Attempting 40%+ ABV beer... "Barley Brandy"

[Cape Brewing]

fkin air lock keeps burpin'.

damn it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[bob1852]

fkin air lock keeps burpin'.

damn it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Where's Revvy?

 

[paulster2626]

fkin air lock keeps burpin'.

damn it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Where's Revvy?

The cat bumped the carboy?

 

[Cape Brewing]

yeah yeah... I get it but... I regularly shake that fermenter for giggles and I haven't had a single bubble on that thing for weeks. I added the beano, shook it again and two-three days later, I'm getting intermitten burps.

 

[Cape Brewing]

no cats... it is in a sanke and not anywhere where it will get bumped... at least not bumped just before every time I walk by it.

 

[seabass07]

Any reason you used beano instead of amylase?

 

[Cape Brewing]

I could buy Beano 30 feet outside of my office's lobby.

 

[Gwitz]

So you added beano and its fermenting. Thats a real downer.

 

[jeepinjeepin]

I thought you step mashed up from like 100F for 24 hours or something? Where are the fermentables coming from? Maybe when it's done, again, you can pitch Brett, wait for it to finish, again, and pitch a bacterial culture. You could have it down to .990 in a couple years.

 

[Cape Brewing]

No, just a two hour single infusion at about 145. I think 24 hours would either begin to sour or probably pull a ton of tannins out of the grain.

Nah, I really don't want to do brett. I dont think it would be a good flavor for this beer at all. Same with any other bugs. If this was more "old ale-like" maybe but I think this is too different.

 

[bluemoose]

That's funny, when I add beano it tends to slow down the burps.

 

[ldave]

Having read all 56 pages... are we still the little beer that could... or is she finally on the ropes?

I brewed a 9% stout once, before I really knew very much, and mashed at 156 F. Yep, sweet as kool-aid. I kept it around for a year or so, pushing a half glass on folks every now and then. I finally dumped it. So, I feel yer plight, Cape Brewing.

 

[Cape Brewing]

It is both. I've tried everything to get this thing close to the ABV quitting point of the yeasts I've been using (about 23%). Frankly, I would be happy with anything over 20% and I would declare that as a victory.

I've tried everything... except the dreaded Beano solution and I only say "dreaded" because I get a kick out of pissing off Moto and he is one of a few people who've suggested it.

As stated a bunch of times, I can't imagine the fermentables being the problem but if that is what it is, in the end, great... I'll have the beer I was hoping to make (so far).

I pitched the Beano the other night and like I've been saying over the last few posts, the airlock is bubbling here or there. AZ (and Revvy) are right in that (drum roll)... aaair loccccck activityyyy does not necessarily indicate fermentation. That said, that airlock hasn't budged in a long time and it is burping here or there so I am thinking there might be SOMEthing going on.

I am probably going to add even more nutrients, O2 and some fresh turbo distillers yeast this weekend and THAT will be the last attempt. If it doesn't dry out a bit more after THAT, then... I have to decide what to do with it from there (dump it, make syrup out of it, dump it in the back of PTNs truck without telling him and let it stink to all holy hell after a week or so.... something).

 

[ericd]

So what's the current gravity on this?

 

[Cape Brewing]

1078 last time I checked

 

[ldave]

If you do have an asston of unfermentables...

Pull a sample. Dose it massively with beano. If it comes back to life, dose the main batch accordingly and then dump the active sample back in. It wouldn't be quite a 'starter', maybe just a 'bumper'.

If nothing really happens, you're still beano negative on the main batch.

 

[bluemoose]

He's been beano negative since Moto suggested it.

 

[Cape Brewing]

(see fourth paragraph, fifth post up)

 

[ldave]

Copy that. I'm merely suggesting that *if* major unfermentables are present, a *massive* dose of beano would reveal that, instead of a low dose producing an unauthoritative trickle of activity. By pulling a sample and massively dosing *that*, if no significant activity occurrs, then you haven't massively dosed the whole batch.

Having already given the batch a dose, you're, of course, no longer beano negative anyway, and I retract my statement as such, pleading low intelligence.

BTW, if beano *is* the problem-solver, the next problem will be how to stop it before it renders the beer too dry to enjoy. This big o beer, too dry, will have no residual sweetness to balance that wallop of octane, no? Are we entertaining the possibility of a pasteurize? If so, a flash pasteurization would be the way to go. I say: 2 CF wort chillers with some footage of vinyl tubing in between. Fill a boil vessel with hot tap water and heat it to 170 F. Use this hot water in the coolant jacket of the first CF chiller and cold tap water in the jacket of the 2nd CF chiller. The tubing in between would be sized in length to provide the seconds necessary for pasteurization. You'll need 3 pumps to do this, 1 for the 1st CF chiller, 1 for its hot tap water coolant, and 1 for the 2nd CF chiller. If done, I guarentee nobody will be able to top it. How many friends with equipment do you have that can converge on your site to do battle?

 

[jeepinjeepin]

The beano is breaking down long chains sugars into short chain sugars. I am guessing that the yeast will honestly poop out due to high alcohol before they consume everything. That leaves high alcohol, simple sugars, and a lack of dextrins, but the Eisbock concentrating will increase the percentage of dextrins bringing body back up....we hope.

 

[ldave]

Yeah, you're right. I agree. But I'd have treated a photo of that dual frankenchiller, 3 pump set-up actually operating in pasteurization mode like a brewing centerfold shot. I think my gadgetitus was flaring up. Sorry.

 

[motobrewer]

*ahem*

 

[iaefebs]

*ahem*

What's the *ahem* for? Been following this thread too long for an *ahem* from moto.

 

[ldave]

Any bubbleage?

 

[NJstout]

im guessing the beano didnt work or he would have posted about it?

 

[the_bird]

Other way around. If the Beano works, he has to admit Moto was right, so we'll never hear about this beer again.

 

[Cape Brewing]

Nah... I just have had too much goin on to look at it lately. I'll take a peek soon. The other thing I am considerig is adding a gallon or two of water to dilute it a fair amount and then see if the yeast does anything more. If I am going to freeze concentrate it, I am not sure more freezing is a horrible alternative.

 

[ComcastWineRookie]

this would have been a perfect entry in the club meeting in jan for "specialty beer"

 

[JeepDiver]

any update on this?

 

[mikelikesit2000]

It does not sound like cape has much intrest in this anymore. I call this experiment BUSTED.