Recent content by Malty_Dog

Fantastic article, and timely. I've done a little bit with water chemistry but without much specific practical knowledge. Thanks for making this approachable, sensible reading for a typical homebrewer who wants to take the next step.

Yup maybe its a bit of a laggard. Can't remember whether it was slow to start on that tripel I made a while back, but what a great beer. Good on ya for making the starter. Combination of time crunch and laziness on my part.

Brewing about 5 years now and for the first time ever I pitched WLP550 into low 60s wort, left rise to room temp (67-ish) and had zero airlock activity after 24 hrs. Popped the top to see absolutely nothing but sweet, clear-ish wort. Nary a yeast bubble, raft, or other such action. Well I'll...

I've mostly given up on working too hard to de-label but one thing I hadn't tried yet was a long hot PBW soak followed by a wire brush scraper. Seems to me that would do the job, maybe I'll try next time I get some of those tougher labels.

In a free market consolidation is a natural, organic event, just like innovation and new entrants. It does seem that the market is saturated (subjectively) and it makes sense that certain smaller independent craft breweries would seek greater stability or outright exit. Couple this with the...

When you stumble across 4 unlabeled fliptop bottles in your "aging" collection and have no friggin' idea what's in there...

Yep, I do an Oxiclean soak x 12+ hrs, followed by a drywall knife scrape and bristle brush scrub (only if necessary). After that it's a warm water rinse 2-3 times per bottle to get the slick soapiness out. Super clean bottles, zero infections.

Love my thermapen! Whether grilling, brewing, or smoking meat its an invaluable tool. Signed up for their email list so I have a chance to win every week. This is a great price though and totally worth it.

Quick followup - did the rye saison with Belle Saison yeast and it is outstanding. Quite often simplicity can yield some of the best results, and this straightforward recipe combined with a packet of dry saison yeast did exactly that. Just a delightful, effervescent, flavorful brew with a...

50 here, 1-2 (12 oz) weeknights, 2-3 weekend nights. Drink a lot more than when I was younger, but drink a lot less per sitting. Oh, and about 10x better quality now :)

It's Yooper approved, good enough for me :) Always enjoy adding another brewing book to the library.

I may do the saison with Belle Saison yeast. Love rye beers. Nice article.

May try this with Columbus instead of Simcoe. Loved it with Simcoe, just trying something different.

I appreciate you putting that grain bill together. Its got a solid noticeable spicy rye flavor/crispness, and a bright golden color. It just showed up in a local grocery store (Giant) and I couldn't resist, being a fan of rye in general. I'm not great at picking out hops, but it didn't seem...

Nice! Thanks for the find! Looks like a great plan. Maybe I'll try a very slight deviation from yours on the hop schedule, perhaps just cascade at 60, and maybe some willamette/cascade at 10 and whirlpool. May also do a half batch (2.5 gal) til I'm happy with it. Cool that you're growing...