Search results

Good advice. FWIW I would recommend that in the future, after heating the wort on your stovetop, that you place the kettle in the sink in a bath of cold water. Put a medium to long spoon in the kettle while it is still hot, so it will get sanitized, and stir the wort every couple of minutes to...

Shorting the volume will give your beer a bit more kick and body. Not a bad idea. It will, however, only concentrate what's there. If you want something with significantly more body &/or bite, you'd be better off adding additional malt extract (LME or DME) and hops. In this case, the...

Agreed. And, even if the ambient temperature in your fermentation area is reasonably cool, the warm temperature at pitching time really kicks the fermentation in quickly and violently. Yeast reproduce noticeably more quickly at warmer temperatures, plus certain fruity esters are formed by this...

What was the temperature of the wort when you pitched the yeast, and what was the fermentation temperature? These might give us some insights as to why it went crazy. Scott Birdwell DeFalco's Home Wine & Beer Supplies www.defalcos.com

I wouldn't do that. You would be removing the beer from whatever protective CO2 layer that's left after two weeks in the original fermenter, and moving it to another vessel with no CO2 protection and with lots of surface area and headspace. Unless you have a 2 gallon/8 liter secondary...

Nothing wrong with trying one around Memorial Day! But, if it tastes rough & bitter, just sit on it until Fourth of July. By then it should be coming around. Heck, you may even see fireworks! Try to save some for next Thanksgiving - it should be really smooth by then. Scott Birdwell...

According to my calculations, you should have about a 1.079 O.G. which will result in about a 8% alcohol by volume beer when it's all said & done. The two ounces of hops you've added will contribute about 50 IBU's, if my math is near target. Keep in mind that if MB's figure of 43 IBU's from...

I agree. A Mr. Beer Kit with two recipes for $15? Perhaps this had been sitting around for a while. . . Did the beer carbonate? Scott Birdwell DeFalco's Home Wine & Beer Supplies www.defalcos.com

bpgreen has done a very good job summing up the main issues that some people have had with Mr. Beer over the years. As a homebrew shop owner, my complaints have been primarily: 1) Lack of a means to seal the fermenter and put an airlock on the LBK. I know for many of you this is not really a...

No, this is not true. Any vessel that can be cleaned and is made of a food-grade material is fine. If you want to make Mr. Beer in your radiator, well, that's your business. But, I sure wouldn't want any part of it. I understand lead might impart a sweet flavor, but it is definitely bad mojo...

If the spigot continues to be an issue, you can syphon the beer out of the LBK to the bottles. Once you get it going, it should be as fast, if not faster, than the spigot (when it's working correctly). Scott Birdwell DeFalco's Home Wine & Beer Supplies www.defalcos.com

We've been on the outside looking in with regard to the Mr. Beer Kits. I've owned a homebrew shop for 32 years & have dealt with many MB customers over the years that either didn't want to order on-line or simply didn't want the tiny cans that were formerly supplied. One of my biggest...

I wrote to the folks at Munton's, one of the largest manufacturers of malt extract in the world. I inquired about swollen cans of malt extract. Here's his response (BTW The technical term of the browning effect is Maillard Reaction): "Hello Scott, the Maillard reaction is definitely dependent...

From Wikipedia: "Proper refrigeration at temperatures below 3°C (38°F) ******* the growth of Clostridium botulinum. The organism is also susceptible to high salt, high oxygen, and low pH levels. The toxin itself is rapidly destroyed by heat, such as in thorough cooking.[34] On the other hand...

Yep, sounds like a classic, if extreme, example of old malt extract brewing. If the can was only 2 - 3 years old and slightly bloated, it would have been darker than when fresh, but not stout color. It would have been drinkable, but just. About the only thing you can do with these less extreme...

Yep! Save it for the Smithsonian! If I were "Scottie" from Star Trek, I'd be saying "I think she's about to blow, Captain!" :-)

Botulism cannot grow in hopped malt extract. pH is way too low. I have personally brewed more than a few batches with bulging cans. They don't necessarily result in nasty beer (unless the extract is REALLY old, as in this particular instance), but rarely is the final product worth the time...

Duh! I didn't even notice that you're a local. If you want to, come by the shop and bring your garage sale treasure with you. We'll help you out with it. BTW That bulging can will not harm you, but I seriously doubt it will produce anything remotely resembling a drinkable beer. Most canned...

Wow! You have a piece of history, Cooltouch! I haven't seen a full size Mr. Beer in over ten years. I'm guessing what you have is about 12 - 15 years old. Frankly, assuming you have no leaks and two cases of beer is not too much (gasp!), I think you're better off with what you've got than a...

New Brew, I think you've hit the nail on the head (on all points)! Scott Birdwell DeFalco's Home Wine & Beer Supplies Houston TX