Guate Brewing

[viso88]

Hi guys quick question, I found a guy in la terminal that sells barley, I want to start all grains batch...this barley needs to be malted right ¿?

He was telling me that the grain is good to go for making beer...but I am not sure, how can you tell if it is what I need in order to make beer...Thanks,

 

[Curtis2010]

I'd be really surprised if it were malted much less roasted. If malted you should see signs of that (acrospire).

Regardless I'd be interested in trying some when I get back (prob. August).

 

[pacayaforhops]

To my knowledge, none of the barley that's commercially available is malted, you'll have to malt it. That being said, it's not hard to do if you have a large enough oven and don't mind leaving it on overnight or all day (might not be a god idea if unsupervised).

If it's been malted you should be able to take the husk off and see a clear stripe running the back of the grain, that's the acrospire Curtis was referring to; no acrospire=not malted.

It usually takes about 10-15 pounds of grain to produce 5 gallons of 4.5-5.5 %abv beer, so it's a lot of malt to make in one go; but it's doable if you dry it in the sun (might be a few months until we get consistently sunny weather for over a week).

 

[pacayaforhops]

Just swinging by to say hi and ask if anyone has any news or anything they'd like to share.

I for one haven't been really busy, I had an uncle come over from the US who's a certified sommelier. Tried my birthday märzen and liked it, he's more of a belgian beer guy (understandably so, from the similarities between some of them and proper wine), so I gave him a liter of my birthday wild saison (that's what I'm calling it now) to take home, (bottled the day he came, so he'll have to wait a couple of months to get the bottle conditioned character he likes).

Other than that, I just finished racking (chucking onto a bucket and back into the keg is more like it) my nance ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byrsonima_crassifolia ) brown ale off the fruit (2 weeks with the fruit in it), apparently the nance had lacto and brett on it; which are a welcome addition to the yeast library. I'll let it sit for a couple of months and that should give me my first proper sour beer. Hopefully we can get together during the later half of september to celebrate my 30'th birthday and swap a few brews/yeasts.

 

[rappyfreak]

Hi Wayne, good stuff going on with you, I have yet to try a Lambic or sour, so it will be a welcome experience. I myself have been rather busy too but finally got together with the wife and it has been smooth sailing. Finally got a beer going on, a french Saison with Belgian Ardennes yeast, smells delish!!! it will go into bottling this week. Next weekend I am brewing a nut brown ale, pretty basic recipe but has good reviews. And when I finally get a chance will go and do the Imperial Stout. So if we get together by Sept I will have nut brown ale and the saison for you guys to try. On this last brew day everything went very smooth and got my equipment measured and dialed in and even got a refractometer to measure wort much more easier, cost me around $25 on Amazon so awesome deal.

 

[rappyfreak]

Also to Curtis, if you're still in Panama and have a Rey supermarket nearby they have a lot of good brews there, especially nice are the Chimays and Hertog Jan.

 

[viso88]

Hi guys, sorry for my late response. Thanks for the information. I´ve been a little busy with my business so haven´t had time to do anything regarding beer!!! Haven´t done anything in this 2013!!! because of my work!!! So I´ve set my goal to start again this month and not to stop at least for the months we have left for the 2013.

...I want to buy the barley and do the malting and for the roasting I have a couple of friends that are in the coffee business and they own industrial ovens were they roast coffee grains, I think this can help me achive the different kinds or specialities that I have read...I will try some and if you want, I can give some to whoever wants and would like to give it a try and lets know if it worked!!! I haven´t done all grain brewing but I would like to start with it once I finished with the experiment of the barley...

Please let me know your comments or suggestions!!!!

 

[pacayaforhops]

Hi guys, sorry for my late response. Thanks for the information. I´ve been a little busy with my business so haven´t had time to do anything regarding beer!!! Haven´t done anything in this 2013!!! because of my work!!! So I´ve set my goal to start again this month and not to stop at least for the months we have left for the 2013.

Not late by any means, it was actually faster than I'm used to.

...I want to buy the barley and do the malting and for the roasting I have a couple of friends that are in the coffee business and they own industrial ovens were they roast coffee grains, I think this can help me achive the different kinds or specialities that I have read...I will try some and if you want, I can give some to whoever wants and would like to give it a try and lets know if it worked!!! I haven´t done all grain brewing but I would like to start with it once I finished with the experiment of the barley...

Please let me know your comments or suggestions!!!!

Those "ovens" are the same as are used to make roasted barley, chocolate malt, black patent malt and the carafa type malts (carafa has been dehusked). I'd suggest trying air malt once the weather dries up in july/august (if it does...) or pale malt in the oven (hopefully your kitchen oven goes down to 175F), you can dry it @ 185F for the palest malt or a bit higher (up to 225F) depending on how dark/bready you want it to be (vienna/munich).

 

[nsaubes]

Hi all,

well that sounds great, pacaya, to have some positive comments coming from a profesional sommelier!! Also that seems to be a good idea to get together in september!

