Yeast terminology attenuation and flocculation

Saturday, May 30th, 2009

Flocculation describes the process of yeast sticking and clumping together once all the nutrients have been used. As the yeast gathers, they become too heavy to remain in suspension in the beer, and fall to the bottom of the fermenter, mixing with the sediment and nutrients. Home-brewed beer can use ...

Posted in Yeast Cultures | No Comments »

Basics of Hops in Brewing

Saturday, May 23rd, 2009

Hops contribute four elements to beer: stabilization, bitterness, flavor, and aroma. Using the right hops, added to the boiling wort (pronounced wert) at the right time, is every bit as crucial as using the right grains or yeast. Hops resins contain two types of acid, one (Beta) that contributes to aroma, ...

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Beer styles and relative CO2 levels

Saturday, May 16th, 2009

To begin, consider a brief refresher from chemistry class. Gases dissolve into liquids; the amount of gas that can be dissolved into a liquid is inversely proportional to that liquid’s temperature. At one extreme, boiling liquids contain very little dissolved gases; most home brewers know this, either directly or indirectly ...

Posted in Kegging and CO2 | 2 Comments »

First Wort Hopping

Saturday, May 9th, 2009

Brewers are always interested in improving the flavor and aroma of their beer, and there seems to be an endless array of techniques by which to accomplish this. One technique that is receiving much attention is first wort hopping. Also known as, and referred to as, FWH in ...

Posted in Brewing | 14 Comments »

Yeasts the difference between ale and lager

Sunday, May 3rd, 2009

Beer snobs will insist that there are truly only two types of beer: ales & lagers. While it’s amusing to hear them explain why a German Dopplebock is a lager while a Wietzenbock is an ale, the truth is that they’re not actually talking about flavors or styles, but yeasts. ...

Posted in Lagering, Yeast Cultures | 2 Comments »

Lautering Equipment False Bottom vs Manifold

Saturday, May 2nd, 2009

There are some distinct differences between the these two popular methods of lautering your mash that you will want to consider prior to building your mash tun. As with most brewing equipment or brewing methods, you need to determine which one will provide you with the results that you ...

Posted in Equipment | 4 Comments »