New Brewery!

[levain]

I feel like every couple of years I go through a phase where I try to get people to sell off they're big glass breakable vessels and switch to something more reasonable. I mean, these days, there really is no excuse to use a glass carboy. If you really think the shape is ideal, and you want to see your beer fermenting, use a better bottle. Same thing, just plastic and has better fittings.

Soooo, here we go for those that think I'm full of shit.

Start here

Nice!

Love this one

[Prior]

I pulled the trigger on a kit from Bells tonight with a 5 gal Better Bottle. Glass ones sound great, but I'm not always the most graceful... Love Bells Beer, good to support them a bit too.

Need to decide what to make my first batch, have a feeling I'm going to love this!

[mud]

Originally Posted by Jim Williams

I feel like every couple of years I go through a phase where I try to get people to sell off they're big glass breakable vessels and switch to something more reasonable. I mean, these days, there really is no excuse to use a glass carboy. If you really think the shape is ideal, and you want to see your beer fermenting, use a better bottle. Same thing, just plastic and has better fittings.

Have you heard anything about the better bottles splitting?

[Nytelyte]

Originally Posted by mud

Have you heard anything about the better bottles splitting?

They are pretty darn hardy....



TL;DW: He drops a full one off of a picnic table onto concrete and it does not break.

[mud]

Originally Posted by Nytelyte

They are pretty darn hardy....



TL;DW: He drops a full one off of a picnic table onto concrete and it does not break.

It is rumored that they do not like PBW.... people have had them split after a short period of time. I would much rather have plastic split, than glass break though.

I now they are tough new.

[goosecreek]

Maybe I will try pressure fermeting in a keg. I can not remember if any of you are doing this but if so any advice?

[Apocalypse Cow]

So, I started brewing a few months ago and have been using partial mash kits. I am thinking for one of my next brews I would like to pick my own ingredients. My main question is with all of the diffferent varieties how do you pick the hops?

[fifthcircle]

Originally Posted by Apocalypse Cow

So, I started brewing a few months ago and have been using partial mash kits. I am thinking for one of my next brews I would like to pick my own ingredients. My main question is with all of the diffferent varieties how do you pick the hops?

I pick the hops that will impart the flavors and aroma that I want in my beer.
There are lots of places online with descriptions of hop variety characteristics. Here is one... http://www.brewerylane.com/hops_profiles.html

Also consider style. You wouldn't throw a bunch of flowery citrus hops into a stout. Just bittering and maybe a tad of flavor/aroma later in the boil.

A great way to start your own recipe formulation is to pick a commercial beer you like, look up a clone recipe, and change a couple things for what you think might make it better for you. I love IPA's, and did this with a friends home brew. I used his malt bill, and changed the hops completely. It was great.
Brewing software helps a ton! I use iBrewmaster, and love it. Easy to tweak recipes and know your values before you even buy ingredients.

[tootal]

+1 on brewing software. We use Pro Mash but any of them are great tools. We just took a barleywine recipe and added 20 percent rye but had to take out some base malt to make room for it so with the software you can dial it right back to the same original gravity you had before. At that point it was a ryeleywine. Now since we brewed on St. Paddy's day it became known as O'ryeleywine! Yesterday we pumped 53 gallons of a rye ipa out of a rye whiskey barrel and replaced it with the O'ryeleywine. The IPA is amazing and it's only been in there since November. We'll let the O'ryeleywine sit for a year! Cheers!

As far as hops, try making some small batch single hop light ales. I made a nice drinkable beer with two row base malt and 20 percent 20L crystal/caramal malt. Use only one style of hop and see what that hop taste like. Always save a couple of bottles of each sample and then have a couple of friends over and see if anybody can tell you which hop you used!

[Nytelyte]

Just tasted both the Heffewiesen I commented about earlier and my Strong Ale. The heffe needs another week in the bottle to be ready, the yeast isn't seated fully yet and the carb needs to develop more. Taste is good, though, and I think it will be better in a couple days.

The strong has a very good flavor, toasty on the front, then a bit of sweet coffee, with a clean finish. Totally hides its 8% ABV. Turned out a little darker than I thought, is more of a reddish coffee color than the Irish-Red I thought it would be. No complaints, though, its fantastic

And I have a Scottish Wee Heavy that is in ferment now, brewed on Friday, started out at 1.082, already down almost .050, still chugging along, sitting next to its big brother the Bourbon Barrel Ale, which I'll bottle in about June.

All in all, Win. This is the best hobby ever.

[Dansrc51]

Been busy lately.... Double batch




And built

[Dansrc51]

Aged a chocolate stout on cocoa nibs for a week. Taste is phenomonal. Whipped up a pliney clone on Monday, but mash efficiency was waayyy off. Not sure what I'm doing wrong

[levain]

Anyone interested in some old Brewing Techniques and/or Zymurgy mags? BT was THE homebrewing magazine in the 90's. I kept lots of them. I'm moving soon, so don't feel like carting them around. Same with the zymurgy. These are all old, but in decent condition.

PM if interested.

[discochris]

My last batch was an English Bitter. It didn't turn out.
Not sure exactly what happened, but my guess is bad yeast or else I added it too soon and the temp wasn't low enough. I don't think it fermented all the way, so I have a keg of carbonated water that vaguely tastes like really bad beer. Unfortunate, because we had a bunch of people over. Fortunately I'd bottled a batch of IPA that was pretty good, as well as a few porters from an older batch. I think I'm just going to trash the bitter.

Currently brewing a Surly Furious clone, and this one is going to be good. The fermenting is going gangbusters - I can smell it when I walk in the room! I just have to be careful to strain the yeast and hop residue when I keg it so I don't clog the pickup line again. I've been using nylon bags for the hops on the last few brews, but I couldn't do it with this one because the hops had to be added at five minute intervals during the boil, plus another 3 oz. () to be added for the secondary racking.

[Jason F.]

Been very busy on the brewing front.

Brewed an IPA and with a neighbor and we served it to the masses at the East Nashville Beer Festival last month. It was very well received and we killed the 5 gallon keg in just over an hour. No small thing at 2oz sample pours.

Brewed 10 gallons of oatmeal stout then cut up a stave from a recently emptied Jack Daniels barrel. I added the chunks of the stave to the oatmeal stout after soaking them in the devils cut from the barrel. Just put that keg on the gas last weekend so it should be ready for sampling this weekend.

Brewed a 5 gallon batch of IPA for the home kegerator last Friday. Then brewed with the neighbor Saturday morning. We did a 5 gallon IPA for his kegerator and and 5 gallon IPA to serve at the Zoobrew Charity event at the Nashville Zoo. Sunday I brewed a 5 gallon batch of Chocolate Hazelnut Porter and this weekend I am rebrewing a Wit beer that won a couple of ribbons in festivals last year. Which ever turns out best also gets served at the Zoobrew charity event.

All in all in the last month or so I have brewed 40 gallons of beer.