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More to it than I thought.
- Thread starter Altrez
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My task tomorrow is to brew.
Make some beer man. All this fancy equipment, cleaning everything, prep work, lets see some product. lol My brew table is the outside picnic table and the patio floor. Don't worry about the table, the beer isn't supposed to touch it. 
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Altrez
Well-Known Member
My task tomorrow is to brew.
I am still getting supplies! I will start as soon as I have everything clean and organised.
-Altrez
Murphys_Law
Well-Known Member
We are 17 pages in and you've spent...?! And haven't so much as boiled water? oh man, once you actually make beer you'll go nuts with buying stuff!
With all this stuff, you're gonna be able to make some sweet brew, once you learn how to. At least your post count is up in case it doesn't work out and you need to post in classifieds.
I've spent far less, making 11g at a time and still learning. Seriously hope all goes well and you love the hobby.
I've spent far less, making 11g at a time and still learning. Seriously hope all goes well and you love the hobby.
Now his expectations are going to be so high with all this fancy unnecessary equipment for a beginning brewer, I see this going one of three ways. Either the beer is going to turn out good. Or is not going to be as good as he expects it to be so it must be the equipment, so need to buy something new/better and try again. Or just gives up on the whole thing.
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Altrez
Well-Known Member
kombat
Well-Known Member
When's your first brew day planned for, Altrez?
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Altrez
Well-Known Member
Hi kombat,
I am going to start the Mr. Beer kits on Sunday hopefully if not it will be next week. The 1 gallon kits will be a week later. My idea is to have a batch ready to keg/bottle each week.
-Altrez
kombat
Well-Known Member
I like your taste in beers, but I believe all of those labels are going to be a real pain to remove, except the Founders ones! I think the Rogue ones are even actually painted right onto the glass, aren't they?
This falls under the heading of "You know you're a homebrewer when ..." you're at the liquor store, and the type of label on the bottle influences which beer you're going to buy.
This falls under the heading of "You know you're a homebrewer when ..." you're at the liquor store, and the type of label on the bottle influences which beer you're going to buy.
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Altrez
Well-Known Member
I like your taste in beers, but I believe all of those labels are going to be a real pain to remove, except the Founders ones! I think the Rogue ones are even actually painted right onto the glass, aren't they?
This falls under the heading of "You know you're a homebrewer when ..." you're at the liquor store, and the type of label on the bottle influences which beer you're going to buy.
I think I am going to just put labels over them for now if I cant get the current ones off. I looked today for beer bottles at the local store that would have easy to remove labels and ended up spending $30 to "Test" different bottles
-Altrez
I think I am going to just put labels over them for now if I cant get the current ones off. I looked today for beer bottles at the local store that would have easy to remove labels and ended up spending $30 to "Test" different bottles
-Altrez
Soak them in PBW for a few days or a week. Off the top of my head these are some bottles I prefer for easy label removal: Sierra Nevada, Sam Adams, Dog Fish Head, New Belgium, Great Lakes. Soak for a few days in PBW and the labels have usually fallen off on their own.
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Altrez
Well-Known Member
Horseshoot
Well-Known Member
There are some bottles out there with tricky labels. Most, in my experience, fall right off if you put them in really hot water and scent free oxyclean. Some fall off within minutes. If I soak them for longer than an hour, and they don't start falling off, I toss them in the recycle bin.
MaryB
Well-Known Member
Only downside to New Belgium is the necks crack easily when capping... I have broken 2 out of the last 160...
kombat
Well-Known Member
Agreed, however one must also consider whether or not they intend on submitting any of their beers for competition. In competitions, the bottles must not only be devoid of any labels, but of any distinctive markings whatsoever, including elements molded into the glass of the bottles themselves. Dogfish Head bottles have a little fish molded into the glass. Sam Adams bottles have a stylized signature molded into the glass.
I believe Sierra Nevada bottles are plain, but I don't know about the others. If you're not going to be submitting to competitions, it's moot, but if you think you might want to, it's something to keep in mind. I only ever keep totally plain beer bottles - anything else gets recycled.
rlmiller10
Well-Known Member
Not to turn this into a bottle discussion but Angry Orchard Cider bottles are plain and the labels fall right off, leaving no residue, with oxy and water.
Good point, but competition is the last thing on my brewing wish list. I'm having a hard time keeping enough empties around now that I've move up to multiple 5+ gallon fermenters. New Belgium also got their name molded into the glass. I haven't had a problem with breaking any of them yet either.
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Altrez
Well-Known Member
Just picked up another pot and hot plate and feel like I am really getting close now to having everything I need. I am doing a bit more data logging and looking to add another Fermentation chamber.
The small pots are for Mr. Beer brews and I am going to order this for my other extract / partial mash brews.
http://spikebrewing.com/collections...es/products/15-gallon-brew-kettle-sight-glass
I also plan to invest in a bottling bucket and a plate wort chiller.
This is the plate chiller I am looking at.
http://www.northernbrewer.com/therminator
With all the parts and pump it's going to be around $500 looks pretty good. Is there anything I am missing?
-Altrez
The small pots are for Mr. Beer brews and I am going to order this for my other extract / partial mash brews.
http://spikebrewing.com/collections...es/products/15-gallon-brew-kettle-sight-glass
I also plan to invest in a bottling bucket and a plate wort chiller.
This is the plate chiller I am looking at.
http://www.northernbrewer.com/therminator
With all the parts and pump it's going to be around $500 looks pretty good. Is there anything I am missing?
