South Carolina SC midlands area brewers

[TravelingLight]

Edit: should have been clear; I meant sanitizer rather than cleaner, though I'm keeping some of my stuff soaking in sanitizer for... reasons.

Well... Starsan is an acid. I don't tend to have buckets of PBW lining around; I use it more as a one-time soak.

Got a question for the group. My Christmas quad finished up at 1.0155 (~84% AA, 11% ABV; hair sweeter than I wanted but whatever), and this will be the first time I rack a beer into the bottling bucket/keg with a spigot. As there is a lot of fermenter crap that will get sucked in, what do you do? Drain and dump? When I took a gravity sample from the bottom, the hydrometer cylinder settled out to be roughly 20% trub, 80% beer. Seems like a waste to open and dump if that's the case. What's the best way to use the spigot to draw clear beer (and no, I don't have a racking arm) with minimal losses from trub?

When you cold crash it, put something under the side where the spigot is, so the fermenter is sitting at an angle. That way when all the crap crashed out, it will be compacted away from the spigot.

 

[SHAIV]

Hey guys i hope yall are having a good weekend. I know im not, my air broke in my house and my dogs got lost this morning for a few hours. They are back home safe now though. Anyway i got a question about a grapefruit ipa im making. I brewed it on monday and its about time to dry hop it and add the grapefruit. The instructions (from northern brewer) say to boil some water and add the crystalized grapefruit to the water, stir and add to sanitized keg then rack beer into keg. A friend of mine made this before and soaked some fresh grapefruit zest in vodka and then added it like a dry hop i think. Which way would you do it. I already have the crystalized grapefruit that came with the kit but should i use it or do both?

 

[TravelingLight]

Hey guys i hope yall are having a good weekend. I know im not, my air broke in my house and my dogs got lost this morning for a few hours. They are back home safe now though. Anyway i got a question about a grapefruit ipa im making. I brewed it on monday and its about time to dry hop it and add the grapefruit. The instructions (from northern brewer) say to boil some water and add the crystalized grapefruit to the water, stir and add to sanitized keg then rack beer into keg. A friend of mine made this before and soaked some fresh grapefruit zest in vodka and then added it like a dry hop i think. Which way would you do it. I already have the crystalized grapefruit that came with the kit but should i use it or do both?

I would advocate for the liquor tincture with the zest, if it were me. But that's primarily because I've never worked with the crystallized stuff before, and I've done plenty of tinctures with zests. Although I've never done a grapefruit zest tincture, I've done plenty with limes and oranges. I'll zest a few pieces of whatever citrus I am using, put that in a mason jar, and add just enough vodka (or everclear/shine) to cover it. And I'll give it a shake a few times a day, basically whenever I walk by it and I'm paying attention. I let that extract a few days. Time is dependent on the liquor and what you're wanting. The higher proof, the quicker the extraction. I've done one with moonshine in like 2 days I think. Vodka I usually go a little longer. Then just strain out the solids, add the tincture liquid to the keg, rack in. I do find whenever I use tinctures like this, it takes about a week or so in the keg for all the flavors to really mesh well and sort of come together.

 

[SHAIV]

Nice thanks man. Yeah i was leaning towards the vodka tincture too since i just got some for my wife. So the package from northern brewer says grapefruit peel on it. The instructions say crystalized. It looks like freeze dried grapefruit peel. I went ahead and made it since i already added dry hops yesterday. Ill let this brine and add it a few days before cold crashing i guess

 

[carpathia]

Just bottled the Christmas Quad (long day... stupid Hurricane). 3 cases + 2 = 6.91 gallons, carbed to an estimated 3.15 or so. Lost about half a gallon from inadequate bottles and maybe a bit in the fermenter. Speidel's spigot made this so much less painful then normal. Couldn't make the meeting, and I'm back to work after this post.

Brewing tomorrow TL?

 

[SHAIV]

Just bottled the Christmas Quad (long day... stupid Hurricane). 3 cases + 2 = 6.91 gallons, carbed to an estimated 3.15 or so. Lost about half a gallon from inadequate bottles and maybe a bit in the fermenter. Speidel's spigot made this so much less painful then normal. Couldn't make the meeting, and I'm back to work after this post.

