BeerTools Discussion Forum

If you brewed a 5 gallon batch, then according to the beer analysis tool, you should have had an OG of around 1.074. According to Wyeast specs, their 1338 has an apparent attenuation of 67 - 71% (60 - 72 degrees F). If one uses the median attenuation value, 69%, then the expected FG would be at or a...

I've used Magnum many times for bittering, though in small amounts, it also makes a good finishing hop. Magnum is a high alpha Hallertau derivative. Avg. alpha is around 13-15%. Like Hallertau, it has a rather spicy flavor that goes well in pilsners, & lagers. The last time I used it was in a Du...

Wyeast 2112 is a yeast we use on a fairly frequent basis for lots of different beer styles. Even at ale temps (65 degrees F), one gets a clean, yet malty flavor profile. IMHO, this is one of the more versatile yeasts available to homebrewers. Enjoy!

Terry

Are you referring to fermented cider made in Middlebury VT? From what I've read, that Woodchuck is a aparkling New England Style Cider. According to BJCP guidelines, NE style is fermented from cider using wild or wine yeast, and has no adjuncts other than white or brown sugar, molasses, honey(sparin...

You poor thing! (I'm still giggling...no offense.) I'm confident you'll get plenty of good advice on cleaning/sanitizing your gummy fermentors from the rest of the forum, but I couldn't resist informing you of the existence of a number of sulfur based life forms already present in our biosphere; man...

Actually, you can use as little as 3/8 c. corn sugar to carbonate beer in a corny keg. I'd start with 1/2c., see how that batch carbonates. The beauty of a corny keg is that if your beer gets overcarbonated, you can always release CO2!

If you don't want to invest extra $$ in a fridge, (or in extra CO2 needed to force carbonate) why not just use corn sugar to carbonate your beer? It doesn't take particularly long and can easily be done at room temperature. You use less corn sugar to carbonate beer in a corny keg...only 1/2 c., diss...

Astringency in beer can be caused by a number of factors. Two common causes which come to mind are too high a hopping schedule, and too high a temperature when steeping grains. I noticed you mentioned you steeped your grains at 170 degrees. This might be contributing to the astringency you've notice...

I've read this thread with interest. You said early on that you're using Sweet Mead yeast to ferment your must (as opposed to champagne yeast, for instance). I believe, (and you might want to check this out for yourself, but isn't Sweet mead yeast used because 1.) It tolerates higher gravity musts, ...

Hey guys! Did someone say he wanted caramel flavor AND a nice red color? Next time you brew, try a little Special B. At 120 L, it is the darkest of the caramel malts imparting a gorgeous red color to whatever beer you're making PLUS it is the most intensely flavored of the caramel malts. If you stil...

I'm not sure if there's more to this thread than the two messages I can see, however... Special B does indeed give a nice red color, however it also gives quite an intense hit of caramel flavor. If you're looking to add caramel to your flavor profile, this is one way to do it. A SMALL amount of choc...

I have no real knowlege of hop chemistry, per se (except that I am a homebrewer), but I do have experience with Magnum. Magnum is a high alpha hop with noble hop parentage; Hallertau to be precise. The bittering is assertive,but not harsh like you can get with some of the other higher alpha hops (ie...

Well now I have mill envy!
As for forgetting to aerate the wort...be there, done that. Relax, have a homebrew...

Hello again.When you say starter, do you mean you propagate the yeast from the slap pack in a quart of malt extract and water, and pitch it when it reaches high krausen? If this is what you are doing, a 1.064 gravity beer might be a bit much for a new batch of yeast to ferment.You may want to consid...

Once in a while I like to do what a friend of mine calls a mini decoction (it's a technique she taught me). All it entails is after mashing the grains for about 35-40 min. @ 150 F, simply removing 1/3 of the thickest part of the mash, slowly bringing it up to a boil, and boiling for about 15 min. Th...