What I did for beer today

[ba-brewer]

Cleaned a keg and kegged my Mosaic smash IPA. Beer had pretty strong grapefruit flavor which I have never noticed from mosaic before.

Also got a CO2 tank refilled. It kicked about a month earlier than normal so I might have or a had a slight leak. The regulator to tank seal looked a bit rough so I changed it to play it safe.

 

[Pehlman17]

Pressure transferred the first batch fermented in 6 gal. Torpedo kegs. Used Flotit 2.0 floating dip tubes. Dry hop was a pound of Citra pellets (1/2 pound in each keg). After a 4 day cold crash transferred great with zero clogging/hop issues.

I ferment in standard corny kegs and was just looking into the FLOTit 2.0, and was curious if it also works well for dry hopping. Have you been pretty satisfied with the FLOTit overall?? Right now I use a shortened dip tube with a filter screen over it (a la Scott Janish). Do you use a FLOTit in your serving keg as well or does it leave enough behind that a standard dip tube works fine?

Edit: Apologies for the dumb second question

 

[KeizerBrewr]

Spun up a starter for my cream ale that will be brewed sometime this long weekend.

 

[Immocles]

Kegged the rye IPA that I dumped over the top of a cream ale cake (k-97). That beer fermented crazy quick and I'll have to try doing that more often when I bother to plan out my brewing order.

 

[Deric]

I ferment in standard corny kegs and was just looking into the FLOTit 2.0, and was curious if it also works well for dry hopping. Have you been pretty satisfied with the FLOTit overall?? Right now I use a shortened dip tube with a filter screen over it (a la Scott Janish). Do you use a FLOTit in your serving keg as well or does it leave enough behind that a standard dip tube works fine?

Edit: Apologies for the dumb second question

The FLOTits have been working great with dry hops. The outer screen is a bit fiddly to assemble but so far that's the only complaint. I only use the outer screen when dry hopping and always cold crash for 3-4 days before transferring to serving kegs. The serving kegs have original uncut dip tubes with no screens.

 

[JAReeves]

Finally got a day to clean kegs, discovered that mold took control in a couple. Tomorrow will be a trip to the LHBS for new o-rings and gaskets.

Was having trouble getting the FG down on my Barley Wine, considering it was mostly extract and I used an active starter I was surprised the yeast pooped out on me. Thought to myself, “Self! That’s why you always have S-05 in the keezer!” Two sachets dropped on top, and looking for goodness to happen in a week or so. It’s already bubbling again.

For the 12 Beers of Christmas group: I tasted my tincture of bourbon and spices for the Spiced Bourbon Stout and Holy Cloves, Batman! Those wee bastards eclipse ALL other flavors. Glad I didn’t just throw it in, it would not be good. So the beer sits in a bourbon barrel another couple of weeks while I try again with a different spiced Bourbon tincture.

 

[grampamark]

Drove to West Yellowstone, got checked into the motel, drove to the wedding venue to figure out how to serve the keg of Cream Ale I brought. Nobody seemed to know what the plan was when I called ahead so we just showed up. Turns out a college buddy of my wife‘s cousin was into charge of the beer. He works on a brewery in Bozeman. They had a 6-tap keezer behind the bar with 5 ball lock kegs which they were in the process of tapping. We just switched my pin lock QDs for ball locks and put my beer on the 6th tap. Turned out that 2 of the 5 beers on hand were also variations on a Cream Ale. I’ll get some pics of the bar when we go back this evening. It’s pretty impressive.

 

[DBhomebrew]

Welcomed a new carpenter into the shop by cutting work an hour early for some of my homebrew.

 

[loganklaas]

Kegged a Hazy Pale Ale and washed the fermenter.

