Recent content by melchermatt

he 2015 IBU OPEN is taking entries! Now is the time to go the the website and enter your beers for this years competition. Please take a moment to go to the website and register your participation in this year’s competition. We will take entries until March 29th. www.IBUOPEN.com...

What I do is use wort that has been autoclaved/pressure cooked. I make jars of starter wort and use one of the jars from a previous batch. I carefully take whatever amount I need to make my slants, mix in the agur and heat accordingly. Once measured into the tubes, you can lay them at an...

If you're an AHA member you can go to the NHC 2014 website and find the presentation about sensory evaluation. It is a discussion about learning flavors and descriptors. As some one said before - you have to train yourself. One thing though - you wont develop your palate through reading. You...

Agreed--just did a batch a couple of weeks ago. They're easy when stepping up a starter. I also use the canned wort when making plates and slants. They come out great!

sanitizing flasks is easy. It takes very little time and effort. As for 2 quart (half gallon) jars - I actually purchased a half dozen of them this spring. I haven't used them yet. They are pretty big and almost require 2 hands to move (I'm sure they would when full of liquid). I also like to...

you should not run water over the canner to cool it down - that will cause your jars to 'boil over' since the pressure drops too rapidly when the temperature drops quickly. Let it sit and be patient. I usually have a fair amount of trub in the jars. I shake them when they cool down - to release...

Knock yourself out with the dry yeast - as Revvy says, it's a great product and absolutely appropriate for the vast majority of your brewing. That being said, I get kind of tired of US-05. It dries everything out and can take a while to floc. I say find yourself a couple of strains you like, and...

better in the fermenter than down the drain...

I try to keep things that I can't buy. My favorite is Pacman and it can be difficult to get at times. I have also harvested the strain used in SN Kellerweiss and a belgian strain used by a local brewery. I have also started taking a few samples from the commercial strains as I use them. See the...

1056/US05 will give you a pretty dry beer regardless, I usually get around 80% attenuation (if not more) when I use it. Try another yeast before you go messing with your mash process.

As others said - wrap in blankets. Also, make sure you cover the lid as well. A lot of cooler lids are not insulated

search for Malty Tasking DIY - he's got a decent set of plans - all he asks is you buy him a beer in return. http://www.maltytasking.com/Malty%20Tasking%20DIY.htm

7.5oz without a starter is about right. A shade under a cup - it's not that much. Mr Malty is giving you the amount without a starter. You can make a starter as teaman suggests if you wish, or just pour in the slurrey.

I like the yeast on this first impression. Here's my experience: Best Bitter - og 1.056 - fg 1.012 - 77.6% apparent attenuation Primary for 22 days - just kegged it today My basement is 58 degrees ambient. I pitched at 62 degrees and had to use a heating pad to get it to 68-69 degrees. I left...

I've pitched multiple strains before - no problems. I pitched some dry us-05 along with some liquid that didn't seem to be coming along in the starter. You wont create a new strain but the beer will be unique. I've never gone more than one batch so I can't speak about multiple generations.