What I did for beer today

[ba-brewer]

Yeah, I left the lousy dry hops out of the dry hops keg. I've got them in there now...and a bit of oxygen. Oh, well, these things happen. I've been brewing for 30 years, I suppose that perfect keg of beer is just around the corner

Regarding 6-row, I do not believe that the enzymatic power of 6-row is necessary in a CAP. Pretty much all 2-row, domestic or Continental, is hot enough to do the heavy lifting on an adjunct heavy mash. I've brewed 30% adjunct (20% corn/10% rice) CAPs with Avengard, Weyermann Pils, and Wyermann Barke. All hit the expected TG quickly.

I do prefer the flavor of 6-row in a CAP, however. So that's why I tend to include it in my recipes. Depending upon the sub-recipe within my Panther Piss series, 6-row may be the only only barley, the majority of the barely, or riding shotgun when Munich, Vienna, or a combination of the two is taking the drivers seat.

Regarding brand, I brew all-grain 6-gallon batches in an apartment in Washington, DC. I wish I could buy 6-row by the 55lb sack, but I just don't have the room. I use a lot of it, so I find it useful to buy it by 5lb increments online as a way of making my latest purchase eligible for free shipping. The only information I have about the 6-row that I use is what all the major websites say, "6-row, American." I'm assuming it's Briess or Rhar, maybe Great Western? I have no clue. It is actual 6-row, I always verify that, by eye.

Regarding protein...There *is* some difference. I don't get to look at the data sheets, but I do see the results. I take some pride in the fact that I brew stupidly clear beers w/o filtration--my crap photography skills likely don't capture that. Most of my 6-row beers clear as quickly and completely as my 2-row beers. Nevertheless, I sometimes get a couple of 6-row sacks that refuse to fall brilliant. A good example of this is a CAP that I brewed in December. I bought something from Williams Bros and I hit the free shipping cap with a bunch of 1lb bags of their 6-row. The beer I made with that stuff dropped very clear, but it refused to go brilliant. I have no idea who the maltster was. That happens sometimes with 6-row and it's not Williams' fault. It also happens with 2-row in drought years. Despite all our knowledge and our mastery of chemistry, the barley gets to have its say.

I like that.

Given that you've expressed some interest in my Panther Piss project, this is the current recipe that I'm brewing as Panther Piss Classic LODO. I brew in DC, so all water adjustments are made to the DC tap water preset in the current release of Beersmith. If you use that preset, you'll find that I use a lot more acid than necessary, that is because actual DC tap water has a much higher RA than Beersmith thinks. If you're starting from RO, maybe use a gram more calcium chloride....I'm not sure how to spit ball the gypsum. Maybe 2g, more? And a lot less acid.

Anyway, here's the recipe that I've developed over....nuts, I guess it's nearly three years now.

Volume: 6gal
OG: 1.055
FG: 1.010

9.5 gallons total of Washington, DC tap, four gallons of which is in the HLT.
1 campden tablet divided between strike and HLT
4g of Gypsum (Mash)
2gm Calcium Chloride (Mash)
3ml Phosphoric acid at 85% (target mash pH of 5.3 to get a solid 5.0 post boil, adjust in the last 10min with 1ml of acid, if necessary).
5lb of Barke
3lb of 6-row (you can cereal mash if you want, but the cost of grits at the grocery store is currently higher than the cost of flaked corn and rice from online shops. Personally, I think the LODO, non-cereal mashed approach makes a better beer...but both are good.)
2lb corn
1lb rice
1.8g of Trifecta (LODO thing)
4ml Phosphoric in HLT
1g gypsum (boil)
1g calcium chloride (boil)
1g non-iodized salt, 2g will make a slightly softer beer, good for colder weather (boil)
.25oz Clusters for 90
.5oz Clusters at 20
.5oz Cluster at 10 (Finings of your choice, too)
1.4g Trifect at 10 (LODO thing)
1oz Hallertauer Mittelfrueh at 5
2-3oz Hallertauer Mettelfrueh at KO

Ferment with S-189 at 50F for 1/4 of gravity, then bump to 52F until half gravity, then bump to 54F at 3/4 gravity, then bump to 58 for the final quarter. Do not D-rest unless you have a fool proof anti-oxygen suck-back rig. Primary should take about 5-6 days, then crash for a week. Closed oxygen transfer and keg with 2g Ascorbic Acid the keg fining of your choice.

