What I did for beer today

Williams 728
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Bottled the latest version of ESB. Let's see how it develops in the bottles.. WLP002 yeast from 1.058-9 to 1.013.

esb.jpg
 
After a few post-work & shopping pints, finally got the level down in the overfull keg enough that it will carbonate properly. Even partially carbonated this latest WF lager is delicious. Even the husband, who absolutely hates tasting my beer before it's fully carbonated, likes it. Just means I'll have to sip on some Holiday Ale tonight when I finally decorate the tree that's been set up a week and a half. I gots priorities.
 
ESBrewer said:
Bottled the latest version of ESB. Let's see how it develops in the bottles.. WLP002 yeast from 1.058-9 to 1.013.

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Looks quite pale for what most would expect from an ESB. My Bitters have been gotten quite pale since I went to 90% base malt with the rest a combination of light crystal and sugar.
 
day_trippr said:
Big mamma jamma stout started up...

View attachment 711282

[edit] Nailed the pre-boil volume and gravity :ban: , tweaked the kettle pH, and the long boil is on!

View attachment 711315

[epilogue] Hit volume to fermentors and OG on the nose, pitched double packs of hydrated S04 and gassed both carboys, cleaned the kettle, and got done just in time for dinner.

Then I took a cat nap 😴

From the hour ramping 24 gallons of water up to start the day then a 110 minute mash then an hour fly sparge then a 100 minute boil then a 20 minute cool down then 30 minutes waiting on the yeast to bloom and finally 30 minutes of final clean up makes for one hella long brew day for an old fart like me. Woof, I'm gassed...

Cheers!
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Looks like a success for sure. Didn't realize that only two packs of hydrated S04 could take down this monster at 1.107 OG. Awesome stuff!
 
ba-brewer said:
Looks quite pale for what most would expect from an ESB. My Bitters have been gotten quite pale since I went to 90% base malt with the rest a combination of light crystal and sugar.
Click to expand...

It is about the same color now as Fuller's beer (could be even a tad darker since I put a bit of medium crystal back in the recipe for the color) that I'm trying to mimick. The pictures can be sometimes misleading when the beer is put in a smaller vessel. Plus some brewers expect/prefer strong bitter (Fuller's that invented the brand name ESB included) to be darker than it actually is. I can show u a comparison when I open the first bottle.
 
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ESBrewer said:
It is about the same color now as Fuller's beer (could be even a tad darker since I put a bit of medium crystal back in the recipe for the color) that I'm trying to mimick. The pictures can be sometimes misleading when the beer is put in a smaller vessel. Plus some brewers expect/prefer strong bitter (Fuller's that invented the brand name ESB included) to be darker than it actually is. I can show u a comparison when I open the first bottle.
Click to expand...
Looked back at the picture and took note of the volume this time, I did pay attention to that it is only a few ounces. It is sometime surprising how different a beer looks in the kettle vs the transfer lines or hydro sample.
 
Opened presents with Mom and Sisters families today which means I got the fourth and final tap for my keezer. Once we wrapped up the family zoom calls and had dessert I immediately went down and got it installed. Another couple of days and the winter saison I have fermenting will be ready to keg. Looking forward to having a larger selection of beers on tap!
 
today:
Watching bubbles, all three yeasts moving about the same pace.

yesterday:
Kegged my Red Rye at night IPA, aroma and flavor was nice uncarbed so look forward to sampling in a few weeks. One of the toughest transfers in a while, got more yeast cake then normal which buried my dip tube. Wlp007 is such a hard flocker that the transfer line got plugged several time. I tried using CO2 pressure to blow it through but even that did not work so I had to open the fermentor which voiding the closed transfer. It was a half size batch so it should go fast anyways.

Weatherman predicting chances of rain for the next week so I did a quick BIAB ordinary bitter. I split it into three sub 1gal batches to verify wlp022, wlp026 and wlp038. Will only get a 6 pack or a few bombers of each but should help me move fasters through my slant library to keep things fresh. Will also work like a big starter but with beer you can drink.

edit: fixed some funny wording
 
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Yesterday ordered some brewery essentials with the amazon $$ I received from the parental; two new mash bags, some produce bags that are the shiznit for boiling/dry hopping, some s23 yeast, and more brewing salts. Brewing tomorrow, so today is dedicated to removing all the trash from the garage, replacing tools to their rightful spots, and laundry. Also tomorrow supposed to figure out how to install the Blink security camera system that the man bought from Costco; with an eye to that, ordered a wifi extender as well. Later I'll build a fire in the woodstove to burn some of the trash, and enjoy a tall pint of something, dunno what yet. As always when I reorganize the garage, found a bunch of stuff I'd been looking for (and some I hadn't): about five 10mm sockets that I can NEVER find when I need one (because EVERYTHING these days needs 10mm); two quick disconnect swivel/barb thingies that I thought I didn't have; more spring clamps than I realized I owned; an extension cord that was plugged into an outlet but nothing plugged into it; three box knives (another thing I always need and can never find); random parts of the car I no longer own; and the drill bit I need for drilling holes in my wooden mash paddle. Also killed a keg that will soon be refilled with WF lager deliciousness. And it's only 10:30am.
 
Cleaned a Heady Topper clone keg that kicked on Wednesday and mixed up step one of a two-step yeast starter for a Black is Beautiful Stout.

Did inventory and sorted out a recipe for a Citra and Cascade pale ale before ordering what ingredients weren't in the inventory. I feel so organized. Which will last until five minutes into the next brew session and it all goes to hell.

IMG_0088.png
 
Had a great brewday, did some more cleaning, watched a truly epic football game (GO HAWKS oh crap wrong thread), and got the husband to drink three pints of the latest lager. Kegged off #2 of the 10g lager batch from 3 weeks ago, put it on serving pressure to carbonate slowly since I don't need it yet. Good weekend, except I need to take the plate chiller apart again to fix the leak on the water-in side. Not a big deal but it bugs me.
 
Cleaned and sanitized an empty keg. Tapped my Obi Ron's Wheat beer - delicious too! Then replaced one of the 10 ft. beer lines on my kegerator (first time in 6 years since purchase). Found the flared nylon washer to be very brittle and worn out inside the barbed swivel nut. Overall, the beer line was discolored, but it was time to replace. It helped to extend the life by cleaning and flushing with Beer Line Cleaner (BLC) after every kicked keg. Note the yellow zip tie next to the fitting. I color code each beer line and faucet this way as it helps to avoid confusion on what line serves what tap.
 

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Picked up the latest order from the LHBS
Ordered vanilla beans from Amazon
Finished the tap handles. Granted they are amateur in comparison to others on here but I'm a plumber, not a carpenter.

One has her tag on it because Diamond is over the Rainbow Bridge now. But these 2 pups are who I named my home brewery after.
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Replaced the weldless kettle bulkhead o-rings for the ball valve and temperature element on my 8 gallon Bayou Classic. Now I need to order spares to have on hand for emergencies.
 

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