Recent content by blaggard

I warmed my coopers Australian pale ale kit, put it in the bucket - added 23 litres of water and tested the SP before adding the yeast.... the hydrometer read 1.01! Wtf!! The only thing I can think of is I took a sample before the sugars had properly diluted in the water. Thoughts???! Suggestions?!

Are you repitching right before bottling? How do you avoid creating beer bombs?

Due to a busy schedule, my red ale has sat in the secondary for just over a month now. I am ready to bottle this weekend, however I'm concerned that the yeast may have gone dormant. Is that a reasonable fear to have? I'm wondering if I bottle it with the proper priming sugar if the beer will...

Super rookie question. Stove top 1 gallon brew. During the mash do you keep a lid on the pot? I have done 3 all grains and everytime I have used the proper amount of liquid for the mash and the sparge and by the time I bottle I'm getting 6-7 beers. I assume I'm losing too much liquid to...

Thanks guys. Appreciate the feedback.

I have mold in my 1 gallon secondary. Is the beer beneath still ok? Anyone bottle beer from a contaminated carboy and have it turn out alright? I'm obviously going to do my best to not disturb the top layer. Any people here able to share some mold stories?

Guys I have 2 separate thermometers and get readings that vary as much as 15 degrees ferenheit. I know the mash will obviously be warmer at the bottom and cooler at the top - so I try for the middle - but even then can get wildly different readings. Any advice or tips on 1 gallon batches?

So I made my first all grain! I got it into my fermenting bucket. It's a stout. I used safale s-04 yeast. Nothing is happening.. :( I haven't noticed a damn thing. The OG is 1.025. I was a little suspicious when I milled the grains that I didn't mill it enough.. that could lead to not enough...

So I've done a few kits now, and one thing I've noticed throughout all of them is their incredibly fizzy and brief head. Where is the froth that lingers for more than 5 seconds? My first hunch is the bottling sugar that comes with the kits. Other then that... perhaps age? Any ideas?

Hello brewers! So, just getting the hang of reading my hydrometer. I'm pretty confident I've figured it out - however!! I'm not confident on WHEN to be reading it. I know the initial check is done on the wort before the yeast, but the final reading - is that right before the secondary carboy...

Hey! I'm about to start my first small batch all grain recipe in a few days! However I just realized my pot is big enough for 2 gallons. Is there a reason all the recipes are either 1 gallon or 5? Does anyone brew 2?

I accidentally used some of my softened water for a malt extract kit recently... I'm going to bottle it anyways however and hope it is at least drinkable. I have a reverse osmosis system in my house (so long as I use the RIGHT tap..) and have simply been filling up my fermenter bucket and...

However I'm in Canada. I understand logistics counts me out. Is anyone aware of a Canadian community somewhere within these forums? Would be fun to organize a northern exchange!

Ahhh this looks fun! Look forward to participating next year!

So my first batch is a little unusual. It started in a bucket in my basement for about 4 days. When I went to get it ready to be put in the carboy, I noticed my basement was between 16-18 degrees Celsius. I brought it upstairs and took a specific gravity reading. Apparently the fermentation had...