I brewed today!

[jeffpn]

I'm not publishing my idea for a "reality" show but if you've ever watched Diners Dives and Drive-Ins....

He drives a cool car, too!

 

[Head First]

This time of year we could work across the mid south, as the weather changes start up the California coast, Portland is awesome in the spring, across the northern states, and fall in the northeast, maple leaves and all. Then winter in southeast, work back across the south and up the California coast again. Any volunteers for roadies to lug the camera's and tasting glasses?

 

[Nosybear]

Dude, work down south this time of year if you'd like but me, I'm cruising ski towns. Particularly since it's very nearly Spring Break....

 

[Head First]

Dude, work down south this time of year if you'd like but me, I'm cruising ski towns. Particularly since it's very nearly Spring Break....

Ok,good idea, you can be the engineer that follows along and helps people trouble shoot their brewing systems! Can you grow a beard like the guy on Brew Dogs?

 

[Nosybear]

No, but I can wear a cool hat!

 

[oliver]

india brown ale today
2-row, CaraMunich 3, Pale Chocolate, flaked barley.
Eroica bittering, Mosaics flavor and aroma.

missed gravity by 5 points, guessing we mashed too high. Did change the sparge method though, by going into a secondary vessel, and adding back the second runnings.

 

[jeffpn]

On deck over here is another Scottish Ale. Last time I brewed it, I had to buy a pound of smoked malt to get 4 ounces. The recipe also calls for only a half ounce of each of the two hops. This batch only cost $16 and change. Score!!

 

[PZ]

I brewed a Belgian Pale Ale using Wyeast 3944 (Belgian Wit). After last week's Helles (mit zwei decoctions) I needed something simple. A Wit -- hey, summer's coming -- with all the unmalted grain will be in a couple weeks. I'll use the same yeast and the Randy Mosher adjunct grain method which looks an awful lot like a decoction. Ready for the challenge!

 

[Nosybear]

Yesterday I took off from work and did a Guinness-style Stout. I'm excited because this is the first brew where I use a temperature controller with the probe actually inside the beer to control the temperature.

 

[jeffpn]

I'm excited because this is the first brew where I use a temperature controller with the probe actually inside the beer to control the temperature.

welcome to the dark side!

 

[Nosybear]

I'm excited because this is the first brew where I use a temperature controller with the probe actually inside the beer to control the temperature.

welcome to the dark side!

It's quite nice - I can control the beer fermentation temperature to +/- 1 degree F, closer if I want (and I likely will). I'm using the Inkbird 1100 watt version so I can use it to control my hotplate for kettle souring temperatures as well, it has both a heating and a cooling outlet. Now that I have my fermentation temperature under the control I want, next step is the mash tun. Bwaaahhhaaaa!

 

[jeffpn]

Suddenly, I find myself thinking about kegging. I'll start with a 5 keg unit!

 

[Head First]

I brewed today! Back to Black, Black IPA with 10% Black Malt and 6 oz of hops 83 IBU.
To help blend and balance I did put in 1# of C-75.
Kind of pushing style with that much caramel but should get the beer I am looking for.

Suddenly, I find myself thinking about kegging. I'll start with a 5 keg unit!

Kegging is much simpler if you make larger batches. I struggle to make myself force carb and bottle a few with counter pressure filler, with the kegs around.

 

[Ozarks Mountain Brewery]

I started kegging many years ago and haven't looked back, I have 4 taps where I can pour beer any time I want and still have a counter pressure bottle filler hooked to the system for bottling, it makes it so much easier, I think I gained 10 pounds last year because of it too, shhhh

i found it much easier to handle the trub and hops by cutting 1 inch off my dip tubes too

 

[Head First]

i found it much easier to handle the trub and hops by cutting 1 inch off my dip tubes too

+1
But I just bent mine in a little more arc so it was up a little more. I just couldn't get myself to cut them off.

 

[oliver]

sunday, bottling an Eroica and Hull Melon IPA, and using that pineapple juice to prime with. that'll be a doozy.

Then later in the day we'll be trying a clone i came up with for a Southern Tier beer called 30/90. Cream ale with Lavender tossed into the boil and the secondary. got some whole lavender flowers at whole foods today.

sidenote: drinking Gouden Carolus Cuvée van de Keizer tonight. WOW. yes.

 

[Ozarks Mountain Brewery]

Im brewing my common pale ale today, in the mood for a mild I guess

 

[MrBIP]

"Spring Forward Lager" ... 2nd time.
Inspired by Sierra Nevada Summerfest.

 

[Nosybear]

Sunday: Pre-Prohibition style pale ale. Colorado pale ale malt, flaked corn as fermentables, only Cluster hops. It was the brew day from hell. Overheated sparge water, under-estimated the amount of grain needed, frequent flame-outs due to wind.... But in the end, 5.5 gallons of pretty wort in the fermentor. I'm using the Inland Island 007 yeast (American Ale Blend) for the first time (it comes in a vial with 200 billion cells - direct pitch for most reasonable ale gravities) and the temperature-balancing setup on my fridge (keeping fermentation temps very close to the desired setting). Looking forward to the results.

 

[MrBIP]

I brewed today! At Stormcloud Brewery in Frankfort, MI with Brian Confer (head brewer/co-owner). Made Priddle's Porter (aka Polar Vortex) that won their contest last fall. 7 barrels of it! And they gave me the whole experience.. doughed in all 400+ pounds of grain, weight out hops by the pound, cleaned out the mash tun and boil kettle, etc. They were really great people to work with today. Really fun experience ... and I'm whipped now.
Priddle's Porter will be on tap April 1 thru end of June (if it lasts that long).