Brewing again

[JacktheKnife]

mod edit- this thread was broken off another thread, to keep the conversation going.

Any pop-top/pry off (not screw off) type beer bottles work. I would suggest you go buy a case of your favorite beer that comes in nice brown bottles that are pry-off. Save on shipping, plus they come with beer inside. Bonus!

Also, I really like my bench capper. Several friends borrowed it once to try it out, and subsequently went out and bought their own. Personal opinion - spend the extra 20 or whatever on the bench capper.

I was thinking the same thing.
Buying empty bottles?
...use old beer bottles.
...and drink the beer!
And I love my 'bench capper' too.


J. Knife

 

[Revvy]

I was thinking the same thing.
Buying empty bottles?
...use old beer bottles.
...and drink the beer!
And I love my 'bench capper' too.


J. Knife

Where the hell have you been?????? We were worried you were dead. There was even a thread asking about you a few months back. I've even hit you homepage on occasion looking to see if you posted anything.

edit I just noticed you've been around several times this month, and I can't believe I have missed every one of your posts...glad to see you around again.

 

[JacktheKnife]

Revvy...


Howdy, thanks for remembering me.
As it gets cooler,
I begin to think about the fact that I am outta beer,
more and more.
Hmmm...

[ The main reason, is the $40. upcharge in D.M.E. ]
Plus the fact that I have been murdered three times in the last 9 years,
{and I'm getting tired of it!}

Good to hear from you too...

This is copied from 'Extract' I posted it tonight but it answers Revvys question
{and why should I type all that stuff again}

Gentlemen,

Greetings, I used to buy D.M.E. for $135. a 50 Lb bag.
Then when the gas prices went sky high
the price at my homebrew supply went up $40. a bag!
$175. for a 50Lb bag!
And my homebrewing world came crashing down around me.

I used to brew Mein Acht Pfund Hammerbier for .67 cents a 16 oz bottle.
It was 6 3/4% alcohol and I made it {and drank it} for years.
With paying .93 cents for a homebrew,
It is easier to buy store bought beer.
I'll be dammed if I spend all coon hunting season,
slaving over a hot brew pot
to save .15 cents on a 16 oz ale!
I'll just drink Shiner and Grolsch!

But I was thinking about the old days.
I love to brew and miss those brew days.
I saw tonight that D.M.E. was $125. for a 50 Lb sack,
checked it out and its true!

Correction:

I was mistaken about the price of 50 Lbs of D.M.E.
I was reading the price for L.M.E!
I checked it out with the 'Homebrew Headquarters'
and D.M.E. is twice what L.M.E. is...
$ double!
I ran the numbers on Whole Grain
and it seems... a dollar less than L.M.E.
whereas one can save $100. each 3 batches
by using L.M.E. over D.M.E.

One important point...
Andy at the Headquarters said that L.M.E. must be kept fresh
and used within a week!
I knew the batch I made,
right out of the hospital,
as I came home after an absence of 6-8 months,
where the L.M.E. had 3" of white mold on top would not be 'good'.
I just wanted a beer and that was all I had...

I have decided to learn more about 'Whole Grain'
but for now...
Every month when my check comes in,
I'll buy enough L.M.E. for three batches and go home and brew them.
{That's my 'set up' you know,
'three primarys' and 'three secondaries'}

Remember Andy said to use L.M.E. within a week!
{And I can keep 50 Lbs of D.M.E. around too for a few extra batches each month.}
Just brewing three batches a month with L.M.E. will save a hundred dollars,
and I can put that toward 'store bought beer'
or the 50 Lbs of D.M.E!
Yeah, simple.



Thank you...


Lets git ignert and go coon hunting...


J. Winters von Knife Himself
and Sandymay...

 

[Revvy]

Revvy...


Howdy, thanks for remembering me.
As it gets cooler,
I begin to think about the fact that I am outta beer,
more and more.
Hmmm...

The main reason, is the $40. upcharge in D.M.E.
Plus the fact that I have been murdered three times in the last 9 years,
and I'm getting tired of it!

Good to hear from you too...


Gentlemen,

Greetings, I used to buy D.M.E. for $135. a 50 Lb bag.
Then when the gas prices went sky high
the price at my homebrew supply went up $40. a bag!
$175. for a 50Lb bag!
And my homebrewing world came crashing down around me.

I used to brew Mein Acht Pfund Hammerbier for .67 cents a 16 oz bottle.
It was 6 3/4% alcohol and I made it {and drank it} for years.
With paying .93 cents for a homebrew,
It is easier to buy store bought beer.
I'll be dammed if I spend all coon hunting season,
slaving over a hot brew pot
to save .15 cents on a 16 oz ale!
I'll just drink Shiner and Grolsch!

But I was thinking about the old days.
I love to brew and miss those brew days.
I saw tonight that D.M.E. was $125. for a 50 Lb sack,
checked it out and its true!
Now 'I haven't brewed much in a couple of years'
{See... Revvy, 'thats where I've been'}
but help me 'get my mind right' on this.
Has there been a large price 'increase and drop' for D.M.E ???


Thank you...


Lets git ignert and go coon hunting...


J. Winters von Knife Himself

My friend, I think it's time for you to get yourself a cooler, and mash your own grain..it's way cheaper than DME. I now rarely use the extract, so you are the best judge of the cost. But I know that 50 pounds of two row can run anywhere between 30 and 50 bucks (depending on if you can get into a group buy or a bulk order) I have even seen 50 pound non discount bags of 2 row going for less than 60 bucks so that is half of what you priced the dme at.

The costs of extract are getting to prohibitive for serious, large batch brewing.

I don't remember the the various poundages of your hammerbier recipes but I'm thinking even if you used 10 pounds of 2 row per 5 gallon batch at 50 bucks a bag that is 10 dollars a batch, much better than with dme...and at your place I'm pretty sure you can roast your own grain on a bbq grill or even in your oven to make the various crystal malts you need for color or flavor.

I thin you are going to be way better off making the switch, though it may take some tweaking to get the flavors right when converting your original extract recipes.

 

[JacktheKnife]

Revvy,

I really can't think of what has been holding me back
from whole graining. But lets see...
I don't have a freezer which would expand my brewing season
from six months to almost a year. I was waiting for:
1. a freezer.
Oh! I have to cook my homebrew on a stove top so,
I would need:
1. a turkey fryer
2. and bigger brew kettles.
Its coming back to me now...
A big brew kettle cools slower than a small stove top one
I wanted to use a freezer to help cool the wort quickly.


Basically money.
Lack of money has been holding me back from whole grain.
Money and space.
My brewery is full.
So is my house, full.
And I do like brewing inside,
{I can hear the music better}
But if homebrew can be made reasonably cheaper...
I believe this may be the year to evolve
into a larger capacity whole grain brewery.

Hell, my house is so full now,
and no one ever comes out anyway,
plus the brewing stuff will be in use most of the time,
especially if I can get a freezer...
Hmmmm ....

Remember the smaller brew pot posts Laughing Gnome
and I were discussing a couple of years ago?
Smaller is better if one has to brew on a stove top,
smaller 2- 2 1/2 gallon brew pots fit the stove
and cool much faster than a big 5 gallon pot.

Another thing which has left me brewing extract 16 years,
is I just don't understand whole grain brewing.
Hell, I don't hardly understand extract
brewing this early in the year!
{I still have of the 'great brain'}
But I will,

I will think about whole Grain Brewing
and see if I can figure out a way to make it work here.
I'll read up on it but just for now...
if you are still awake...
or tomorrow...
Can one brew whole grain on a stovetop?
And if not why not?


you got me to thinking.



Thanks...


J. Knife
and Sandymay