Search results

My favorite part of all grain: Eat it! If it's sweet and tasty, then there are plenty of sugars that didn't convert. This can be caused by too low of a temperature, not enough mixing, too short of a mash time, or too coarse of a mill. Temp: It depends on the style of beer what you mash at, but...

Hey all! I moved and had to, cry with me, leave behind all my old brewing equipment. This was for various reasons, not the least of which was space related. Since I started several friends brewing they're having no problem looking over my stuff until I can pick it up. ;) Since I didn't have...

I'm a Chemical Eng. major and I've seen yeast form tiny little balls (a few centimeters) and ferment more efficiently when the nutrients and other conditions are just right. Maybe this is something similar.

Hey guys, I was looking for some kegs on ebay and stumbled across this listing: 5 gallon ball lock keg syrup tanks The shipping is outrageous, but if you wanted say 4 or more it comes down to 40 bucks each shipped. They also say they negotiate on pallet loads if they have that many left. As...

Complete personal preference on yeast here, I don't like the taste of champagne yeast, but nearly all the recipes I've seen use it. I have a batch going that was a Bavarian yeast for primary and Red Star Montrachet in the secondary, but it's still sitting and not bottled. I'd wait and see if...

I tried this once but to skip the contamination part I get distilled water by the 2.5 gal jug and freeze it myself. A day before I brew I put it in the fridge and it usually has tiny little chunk left in the center (so the whole jug is around 0*C). If you don't have the time I've also brought it...

I tried using a Carlo Rossi jug once for primary fermentation on a sample batch. It worked pretty well until the airlock got clogged and the sound of an explosion came from the garage. There was some serious force behind that. Ground zero hardly had any beer at it. That was a mess to clean up...

I'd have to see the amount of fermentable sugars in honey verses priming sugar per gram to know if you used enough for priming as I haven't primed with sugar or syrup before. I'm not sure what the ratios are for either. For a ball-park on sugars, taste how sweet it is. If it's not sweet, then...

Perfect advice and yet another reason hydrometers are fantastic. For a little more help, I would check the airlock. What's the level? Is it really low? Then some was sucked inside and could have infected the batch. If it's pushed water up, then it has fermented, at least a little. Maybe try...

My most recent cider was a spiced apple-cranberry for new years. 5 gal of 100% apple juice, no added sugars, not from concentrate. 1/5 gal of 100% cranberry juice, no added sugars, not from concentrate. 1 lb honey 1 lb corn dextrose 3 TB ground cinnamon 1 TB ground ginger 1/2 TB allspice...

Wow, there are quite a few chaps from Massachusetts signing up on the forums! Glad to see you here.

My tip from my first batch: Just because you're brewing a 5 gallon batch doesn't mean it will ferment in a 5 gallon carboy! I had to clean the closet after the 4th or 5th day when it shot out the top! General tips: Use a blow off hose until the primary settles a bit. I just went to the local...

CalPoly doesn't offer Chemical Engineering, so I had to transferred and out here made the pick. I needed to get away from the small town for a couple years. I love the rides out there, for sure. I never made it passed Lemore on my bike, though. What do you ride? I have a Yamaha XJ650 from '82...

Hey! It's good to see so many folks from Mass active on the forums! I'm livin' in Lowell, right now.

Hey there, Everyone! I just moved to Lowell Massachusetts and, unfortunately, I couldn't bring any of my brewing equipment with me. :( The blue-laws up here are draconian compared to what I'm used to in California, so I'm jonesing to make something of my own. If anyone in the area needs a...