recipe? Who makes it? I've never used it before and am looking for a new BDS recipe.

The rest of the story on this batch is that the fermentation started slow and proceeded slow. What K-sorbate there was probably delayed the process. It was the better part of 3 weeks before the primary was over. I let the secondary go two weeks to get the cider clear. ABV was about 4.5% and...

Maylar, BTW, nice looking batch in the pic attached to your post.

Gents Thanks for the advice so far. My previous batch of "grocery store" cider had some K sorbate but was made from cleared cider that was more processed and stored at room temp in the store. It fermented out dry and even had some fizz to it. Different yeast too. Too dry a taste for me. This...

I'm trying to make a small (2.5gal) batch of cider from pasteurized store bought cider which also had some potassium sorbate and malic acid added. I've done cider from juice with these preservatives before and it worked. I gave it a 1.5 tsp dose of pectic enzyme 18 hours ahead of pitching a...

Looks like a really good recipe. I had a Casteel last week that was pretty good so looked this up. I've done other Belgians but this would be a first at Dark Strong. 'Couple of questions: The amount of the Seeds/Grains of Paradise shows .14 tsp. Should that be grains or some...

I was reading the "worst commercial beer" posts for some amusement and ran across this one that was the exact same experience I had in college back in the 70s when I knew nothing about beer. What a laugh! I was on a seriously limited budget and bought a 12pk for $6 at the A&P. I was with a...

Evaporated cane sugar is a new term to me. What's the difference from what I can get at the grocery store?

Pink or yellow Teflon tape. The former is used in household plumbing so its safe. But you need a couple of wraps to ensure a good seal. The yellow tape is for gas fittings and is thicker so fewer wraps are needed. As noted earlier it allows easy disassembly.

Gents, Thanks for the great advice! Mashing the specialty grains sounds like a goo approach. I also like changing the temp and grain bill. My recipe called for 154f so I'll look at just how far up to adjust.

I'm refining a recipe for an all grain quad and trying to evaluate whether to steep specialty grains (caramunich, caravienna, special B) versus mashing them. I'd like an end product with some body and a dark brown color. If steeping would be a good bet, what would be a goo technique?

A follow on note. Added another starter as I'd grossly under pitched. Fermentation took off. I'm using WLP 500. I'm also into the secondary now with a dose of sugar and it's still working. This is a first time using this recipe and to say its a Belgian strong ale is an understatement. Still...

Gents, Thanks for the excellent advice. I was mulling this over and figured the issue was with the starter. I'd done a Kolsch recently and recall using more DME. I had a lot more slurry then. Must have had a lapse of concentration (pun intended) when I added so little. Gave the fermented a...

Working on a Belgian quad and have worth prepared and chilled to 72-73f. Had 1 liter starter of WLP 500 prepared overnight with 0.25C of light DME and 1/8tsp of yeast nutrient. Yeast was fresh with Sept expiration date. Had also left yeast out sufficient time to reach room temp before mixing...