Random Brewing Thoughts

[neorunner]

Any fun facts or noteworthy things to mention? I'm moving within the next month and am considering going the electric route at the new house.

Have you noticed an increase in efficiency?

I built my electric system in 2011 and love it. I have found efficiency to be around 85% with my system.

• Buy the punches if you are going to build it yourself, they are worth every penny.
• You will need a good ventilation system if you're doing this inside, boil off is about 1.5 gal / hr.
• You can save time by holding your wort at ~190+deg once you've sparged enough to cover the element
• Loss to CFC and pumps and hosing is about half a gallon
• I don't have a good photo but I rigged up a copper pipe to create a whirlpool effect in the boil kettle when cooling
• When sparging run through the herms coil before going into the mash tun to keep it clean
• Speaking of the herms coil, just buy one pre-coiled don't try and save money coiling it yourself. It will cost you more.

 

[Beerontwowheels]

I built my electric system in 2011 and love it. I have found efficiency to be around 85% with my system.

• Buy the punches if you are going to build it yourself, they are worth every penny.
• You will need a good ventilation system if you're doing this inside, boil off is about 1.5 gal / hr.
• You can save time by holding your wort at ~190+deg once you've sparged enough to cover the element
• Loss to CFC and pumps and hosing is about half a gallon
• I don't have a good photo but I rigged up a copper pipe to create a whirlpool effect in the boil kettle when cooling
• When sparging run through the herms coil before going into the mash tun to keep it clean
• Speaking of the herms coil, just buy one pre-coiled don't try and save money coiling it yourself. It will cost you more.

When I grow up, I want to have Nate's system.

 

[jivex5k1]

I built my electric system in 2011 and love it. I have found efficiency to be around 85% with my system.

• Buy the punches if you are going to build it yourself, they are worth every penny.
• You will need a good ventilation system if you're doing this inside, boil off is about 1.5 gal / hr.
• You can save time by holding your wort at ~190+deg once you've sparged enough to cover the element
• Loss to CFC and pumps and hosing is about half a gallon
• I don't have a good photo but I rigged up a copper pipe to create a whirlpool effect in the boil kettle when cooling
• When sparging run through the herms coil before going into the mash tun to keep it clean
• Speaking of the herms coil, just buy one pre-coiled don't try and save money coiling it yourself. It will cost you more.

Did you have to run a 240v outlet from your breaker?

 

[neorunner]

Did you have to run a 240v outlet from your breaker?

Its wired to plug into a 50A dryer plug. Currently, as pictured above, my system is living in a friends garage. So I basically created a plug-in splitter to allow my system and their dryer to be connected to the same circuit. Only drawback is you can't run both at the same time.

When I finally get around to finishing the brewery/laundry room in our house this problem will go away as I switched from electric to a gas dryer which freed up that breaker and wiring for my rig.

Brew room after I stained the concrete

Plumbing in the stationary sink, system will eventually live to the left of this sink.

Size difference of 4" and 6" vent to accomodate exhaust fan.

Vent fan mounted

Long term plan is to frame in the sump pump corner (blue tape box) with a RO system in the corner and glycol system mounted above it.

 

[smithj21541]

It's depressingly sad how bad The Brewing Network shows are now. I tried to listen to Mitch from Speciation on the Sour Hour. Maybe 20 minutes worth of info broken up into two, hour long shows. Then the first 30 minutes of each show is commercials and unrelated banter. Then add in 2 more commercial breaks. -_______-

They pretty much copied brewing w/style and brew strong. Sour hour was better but really dropped off a cliff the last few episodes. I still listen to the session except for the ones in CO.

 

[smithj21541]

Scott is literally clueless about the subject matter of the podcast he co hosts. Just let jay and the guests get down in the weeds and turn Scott’s microphone off.

He's brutal! Show would get back on track with your suggestion.

 

[docreight1]

He's brutal! Show would get back on track with your suggestion.

Somehow he got the boot from the session. I doubt he ever gets exiled from the sour hour though. It sounds like his family has invested in the bn so he’s in by default regardless of how much feedback they get on the matter.

 

[smithj21541]

Somehow he got the boot from the session. I doubt he ever gets exiled from the sour hour though. It sounds like his family has invested in the bn so he’s in by default regardless of how much feedback they get on the matter.

That was definitely nice and I even enjoy the session a little more when it's JP, tasty and beardy. Doc is painful and Justin is hit or miss and not just on weather he will be there. I gathered Scott's family was involved for some time and they seem to be more on the pub side. But agree sour hour is his now so unless it's a really good guest I'll just be skipping it on my podcast app.

 

[liquiddegenerate]

****! Milk stout brewed on Sunday decided it wanted to be open fermented... damn big mouth bubblers.

 

[Beerontwowheels]

****! Milk stout brewed on Sunday decided it wanted to be open fermented... damn big mouth bubblers.

That’s not cool!

 

[drgarage1]

It's depressingly sad how bad The Brewing Network shows are now. I tried to listen to Mitch from Speciation on the Sour Hour. Maybe 20 minutes worth of info broken up into two, hour long shows. Then the first 30 minutes of each show is commercials and unrelated banter. Then add in 2 more commercial breaks. -_______-

Don't forget super-dumb voiceovers with unlicensed music!

