Recent content by Howling_Moon_Woffie

Sorry for not phrasing it correctly- going for humor. In "Killing the yeast"...I am referring to the adding of the sulphates and Sorbates to stop any additional activity. Already had a year of exploding bottles- never again. :) ..and it's Woffie from Howling Moon Chocolates ;)

I'll try adding it at a different time next time because the quality of vanilla beans is one of the highest- I'm using the same beans I use in my chocolates- Madagascar Vanilla Beans. Matrix is right- get it from the net and save money. Just make sure it is a reputable source, there is a bunch...

If it was to do it again I would save all the beans till the second fermenter or even wait till like a day or two before bottling and hit it with extract. The money I dropped in this batch for vanilla beans really didn't pay out.

Yet another update from the Brew Closet... It's Dead Jim...I killed the yeast and had a chance to back sweeten a tad. Karen (Wife) helped loads in getting it right. My first try was more like Manischewitz cough syrup. Now...it tastes great! Ending at the high side of 12% All the...

Well...I took readings and they both are tapped out at 1.0SG so it should be time to rack again so it can clear. Thing #1- was hot (alcohol bite) and overly fruity. Thing #2-well...had an overly yeasty taste still. I'm going to bottle both separate and back sweeten Thing #1. I hope the...

Great Idea Dan- except we also have a humidity issue around here. It's like walking out into a hot armpit outside so mold would not be that far behind. I was thinking about chill packs and some MacGyver Liquid Cooling set up like for computers but that's a bit much for our current house/...

Yeah...I'm not a fan of what they don't know won't hurt them. I don't roll like that- comes from the Chocolate Truffle side of my life. I try to take allergies into mind in most things, still kicking myself for not asking about it at the brew shop. Um...Dan...so far it's been two weeks in...

Thanks Sammy! Yeah they are devout from what I can see. Different plates and knives...watching them cook was kind of cool :) I bought like 4 packs of this stuff thinking it was better than some of the stuff I used in the past. Seems I'll be saving it for personal brew not a share-Batch. I...

Nope- they were Blackberries not currants. I see what ya mean though. :) They just went through a rough patch during primary. I used two cans of that blackberry wine starter stuff as well as the Blackberry puree I had left over from the Chocolate Truffles I did. I ended up using the LALVIN...

OK...got a question for anyone who knows ... I'm brewing mead right...I know that in itself might be an issue but the question comes to this- One of the Clarifying agents I was thinking about using is a two part liquid called Super-Kleer K.C. It is Sterile water, Kieselsol and Chitosan. Since...

Racking Day! Dropped from Primary today. SG was 1.00/1.035. Odd thing was there was too much in the Primary so I dropped the rest in my other 5gal. So...Thing one and Thing two are now racked. In thing one- I added more blackberries....more vanilla...a bit of nutrient then topped it off...

OK. Going to give the Lychee a try. Anyone know what type of conversion rate to use for puree vs fresh fruit?

To be honest...I'm thinking of working a base recipe and trying Lychee...Star Fruit...Dragon Fruit... but I think the Lychee will be the first swing.

LOL Found that one about 20min after I posted- was trying to find one on these boards...you know...keep'n in the family ;) At least it gives me something to go on. I was thinking about swapping out a few things...brown sugar for white...maybe strong tea for the tannin...some lime juice...

Anyone try it yet? Tried searching but no hits.