Recent content by kirbcheck

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Congrats on your first brew day! Honestly, I don't know if this batch will be drinkable or not, but it has at least created a teachable moment. First, mash temp is very important. Lower temps convert starches to more fermentable sugars (so it tends to be drier with a higher abv). Higher temps...

I've been brewing almost 10 years (all but the first 2 brews have been all grain). For the last 6 years I've been brewing on a 3 Vessel Gas Herms system utilizing 2 Keggles and a large Igloo cooler. I'd like to convert this to an all electric system. During a remodel I've installed a 240V/50A...

I've been brewing on this setup for 6 years now. It's a good rig. I have over $1,000 invested. Open to offers. I'm only selling because I have the ability to go electric now. Willing to keep kettles, pump and chiller to negotiate price. Also willing to educate you on how to operate.

No base malts, roasted, maybe caramel. From my reading, pasteurization happens as low as 145 for 30 min. I honestly feel like itd be a safe bet.

I'm not surprised you've never heard of a "backside partial mash" as I've made it up. I'm talking about brewing a full 10 gallons of beer, cooling to 150 and pulling off half to be cooled further in the fermenter. But also doing a partial mash via a steeping bag post boil with the remaining...

I am a regular parti-gyler and split batch brewer. I'm thinking about brewing a 10 gallon batch of low IBU IPA. I was thinking of cooling to 150*, pulling half for an IPA and then doing a backside partial mash to make the remainder a stout or brown ale. Thoughts? Y'all think it's too risky?

Hey Ragman, Pellets dissolve into a dust then settle to the bottom of the beer. They mix with yeast, proteins and other particles that might be in your fermenter to produce the trub. When you siphon off the fermented beer for bottling, your goal is to leave most of that behind. It's the oils...

The thing you have to remember is that you're making beer. Even if it doesn't turn out exactly as you'd hoped, it'll probably be drinkable. It takes quite a bit to completely ruin a batch. I've done it once in 10 years, and I was almost trying to ruin it You're on the right track. Keep...

Hey, we were all new once. This is why we ask questions, so we can learn. Ask anything, you'll get no judgement from me. Think of hop additions like steeping tea. The yeast has nothing to do with it. Just sitting in liquid and infusing into the beer. 3 days is often all mine need. Sometimes I...

I suggest reading up on hop additions. I'll give a basic run down. The longer your hops boil, the more bitter your beer will be. Thus increasing IBU. Unfortunately, the longer you boil hops, the more oils get carried away in your steam. This decreases aroma and flavors (the mango, citrus...

You'll be fine. In my early days of brewing I had to stick my beer in snow drifts to get it to pitching temps. Sometimes sitting over night. Everything was fine. That said, bolling too 190 naturally will take quite awhile, use the chiller. Personally, I wouldn't dryhop more than once and I'd...

Looks good. I usually aim for a min of 65 IBUs for an IPA. But that's just personal preference. That said, lower bitterness and high aroma is definitely on trend, which is what you'll achieve here. I appreciate your use of restraint. Many times a first recipe will have a dozen grains and 5...

Experienced Homebrewers 4. What were some of the biggest challenges when you first got into it? Startup cost was probably the biggest challenge. It's hard to justify hundreds of dollars on a hobby I didn't know if I'd like. There aren't a ton of Homebrewers where I live, so finding the...

Welcome back. I'm in the same boat. Last year has been nuts for my family (mostly in good ways) and brewing went to the bottom shelf of priorities. Yesterday was my first brew day in about 8 or 10 months. I used to brew a minimum of every month. So goes life I suppose. I'm jealous of your...