BeerTools Discussion Forum

I'm gonna have to get me one of dem magnetic stirrers. I've heard they are the s$&*t for yeast starters. I checked Ebay, and it looks like you can pick up used ones for less than $20. Is there anything in particular thatr I should look for??

For a five gallon batch on almond-vanilla dunkelweizen, we used 12 oz of amaretto and 2 oz of vanilla extract (artificial. This ratio produced an very slight vanilla flavor that took a while to become apparent. Since you may use real vanilla extract, I'm not sure what ratio is appropriate. The fact ...

This simple method has always provided good results for me. For a ten gallon batch; 1) Boil 1 qt of water & 1 cup light DME & 1 tsp yeast nutrient for 15 min. 2) Add to a santized jar (or growler) and allow to cool to about 85F. Note that if you are using pyrex, you can immerse the hot conta...

I took the lid off my fermentor yesterday to check a few things out and was surprised to find a thin chalky film on top of the beer. I tried to remove the film with a sanitized spoon, but it is very tough to remove. The beer tastes OK, no wierd flavors or anything. My plan is to filter the beer when...

We went full circle with this topic a few months ago. In my opinion, you can achieve better uniformity w/ extract. The companies that make extract put alot of time into product consistency and conformity, so why not take advantage. With raw beans, you may wind up with different flavor concentrations...

My buddy had a pack of wyeast that may have had a similar problem; he left it in his car in the summer and it COOKED! Later, the pack expanded to about 1 inch, but I'm accustommed to them really expanding to the point that they feel like they want to explode. We canned the package. After ten hours, ...

I don't know about White LAbs, but the Wyeast website has great profiles of all of their products. I'm sure you would find an appropriate yeats for your style. Maybe "German Wheat" or "American Wheat". I know these ferment cleaner than the weizen yeasts.

Good german rauch malt is readily available for less than $2 / pound, and a little goes along way. I'm sure you can smoke it yourself, but from my experience (as a brewer & a smoker) you results would likely vary from session to session,consumer model smokers just dont offer that great of temp c...

I had brewed beer twice in college from kits. The first was pretty good, but typically watery/cidery. The next was rotten. There was just no way that my apartment could have supported a sanitary process. I gave up for 7 years, then decided my friends and I would give it a try. My experience with the...

I started brewing using only liquid Wyeast, and have had fine results but; It is very expensive. I homebrew to provide house beer (not just a hobby) so economics are a factor. This being said, I have experimented w/ Danstar Nottingham yeast for my APA, IPA, American Brown Ale, and even a Belgian Pal...

My recipe was based on "Colonel's Honey Porter" from "The Homebrewer's Bible". I'll dig out the book this week, but If I recall correctly, there was no difference in fermentaion time than other beers. Fermentation temp was that of an ale. For you, it will be dependant on your yea...

Thanks for the tips Mesa & abbiesdad. I'll probably take a crack at it this winter, when I have a little better (& cheaper) control over temperature. I checked out stpats and they actually sell budvar all-grain kits. I have never decoction mashed, so this oughtta be fun. I'm a little disappo...

Anyone have a good clone recipe for Budvar? I picked up a case this week (sold in US as Czechvar) and was reminded about how truly great this beer is. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

Andy

I brewed an Imperial Stout a year or so ago called "Na Zdrovye". It's not something you hear every day (outside of western PA), but is my family's typical toast. I felt obligated to interject a comment about your honey ale; I brewed a honet porter some time ago w/ about 2 lbs of honey in a...

Theres been alot of talk lately about holding temps in the summertime. I use big plastic conicals, so it's really tough for me to use some of the methods that have been presented in earlier discussion. I have a spring house that is almost 80% buried. The combo of the cool earth and the cool water fl...