-Altrez
Check out these chillers also - http://www.dudadiesel.com/search.php?query=plate+chiller.
I personally have the B3-23A 20 Plate Beer Wort Garden Hose Chiller and love how efficient it is!
You're probably getting sick of more suggestions...just trying to help! We're all just waiting for you to make some beer already!
I personally have the B3-23A 20 Plate Beer Wort Garden Hose Chiller and love how efficient it is!
You're probably getting sick of more suggestions...just trying to help! We're all just waiting for you to make some beer already!
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Altrez
Well-Known Member
Check out these chillers also - http://www.dudadiesel.com/search.php?query=plate+chiller.
I personally have the B3-23A 20 Plate Beer Wort Garden Hose Chiller and love how efficient it is!
You're probably getting sick of more suggestions...just trying to help! We're all just waiting for you to make some beer already!
Thanks for the post! Looks like a solid product. Beer is coming soon
-Altrez
What the heck are you ordering so many pots for? You'll soon move on from the small batches once you see how little the work/product ratio is. With those small batches an ice bath will work, a plate chiller is overkill. Make some beer!
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Altrez
Well-Known Member
Hello,
There is a method to my madness. I want to brew several 1 gallon batches to test recipes of my own design one day so nothing will go to waste.
I want to have absolutely everything in place before I start my first brew day. That includes a keg system.
The only thing I want to worry about when I start is the beer. My goal is to have every tool in place and tested before brew day at least that is my plan anyways.
Yes I need another fermentation chamber. I need some way to do 24/7 monitoring of each batch and that alone will run over 3 grand easy.
I need to have a system in place with a back end database server to log and record everything. I need a RO system installed an certified. It takes tons of leg work in my case to start brewing but when I start I wont need to do much else or buy much of anything.
I could just boil some water and make one of the Mr. Beer kits that is easy. Its engineering a system that yields consent results brew after brew is what "For me a least" is going to take some time.
The keg's for the Mr. Beer kits I am going to use are here:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OBX3ZHW/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
The Kegs for the 1 Gallon batches are listed here:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01BN3FDRC/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
I am going to bottle some out of each batch and also keg. I am buying the taps I got one in over the weekend.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01D52ZWFC/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
You can also force carb with that tap. Still lots of work to do. I am in the process of converting a closet to a storage room for everything.
:rockin:
-Altrez
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Altrez
Well-Known Member
Why is that? Do you consider everyone to be "Nutjob's" who do not conform to your ideas on how someone should brew their own beer? That would be absurd!
Everyone is different and has their own way of doing things. I could buy 10 grand worth of automated brewing equipment if I wanted to. The fun part for me is the science behind the perfect brew.
-Altrez
dano
Active Member
I can't wait for the impending garage sale...
Pantherjon
Well-Known Member
You are just being thorough! Maybe more thorough then really necessary..But, to each their own, I say..
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Altrez
Well-Known Member
You are just being thorough! Maybe more thorough then really necessary..But, to each their own, I say..
And having a blast learning all the cool science behind the art of brewing.
-Altrez
chickypad
lupulin shift victim
I think it's more that you have invested thousands of dollars and haven't yet brewed any beer. It's kind of like deciding to get into photography and not just buying a camera, but also an entire set of specialty lenses, tripods, diffusers, underwater equipment, and set up a full darkroom before you've taken your first picture. Dude, more power to you if you've got the dough to spend, I just hope it doesn't turn out that you actually hate to brew
Something along the lines of "you still have not brewed beer yet" problem. I am a firm believer is trying, enjoying, improving, enjoying, etc.
My comment is still meant in good fun but there is kernel of WTF in there. I am not worried, confounded or confused about your love of the science but I am confused about your desire get "stuff" hand over fist without producing anything.
So yeah..I stand by nutjob.
My comment is still meant in good fun but there is kernel of WTF in there. I am not worried, confounded or confused about your love of the science but I am confused about your desire get "stuff" hand over fist without producing anything.
So yeah..I stand by nutjob.
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Altrez
Well-Known Member
I think it's more that you have invested thousands of dollars and haven't yet brewed any beer. It's kind of like deciding to get into photography and not just buying a camera, but also an entire set of specialty lenses, tripods, diffusers, underwater equipment, and set up a full darkroom before you've taken your first picture. Dude, more power to you if you've got the dough to spend, I just hope it doesn't turn out that you actually hate to brew
It would suck if I hated to brew lol. I haven't brewed any beer yet that is true. I do know how to brew beer so I guess I just need to boil some water add some extract just to say that I have brewed a batch.
I guess people really will flip out when I start talking about the Dissolved Oxygen meter kit I am looking at buying.
http://www.coleparmer.com/TechLibraryArticle/1424
-Altrez
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Altrez
Well-Known Member
You are basically still saying that because you are confused or simply cannot understand my approach to brewing that I am a nutjob? That is really interesting, perhaps it is you that needs to do some self reflection and try to understand why you have some sort of deep dark judgmental envy festering deep down inside you soul.
Again just because I do things differently then you does not make me a nutjob.
-Altrez
chickypad
lupulin shift victim
Just thinking about being in the surgeon's office: I haven't performed any of these procedures yet but I have read everything and know how it's done...
but definitely brew something, anything, so we can stop razzing you!!
Twenty pages of banter, and not a drop to drink... At least it is entertaining
FTFY
Altrez, where are you? I'm sure a forum member would be happy to come over and show you how to make great beer with what you have. You know, before you start your hop fields, yeast lab and write your first book.
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