Recent content by maestro_wu

All, Looks pretty fixed at right around 1.0, so may bottle this weekend if the readings are consistent. (Couldn't get the hydrometer out of the carboy, so am just leaving it in there.) Thanks!

Hi all, According to this post: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f13/rerack-off-settled-lactose-181360/index2.html#post2877623 I can get ~ 1.6 lbs of lactose to dissolve into a gallon of water. Now, I don't think I need quite that much, but I have read that somewhere between 0.5 and 1 lb is a...

Thanks. I sort of figured that'd be the proper way. Now, not to sound completely naive, but I've never cared enough about ABV to bother with the hydrometer. Do I just: - soak it in sterilizer, - remove the stopper/airlock, - submerge the hydrometer, - take the measurement, - re-sterilize...

Hi all, I love unusual cider experiments, and have tried a bunch of the more common variants we all love discussing here - apple, pear-apple, etc. I even tried mango once. (I liked it, but everyone else felt it tasted a bit underripe.) I'm now trying cranberry "juice cocktail". It's just...

Heh. I'd no idea I'd be the guy who kicked the hornets' nest. Oops. So here's the thing : I've got a Midwest kit on order, and I think I'll try it their way - just that once. Honestly, I'll probably go back to the single fermentation phase. I've been pretty happy with everything I've ever...

Hey that sounds like a pretty good system! I'll go by ace and see what I can find like that. Thanks!

Thanks for all of the super-prompt and helpful responses. They do, though, raise for me a secondary (pun intended) question: What, exactly, does one do that makes it count as secondary fermentation? Just re-rack with a bit more corn sugar? Or just re-rack? Thanks!

It's in Google Books, if that helps at all. I'm not sure if you can read the whole thing on-line or not, but even if you can only read a fraction at a time, it'd be a lot cheaper than those other options.

Hi all, I learned to brew from my brother-in-law, who always does a primary fermentation (~2 weeks), then bottles and waits another ~2 weeks. Lately, though, I've been hearing from friends that starter kits are urging a primary fermentation, then a secondary (in carboy, pail, etc.), /then/...

Hi all, I would like to organize all of my brewing supplies (corn sugar, next brew ingredients, etc.) & small equipment (thermometer, airlocks, racking cane) into some kind of toolbox. Does anyone have any favorite toolbox they can recommend for such a purpose? I've tried searching, but...

As a follow-up to this post, since the original information is pretty useful, I recently tried a proper paint stripper with the following beer bottles: - Sam Adams Barrel Room varieties - Rogue (fully-painted bottles, as in the pumpkin seasonal variety) - Rogue (standard painted bottles...

Hooray! Thank you! I will follow up after about 6-8 weeks and report results.

Thanks. I'm not too concerned about safety (as in edible), but more along the lines of how some added ingredients can kill yeast (think preservatives in apple juice). Like I said, I /think/ it'll be OK, but was hoping someone had done this before and could definitively thumbs-up at me...

Hi all, I've seen some references to this, but no definitive answer (as far as I can tell). I have a hazelnut extract which has as its main ingredient propylene glycol. Is this OK or will it ruin my beer? I'm guessing it's harmless, but would love to hear from someone who's used such an...

All, Thanks for the advice & reassurance. I bottled it late last week, and have had a few (premature?) samples to make sure it was, in fact, not botched. All seems well, and it tastes pretty good, actually. *whew* Thanks again!