Search results

+1 to a refractometer.

In addition to this, my experiences with K-97 have been that it also benefits from some additional time to clean up compared to other yeast that I have used.

I can assure you that next to cleaning, making starters is probably my least favorite part of brewing.

I occasionally get a sulfur smell from my Starsan, but it does contain sulfur trioxide, so it shouldn't be too surprising. I find that the smell seems to come through more depending on the type of water I use, but that could just be in my head. The smell dissipates and has never come through in...

I buy US-05 by the brick and do this as well.

As with most things, you will get a lot of different answers, and as with some things, there could be more than one right answer. I can tell you that I have had more issues from under-pitching than from over-pitching, both in terms of overall performance and more importantly, flavor. A slight...

I'm in! Thanks!

Location?

I tend to agree with this statement as well as a couple earlier regarding patience. When I first started kegging, I also felt that maybe my bottled beer was slightly better than my kegged beer. The problem was that I was listening too much to keggers who were "grain to glass" in two weeks. I...

In my experience, it's probably because you are pitching yeast into a hostile environment. Higher levels of alcohol and the lower pH caused by fermentation can both be rough for most yeast. You might try re-pitching with a more alcohol tolerant strain to see if it budges. Out of curiosity, what...

How thick is the plastic? I bought a Fermonster a few years back and hated it. The plastic is so thin that I was constantly squeezing air out and sucking it back in anytime I moved it. Also, I have read a lot of complaints about the regular BMB and the lid staying on during fermentation...

I’m actually in Northwest Indiana (about an hour from Chicago). I became a Steelers fan back in the 70’s because we didn’t get Chicago TV stations and saw more Steelers games at the time than Bears games. I’m thankful every year that I am bot a Bears fan, lol. That beer sounds great. I have had...

I was referring to the mash temp, but your fermentation temps could be the answer to your higher than expected attenuation.

Amen, brother. I’m not a big fan of hazy/juicy IPA’s. Don’t get me wrong, I have had a few that I enjoyed, but I’m not into the hype. I have brewed a few that came out great. As a challenge to myself, I even bottled a couple because so many people insisted that it can’t be done without...

S-04 can be funny for me. In IPA’s, it usually finishes fine. In stouts, it almost ALWAYS under attenuates. I kind of gave up on it, but I probably should go back and figure out what’s up. Out of curiosity, and pardon me if it’s a stupid question, but have you checked your thermometer?

I can’t stress patience enough for any brewer. I could list quite a few things that improved my beer over the years, but patience has to be at the top of that list. I won’t lie, I still want to (and often do) sample beer before it’s ready, but now I know that the beer is going to be even better...

You are right (IMHO) that clear vs. hazy is mostly an appearance thing. I brew clearer beer now than I did when I first got into all grain, but the quality otherwise is largely the same. Regarding cold crashing, if you ever do find a need to do it, there are options. If you use an S type...

I remember being a little concerned at first as well. It all mostly settles out in time, but there are things people can do to help the process: Whirlfloc/Irish Moss - I use it in just about every beer I brew, regardless of the color (even stouts and porters). It'll help coagulate and drop...

Well, 0.004 qt/lb is pretty insane as well, lol. But the software doesn't know that.

Bingo. Case 2 is a logical simulation. Nice work. Completely agree.