 

[seatazzz]

Milled grain for planned Fresh Squeezed Clone brewday tomorrow. Then husband comes home with the rather unexpected news that he has put his notice in at his job of 22 years. Understandably so, since his physical and mental health has been suffering for a bit. Still a bit of a shock. On the plus side of that, don't have to pay someone to do the long-needed maintenance around the house. At least that's what I'm telling myself. His profession (warehouse lead) is much in demand around here, with a very small pay cut, so I'm not worried he'll find something else, but it's still requiring me to finish off a bottle of mead to settle my nerves. Or maybe two.

 

[grampamark]

Back from the rehearsal dinner. There ain’t enough bandwidth to adequately describe the facility. Suffice it to say that, in the buildings on the property, there is over 100 years of Yellowstone Park history. The amount of stuff that the family who owned the place, and were the exclusive concessionaires for the park from 1915 until about 20 years ago, collected over that time is mind boggling. I’ll just leave a few pics here.

The bar was purchased from a hotel in England and shipped to Montana. It’s about 40 feet long.

The 6 tap keezer at the end of the bar. My beer is on the far right.

“The conductor sings his song again. The passengers will please refrain…”

 

[Brewbuzzard]

Force carbonating my Kolsch

 

[seanjwalker1]

Built an insulated keg carrier. Not exactly a work of art but should transport a keg to a wedding this weekend.
View attachment 772019

Dang it Grandpa don't be modest ! That's a work of art !!! I love good ol ingenew...enginenew....ingenious...you know what I mean...figuring things out

 

[seanjwalker1]

Happy Fathers Day dad's, grandpa's, stepdad, foster dads and generally any man who has the fortitude to do your best to raise a child no matter how hard it is or was... SALUTE.

 

[BrewZer]

Yeah, I could get behind that. I might suggest calling it N. American Summer Beers. There's nothing wrong with Lawnmower Beers, we all know what it means, but it's too established as a term and covers way too much ground. N. American wheat beers, fruit beers, Hefes, Kolsch, Cream Ale, CAP, the various N. American lagers, Golden Ale, Australian Golden Ale maybe even dry examples of UK Summer Ale, etc, they're all "lawnmower beers." The AHA would need something much more narrow to create a "style."

Spit-balling, "A style of beer designed for consumption during hot summers in N. America, emphasizing dryness and a refreshing quality. The grist is not tightly defined and can be any color, provided it is dry and refreshing. Adjuncts are often used (corn, rice, sugar), but not necessary. Hopping can be variable, bitterness and hop flavor are acceptable, provided that they do not detract from the refreshing, quaffable quality of this style. Yeast selection is also variable, but should emphasize the refreshing and quaffable nature of this style."

I would add "...and is especially flavorful while grilling or consuming meat cooked on the barbeque."

Meanwhile, I forayed to the LHBS to pick up specialty malts, a bag of 2-row, hops and yeast for a nice batch of... Lawn Mower Ale. I think I'ma try campden tablets and just use tap water this time.

 

[JAReeves]

'Tis been a wee bit o' a train wreck the last week or so, as the 'Rona has cascaded through the household one at a time. I seem to be immune (hubris, anyone?) so I have been caretaking for two weeks and not getting much else done (well, working from home). Thankfully the vaccinations have diminished the virus to ugly cold status, and so far all are doing ok. I have been maintaining my fermenters and doing light cleaning in the brewery while I wait for the opportunity to do something new; but I can say that I have stocked up on Brazilian Pepper honey for the next mead, and have several wines and beers on deck. Happy belated Father's Day all!

 

[aharri1]

Installed my rims system from brew hardware. Very nice !! Time for some step mashes and decoction on lagers!! Ran some water to test and calibrate it.

