ITT - Out Dirty Brewing Secrets

[Engelramm]

I also modify my hop schedule on the fly and make recipe changes with out documenting a thing.

Oh, the HORROR!

I also top-off with tap water. :cross:

 

[dibby33]

Oh, the HORROR!

I also top-off with tap water. :cross:

I have heard of people that don't but I have never seen one!

I also don't mark my bottles and rely on memory alone on where I store them. This of course does not work and I end up with a surprise most times when I crack open a bottle.


....I really need to start marking them - even a number scratched into the lid is too much for me!

 

[Onescalerguy]

We also top off with tap water if needed.
I eat spoonfuls of mash while mashing(testing for sugar extraction).SWMBO ate a bowl full once.
Using a 5 gal paint bucket for an extra secondary(possibly not food grade )
Sneak crushed grain and mash grain to dog.
Use a drilled cork in my cooler/mash tun.(no steengkeeng kooler kit)
Plastic valve for same.
SWMBO refuses to use bottle brush .

Cheers

 

[psymn]

I use a nylon mesh bag to strain mash grains and wort.

I also use tap water, but sometimes I throw in some crushed ice to lower the temp. Hey, I live in the south, and tap water doesn't cool wort down enough.

I only share my best beer with other brewers.

Matt

 

[zoebisch01]

....I really need to start marking them - even a number scratched into the lid is too much for me!

I was thinking of just making up some stamps and getting plain caps. A simple "S" for Stout, "A" for APA etc.

 

[fezzman]

I often brew and bottle in my boxers.

A time or two (or three) I got too drunk to remember to take the OG reading.

 

[Desert_Sky]

I dont use a hydrometer..................ever

 

[the_bird]

So now that Walker is back using his, are you are resident hydrometer-assassin?

 

[Torchiest]

I was thinking of just making up some stamps and getting plain caps. A simple "S" for Stout, "A" for APA etc.

I number all my batches, but I only started numbering the bottles after the third batch and when the fourth batch was on the way, because it was getting too tough to just guess which one was which. Porters and stouts look pretty similar in brown bottles! :cross:

My biggest (and probably only) dirty secret:

I've stored a couple batches of bottles in the bathroom because of concerns about bottle bombs, but I've never explained that risk to SWMBO.

 

[Desert_Sky]

So now that Walker is back using his, are you are resident hydrometer-assassin?

omg he caved?

 

[the_bird]

Pretty sure, now that he's doing AG. I think it's just temporary, though.

 

[brewt00l]

I was thinking of just making up some stamps and getting plain caps. A simple "S" for Stout, "A" for APA etc.

I do the exact same thing with a sharpie marker....since I never usually have more than 3 brews hanging around at a time and don't really overlap styles, it's easy to remember what's what.

 

[skifast1]

I was thinking of just making up some stamps and getting plain caps. A simple "S" for Stout, "A" for APA etc.

I'm a strong supporter of the one-letter coding system. I just use a black sharpie

**EDIT** D'oh! What he said ^^^

 

[magno]

I was thinking of just making up some stamps and getting plain caps. A simple "S" for Stout, "A" for APA etc.

I'll chime in too. I number each recipe in my log, and put that nuber on the cap. If I give a mixed 6 pack away I give them an index card with what number is what beer.

I guess the only dirty brewing secret that I have is when I sometimes get lax with sanitation at bottling time. The bottles get a squrt of two of iodophor if anything. I havent had a problem yet.

- magno

 

[Cheesefood]

I use this site as my recipe log.
I only have one hose, and it's my siphon/blowoff hose
I made chili in my wort boiling pot
I rarely make a starter
I often let my beer sit in fermenters for months
I used to mouth-siphon (until I bought an auto-siphon)
I take "samples" with my baster
I purposely do a half-assed job on clean-up so SWMBO will do the rest
I sometimes run out of sanitzed bottles and just rinse out unsanitized.

 

[Bernie Brewer]

Oh man you guys are gonna ostracise me when I finish this list........

