I just don't use US-05 because when compared with other yeast, is much lazier and takes more time to clear and flocculate. I therefore use Nottingham as my choice for dry, crisp, refreshing, somewhat hoppy and cheaper beers. So yeast selection will get you clearer beer. High flocculators like...

Usually hops, if nitrogen flushed, should last 3 years. Now when you order hops, the shop shows or should show the crop year. I wouldn't buy 3 years old hops, unless you know the shop takes care of them and the price is way lower.

K-97 is good for a dry yeast. Rather clean in character, maybe a tad bready. Works well for low-hopped Kolsch-like beers, but also in IPAs. Has decent attenuation at around 75-78%, but flocculates a bit worse than some yeast. It does however clear fine in the bottle in normal, fridge conditions...

I use the BrewersFriend calculator and found out that 4% utilization for the whirlpool is where I am at with my system. I did 3% for a long time, but got more bitterness and adjusted to 4%, which is more realistic for me. I haven't tested any of my beers for the actual IBUs, but have no reason...

I've used them a few times. Now the descriptors say a lot of good things, but they are kind of far from the truth. They have some fruitiness, but nowhere near those descriptors. Somewhat grassy with fruitiness, but I wouldn't decisively call it citrussy or tropical.

The first step of getting clearer beer starts with the boil kettle: finnings and of course a 20-30 minutes whirlpool at a lower temperature, which along with a " Irish Moss " product, will help precipitate a lot of proteins and hop debris at the bottom of the kettle. I don't know your setup, but...

I agree with Nosybear. All pH readings must be taken at room temperature or as close to 68F as you can.

I get great head and foam formation with all Pilsner ( and its variations ) malt. You don't need anything else, but you can try CaraPils. A head that doesn't stick and quickly dissipates is usually related to something else. Diacetyl can be one as mentioned above. In fact, many cheap/crappy...

I have 5 of those and am very happy with my choice. The headspace is quite nice. I adjust my recipe to get more final product, so I usually bottle around 6 gallons. Although hard to believe, I had fermentations that simply smashed out through the oversized airlock. One that comes in mind is a...

You can go as low as you like with Ca in the mash. I would however still shoot for at least 25-30 ppm Ca and equivalent amounts of Cl and SO4. For a softer mouthfeel, drop the S04, bump Na to a 30 ppm and keep Cl low, not more than 50-70 ppm.

Your OG had nothing to do with the pH. As long as pH is in range, your beer will turn out well, which is the most important thing. I usually target a mash pH between 5 and 5.3 for all beer styles. I haven't noticed any variations in efficiency, that would correlate with the pH of the mash...

If you can't wait a day, I usually - successfully - pop a bottle in the freezer, leave it for 20-40 minutes, put in the fridge maybe for 3 hours and try it. But I tried enough just from turbo-chilling in the freezer for 30 minutes. Works great.

I would choose the cheapest. Now, the Dingemans might be a more flavourful malt as they usually are, so if you have the money, buy it. Now going back to your recipe, I would get rid of the crystal malts and the candi sugar. If you need to ramp up the OG, use some plain, white sugar you might...

Don't store the beer lower than 68F because carbonation will take much longer to develop. Yeast works better and faster at higher temperatures. Keep it at 68-70F for 7 days at least and then move it to another location, even a colder one. But, provided your process was OK and everything is fine...

There's no issue or risk in carbonating your beer in the bottle, after you have fined, cold crashed and added gelatine to it. There will still be enough yeast in the beer, even if it looks clear.