Brewing tomorrow TL?

So you gonna let it condition and age till december?

Also what does everyone have planned for this hurricane? I stocked up on beer. I also have a beer in a keg and another beer that could be kegged soon. I hope we dont lose power. No cold beer!

 

[Pi Kapp Beer Guy]

Hey all, I just picked up this thread. I have been away from homebrew for awhile but trying to get back into it. I think it’s great what you all do here. I live in Lexington. I’ll be following this group now.

 

[Lifer59]

Glad you got the bug again. A lot of experience in the thread and help is a post away. Do you still have your equipment or do you have to start over?

 

[SHAIV]

Hey all, I just picked up this thread. I have been away from homebrew for awhile but trying to get back into it. I think it’s great what you all do here. I live in Lexington. I’ll be following this group now.

Welcome man! I live barely outside lexington and i deliver packages for UPS in lexington. I got from herndon chevy to lowes and whiteford out to #6

 

[carpathia]

So you gonna let it condition and age till december?

Indeed, going to lager it for a week or three or so before it goes back to warm/room temp storage.

 

[Pi Kapp Beer Guy]

Glad you got the bug again. A lot of experience in the thread and help is a post away. Do you still have your equipment or do you have to start over?

Fortunately I still have a all my equipment except my Kegerator. Never made it to all grain but that’s my goal.

 

[Pi Kapp Beer Guy]

Welcome man! I live barely outside lexington and i deliver packages for UPS in lexington. I got from herndon chevy to lowes and whiteford out to #6

Awesome, then you deliver to me! I know my ingredients/equipment is in good hands. At least the things I can’t get at Bet Mar. Are there any other brew shops in town that I am unaware of?

 

[SHAIV]

Nice! Man i love delivering homebrew stuff! I delivered a pico brew to one guy. I know where a few homebrewers are on my route after delivering stuff to them! Yes there is a brew shop called DIY brewhouse on two notch in Elgin. I think its near sandhills. So its a bit of a drive up i20 so ive never been there myself but its highly suggested over betmar by many

 

[Pi Kapp Beer Guy]

So for those of you that live in the Lexington/West Columbia Area, have you gotten a water report? Do you make adjustments to your water for brewing?

 

[SHAIV]

Ive heard that lexington water is on brewers friend i think. I have cayce water which sucks. So i go to walmart and buy gallon jugs for 60c each

 

[Oceangrace24]

I have Carolina Water in the Oak Grove area.
Here is my report. And I absolutely make adjustments with every brew using Bru'n water.

So for those of you that live in the Lexington/West Columbia Area, have you gotten a water report? Do you make adjustments to your water for brewing?

 

[carpathia]

I like DIY for the discount, and Kevin seems more of a brewer than Bet Mar, and tends to have a better selection for some things. That being said, Bet Mar has done me a solid a few times, like when my yeast was non-viable two days before doing the christmas quad. You can't really go wrong with either.

 

[TravelingLight]

So you gonna let it condition and age till december?

Also what does everyone have planned for this hurricane? I stocked up on beer. I also have a beer in a keg and another beer that could be kegged soon. I hope we dont lose power. No cold beer!

I brewed a hazy boi Friday morning and damn if it wasn't one of the smoothest easiest going brew days I've had in a while. Knocked it out in 4.5 hours, and I'm usually at 5.5-6 hours for my NEIPAs (with multiple whirlpools). I'll add the second dry hop later this week before we fly out to Denver for a few days. Then keg it when I get back. I always love coming home from vacay to fresh homebrew.

I know some people caught hell with this hurricane, and that sucks. A lot of us have been there before. But at least where I am downtown, it was a whole bunch of nothing. Didn't even get enough wind to knock down this dead branch I can't reach in my white pine.

 

[SHAIV]

Yeah man. I used about two rolls of duck tape to keep my outdoor stuff secure. There was some dirt on my deck and i was like oh the storm will take care of that... nope. Had to take the hose to it yesterday after taking all my duck tape down

 

[SHAIV]

Fortunately I still have a all my equipment except my Kegerator. Never made it to all grain but that’s my goal.

