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I just picked up an IPA kit that has toasted oak chips in it. It says to sanitize them via steam like you were steaming vegetables. Basically when I do that I just put the veggies in a little water and nuke them for a couple minutes. Is that sufficient? Also, it says to put them in for the...

Does a longer time in the fridge lead to a bigger head? I found an IPA that got pushed to the back of the fridge last week, and when I poured it, it had 5x the head than the one I poured the day before (which had been in the fridge for 1 night.)

Should one put their pellet hops into a hop bag, or is the hop bag only for plug and leaf hops?

How long is too long in the primary? It's a kolsch if that matters. Production has been exceeding consumption resulting in a bottle shortage. Guess I need to get :drunk: more. This is first time I've used my carboy as a primary. Not the best call in retrospect as now I don't have a...

Is there a very noticeable difference in taste between identical beers made with the same yeast strain, one liquid, one dry? I know there is more choice in yeast strains with the liquid, but other than that, why is it worth it? Please enlighten me

I have never made wine before, but I am thinking about it. Is there any reason why you couldn't bottle wine into beer bottles?

I decided to make Yoopers Dead Guy clone: 1 pound Cara-Munich 1 pound Munich 1/2 pound crystal 40L Steep grains in a bag at 155 degrees for 30 minutes. Sparge with 1/2 gallon 170 degree water. Allow grains to drip into pot, but don't squeeze. Discard grains. Bring to a boil and add...

What gives? I have two 1 gallon batches.... One is: 1 gal apple juice, 1 tsp yeast nutrient and 5 g of Montrachet The other: exactly the same, but with 1.5 cup of brown sugar. The one with the sugar has a krausen. I didn't think cider made a krausen. It's approaching the stopper...

I pitched us-04 yesterday into my IPA at 70 deg F. Its been about 20 hours with no (visible) activity. The Fermometer says 62 deg F on the bucket. Ambient temp in the house is ~ 62 deg F (the gas bills are killing me this winter.) I didn't rehydrate the yeast, I sprinkled right on top of...

I was planning on bottling my brown ale today, but my LHBS changed their hours and is not open today, and I have no priming sugar. Is there anything I can sub for the priming sugar that they sell that I could get at the grocery store that won't cause off tastes?

How much priming sugar should I use for ~2 gal of cider? Also, if I could use something I have on hand (light brown, granulated, or confectioners) instead of going to LHBS, that would be very helpful. Any thoughts?

Does anyone have a good one? Not really looking for an over the top style, just a nice, easy drinking IPA. If they use some of these ingredients I have on hand, all the better... - 1/2 lb Caramunich II - 1/2 oz Cascade 5.9% - 1/2 oz Willamette 5.1% Thanks :)

This is not a "did a I ruin my beer" thread, but here we go anyway... My brown ale has been in primary for about two weeks. I had been keeping it around 66-67 with the frozen water bottles for about 11-12 days. Then we went out of town, and the girl dog sitting for us cranked up the heat...

I checked the gravity on my Smuttynose Old Brown Dog Ale clone just a second ago and was really surprised by the amount of krausen still on top. This photo is on the 12th day of fermentation at 67-68. SG was 1.062, current gravity is 1.020. I thought the krausen would have dropped by now, is...

I have been looking at Deathbrewer's easy partial mash thread. I was thinking it would be easier to use a large stainless steel collander or strainer if I could find one. Does anyone think this would work as good / better / worse than the nylon bag, or where I could find one?

I was going to transfer my pale ale to secondary this morning. When I opened the bucket, I got a strong rotten apple smell. Is this normal at all? :confused: I tasted it, and it didn't taste overly bad, but I couldn't tell if it was good or not. It was at 10 am, so I'm not really used to...

Are certain bottles good for reusing while others are not? I picked up a sixer of Old Peculiar and bottles seem thinner than say a Sam Adams or Highlands or something like that. It's not a scientific analysis, but when tapping the bottle with your fingernail it just doesn't seem to have...

How critical is it hold the prescribed temp for the prescribed amount of time when steeping specialty grain? Last time I put the grain bag in while I heated the water slowly, and then still held it at the recommended temp once it got there. I figured it would help leach out more of the...

Quick question.... I bought some yeast nutrient to use in my cider, but I was wondering if I should put it in my pale ale I've got on the stove now. Safele us-05 dry yeast. Thanks.

Is cider light sensitive like beer as in prone to skunking? I've got it wrapped in a black t-shirt just in case.