On my side I've been doing some "experiments"... First I've managed malting some grain: Something like 8lbs barley (base malt) and 4lbs wheat. Last weekend was my first brew with my homemalted grain and, as I had some wheat well, I went for a simple wheat beer, with 50/50 malted barley and malted wheat... As I used generic dry yeast it would rather fall in the american wheat category... Well, my brewing went ok, I went Brew in a Bag, for a 2.5 gallons brew. Mashing: 20 min @ 110 (acid), 20 min @ 120 (protein) and 60 min @ 152-155 (sacc), did iodine test to measure conversion; then boil for 90 min with 1/2 oz hallertau @ 60 min. But I must say that when I poured the wort in my fermenter, the sruff had a strange aspect (colour and smell), although I never brewed a wheat beer so I had no reference... Anyway, I hope it'll be drinkable and I'll update you when I'll try a sample. Aside I've been brewing some extract+steeping grain stuff, so I have a 5 gallon batch red ale than I'm drinking right now, it's good, and an IPA almost ready to bottle.

Now I'm I'm willing to buy LME at DC and on the other hand prepare specialty roasted malts, to do some other stuff... So I should have something by september to share guys!

 

[pacayaforhops]

But I must say that when I poured the wort in my fermenter, the sruff had a strange aspect (colour and smell), although I never brewed a wheat beer so I had no reference...

Did you use any finings during the boil? Even though you did a protein rest, wheat has a metric crap-ton of it, so there's a chance not all might have degraded and it might have made some flocs in your kettle on it's own. Did you get a decent looking hot break going?

I usually just strain mine and then cold crash, most of the time I go for dunkelweizen though, so it's supposed to be cloudy/chewy. I like to take a whiff off the airlock once in a while whenever I'm making wheat beer, I love the banana/clove smell it produces with the yeast I use, but then I'm weird like that...

 

[rappyfreak]

Agree with Wayne that wheat beers reallyget clowdy. I have a buttload of irish moss if you want some to help you have clearer beer. Let me know and we van get together

 

[nsaubes]

Hi guys, thanks for the inputs. I didn't use any finings in this boil, but I'm actually not against a cloudy beer, at least for this wheat beer. I had a nice hot break with a nice foamy head and some greyish material that I scumed. Then I hade a lot of coagulated material at cooling, that I strained when transfering to fermenter. The beer was actually kind of grey-ish at the beginning, but now that it has began to sediment the colour is more of a decent - but cloudy - wheat beer. Unfortunately pacaya I won't have the banana/clove flavor, as I didn't use german/wheat beer yeast, but instead common dry ale yeast (cooper's)...

Thanks for the offer Rappyfreak, maybe I'll try irish moss on a next brew... I'll let you know if I need some!

 

[pacayaforhops]

Wheat itself will give off the banana smell, regardless of the yeast you use, some yeasts will enhance this, some will minimize it, but it'll still be there. The most clove I've ever had come through in my beer was fermented with wyeast san francisco lager yeast, and I've been using it for my wheat beers ever since, still lots of banana from a supposedly clean yeast.

 

[nsaubes]

You where right Pacaya, as the smell was quite strong and somehow unpleasant at the begining, it's getting more and more subtle and it definitely has something of banana!

 

[rappyfreak]

Yeah in the beginning you might get some rotten egg odor from the fermentation

 

[nsaubes]

Hi guys, quick question: has anyone tried to import grains through this transcargo thing?

 

[viso88]

Hi guys, quick question: has anyone tried to import grains through this transcargo thing?

I haven´t work with Transcargo, but what I did once was to tell the brew shop not to state in the invoice that what they were sending was edible!!! And I did not had any problems, the company I work with is Aerocasillas.

Maybe you can talk to your shipper not to state they are sending edible stuff in the invoice...also this only works if you are not trying to import large volumes of grains!!!

But then again since the new laws everything has become more of a problem...

If you do please let us know how it worked for you...

 

[rappyfreak]

I have brought all my grains through Transexpress, pretty expensive but no problems at all. I'm thinking of bringing my next shipment through Transcargo. Just make sure not to send liquid yeast through them and bring it by air as they take a couple of weeks

 

[nsaubes]

Yeah, I'm going with aerocasillas for hops and yeast and other lightweight stuff, but given the price I won't use it for grains... So I was thinking of transcargo to ship a larger amount of grains, as some of you guys have mentionned it several times, and it seems more convenient for heavy stuff... Does anyone has any contact information of transcargo, cause I've been googling it, but I didn't find any reliable info (phone, direction, etc.)?...

 

[rappyfreak]

Curtis put up the info in this thread a while back.i also hace them in FB

 

[pacayaforhops]

page 6 of the thread
Transcargo
Ave. Las Américas 20-12, Zona 13
Tel. 2332-5720 / 2332-5951

Email: lilytagarcia at hotmail.com

 

[Curtis2010]

Curtis put up the info in this thread a while back.i also hace them in FB

I've used both TRANSCARGO and CPX. My perspective and contact info for each below. Both ship from a Miami address.