That's all I know about CAPs for right now. But I'm pushing forward and I'm getting better.

Thanks for the information and sharing your recipe. I rotate thru a few different lagers, German pilsner, Munich Helles and Dortmunder Export but I do a CAPish lager from time to time. I usually target the lower end of the CAP gravity but shift the IBU to the upper end. I normally use either rice or corn but not both in my CAPs, I will have to give that a try next time.

I have used the 6row from this place a few years back but I don't know if it was any better than the generic stuff you can get from most online sources. It had been a while since I looked at their malts, some of the under-modified malts look interesting.
Sugar Creek Base Malts

 

[franknbeans]

Began overhauling the keezer.. more to come (redo collar insulation, running gas line outside, secondary regs, etc.) How's the simulated wood?

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

Cleaned a corny…

 

[seanjwalker1]

Not much, Covid and flu rampaging in my county and neck of the woods in S.E Michigan, spent last night in ER for 12 hours with a sick wife in one hospital while juggling the phone with a sick brother in another hospital. Geeeeesh ! . People were crammed like sardines in the ER hallway and 10/12 hours without ever seeing a doctor. I'm glad I'm a retired nurse. I did manage between minute brief moments of sanity in my trip through ER hell on Earth to catch this awesome kegerator sale in my email. It may have been the one piece of saving grace that kept me grounded last night. May it serve someone well. My kegerator is only 2 years old so if I tried to get this my life would end at dawn in a hail of bullets at my execution from the wife.

 

[hout17]

Not much, Covid and flu rampaging in my county and neck of the woods in S.E Michigan, spent last night in ER for 12 hours with a sick wife in one hospital while juggling the phone with a sick brother in another hospital. Geeeeesh ! . People were crammed like sardines in the ER hallway and 10/12 hours without ever seeing a doctor. I'm glad I'm a retired nurse. I did manage between minute brief moments of sanity in my trip through ER hell on Earth to catch this awesome kegerator sale in my email. It may have been the one piece of saving grace that kept me grounded last night. May it serve someone well. My kegerator is only 2 years old so if I tried to get this my life would end at dawn in a hail of bullets at my execution from the wife.

I feel ya and sorry to hear about that I hope everybody gets better soon. Both me and my wife are trying to get over the covid we got from her brother that showed up sick to the house. Also the brain fog thing is a real thing and it sucks.

That's quite the coupon on those kegerators.

 

[JAReeves]

Not much, Covid and flu rampaging in my county and neck of the woods in S.E Michigan, spent last night in ER for 12 hours with a sick wife in one hospital while juggling the phone with a sick brother in another hospital. Geeeeesh ! . People were crammed like sardines in the ER hallway and 10/12 hours without ever seeing a doctor. I'm glad I'm a retired nurse. I did manage between minute brief moments of sanity in my trip through ER hell on Earth to catch this awesome kegerator sale in my email. It may have been the one piece of saving grace that kept me grounded last night. May it serve someone well. My kegerator is only 2 years old so if I tried to get this my life would end at dawn in a hail of bullets at my execution from the wife.

Blessings and fast healing for your family!

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

Not much, Covid and flu rampaging in my county and neck of the woods in S.E Michigan, spent last night in ER for 12 hours with a sick wife in one hospital while juggling the phone with a sick brother in another hospital. Geeeeesh ! . People were crammed like sardines in the ER hallway and 10/12 hours without ever seeing a doctor. I'm glad I'm a retired nurse. I did manage between minute brief moments of sanity in my trip through ER hell on Earth to catch this awesome kegerator sale in my email. It may have been the one piece of saving grace that kept me grounded last night. May it serve someone well. My kegerator is only 2 years old so if I tried to get this my life would end at dawn in a hail of bullets at my execution from the wife.

Be well! Sorry it’s all happening at once. Take care of yourself too! Trust your loved ones are feeling better soon.

