Recent content by Murray

I have made a batch of english bitter, and the target stats are : OG 1.047 FG 1.011 bitterness : IBU 30ish I want to dry-hop to give a fruity, zesty kick to it. Not to give it anything like a heavily bittered IPA though. How much hops (I was thinking East Kent Goldings, in leaf form) do...

Good point, so an unfiltered, bottle conditioned beer is the way forward. Noted. Thanks very much all for these posts. they have put me on precisely the right track (I hope)

Does everyone get their live beer from bottle-conditioned beers? We have a lot of live beer in the UK which are cask ales. Very difficult to get an empty cask. If I were to go up and order a pint of cask ale, would I be able to get anything from a glass that came off a tap, or would I need to...

Many thanks, guys. Now I am all set. Will head out and try to find myself some good live beer to get my yeasts from.

Thanks very much for the tips, and the video link. I will give them both a try. Any idea how long these yeasts will last for in the fridge? Do i store the dregs from the primary until a few days before brewing then culture everything up as described, or do I culture it up atraight after brewing...

I have been using Wyeast yeasts for making most of my beers. I tend to use new yeast everytime I brew (I don't brew as often as I should). Has anyone got any experience with cultivating yeasts (perhaps from live beers they enjoy drinking, or propogating yeasts from batches they have made and...

I have a glass carboy (5 gallon) and I have got crusted yeast cake / residue deposits at the bottom of the carboy and on the sides (inside) where the wort level was for my last batch. I have tried carboy cleaners but have not been able to take off all the residue. (There is not a tremendous...

Is there anything else I can use, because I can't find rice hulls.

I want to make a recipe and it calls for rice hulls. I cannot find these in my home brew store (I live in London, UK). Is there something I can substitute? Are rice hulls used for flavour or sugars, or are they used for keeping the bed going given the recipe also calls for flaked wheat?

I made a batch of porter recently (OG 1.051, FG 1.011) and have kegged half and bottled half. I have been told a few times that porter tastes better after it has conditioned for a month or so. I hope so, because on my kegged half (it has carbonated now), I get a taste which I can only describe...

I am pretty sure it has something to do with sanitation or carbonation too. If the beer tasted good as soon as it was carbed, then I think everything up to that point was done correctly. The passage of time could have led to contamination due to bacteria, or something wrong with the carbonation...

Many thanks guys - mind at ease now.

haha - thanks. You think it is all ok?

I am making a lager beer, and have used Wyeast 2278 Pilsner yeast. I pitched 2 packs (100bn cells per pack, viability 70% as per the Beersmith cals) into my wort, and have defnitely noticed yeast growth activity. After a few days of fermentation (7.5deg C or 46deg F) I am getting the traditional...

Hi Guys I raised my temperature to 10c as Vale suggested, did not aerate or shake, or pitch more yeast, and after 2 days I got a perfect fermentation started! Bubbling away like mad now at 10c, and though I might get a few off flavours as you guys suggested, I have got a lager brewing now and...