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Hi all, I'm attempting my first sour beer (Using a sour wort technique) but things were a bit rocky at the start. I first used L Plantarum caps but got no drop in pH. After 2 days I added another type of probiotic I just happened to have but after 5 days there was still no drop. Finally I...

Hi, I'm brewing my first sour beer. I'm kettle souring with two L Plantarum capsules in a 5 Liter batch. I'm only 24 hours in and I see zero activity in the carboy. Is this normal with lacto alone or should I see some bubbles, current, or other signs of activity? Thanks.

Hi all, I am fermenting my first 100% brett beer. It's a pretty typical American Pale Ale (OG 1.052) that I split into two 5 Liter carboys (4 Liters of wort) and pitched a vial of WLP645 into one, and WLP648 into the other. No starter but my hope was that it would be ok for just 4 liters...

Hi all, I recently brewed my first Brett beer, which was a Belgian Pale Ale with WLP510 that I then added Brett Brux to in secondary. I'm interested in making more Brett beers, even 100% Brett beers. I'm in New Zealand where I pay $20 per vial so re-pitching sounds a lot nicer than buying...

Hi all, I'm brewing an Orval-style beer (Jamil's recipe for Belgian Specialty) and this is my first Brett beer. The pre-brett beer finished dryer than expected at 1.006. I was expecting something more like 1.011. What effect will the Brett have in a beer with so little starch left to work...

Hi all, I'm brewing an Orval-style beer (Jamil's recipe for Belgian Specialty) and this is my first Brett beer. The pre-brett beer finished dryer than expected at 1.006. I was expecting something more like 1.011. What effect will the Brett have in a beer with so little starch left to work...

Hi, I just brewed an Irish Dry Stout (more Murphy's than Guinness), and was planning on pulling of a gallon once fermented and add something to it in secondary. Both for variety and so I have more styles to enter in an upcoming homebrew competition. Anyone have any experience adding specialty...

I am going to attempt an orval clone using the Brewing Classic Styles recipe and I have everything except Hallertau hops, which every Orval clobe recipe I've seen calls for, for bittering. Anyone think I'd ever really notice a difference if I just use more Styrian Goldings for the bittering...

Hey folks, Many of us have limited time to brew, but enjoy trying to make many different styles of beer, both for enjoyment and competition. What split-batch variations on the same wort can you think up that can result in two or more BJCP style beers, simply by varying yeasts, process, or...

Hi, I am about to embark on my first sour beer attempt and had a question about what this would produce. I was planning on taking Jamil's flanders brown recipe from BCS and kettle souring it for a day or two and then boiling and adding hops. Then I was going to add cherry concentrate and...

So am am making my first cider in 15 years or so and have completely forgotten what is normal and what is not. I bought some organic unfiltered juice with no preservatives, aerated with a good shake, pitched a pack of US-04 and set my temperature at 18 C (64.4 F). No sugar, nutrients, pectic...

Hi, Water has always been the section of any book I pick up that makes my brain turn mushy, causing me to promptly close the book. I really have no understanding of all the different numbers and abbreviations. Though I do understand some of the very basic principles. I am in a fairly rural...

Hi all, I've been having a recurring issue with my beers and am wondering if anyone has ever experienced this before, or knows what might be happening here... I am an all grain brewer who kegs. I feel pretty confident that my process is solid. I temp control, ferment on the cool side (but...

For a long time I had beer lines running off my kegs that were only about a meter long. I was just using picnic taps and the beer came out like a shot gun with a ton of foam and it took a lot of tweaking to get a nice glass of beer. Then I learned about balancing my lines, I used one of the...

Hi, I'm making Jamil's Scottish schilling recipe that calls for 85 grams of 200 L chocolate malt. I'm in New Zealand and the lightest I chocolate I can find is 350. How do I adjust for this? Do I just cut the amount by 42%, or will that effect the flavor contribution?

I have been having a persistent off flavor in many of my beers and I could use some thoughts on what is causing it. It's a very subtle stale, fruity, almost dishrag like flavor. its very subtle. The beer is still drinkable but it's bumming me out. It seems to only happen with my kegged beer but...

I recently brewed a barleywine and it fermented fairly quickly. I fermented at just 65 degrees with Nottingham but it had reached terminal gravity in about a week, and after three weeks it's pretty clear, as barleywine's go. I'm getting ready to put it in secondary because that always seems...

Hi all, I'm looking for a large fermenter of at least 200L, which are ridiculously expensive in New Zealand. But I cam across these food grade plastic barrels that people typically use for things like storing rain water and I wondered if they would be suitable as a fermenter. The price is...

Just thought I'd share a before and after pic of my new keezer. There are certainly fancier ones out there but I have never built a thing in my life so this was a real accomplishment for me. But as they say, where there's a will there's a way :-)

Hi all, I'm about to start building my keezer and have a couple quick questions... I'm in an area where it's hard for me to find untreated wood. Is it safe to use chemically treated wood for the collar if I prime and paint it, or is there still a decent risk of chemicals seeping out? I...