Search results

When used to describe beer, often Belgian beers, it usually means a premium version of the brand. It is not a style per se, but a style (like Wit) that is kicked up a bit in ABV and flavorings.

The yeast should have an expiration date on it. If that date is still long into the future, you should be fine. If you are worried, you could always make a starter first, then you'd know for sure before you brewed up the whole batch.

I really want to make some mead, but that wait seems like a huge barrier to me. Sure it is more of a mental barrier, and I know it would be worth it, but I sure don't like the idea of it. Maybe some day I'll take that jump.

I think that jjones has it right - after 3 weeks the beer might still be a little too green. Three weeks is pretty young for a lot of beers. If I'm not mistaken, a pressure barrel is a jug with a spout at the bottom designed to hold contents under pressure, right? (Googled it and they...

Thanks for the replies. I thought about a brew belt, but was worried that it would give me too much of a temp increase - but I guess I could get an extension cord with a dimmer and adjust it. That plus a wrap in heavy blankets should help protect it. I'm not worried about breaking the...

I'm having a thought and doing some early research. I'm thinking that around Feb or March I might try to lager a beer in my garage. Lows should be in the mid-20s; highs in the mid-40s. After reading several threads, it seems like this should work fine, with the biggest issue being the...

I've had that before when I don't use a secondary - but that is more my technique than a comment on the use of secondaries, I'm a crappy siphoner and suck up too much trub - one batch ended up with a nasty gusher after several weeks in the bottle, I'm drinking another that so far seems fine...

What about Charlie Papazian's Complete Joy - how does it relate to or compare with Palmer? I've not read How to Brew, but I find Compete Joy to be very informative. Is there something I'm missing by not reading Palmer's book? I've referenced the online version a few times, but have not read...

check the package, but I think that US-05 has a temperature range that tops out at 75-deg so I don't think the range you are talking about would be problematic (70-75 deg). I think you'd get a better product if you were a little lower, but I know that my basement hold around 70-deg during the...

2 weeks shouldn't effect the quality of the brew. Some folks on here leave their beer in the primary for a month or so, then skip the secondary. I'm wondering why you got that much trub. I usually get some, but not nearly an inch. Did you suck up a lot of the settled yeast when you racked...

check out this Cheap Swamp Cooler. Depending on the temp where you are fermenting, this might be enough to get the beer cold enough for a steam beer (60 to 65 degree range).

That is really the only way to know if it is stuck or if it is finished. Test it, then wait 2 or 3 days and test again. If the numbers match, you have finished beer. If they numbers don't match, give it a week and try again.

Wait two or three days and take another reading - if it is also 1.005 the beer is ready to be bottled or kegged. Since it has been fermenting for 6 days, and the reading is already that low, my guess would be that it is done, but the only way to know for sure it to compare readings.

I would not use 1/2 cup dextrose AND the honey - unless you want the bottles to explode. Just use the honey - it won't net you much, but it should work. I have found (maybe others know more) that when I brew with honey it takes a little extra time for the beer to mature - kind of has a sharp...

I've not done it and I'm not sure I would. Honey lacks yeast nutrients, so I'm not sure how well the yeast would be able to convert the sugars. Also - 1/2 pound (8 ounces) seems like WAY too much for priming. I would think between 5 and 6 oz would be plenty. Honey isn't 100% sugar, but it is...

the general rule of thumb is to use 80% of the weight of the liquid malt (DME = 0.8*LME) I'd run it through brewing software to double check the math and adjust as needed. Check out the http://hbd.org/recipator/ It has a free spreadsheet that will generate beer stats and I've found it works...

Not intentionally, but now that you mention it I did slide the cabinet it was sitting on over a few inches to make some room in the basement. I actually thought that is looked like a galaxy special effects from a crappy sci-fi film. Maybe I'll go with go with Intergalactic Hurricane...

Here's a picture I took at lunch...hopefully it is clear enough - kind of hard to get a photo through the Better Bottle and not have the light play games with it or so my reflection. Brewing is a hobby of mine, clearly photography isn't. As you can see the floaters are really kind of...

Floating White Stuff

yeah, I saw it - he had a pretty nice set up and pretty cool that they designed the yard around his brewing. While watching the show, without me saying a word, my wife looked at me and said "There is no way you are doing that to our yard"