 

[Bramling Cross]

Thanks for the information and sharing your recipe. I rotate thru a few different lagers, German pilsner, Munich Helles and Dortmunder Export but I do a CAPish lager from time to time. I usually target the lower end of the CAP gravity but shift the IBU to the upper end. I normally use either rice or corn but not both in my CAPs, I will have to give that a try next time.

I have used the 6row from this place a few years back but I don't know if it was any better than the generic stuff you can get from most online sources. It had been a while since I looked at their malts, some of the under-modified malts look interesting.
Sugar Creek Base Malts

Oh, wow....

My jaw is on the floor. A six row that they say is good for dark lagers? Man, that seems like a complete sea change! A constant frustration during the Panther Piss project was the giant 64-Crayon box of Pils malts that were available and the one generic version of 6-row available to me. I'm going to need to give them unfettered access to my wallet. There is some amazing stuff there...I want to brew some mild ales with their stuff.

Regarding the corn+rice thing, it was really easy to nail down the corn contribution. I started at 15% and quickly found that 20% yields an assertive, but not over-bearing, "corn is in this beer, and it is absolutely a N. American lager" flavor. Eighty-percent pils and 20% corn made an excellent beer, but it wasn't bone dry enough for DC in August.

I initially fell back on my UK and Belgian knowledge and thought, "Sucrose solves everything!" But this is supposed to be a N. American beer, so I introduced the rice--problem solved. In this recipe, the rice behaves a lot like sucrose. In fact, despite the fact that I was thinking last Fall that the Panther Piss project was officially finished, I'll likely be brewing the above recipe with 10% sucrose next month. Rice doesn't have a lot of residual body, but it does have some... Sugar doesn't, so it should be fun to play with. I'm hoping that sugar will further amplify the core aspects of the grist. I'll be surprised if I find out that the rice is bringing anything tangible to the party.

Thanks again for the great link!

 

[grampamark]

Kegged a Blonde Ale that I brewed about 3 weeks ago.

 

[JAReeves]

Making my first batch of RO water mineral water to see exactly how long it takes to fill a 5.25G keg. Then I know for when it matters, like filling up a HLT!

 

[ba-brewer]

Making my first batch of RO water mineral water to see exactly how long it takes to fill a 5.25G keg. Then I know for when it matters, like filling up a HLT!

How warm your water is will change how long it takes to collect a given amount. Warmer is faster for me but it seems like the mineral content goes up a little.

 

[JAReeves]

How warm your water is will change how long it takes to collect a given amount. Warmer is faster for me but it seems like the mineral content goes up a little.

Good to know, I bet the groundwater in L.A. is closer to 60F than 50F. That is next on my list of things to do.

 

[seanjwalker1]

Sniffed a couple of airlocks.
View attachment 768891

I'm so happy when other brewers admit to sniffing airlocks ! For years my wife has found that very odd. I'm not the sole airlock addict in Airlock Sniffers Anonymous

 

[aharri1]

Took a sample of my lager I spunded in my new conical!

 

[seanjwalker1]

Spent a couple of hours, without success, trying to read about the use of KVIEK yeast in fermenting a Doppelbock. Not much out there. Anybody tried this wonder yeast in a Doppelbock yet and if so how successful was it ? What strain ? I'm leaning toward Omega Voss..kind of blindly. Just a 3 gallon so if it goes South the loss won't be too bad. And yes I've searched HBT for KVIEK/Doppelbock but not much on here either.

 

[loganklaas]

Spent a couple of hours, without success, trying to read about the use of KVIEK yeast in fermenting a Doppelbock. Not much out there. Anybody tried this wonder yeast in a Doppelbock yet and if so how successful was it ? What strain ? I'm leaning toward Omega Voss..kind of blindly. Just a 3 gallon so if it goes South the loss won't be too bad. And yes I've searched HBT for KVIEK/Doppelbock but not much on here either.

I’ve only used Kveik yeast on a lawnmower beer and it was in a kit from Craft A Brew. It worked out amazingly well.

 

[seanjwalker1]

I’ve only used Kveik yeast on a lawnmower beer and it was in a kit from Craft A Brew. It worked out amazingly well.

Yeah almost everything I could find about kviek was in neipa's, Helles, lighter summer type ales. Just wondering about the darker ales if the malt profile and lager cleaness is affected. Be wonderful to brew a Doppelbock without the lagering and in a tenth of the time. I'm gonna try it soon. If it doesn't work, lesson learned and back to the kegerator we go for the slow but tried and true lagering.

