Mr Beer - Read all about it and ask questions

[Holiday101]

As for the spigot I saw a video where a guy swapped out the standard with a small sized bottling spigot he got from a home brew shop with only a small modification. The spout is a little longer but not by that much. Mr. Beer has a wand & spigot they sell but shipping to Canada is like $24 so I'd rather find a local solution.

As for the alcoholic root beer I'm actually thinking now along the lines of using natural spices and perhaps no more sweetness than a Quad.

 

[olephart]

Anybody ever try a extract recipe from the Briess web site in a LBK? I'm thinking about brewing their "Turtle on a Log".

http://www.brewingwithbriess.com/Recipes/beer/display/turtle-on-a-log

It's for 5 gal. But I think that if I half the recipie, 2.5 gal. Should fit in a LBK.

 

[Holiday101]

So I'm about to do a partial mash + the one can of American Lite extract. I've seen some info on how to go about this but I am still uncertain on amounts and such. Essentially I'm trying to make a better beer with the extract that I have. I'm even thinking of going a little stronger ABV. At any rate I'm trying to figure if I should have 1 gallon of wort via BIAB + the extract and then another gallon of water added (I suppose at the sparge process) for a 2 gallon batch. If so then how much grain am I using and what kinds?

I'm thinking it be nice to do a citrusy hoppy strong beer around 6-6.5% Extract alone is rated at 5% ABV.

 

[WhoDatDad78]

So I'm about to do a partial mash + the one can of American Lite extract. I've seen some info on how to go about this but I am still uncertain on amounts and such. Essentially I'm trying to make a better beer with the extract that I have. I'm even thinking of going a little stronger ABV. At any rate I'm trying to figure if I should have 1 gallon of wort via BIAB + the extract and then another gallon of water added (I suppose at the sparge process) for a 2 gallon batch. If so then how much grain am I using and what kinds?

I'm thinking it be nice to do a citrusy hoppy strong beer around 6-6.5% Extract alone is rated at 5% ABV.

Take a look at this thread. I tried adding an LME on the advice of my LHBS and it didn't turn out so great.
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=164140

 

[noob1979]

I have two MB fermenters and am making 5 gallon batches. I figure I can split my wort and experiment with different dry hop ideas. Anyone else doing this?

 

[slym2none]

At some point, I will probably make 5 gallons of BierMuncher's Centennial Blonde, but not gonna mess with it. I just have 2 LBKs now.

 

[BrewinBromanite]

Never brewed with a Mr. Beer kit, or the LBK. I did pick up a couple cases of the Mr. Beer 1/2 liter brown bottles for a 5 gal batch, and bottled with them yesterday. Only comment - the necks are so dark, it was somewhat difficult to see through them - had to open the kitchen blinds and turn on all the lights on to make sure they were filled to where they should be. Other than that, easy peasy.

 

[pstant]

Has anyone used a hose to fill the bottles attached to the spigot?

 

[ericbw]

Anybody ever try a extract recipe from the Briess web site in a LBK? I'm thinking about brewing their "Turtle on a Log".



http://www.brewingwithbriess.com/Recipes/beer/display/turtle-on-a-log



It's for 5 gal. But I think that if I half the recipie, 2.5 gal. Should fit in a LBK.

They have some good recipes, and they are easy to scale if it's lme. Just one can instead of two.

 

[olephart]

Yep, I can't wait to taste it. But I don't want to brew it just yet, I'm "working" on emptying a case of Grosh bottles first.

I noticed some of their recipes have detailed instructions. I.e. temp to ferment, how long, etc. Of course this on doesn't.

 

[BrewinBromanite]

Has anyone used a hose to fill the bottles attached to the spigot?

Yep. I cut a small piece to attach to it. Works flawlessly, once you get the flow rate down to prevent too many bubbles. Never bothered with a bottling wand. View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1456318011.646678.jpg

 

[pstant]

Yep. I cut a small piece to attach to it. Works flawlessly, once you get the flow rate down to prevent too many bubbles. Never bothered with a bottling wand. View attachment 339613

What's the inside diameter of your hose?

 

[bpgreen]

Yep. I cut a small piece to attach to it. Works flawlessly, once you get the flow rate down to prevent too many bubbles. Never bothered with a bottling wand. View attachment 339613

A bottling wand gives other advantages. I'm not saying your approach won't work (it has for you).

But if you want beer to stay fresh for a year or more, filling from the bottom is better.

 

[BrewinBromanite]

A bottling wand gives other advantages. I'm not saying your approach won't work (it has for you).

But if you want beer to stay fresh for a year or more, filling from the bottom is better.