I have sanitized with bleach in the past and am considering going back.....
I use knee high nylons as hop bags.........
I leave beer in primary and/or secondary forever.....
When kegging, I force carb by setting at 25 for 3 days rather than "set it and forget it" (I've been scolded for that here.) ...........
I regularly drink BMC's such as Miller, Pabst, and Old Milwaukee without shame.....
If I'm brewing on a weekday I'll tune the garage TV to Lifetime for Frasier and the Nanny reruns..........
I, too, will top off with tap water.......
I fill my airlock with tap water rather than sanitizer......
I HATE Star-San! Can't get over the bubble thing.......

There's prolly more, but can't think of any at the moment

 

[Cheesefood]

I use this site as my recipe log.
I only have one hose, and it's my siphon/blowoff hose
I made chili in my wort boiling pot
I rarely make a starter
I often let my beer sit in fermenters for months
I used to mouth-siphon (until I bought an auto-siphon)
I take "samples" with my baster
I purposely do a half-assed job on clean-up so SWMBO will do the rest
I sometimes run out of sanitzed bottles and just rinse out unsanitized.

I fill my airlock with tap water.
I get my eyebrows waxed.
I drink Miller Lite when I have homebrew on hand
Sometimes I drink green homebrew just for the farts (to PO SWMBO)

 

[Desert_Sky]

I drink Miller Lite when I have homebrew on hand

guilty of that as well

 

[rdwj]

I'm not sure this is bad, but I suck cleaner through my tubes with my mouth.
I also drink Miller Light (usually at the end of the night)
During my first outdoor effort, I spilled a bunch of DME on my patio. I swept it into a dust pan and added it to the boil.
I would top off with tap, but I haven't had to add since going to full boils.

Other than that, I'm pretty good about doing things right

 

[Buford]

My dirty secrets...

I don't always wash my equipment with cleaner or mild soap after I'm done with it, I just rinse it off well with lots of hot water and put it away.

I also sneak bottles before they're done carbonating

 

[McCall St. Brewer]

Nothing really bad I guess, but I never remember to put the priming sugar water in the bottling bucket before I siphon the beer in. The result is that I always end up with half my bottles flat and the other half have too much foam when I pour them.

I sometimes sanitize my bottles in the dishwasher.

I always keep the same number of bottles of homebrew in the fridge so SWMBO doesn't know how much I am drinking.

 

[krock]

I once siphoned with a vaccuum cleaner due to a high gravity wort!

I nearly blew out the motor on the vaccuum!

 

[pain++]

I force carbonate at 30PSI for 2 days.

I've made a bottle bomb just to watch it blow up in my friends face.

I used my brewpot to soak a brine turkey this Thanksgiving!

Ahh, now it's all off my chest.

 

[debtman7]

I used my brewpot to soak a brine turkey this Thanksgiving!

Guilty of that one too

 

[Cheesefood]

I used my brewpot to soak a brine turkey this Thanksgiving!

Yeah, me too.

 

[pain++]

Guilty of that one too

Yeah, me too.

Nice to know I'm in good company

 

[magno]

I don't always wash my equipment with cleaner or mild soap after I'm done with it, I just rinse it off well with lots of hot water and put it away.

Cleaner or mild soap? I didnt know we were supposed to do that! I rinse them out with hot water and let them air dry.

 

[Buford]

I don't know that you have to, I just figured that if I can't see or feel any residue on it it's good to go. It'll be soaked in StarSan before it gets used again anyway.

 

[jcarson83]

I used my mash tun to brine my turkey this thanksgiving.
I never have used a starter, and probably never will.
But worst of all, I forgot to put my SS braid on my tun on the last batch so I had to throw a bunch of ice in to cool it off enough to reach my arm down and get it on. 156° is hot.

 

[Louise]

Yesterday the fermenter was getting a little cool so I gave the keg a big hug while I warmed a blanket in the dryer to keep it warm while I was at work.