Recent content by Stormrider51

https://milehidistilling.com/how-to-make-vodka/ Should give you some ideas. John

Gnomebrewer must be familiar with this area. Our water supplier takes water from Canyon Lake and also from the Trinity Aquifer. John

We live near Canyon Lake now. The water out here is very hard. So hard that we were warned to get a water softener or face our tankless water heater having a short lifespan. So we got a Kinetico. They claim to leave the smallest amount of salt in the water of any brand. I'm returning to...

I'm posting this in the beginner section because even though I have some years experience I have a new situation. I moved into an area with very hard water. We were advised to install a water softener and did so. My question centers around this, I have a choice of hard or soft water for...

I was a brewer and member of this forum for a number of years before life moved me in another direction. Now I'm back. Currently waiting for UPS to deliver flip-top bottles and a fermenter. Chose a mini-mash kit from the shop I used to buy from, Austin Homebrew. I chose Celis White because...

The only suggestion I'd make it is to look closely at the amount of hops you are using. It takes surprisingly little bittering to completely overpower the apple flavor. I used Strissel Spalt hops for that very reason. The Granny Smith apples will impart a slightly bitter/sour taste. I'd also...

Still one of my favorite brews although I haven't made it in a while. Might be next up on the list.

Here's the deal, we recently moved to the country and I now have a nice big metal building in which to do my brewing. A nice big unairconditioned metal building that is. It gets hot out there and the 14 gallon conical I was fermenting in is too big to fit into my cooler. The 5 gallon buckets...

Your plan sounds good for the most part. I'd avoid the Star San and go with the vodka. Vodka has no flavor of its own so it won't change the flavor of the beer if a little gets added to the wort. I'd crush the berries. Do it while they are still semi-frozen. And I'd put the berries in at...

I consider primary fermentation over when the airlock is down to one bubble about every 30 seconds. I think you will find that the addition of the apples (or cherries or whatever fruit you decide to try) kicks off another round of fermentation. In every batch I've made the second fermentation...

Belgian beers are normally brewed at room temp. That's what I do. My house is fairly well insulated and we maintain the temp at around 70 F in the winter and 76 F in the summer months. I really don't worry about it much since I never brew lagers. I've repeated the Ephemere clone several...

Many Belgian beers tend to have a bit of a sour taste. Letting it age for a few weeks can make a difference. Going for a little cooler fermentation temp would probably help too. John

Which yeast did they give you with that kit? It does sound like you are headed for a steam beer, not that there's anything wrong with them. John

I'd suggest going with the White Labs Edinburgh. John

If the beer has been sealed in a fermentor so that no outside air can get inside, then I'd say go ahead and bottle or keg as you usually do. Otherwise, I'd suggest that you draw off a sample and have a taste. If it seems drinkable, have at it. Remember that sour beer was once popular. You may...