Cap'n, not an expert at developing recipes, but I agree with PZ and Smitty. The Belgian yeasts I've used don't need much help from the grain to make a nice complex beer. Please let us know how it turns out. I accidently made a nice session beer recently due to a massively stuck sparge (1.042...

No suggestions about clubs, seeing as how I'm in a different country :) but welcome aboard!

Brewing is really easier than most of the books make it seem. Of course, the first brew is always a bit scary, just go for it!

Thanks! I got a chance last Sunday and brewed. (You can see the story in another thread, everything went wrong). It's still happily bubbling away in the basement, and the initial tastings indicate this will be by far the best batch since I restarted brewing. I did a pretty thorough sniff...

To me the best thing about adventures like this one is they are great stories to tell to friends over a home-brew. :D So slainte everyone, or prost if you prefer!

Steamyb, my spigot issue was mostly because I am using plastic. The plastic nut 'worked' in that it screwed onto the spigot back and held in place due to friction with the gasket. I think when the wort hit the gasket, it lubricated it and allowed the nut to slip off the spigot (i.e., the nut...

So I decided this morning to put another batch in the fermenter, and that was when the trouble started. First thing that happened was I couldn't get my Wyeast smack pack to pop. I tried several different times to get the pack up in the corner so I could pop it, and it just wouldn't break. So...

Nice. I was trolling a cook's store (for real restaurant cooks, not the overpriced 'gourmet' stores) and found an electronic thermometer developed for food safety inspectors. It reads in about 10 seconds. It's made of tough biocidal plastic. It's calibrated to be accurate to 0.1 degree...

Thanks guys! Yeah, I was vacillating between the 'must brew within a few days of grinding' to '6 month old flour in the pantry is fine, how different is this?' Appreciate the info. :D

LOL with the tool talk, but I kind of agree, it depends. However, with the styles I normally brew, I gravitate towards East Kent Goldings. I like the balance between the aroma and the bitter, it just seems well balanced to me.

I bought the grains to make a new batch of ale a couple of weeks ago. I get it already crushed from the LHBS and planned to brew the next day. Life intervened and now it's been sitting around for a couple of weeks. (Wyeast and hops have been in the frig the whole time.) I'm hoping to brew...

I had access to some local honey a while back, and on a whim decided to try my hand at mead making. My first one was a gallon of Joe's ancient orange mead per the recipe, even used bread yeast. I made this exactly two months ago. A week later, I made a second batch, only using other fruit and...

Oly, Thanks! I doubt I have the discipline (or extra frig space) to cold condition too long but that makes me feel better that if I did, I might get beer as clear as yours. In the past, I had pretty good luck with Irish moss in the boil, and forgot it with this batch. It still tastes pretty...

Welcome aboard! Hope you enjoy the site, it's a good group.

Great info guys, thanks! I had forgotten about just sticking the beer in the fridge and letting the haze settle out. That's what I'll try for this batch.... if I can wait.... .... .... :!: Now I'm really kicking myself for forgetting the Irish moss in the boil, though. :oops:

Wow! I had to chuckle re: Usenet, boy that brings back memories. My kids don't believe me but I used the internet before the World Wide Web existed! :o I look forward to learning from you, us old guys have to stick together.

Okay, so my extra pale ale is carbonating, and tastes great, but looks like it has some chill haze issues. I'm not really concerned with this batch, but what do I need to do in the next batch to try to avoid chill haze? Jim

Jeez, you guys got me wanting to build a new wort chiller now.... And I have a brand new propane torch and a friend who manages a hardware store.... :roll:

I read you shouldn't boil the oxygen absorbing caps. As that's what I have now, I've just been tossing them in the sanitizer prior to capping. If that's not right, please let me know. I used to boil the caps all the time, but haven't since I restarted. I have that same black capper and used...

Good to have you!