Recent content by AshtrayDinner

I'm changing the way I operate my home brewery, and upgrading some parts of it. I'm putting in a vorlauf/sparge line to improve my mashing and lautering. This has involved taking the march pump from my kettle/whirlpool and installing it on my mash/lauter tun. I'd like to avoid buying a...

OK so doing a diacetyl rest at a temperature LOWER than your fermentation temperature makes absolutely no sense. Diactyl reduction will SLOW DOWN as you reduce the temperature of the beer. If you are going to do a diacetyl rest it should be at a temperature HIGHER than your fermentation...

What is your fermentation temperature? Diacetyl will be re-absorbed by the yeast at regular fermentation temperatures. The main purpose of a diacetyl rest is to increase the speed of this reaction, since it happens faster at a warmer temp. At the brewery I work at we will ferment lagers as...

Like I said, the most beneficial thing for me was being on campus totally immersed in the beer culture of Chicago and Munich. The Canadian beer scene is only just now starting to catch up to the U.S. so it was inspiring to experience some of the breweries and bars that have set the example for...

A few years ago I was working as a clerk in the taproom at a local brewpub. Realizing that I would never get into the brewery without some kind of leg up, I started looking into pro-brewing courses. Having no background in biology or chemistry I ended up taking the web based concise course at...

That is a definite contamination.

Lacto will continue to breed in cold temperatures, albeit somehwat more slowly. If the beer tastes good now you have some time before the lacto reallly makes its presence known. It's a shame, but it could be worse.

I think the claim that BMC brands have near perfect consistency and Sam Adams does not is somewhat dubious. I work for a BMC brand and often attend professional sensory panels. I can tell you with confidence that there abslutely are variations between batches, though they tend to be quite...

Thanks for the help. I'll revive this thread and post pics when the beer is done. It should be something very unique, at least for this country.

Thank you for your response. I thought this thread might go dead with no replies.

Hi all. I have been charged with making a Lithuanian Monastic Beer, and am having some trouble. I'm wondering if anyone here has any experience or information regarding traditional lithuanian beers. Specifically there was talk of using pea flour in this beer, and try as I might I can find...

Sent a message to my teacher regarding this. Hope I didn't misunderstand what he was teaching. If not I will hopefully get something In writing that will verify my claim.

My teacher was the head brewer at a major German brewery for several years. I believe he also has a PHD in related sciences. If you don't believe me I can attempt to contact him regarding this issue. I'm sure he can explain much better than I can. According to him ester production is not...

+1 for aging in the bottle over the carboy if it's been sitting for 2 months. I would add more yeast for bottle conditioning, because your original yeast is probably stressed or dead depending on the ABV and OG, which I don't see listed. Adding more yeast to drop the FG was IMHO totally...

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