 

[TripleSixHoppia]

New one about Lactic Acid Yeast. This episode is super heavy and long. So make sure you are prepared to dig into this one.

https://www.milkthefunk.live/podcas...ch-yeast-and-justin-amaral-of-mainiacal-yeast

 

[Espeer]

New one about Lactic Acid Yeast. This episode is super heavy and long. So make sure you are prepared to dig into this one.

https://www.milkthefunk.live/podcas...ch-yeast-and-justin-amaral-of-mainiacal-yeast

Interesting listen. Some of them sounded like they even make good flavor by themselves

 

[axeman91821]

Pour one out tonight for the entire ******* keg of Southern Passion IPA that ended up in my driveway tonight over a dip tube that would not stay unclogged.

 

[wuntrikpony]

Southern Passion IPA

At least it wasn’t a Galaxy IPA.

 

[axeman91821]

At least it wasn’t a Galaxy IPA.

Mmmm, Galaxy. This did smell pretty damn good in my driveway though. Ordered one of these because I'm sick of this happening with my hoppy beers (though it's never been this bad before).

http://www.clearbeerdraughtsystem.com/info.html

 

[wuntrikpony]

http://www.clearbeerdraughtsystem.com/info.html

Sounds like you would not reccomend this product.

 

[axeman91821]

Sounds like you would not reccomend this product.

Oh I don't have one yet. Ordered it tonight because of what happened.

 

[ChaQuiseman]

Sounds like you would not reccomend this product.

I have one of those and I swear by it. It's a godsend.

 

[neorunner]

Hop bags? Cold crashing? Superclear/gelatin?

 

[axeman91821]

Hop bags? Cold crashing? Superclear/gelatin?

Whirlpooled after chilling to keep some of the hop matter from the boil out of the fermentor. Dry hop in primary was without a hop bag, but I did cold crash for a few days before kegging. Keg hop was in a hop bag. Whirlfloc in the boil but no post fermentation fining.

 

[neorunner]

Whirlpooled after chilling to keep some of the hop matter from the boil out of the fermentor. Dry hop in primary was without a hop bag, but I did cold crash for a few days before kegging. Keg hop was in a hop bag. Whirlfloc in the boil but no post fermentation fining.

All that and you still clogged your dip tube?

 

[axeman91821]

All that and you still clogged your dip tube?

Yup. Wasn't even a particularly crazy hop bill, 12oz total in a 5 gallon batch. I think at least part of the problem might have been that by the time I got to the keg dry hop it was the end of the bag of Southern Passion I had so some of it was more of a powder than a pellet.

 

[mojo1]

I've got a carbonation problem with an imperial stout I bottled back in December. The beer is roughly 14% ABV and I foolishly though I could bottle condition without adding fresh yeast.

I didn't want to introduce any oxygen mixing priming sugar into the batch and so I bottled with Cooper's drops.

8 weeks later, I had zero carbonation. I re-opened the bottles and added some fresh CBC-1 to each bottle. Now, roughly two months later, it's still flat. 14% is probably pushing the CBC-1 to its limits as well.

I'm thinking about giving EC-1118 a shot, but I'm debating if I should add an additional carbonation drop to each bottle. My gut is telling me the sugar from the first drop is still there 4 months later and adding a second drop may lead to overcarbing.

Any thoughts?

 

[neorunner]

I've got a carbonation problem with an imperial stout I bottled back in December. The beer is roughly 14% ABV and I foolishly though I could bottle condition without adding fresh yeast.

I didn't want to introduce any oxygen mixing priming sugar into the batch and so I bottled with Cooper's drops.

8 weeks later, I had zero carbonation. I re-opened the bottles and added some fresh CBC-1 to each bottle. Now, roughly two months later, it's still flat. 14% is probably pushing the CBC-1 to its limits as well.

I'm thinking about giving EC-1118 a shot, but I'm debating if I should add an additional carbonation drop to each bottle. My gut is telling me the sugar from the first drop is still there 4 months later and adding a second drop may lead to overcarbing.

Any thoughts?

Carefully decant the bottles into a keg purged with CO2 and force carb it.

 

[Beerontwowheels]

Carefully decant the bottles into a keg purged with CO2 and force carb it.

and if you go this route, and want to have a little fun, take 4-6 bottles and try to eis them. I did this with a flat 'Adam' clone and it worked out surprisingly well.

My method was ridiculously simple and gave 0 fux about oxygen ingress. I poured 6 bottles into a large, sanitized casserole dish, put a lid on it, set it in my freezer. Let it partially freeze, strained it into a smaller casserole dish, let it partially freeze. I then bottled. 6 bottles became 2 bottles.

 

[mojo1]

Carefully decant the bottles into a keg purged with CO2 and force carb it.

That is my last resort option. I should have just kegged it from the start. I think I'll give the EC-1118 a try and if it doesn't work, it will end up in the keg.

 

[anteater1]

That is my last resort option. I should have just kegged it from the start. I think I'll give the EC-1118 a try and if it doesn't work, it will end up in the keg.

I kegged ~20 bottles of totally flat 13% bourbon maple coffee stout last year. I obviously purged the keg, but I wasn't even that careful pouring the bottles in and the beer tasted amazing on tap. This seems like the way to go to me.

 

[Five28 hz]

I have one of those and I swear by it. It's a godsend.

Do you take it apart to clean or just soak it in pbw then sanitizer?

 

[ChaQuiseman]

Do you take it apart to clean or just soak it in pbw then sanitizer?

I usually take it apart. It's all held together by o-rings and silicone caps, so it's fairly easy to assemble and disassemble.