Never tried a bottling wand, so can't compare. However, if you take your time and make sure the flow rate is slow and smooth, it fills up with zero bubbles. Takes a few tries to get your technique down, but just set the ones with a little foam aside for a minute, and then cap or top off a little if needed. You could always cut a longer tube to start closer to the bottom, but this works really well. Unless you're getting really crazy and trying to rush it, there's virtually no foaming/bubbles - so there's no issues storing over a year if the recipe is suited to it. Never had any oxidized bottles, and have had some nearly 2 years old that tasted great.

That being said, I may look into a bottling wand, and if I already had one, I'd probably try it out. Are they easy to use solo, or is a brew-buddy recommended?

 

[BrewinBromanite]

What's the inside diameter of your hose?

I'll have to check and will post back. Don't recall off the top of my head. Fits snug on the standard spigot for the bottling bucket (but not too sure if the spigots vary from brand to brand).

 

[bpgreen]

Never tried a bottling wand, so can't compare. However, if you take your time and make sure the flow rate is slow and smooth, it fills up with zero bubbles. Takes a few tries to get your technique down, but just set the ones with a little foam aside for a minute, and then cap or top off a little if needed. You could always cut a longer tube to start closer to the bottom, but this works really well. Unless you're getting really crazy and trying to rush it, there's virtually no foaming/bubbles - so there's no issues storing over a year if the recipe is suited to it. Never had any oxidized bottles, and have had some nearly 2 years old that tasted great.

That being said, I may look into a bottling wand, and if I already had one, I'd probably try it out. Are they easy to use solo, or is a brew-buddy recommended?

Bottling wands are very easy to use. You just put it in the bottle and press down to start the beer flowing. When the bottle is full, lift the wand off the bottom and the beer stops flowing. When you take the wand out, the bottle is filled with the right amount of beer.

I've never used a beer-buddy and when I searched for it, all I found were links to an app.

 

[BrewinBromanite]

Bottling wands are very easy to use. You just put it in the bottle and press down to start the beer flowing. When the bottle is full, lift the wand off the bottom and the beer stops flowing. When you take the wand out, the bottle is filled with the right amount of beer.

I've never used a beer-buddy and when I searched for it, all I found were links to an app.

I don't know if you'll have much luck finding a brew-buddy searching online (except maybe on this site perhaps), although there's all sorts of websites these days... Just joking of course!

I was asking whether or not a bottling wand is easy enough to use without an extra set of hands (aka - a buddy or helper / 2-man process)? My "brew-buddy" (my bro-in-law) recently bailed on me after brewing together the last several years, so I recruited my younger cousin to help out. He's now in "intern" phase, so he's assigned mostly on the cleaning and heavy-lifting duty. And gets some free beer at the end, so he should be back

 

[bpgreen]

I don't know if you'll have much luck finding a brew-buddy searching online (except maybe on this site perhaps), although there's all sorts of websites these days... Just joking of course!

I was asking whether or not a bottling wand is easy enough to use to use without an extra set of hands (aka - a buddy or helper / 2-man process)? My "brew-buddy" (my bro-in-law) recently bailed on me after brewing together the last several years, so I recruited my younger cousin to help out. He's now in "intern" phase, so he's assigned mostly on the cleaning and heavy-lifting duty. And gets some free beer at the end, so he should be back

Ok. I've always brewed alone. It has been a long time since I've bottled, but if I remember correctly, I found it easier to bottle worth the wand than without.

 

[BrewinBromanite]

Ok. I've always brewed alone. It has been a long time since I've bottled, but if I remember correctly, I found it easier to bottle worth the wand than without.

Just watched a few youtube videos of using a bottling wand. Looks simple enough, although, every bottle I saw filled seemed to produce air bubbles/slight foaming -- I assume due to the beer traveling through the small space of the valve. Wouldn't be enough for me to worry about at any rate, but I just wanted to note that the small tube attached to the spigot method can actually result it much less bubbling than what I saw in the videos if you're careful enough (ie...slow flow rate, don't rush it, and tilt the bottle on its side slightly when filling to prevent sloshing). I do like the consistency of the bottle-fills with the wand, though. I may pick one up and try it out on my next brew just for the heck of it, and to compare for myself. My only gripe with my current process is that it's difficult to get the perfect (or at least consistent) amount in each bottle, since you're basically just eye-balling it. The wand looks like it takes care of that issue at least, so might be worth it. That and if it speeds up the process slightly, that would be a bonus. Cheers.