Dude extract is not as bad as it used to be. I got an extract in my keg currently and its a very nice ipa. I mean if its loaded with hops then... lol I love brewing all grain but i find it hard to find time to brew lately as my youngest son isnt even 1 yet so its hard for me to get an all grain going at the moment.

 

[SHAIV]

It may be a pin lock keg but dang thats a good deal! If i didnt already have 4 ball lock kegs id be getting at least one

 

[TravelingLight]

View attachment 590060
It may be a pin lock keg but dang thats a good deal! If i didnt already have 4 ball lock kegs id be getting at least one

Saw that this morning and briefly considered it because damn that's cheap. But then I'd have to convert it to ball lock, etc and I was like yeeeeah nah.

 

[Lifer59]

I think it’s a typo. I went to the site and it’s listed for 39.95.

 

[CarolinaMatt]

totally off topic from what you guys are discussing above. . . Full Spectrum Brewing: A co-worker mentioned to me yesterday he is pretty sure they closed. Their website no longer works and google search says closed.

Anyone have an idea what happened? Was on my list to check out soon. . . guess that will not be happening.

 

[TravelingLight]

totally off topic from what you guys are discussing above. . . Full Spectrum Brewing: A co-worker mentioned to me yesterday he is pretty sure they closed. Their website no longer works and google search says closed.

Anyone have an idea what happened? Was on my list to check out soon. . . guess that will not be happening.

Not sure. I hadn't even heard of them until you mentioned it and I checked the google.

 

[CarolinaMatt]

Not sure. I hadn't even heard of them until you mentioned it and I checked the google.

Yea was open a few years. My Co-worker said the beers were decent, but the location was terrible and not exactly easy to find. Guessing no one will ever know what happened.

 

[Lifer59]

Yelp says permanently closed and nothing about it’s closing from google. Website says the site is expired. You would think that someone would say something about it.

 

[CarolinaMatt]

Yelp says permanently closed and nothing about it’s closing from google. Website says the site is expired. You would think that someone would say something about it.

Yep agreed. At least a goodbye party to go through any remaining inventory and make a little more cash. Very odd.

 

[SHAIV]

Brewed a black ipa last night and im keg fermenting it. My last few batches only had less than an inch of krausen so i left about 2 in of headspace in my keg. The reason im keg fermenting is to pressure ferment. Which ive also read that will reduce krausen as well. So i brewed it last night. I loaded it with hops. I added about 2.7 oz of homegrown hops to northern brewers ace of spades black ipa kit. With around 4.5 gallons after boil and in the fermenter i got an sg of 1.071. I sealed it up with my spunding valve on the keg and this morning the liquid out post was leaking. So i fashioned a device to stop the leak. I also used a shortened dip tube so it wont suck up much (if any) yeast and dry hops. I may only get around 4 gallons in the serving keg but i hope itll be good.

Transferring to keg

Hop spider full of whole and pellet hops

Headspace left in the keg after aerating

Leaking post

Leaking keg post fix haha

 

[TravelingLight]

Brewed a black ipa last night and im keg fermenting it. My last few batches only had less than an inch of krausen so i left about 2 in of headspace in my keg. The reason im keg fermenting is to pressure ferment. Which ive also read that will reduce krausen as well. So i brewed it last night. I loaded it with hops. I added about 2.7 oz of homegrown hops to northern brewers ace of spades black ipa kit. With around 4.5 gallons after boil and in the fermenter i got an sg of 1.071. I sealed it up with my spunding valve on the keg and this morning the liquid out post was leaking. So i fashioned a device to stop the leak. I also used a shortened dip tube so it wont suck up much (if any) yeast and dry hops. I may only get around 4 gallons in the serving keg but i hope itll be good.
View attachment 590768
Transferring to keg
View attachment 590769
Hop spider full of whole and pellet hops
View attachment 590770
Headspace left in the keg after aerating
View attachment 590771
Leaking post
View attachment 590772
Leaking keg post fix haha

Nice thinking on the leaky post fix!