Recent content by Valis_2k

Hi all, I recently purchased on a whim a bag of french oak chips. I tried soaking one in vodka, just to see what kind of taste they were going to produce and after a week it tastes fantastic, mellow and, surprisingly, it has a strong vanilla aroma. I'd like to know what type of beer...

Hi all, I have a rather stupid question. I read in many threads that there are benefits in doing a longer primary and no secondary. I plan to leave my current beer (a honey ale) for 2 more weeks in primary after fermentation is completed. I am fermenting in a plastic carboy that also...

Thanks to all who answered! In the end, I decided to boil the extract, since I also saw the same technique in the Zymurgy booklet An Introduction to Homebrewing (you can download it from here, together with a lot of other nice stuff) As you can see in the pic below, they recommend boiling...

Hi everybody, I am about to do my second batch ever, an Irish Stout from a Coopers Kit. I am reading The Joy of Homebrewing. In the first chapter ("Especially for beginners"), when detailing the process to brew from kits, Charlie Papazian says Many beer kits do not instruct the...

Thanks all for the tips! A swamp cooler is not really an option for me, my apartment has serious mold issues and the last thing I need is something like that :( That sounds good.. my next brew (again from a kit) will be an Irish Stout, but I think -following billl's suggestion- to...

I have read in many places that it's better to put the lid on the carboy but not close it completely for the first 2-3 days of fermentation - although I am not sure why :D

Hi all, I have just tried my first ever homebrew and I am absolutely elated by the awesome accomplisment of brewing my own beer :mug: I would like to hear some opinions from the experts on how to improve it The kit I have used was Cooopers' Canadian Blonde. I bottled it after 1 week of...