Transcargo is surface transport (ship) so it is much less expensive, but slower (a few weeks typically). I've used it for heavy stuff in the past and their rates are quite reasonable. A flat fee based upon dimensional weight as I recall. I have never received a separate fee for SAT etc, just the flat fee. Their customer service is generally poor, but they get it here cost effectively. I have many friends who use them too. Contact info I currently have:

Transcargo
Ave. Las Américas 20-12, Zona 13
Tel. 2332-5720 / 2332-5951

Note: the above address is just a working office, not a retail store front, no signage even to identify it. Normally you just work with them over the phone/email so they are not set-up for a retail store front.

I've worked with Karla Cosillo. Email = her name (no spaces, lower case) at gmail. And Lily T Garcia. Email = her name (no spaces, lower case) at gmail.

They typically do home delivery in the City, but you can go to their Bodega in Z1 and pick up also (although this can be a logistics problem because you have to make sure someone is actually there first).

Usually make payment by depositing into BAM account of a Sr. Guzman (owner I assume).

CPX (www.cpxbox.com). Air transport so quicker (a few days after reaching Miami), but more much more expensive. Good for small stuff you want fast. Excellent customer service. They do it all by the book so you get invoiced over and above shipping costs for any and all taxes and fees due. Also, I've had food related items held up for a couple of months (not their fault, but never had this issue with TransCargo, but have not shipped with them very recently). They are set-up more as a retail services site so you can walk in and pick-up (like going into an MBE) or have them deliver. They accept all forms of payment (CC, cash, check...) which is also more convenient (I have a card on file with them so it all just happens automatically and then they ship once a month to me via Litegua to the Rio Dulce).

 

[nsaubes]

Sorry guys for not looking at the older posts! But thanks a lot for the information. I'll tried to contact them.

 

[rappyfreak]

Well my Saison has been bottled for a week, tried one yesterday to see how the flavor is progressing and tasted awesome already. Next up is a nut brown ale

 

[pacayaforhops]

Finals week at college, I'll be bottling my märzen this weekend and kegging my saison, then I'll brew a mini-keg (5L dorada ice mini-keg) of cask ale (1st one came out pretty good, think I'll be getting a few more to re-fill). If it's carbonated enough, I'll bottle my "Nancy Brown"; as I've taken to calling my nance soured brown ale. I'll also brew the half&half braggot my best friend was so fond of, should be done by my birthday.

 

[Curtis2010]

Hi guys, I'm back on land and now in Panama City...which means...good beer!

Had a Leffe Brune with dinner last night, visited in Rana Dorada brewery today and met the brew master. Off to visit another brew pub now!

 

[Curtis2010]

Just returned from Istmo Brew Pub. www.istmobrewpub.com. Brew was disappointing, but looks like a good neighborhood pub otherwise. They do serve some good imports like Paulaner and others.

For the best craft brew in Panama stick with Rana Dorada...yum.

 

[Curtis2010]

Just returned from Istmo Brew Pub. www.istmobrewpub.com. Brew was disappointing, but looks like a good neighborhood pub otherwise. They do serve some good imports like Paulaner and others.

For the best craft brew in Panama stick with Rana Dorada...yum.

 

[pacayaforhops]

Finals week at college, I'll be bottling my märzen this weekend and kegging my saison, then I'll brew a mini-keg (5L dorada ice mini-keg) of cask ale (1st one came out pretty good, think I'll be getting a few more to re-fill). If it's carbonated enough, I'll bottle my "Nancy Brown"; as I've taken to calling my nance soured brown ale. I'll also brew the half&half braggot my best friend was so fond of, should be done by my birthday.

Ok, the märzen has a bit too much body and is being stubborn about not wanting to be bottled. On the up side, "Nancy Brown" has carbonated nicely and because of the lower FG, has a less persistent head, meaning no objections to being bottled, so I did.

I still kegged my saison. Have yet to brew my mini cask ale, which should happen later today.

I also decided not to brew the half&half braggot, seeing as how my best friend won't be able to enjoy it and taking into consideration all of the perfectly viable brett and lacto in the saison's bucket, I decided to brew a farmhouse fruit ale.

Used the usual extract and peaches & cherries in syrup (had a scare when I read on the label that the later had sodium benzoate, I'm not going to go into all the technical details, but i had to do a little quick research on the tolerable levels for S. cerevisiae & lacto, found out it's so diluted it doesn't matter & it didn't stop a pellicle from forming overnight). I also poured Nancy Brown dregs into it, which should sour it well (or that's what I'm hoping it'll do), all in all it should have 2 strains of sacch, assorted lacto and at least 2 strains of brett. I'm hoping the pH drop won't activate what little benzoate is in there.

On a somewhat related topic, how are your schedules for sat sept 14th so we can meet up and share some brews? We can consider it my pre/un-30th birthday get together (and yes it's a general invite for all, otherwise I'd've selectively pm'd it).

 

[Curtis2010]

Re sept 14. I should be back in Guate before then so could work for me. GF has a flight on Sept 5 so closer to then would work better for me.