Recent content by BlackBearForge

I'm still trying to figure out the source/classification of some odd flavors in my beer. If you had to rule out or focus on some classes of off-flavors which would you not worry about/worry about if the off flavor disappears as the beer warms up? My IPA tasted great shortly after bottling...

When I was buying the ingredients for my third batch of beer, an IPA from my own recipe, the HBS didn't have Chinook plugs which I wanted to use for my bittering hop. They suggested Columbus as a substitute so I went with it simply because I really really like using hop plugs. This recipe was...

It's just getting started, relax and watch it work over the next few weeks. You should soon be seeing a constant stream off fine bubbles up from the bottom (that is if you used the Montrachet wine yeast).

Good to know it came out well, I need to brew this one again. My first batch of it didn't come out so great, I somehow got off flavors as if the batch fermented to warm, not sure how that happened as I had it in a cooler with water and ice bottles (used US-05).

I don't know if they are equivalent, but I sure like using them. They smell fantastic when you break them up to throw in your boil and the hop oils get all over your hands and fingers!

Since I live on top of one of the nations finest aquifers it seems a shame not to use it as it comes out of my tap pretty much free with just as bit of chlorine in it. I mix up five gallons with a crushed campden tablet before brewing, some for the partial boil and the rest in the fermenter...

My last extract recipe (a big IPA) had tons of hot break material, first time I had seen it like that.

Oh yeah, I know not to pour it all in. There is beginning to be quite a bit of yeast sediment in these too! I'm keeping my fingers crossed that things begin improving even more in a few weeks. It's actually quite interesting, you'd hardly know it was the same beer each time we've tried it.

Ok, back on August 29 I brewed my first five gallon batch, a fairly simple pale ale using Chinook (.5 oz at 14%) for the bittering and Cascade for flavor and fermented with US-05. The wort was 70ish degrees F when pitched and I placed the carboy in a Cube cooler with ice bottles keeping it at a...

Smuttynose Robust Porter mixed with Smuttynose Pumpkin Ale is excellent (as is Sierra Nevada Porter mixed with DFH Punkin). On a side note I like a nice English style pale ale with a good shot (or two) of a nice gold rum in it (hey, that's a "mix"!). Which leads me to believe I'd like a...

When Sierra Nevada Celebration is fresh it probably is my favorite IPA, love the dark coppery amber color, the malt and the level of bitterness with lots of pine (man I've been digging their Southern Hemisphere lately too, with it's fresh hops from New Zealand!). It's hard to beat Sierra...

Well didn't get to bottle the porter either of the past two weekends but that's ok. Well, my first beer, the Lady Liberty PA is now beginning to be ready for drinking and I'm having a few issues with my version. While pretty tasty, I'm getting a strong, very spicey almost peppery taste...

It's funny but Tumbler only just started showing up here the past few weeks. Seems like we don't see Celebration until November or so. I do go through a bunch when it hits the stores and often have it with Thanksgiving Dinner. Earlier in the year I was getting 2009 Celebration at a store in...

A small amount of Special B in conjunction with another steeping grain or just Special B? How much Special B can you add before it becomes a dominant flavor addition? I wouldn't think you'd want to use more than .25 lb or so in mot recipes. The reason I ask is because I like Pale Ales and...

Lot's of people do this since they don't have lagering capabilities. They are simply Oktoberfest style ales. I intend to brew one soon too!