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I was asking some guys at my LHBS about methods for reaching target gravity for a brew. I know that in anticipating low efficiency with all-grain (especially with big beers) one can simply mash more grain, boil down until you reach the desired OG, etc. However, my thoughts on this are...

I did a few calculations using the formula that cluckk suggested... Suppose I start with 6 gallons of wort, pre-boil, at 1.050. If I boil down to various volumes, here's what I would be looking at *before* I top off to 5.5 gallons in my carboy: Boiled down to... 5.5 - 1.055 5 - 1.060 4.5 -...

I feel as though I aerate the fairly well, but I will admit I don't do it for 5 minutes. What methods do you use for aeration? That seems as though it may be the simplest solution to my problems. On a related note (at least to earlier comments of mine), the propane burner arrived today...

Not at all! I've modified it over time, but the base recipe was just Northern Brewer's Imperial Stout extract kit. I sliced up a vanilla bean and added it to the secondary for 4 weeks prior to bottling. NB has the full recipe on their site, so you can mimic it if you don't want to buy the...

This is why I love HBT. You guys rock. The propane burner is already on it's way, and it sounds like I shouldn't give up on my brew kettle lid just yet. Although the former may not be as relevant yet because I live in Minnesota... and it's winter. Thanks!

Thanks for the response! I have a few follow-up questions... 1) does the post boil volume matter if it only means that I supplement with less water added to the primary? I would think that the same amount of sugar ends up in the carboy, so it shouldn't matter if the extra water is added at...

I recently upgraded my brewkettle from a plain stainless steel 5 gal pot to an 8-gallon polarware. It makes brewing a lot easier, however my stove is having a tougher time getting 6 gallons to a boil than I expected. In fact, unless I leave the lid on for at least 5 minutes (bad idea), I can...

I brew a pretty mean Vanilla Imperial Stout. That's convinced a few people to come to the light.

I've made beer bread a number of times using homebrew. I've found that higher gravity beers prevent the bread from rising as much. One time I was "forced" to make bread with a Scotch Ale because my last bottle of a Honey Ale went bad. That was some tasy bread, even if it turned out a little...

I recently upgraded my brewkettle from a plain stainless steel 5 gal pot to an 8-gallon polarware. It makes brewing a lot easier, however my stove is having a tougher time getting 6 gallons to a boil than I expected. In fact, unless I leave the lid on for at least 5 minutes (bad idea), I can...

I found this thread while trying to answer a similar question... although my circumstance appears to be more extreme: I have an unfinished basement in St. Paul, MN. Right now the ambient temp has already dropped below 60 degrees, and I expect that by mid-January it will be close to 45. I just...

Thanks for the responses everyone. I will check distilled water for some reference. I usually do extract only, so I don't think that efficiency is the issue. I suppose it's possible that the wort is still too warm. That wouldn't explain why the FG was off by as much though...

I've been finding that my hydrometer readings are consistently reading about 10 points too low. I know that having the wort too warm will bring the temp down a little, but there's no way that it's that warm. Also, when I measure final gravity, the readings also seem to be about 10 points too...

I brewed NB's Black Ipa recently - I loved it. It's a lot smoother than I expected and the hops are very well balanced. It's also a pretty quick beer. A yeast starter probably would have been a good idea, though, as I only reached 65% attenuation. Cheers!

Thanks for the quick responses guys. I'm getting responses similar to what I expected.

I just bottled batch #10 this weekend, I would say that 7 of those I transferred to secondaries. In reading some threads on here, I'm starting to have second thoughts about doing that at all. I see the time frame of 1 month thrown around a lot, as in "I leave the beer in the primary for as...

Thanks guys! It sounds like I just need to hope that nothing fell in. I need this beer to turn out for the completion of my winter brews series! Belgian Dark - 1.087 Imperial Stout - 1.086 Vanilla Bourbon Barrel Porter - 1.068 (pre-bourbon addition)

Saturday night I brewed NB's "The Number Eight" (high-alcohol Belgian Dark). Fermentation started as normal throughout Sunday, and this morning (Monday) I checked-in on it to make sure everything was safe and sound... it was clear I needed to switch to a blow-off hose. This was at about 5:30am...