Recent content by ArcLight

I tossed some plastic equipment and never had a problem again. FYI - bacterial infections are hard to get rid of. For those who say don't get rid of your plastic and just try and clean it well - that can work, but there is a good chance it wont, and you will be out the cost of a kit and a lot...

Is it possible that the sweetness is correct but that the bitterness is masking it? I know it's a pain but if you made a smaller test batch and cut down on the hops maybe you would be pleasantly surprised.

I'd love to get a 12 pack of good craft beer for $13! In Northern NJ a 6 pack of craft beer is 9-12.

I've used Oak Cubes and its easy to over oak with them. How many are you using, and how are you oaking? In my case I soaked 1 once in 10-12 ounces of Bourbon for 6 weeks, then poured the Bourbon into the beer at bottling time. To sanitize I steamed the cubes first, then dropped them into the...

I only brew True Manly Man bear. None of that Sissy boy girlie man beer for me. No way. Only True Manly Man beer, and that uses hops, lots of 'em. :mug:

Yes it's a shame, and I will no longer patronize them.

Northern Brewer and Midwest Supplies merged a few years ago, didn't they? Os the Dark Force has both of them? Thats a shame.

Oak cubes cost $6-$8 for 3 ounces, thats $2 - $2.67 per ounce. You only need 1 ounce for 5 gallons, trust me! http://www.midwestsupplies.com/american-oak-cubes-medium-toast

I prefer American Oak to French Oak, had a nicer flavor. This was with oak cubes, soaked in Bourbon.

I do 10 gallon BIAB batches. I hold back several gallons of water and mash thicker (but still less thick than traditional mashes). I used to squeeze the bag but now I use a pulley, let it hang 5 minutes, squeeze the bag for a minute at various spots at the bottom, then lower it into a 2nd pot...

I second this. I have a grate and have used it for years but ... Gravity works better than my squeezing, and I can do other things while the bag is draining.

I don't like that idea. I cold crash in my primary, but by racking to a bottling bucket I can get a good mix of the bottling sugar into the beer, when bottling. I think you are more likely to get more yeast and sediment using the bottling bucket as a primary. And I think your beer/sugar mix...

Finer crush = greater surface area. A very coarse crush takes longer to gelatinize and for the water to penetrate and for conversion to take place. A fine crush, allows for faster conversion. If you have a high temperature with a coarse crush, the Beta Amylase will be denature before it...

I only use a secondary when using fruit puree. I now cold crash and dry hop in the primary.

It's not a theory, it's scientific fact. The tighter the crush, the smaller the grains, and the faster the conversion. Thus it's possible to have faster and more complete conversion that you realize, resulting in a more fermentable wort than you expected. You have more control with larger...