Top 5 things I wish I knew when I first started homebrewing.

[kombat]

Article was meant to be my experience... nothing more.

So we weren't supposed to discuss the content and offer our own opinions? We were just supposed to read what one nameless stranger on the Internet wished he'd known, then move on to the next thread, without adding our own opinions or suggestions? You were just expecting a series of "Thanks for the insight into your fascinating life!" posts?

(Re: Yeast)Isn't that what I said?

You mentioned yeast starters, which I think is asking too much of a new brewer. I instead advised using a yeast calculator to determine how much yeast you need, then just reaching that amount by pitching enough packets of dry or liquid yeast.

 

[iBrewR]

Also keep in mind the title is "Top 5 things I wish I knew when I first started homebrewing."

I'm with kombat and all narcissism aside, I think it reads more like:

Top 5 things I wish I knew when I first started homebrewing.

 

[kiblerjd]

You know I deal with this every day at work because written text (email) is so easy to misinterpret. Sometimes I wish I could have these conversations in person because really I think we would see eye to eye. If you are ever in the Albany NY area and want to brew a batch look me up. I fully welcome all of the feedback from everyone on this site and I think that's part of what makes this site great. I took your post as kind of "kombative" but either way your opinions are just as valid as mine and just as welcomed. So cheers to you.

As far as the yeast starter thing goes my comment was "I noticed a step change in the quality of my beer when I started using a yeast calculator and making starters for my beer." I would rather see a new brewer learn to make a starter as opposed to spending double the money on yeast per batch. No way should a beginner be worried about washing yeast but I guess in my eyes the starter is no more complicated than making a small extract batch without hops. I feel like we are actually agreeing with each other here we are just saying it differently. A brand spanking new brewer should probably use dry yeast and not have to worry about any of this. When they get a little experience I think the liquid yeast and starter should be an easy transition.

Again cheers and thanks for the comments.






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[kiblerjd]

I posted this on the article page and figured i would discuss it here as well.

I figured since I wrote this article I would refrain from being lazy and do the research on fermcap-s. The active ingredient in fermcap-s is polydimethylsiloxane which is commonly referred to as dimethicone. Dimethicone is used in a ton of food and non-food stuff, however medical companies mix dimethicone with silica gel which makes simethicone. Simethicone is in just about every stomach illness or digestive related medicine you can think of such as rolaids, mylanta, infant gas drops, etc.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simethicone

If i had to guess, the company that makes fermcap-s probably puts silica gel in this product to make it simethicone but either way it doesn't matter because its all the same stuff.

So i will never argue with anyone who doesn't put extra chemicals in their beer, that is just a no brainer. But as far as this product goes the reality is that everyone reading this post has at some point in their lives eaten this stuff whether it be in a rolaid or a McDonalds french fry. If its good enough to stick in my baby's bottle it's good enough to stick in my beer. So if you want to take some stress out of your brew day because your pot is a little on the small side, I think fermcap-s is a pretty safe product to use.

Just my 2 cents. I hope this helps.

 

[Darwin18]

I'm not trying to knock your list, but I find it odd that your Top 5 doesn't include fermentation temperature control. That's easily the biggest influence on brewing great and consistent beer, especially since we're now in June.

Agree with you on starters and yeast pitching calculators. That would be #2 on my personal list. The idea that making a starter would be challenging is laughable. Boil water, add pre-measured weight of LDME, cool, and pitch yeast. If they can't handle that, they shouldn't be brewing in the first place.

 

[TimmyWit]

I'm not trying to knock your list, but I find it odd that your Top 5 doesn't include fermentation temperature control. That's easily the biggest influence on brewing great and consistent beer, especially since we're now in June.

Agree with you on starters and yeast pitching calculators. That would be #2 on my personal list. The idea that making a starter would be challenging is laughable. Boil water, add pre-measured weight of LDME, cool, and pitch yeast. If they can't handle that, they shouldn't be brewing in the first place.

I think there was just some confusion over the intent of this thread. OP was posting this from a perspective that he already knew about temperature control. He took a short break from brewing and when he reengaged, these are 5 new things that he learned and wanted to share. If this was a thread about the top 5 things to improve your beer after you brew your first kit, I would concur that temp control would be at the top of that list.

 

[nordork]

Thanks, all good info.