 

[seatazzz]

Finally got results of last competition. I had five entries; scores ranged from 24 to 39. Took a 2nd & 3rd with the 2nd place beer being the one I thought had the least chance. It's a Brown that I did BIAB, I still have it on tap; in my opinion it was a bit too weak, but it got good comments and an aggregate score of 39, which I'm proud of. Kept a bottle of each entry so I could taste while reading along with the scoresheets. Working on the IPA now; it's my favorite of all the beers I brew, and I'm like a doting parent slightly disappointed in my kid's report card; but I know it (I) can do better. Lager did the worst at 24, and after tasting the bottle (which I did not finish) I'm agreeing with what was commented. This is fun!! (burp)

 

[Sam_92]

Finally got results of last competition. I had five entries; scores ranged from 24 to 39. Took a 2nd & 3rd with the 2nd place beer being the one I thought had the least chance. It's a Brown that I did BIAB, I still have it on tap; in my opinion it was a bit too weak, but it got good comments and an aggregate score of 39, which I'm proud of. Kept a bottle of each entry so I could taste while reading along with the scoresheets. Working on the IPA now; it's my favorite of all the beers I brew, and I'm like a doting parent slightly disappointed in my kid's report card; but I know it (I) can do better. Lager did the worst at 24, and after tasting the bottle (which I did not finish) I'm agreeing with what was commented. This is fun!! (burp)

Good for you! I've never entered a competition and I know deep down I'm scared of learning that I'm not as good of a beer as I think I am. Second and third place is really impressive and you should be proud!

 

[seatazzz]

Good for you! I've never entered a competition and I know deep down I'm scared of learning that I'm not as good of a beer as I think I am. Second and third place is really impressive and you should be proud!

I'm probably not the only one who will say this, but do NOT be afraid of competitions, and the ensuing comments/scores. Most of us love our own beer, and so (for the most part) do our family and friends; but getting feedback from someone who has been (hopefully) well trained to judge beer is something else. You may not agree with what they say, but like I (and many others) do, save some of your entries to taste while reading their comments/suggestions; the best judges will not only criticize fairly, but also offer educated advice on how to improve your beer. And have the BJCP guidelines handy as well. My first competition I sent a beer that I knew was bad, but I wanted the comments; and what the judges told me was pretty much spot on.

 

[grampamark]

Cleaned up my flea market finds. Seven assorted glasses for 3-4 bucks apiece.

 

[seanjwalker1]

Cleaned up my flea market finds. Seven assorted glasses for 3-4 bucks apiece.
View attachment 772644

It's not flea market finds Grandpa. Think like the brew warrior you are!!! It's well gotten brewing war treasure !

 

[seanjwalker1]

Dumped 3 gallons Czech and 1.5 gallons Irish Red, it was past time. Then cleaned and sanitized the kegs using the keg washer wife got me for Xmas. Wow ! Talk about saving time !!! On deck...gotta brew them first..Doppelbock and Brittish Golden Honey.

 

[grampamark]

Dumped 3 gallons Czech and 1.5 gallons Irish Red, it was past time. Then cleaned and sanitized the kegs using the keg washer wife got me for Xmas. Wow ! Talk about saving time !!! On deck...gotta brew them first..Doppelbock and Brittish Golden Honey.

My condolences on the loss of your beer.

 

[seanjwalker1]

My condolences on the loss of your beer.

Yes...even though it was past their time dang it if they didn't still taste good ! But it was at least 2 months past their 3 months in keg. It was time to clean the kegs and beer lines before something alien started to grow ! Trying to keep up standards that I got lax with over the winter. And ice is forming in the kegerator. It's only 2 years old and the wife would have a come to Jesus if I don't take care of it

 

[McMullan]

I told Vladimir Putin to **** off.

 

[seanjwalker1]

My condolences on the loss of your beer.

Ashes to ashes, grains to glass...to toilet

 

[Beerstein]

Dear diary,

Today spike sent me a marketing email, and I ended up buying stuff like I was going through Costco with a large cart. Please don't tell the wife.

-Stein

 

[ba-brewer]

Kegged the second half of my last golden ale. The other half with Voss started in a keg and got put in the cooler after 5 days so I gave it try todays (5days chilled)to see how it was. Even with a top draw type device it was very cloudy so I gave it a dose of gelatin.

 

[Sam_92]

I don't think Voss likes to flocculate. At all. Makes some tasty and very unique beers though.