 

[bpgreen]

Just watched a few youtube videos of using a bottling wand. Looks simple enough, although, every bottle I saw filled seemed to produce air bubbles/slight foaming -- I assume due to the beer traveling through the small space of the valve. Wouldn't be enough for me to worry about at any rate, but I just wanted to note that the small tube attached to the spigot method can actually result it much less bubbling than what I saw in the videos if you're careful enough (ie...slow flow rate, don't rush it, and tilt the bottle on its side slightly when filling to prevent sloshing). I do like the consistency of the bottle-fills with the wand, though. I may pick one up and try it out on my next brew just for the heck of it, and to compare for myself. My only gripe with my current process is that it's difficult to get the perfect (or at least consistent) amount in each bottle, since you're basically just eye-balling it. The wand looks like it takes care of that issue at least, so might be worth it. That and if it speeds up the process slightly, that would be a bonus. Cheers.

I don't know what bubbling you saw in videos, but if a bottling wand is used properly, there is much less chance for oxidation than bottling from the tap, no matter how careful you are. The reason for that is that when you bottle from the tap, the beer is traveling down the side of the bottle and is exposed to the air the entire time. With a bottling wand, there's no exposure until it hits the bottom of the bottle. If you're adding any oxygen anywhere else in the process, you're doing it wrong.

A bottling wand fixes your gripe of inconsistent fills. You fill to the top, remove the wand, and Bob's your uncle.

 

[douglasbarbin]

I don't know what bubbling you saw in videos, but if a bottling wand is used properly, there is much less chance for oxidation than bottling from the tap, no matter how careful you are. The reason for that is that when you bottle from the tap, the beer is traveling down the side of the bottle and is exposed to the air the entire time. With a bottling wand, there's no exposure until it hits the bottom of the bottle. If you're adding any oxygen anywhere else in the process, you're doing it wrong.

A bottling wand fixes your gripe of inconsistent fills. You fill to the top, remove the wand, and Bob's your uncle.

If you are bottling from the tap, you should absolutely be using a beer gun or at least a growler filler.

 

[bpgreen]

If you are bottling from the tap, you should absolutely be using a beer gun or at least a growler filler.

I should have been more clear. I meant the tap on the LBK, not on a kegerator.

 

[psychobrewer999]

I have a question. There is terminolgy or rather abbreviations I simply don't understand. SG is one abbreviation that I can't figure. I understand OG FG what is SG? Sugar gravity? Also what are the benefits of a refractometer over a hydrometer? Thanks!

 

[Oginme]

SG = Specific Gravity

As for the refractometer vs hydrometer: Both are useful in different ways. I use my refractometer during the brew day to take quick readings of the gravity pre-boil and during the process. I use my hydrometer for post boil gravity and final gravity readings.

The refractometer uses less wort or beer, is fast, and can handle hot wort accurately. During fermentation and afterwards, the refractometer readings must be corrected for the refractive index of ethanol.

The hydrometer cannot handle hot liquids accurately and is best used with wort cooled to the calibration temperature listed on the scale.

I found that I needed to correlate my refractometer to achieve the same readings as I get with my hydrometer.

 

[brewski09]

I've got my refractometer dialed in to the point I don't need to use the hydrometer anymore. I like the refractometer calculator on http://seanterrill.com/2012/01/06/refractometer-calculator/

 

[VladTheImpaler]

Hello everyone! I got my Mr. Beer from a clearance sale at the local Wally World for a whopping $10 along with 3 mixes.

I started the process and let it ferment for 2 weeks (16 days to be exact, work caused me to have to wait 2 extra days).

Anyway, I bottled the beer yesterday and the first 3 and last 2 bottles bottles were hazy, but all of the ones in between were clear. Should this be of any concern? I've read posts about some peoples being hazy but it was all of the bottles, not just a few of them.

I also tasted a bit of the beer before bottling from the tap on the Mr. Beer keg and it tasted like slightly funky flat beer...

I look forward to the responses and to trying the beer in a few weeks!

Thanks!

 

[brewski09]

You'll have more sediment in the hazy bottles.

 

[VladTheImpaler]

You'll have more sediment in the hazy bottles.

But other than that, no other differences?

 

[brewski09]

Nothing major. You may find the overall flavor of the beers with less yeast sediment to be cleaner and have a preference or you may not notice anything at all. I'd bet a BJCP judge would be able to tell the difference easily but they have trained palates looking for flaws. I used to cold crash and rack to secondary because of this in many of my beers. I would also sacrifice a fair amount of beer to stay away from the sediment. It's also harder to avoid bottle sediment in a 12oz bottle than in the mr beer 1L bottles. I just got a kegging system and am figure out the whole filtering thing right now. I'd say serve cold and pour all your beer servings at one time if you can.

 

[VladTheImpaler]

Got it, thanks! Now just have to wait and see what the result is...

In the meantime, I'm going to start a new batch in the keg of the Mr. Beer Oktoberfest tonight... Gotta have something to do waiting all these weeks to drink my own first beer!