Recent content by ipscman

You are soooo past this but I will never be anywhere near where you are now. Maybe with help I can reach your distant past. So: I built a PID controller box using an RTD based on the ElectricBrewery guys but adapted to a poor man's budget. Goal was to work with heated probe and a HERMS set-up...

Northern Brewer doesn't send to soldiers abroad. Any idea which companies do? I have relatives who want to brew but...

Thank you moderator for info on OG not being influenced by ratio of maltose to other sugars resulting from alpha/beta-amylase ratio. Appreciate also extra ideas on calibration. The lab thermometer has to be calibrated at the factory. Ugh. I did immerse the other three in the kettle at...

LAB thermometer off 5*F!!! Mashed in at 154-155 instead of target 149. Didn't figure it out for 45 minutes, thus killing off much of the beta-amylase enzymes. I understand that hitting the higher temps emphasizes alpha-amylase and this in turn produces higher TG/FG due to more unfermentable...

Ugh. Kicked-out of kitchen for almost a year. Got back in and thought I would try BIAB. Added 15% grist to offset expected lower gravity. Should have been 1.067. I got 1.050!!!!!!!!!!! Couldn't believe it. All three thermometers off. Was mashing probably around 154*F from mash-in on. So...

What did you learn after a year? Enquiring minds want to know! ;-) Mark

What did you learn? What would you recommend doing differently next time? Thanks, Mark www.hiddenwellbrewery.com

I have 4 dedicated beer fridges - all with top freezers. I just purchased a minibrew fermenter and it will not fit in any of them - 33" - they advertise 32". Anyway, if I remove the divider between the freezer and the fridge - to make extra room in one of them, does anyone know what effect...

This used to drive me crazy. I tried all the suggested options. Then I read in Kunze, Technology, Brewing and Malting, 2010 ed. p. 371: “Many breweries mill the hops very finely immediately before adding them, and then precipitate the finely milled particles in a whirlpool.&#8221...

Just use Fermcap or any other anti-foam. You can fill it right to the top and no problem. No affect on final foam retention either. Great product. Cheap aand available through many homebrew stores (Nothernebrewer, Midwest supplies, Williams, Rebelbrewer, etc.). Just look it up on this site for...

I spent days and countless hours online looking at all of the fantastic pages that guide one through the project. I decided to adapt their build to my much simpler needs and budget. A few pics below. System works as advertised with 1/2*F mash temp control. Utterly fantastic. NOW they've come...

I took my design from the electric brewery (http://www.electricbrewery.com) but simplified it to what I need which made it considerably cheaper and easier to build. Probably took two days total, once the parts were all here. System works fantastic. Dial in the temp and it sticks within 1/2 F...

I own and have read (and marked-up extensively) each of the following books cover-to-cover, in some cases numerous times. If I had to choose a single one, cheap and concise with excellent references to everything else it would be: The Brewer's Handbook (Goldammer) It is available free online...

Now that some time has passed, how did this project work out? 1. Did you use Jamil's recipe? How did you adapt it, if so, e.,g., yeast and fermentation? 2. Did you add oak cubes, etc? 3. What would you do different next time? Just discovered sours. Wow. Thanks so much.

George Fix, (Principles of Brewing Science or An Analysis of Brewing Techniques - I forget which) as well as Hardwick, and later Priest (Handbook of Brewing) mention using Lugol stain/solution to determine glycogen health in stored yeast. The normal approach is to stain cells on a microscope...