 

[earachemyeye69]

Been busy. Have a batch of Japanese style rice lager and a Mexican style corn lager fermenting at the moment. Next up will be an attempt at orange orange shock top.
With all the people drinking my beer I can’t keep up doing 5 gal batches. Brewing about 10 gallons per month at the moment so

 

[ba-brewer]

Spent a couple of hours, without success, trying to read about the use of KVIEK yeast in fermenting a Doppelbock. Not much out there. Anybody tried this wonder yeast in a Doppelbock yet and if so how successful was it ? What strain ? I'm leaning toward Omega Voss..kind of blindly. Just a 3 gallon so if it goes South the loss won't be too bad. And yes I've searched HBT for KVIEK/Doppelbock but not much on here either.

I have only used Lutra and Voss, but only in lighter type beers(kolsch, Helles and IPAs). Lutra is quite clean, very similar to a kolsch yeast and would be my first choice. I believe most of the Kviek where originally used in fairly strong beers so no issues with the gravity of a Doppelbock.

 

[seatazzz]

I have only used Lutra and Voss, but only in lighter type beers(kolsch, Helles and IPAs). Lutra is quite clean, very similar to a kolsch yeast and would be my first choice. I believe most of the Kviek where originally used in fairly strong beers so no issues with the gravity of a Doppelbock.

I've used Lutra in both a Blonde and an IPA; the IPA was just meh, but the blonde was spectacular. Thinking it's because Lutra ferments so much cleaner than the Voss or Hornindal; no esters whatsoever, fermented hot or at ale temperatures. Doing another one today as a matter of fact; it's great if you need a beer done fairly quickly and don't care about lagering it. I've also gotten it pretty darned clear with just gelatin and a good hard crash.

 

[JAReeves]

After a talk with Russ @Buckeye_Hydro, I know what to do to troubleshoot the low pressure in our house/municipal water. The RO System isn't running optimally because of the low house pressure, but it did work great for what I was able to run through it. He was great and patient and I can't recommend him enough!

Reevesie

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

Helped set up prizes and stewarded a flight. Drank some and took my third place ribbon home.

 

[seatazzz]

Got up this morning with not much to do, so fiddled around with the three brewvisions I have. One short probe and two long. Short probe was in the keggle I'm trying to sell since I got a new HLT last week. And had a thought; what if I put the short probe in the BK (which is the one I use for BIAB, when I go that route), so one of the longer ones could be installed in the mash tun? Gathered tools, read instructions three times, and got it done! And discovered something that made my eyes roll. I've always measured the temperature of my mash with a stick thermometer at the top; you see where this is going? Turns out the top is about 4 degrees higher than the middle, which means I've probably been mashing about 144-146 for quite some time. Would explain crappy efficiency. It's going to be beer, just not the ABV I was hoping for in a hazy NEIPA. Oh well, I do like learning!

 

[Rudeoso]

Cleaned 3 kegs that kicked a few days ago, then cleaned the keezer lines and faucets, and finally kegged the Morehazy Juicy DIPA.

 

[Rish]

Added a gallon of canteloupe juice to 4 gallons of wheat beer base. Juice was delicious... hope it comes through in the beer.

 

[franknbeans]

Added a gallon of cantaloupe juice to 4 gallons of wheat beer base. Juice was delicious... hope it comes through in the beer.

that sounds like an interesting combo.. i'm curious how it comes out!

 

[rock_n_herm]

I brewed a hoppy amber ale, featuring Cascade and Centennial.

 

[lumpher]

Thoroughly cleaned and rebuilt 4 kegs. Put my Bells 2-hearted clone back on tap and drank a couple, and ordered a new 2-tap tower for my keezer.

 

[BrewMan13]

(Finally) kicked the gruit-stout, so the black IPA is on. Also means I can get into the schwarzbier more.

 

[mattman91]

Took a gravity reading of my pale ale. Down to 1.009 from 1.050 on Saturday. I’m going to need to buy a new fridge just to store all of the Kveik I’m about to buy.

Smells so good. Orange, mango, pineapple. Yum.