Recent content by hartlesj

I live in eastern virginia. Temps are in the 70s now, not horrible, but definitely not ideal. I'm making all ales. A stout, a red, a black IPA, a Heff, etc. It's funny. Brulosophy released a podcast earlier this week on this very topic. My initial thought was that it wouldn't be too bad...

Going to try a fig beer this weekend. I'm planning on adding 3lbs of figs picked off a family member's tree, frozen, chopped up to the boil of a fairly basic blond ale. A local brewery has a few fig beers that they have perfected. The best one being a fig/currant sour that was really good...

I'm planning a few batches for a family members wedding and have some beer storage questions. This is the first event of this kind I've done and am looking for advice. The bottom line question; is it OK to let beer come back up to room temp after a cold crash? Is there a recommended process...

I just ordered one and will write a review when I get it. I'm looking for a middle of the road solution. I don't have a pump so getting a good whirlpool takes a bit of effort. Plus it's something that has to be done serially. What I mean is, I have an IC cooler. So I swish and stir the crap...

Will you or do you carry any basic starter kits? I have someone interested in getting into home brewing on base here.

"I still have 1/2 the bag left in a mason jar in the fridge" Who was the manufacture of the yeast. I'm not familiar with that specific brand. Most yeast calculators show that a vial/package of wet yeast is only about 1/3 to 1/2 of the yeast you "should" use for the absolute best...

There are a few things that may help with the different size bottles. the metal tabs in the wings have 2 sides to them. If you pop them out and turn them around they have a larger size opening. It's kinda tricky to pop them out. they slide in the channel, but there is a tab right in the...

How many times can a barrel be used. I'm under the impression that after a few uses, it has to be used for sours.

I had trouble with peach. The flavor kept muting out. I wonder if doing a pasteurization first would help similar to sweetening a cider? after fermentation place it in a pot and hold it at 160 for 10 min. Let us know how it turns out. I put about 6 LBS total in 2.5 gallons and it was...

That's a great picture. I was trying to find one to post with my comment, but ran out of time. :tank:

awesome, thanks for the info. that makes my life a tadd bit easier.

For some piece of mind, check out Louis Pasteur's swan neck experiments. Some of his liquids are still sterile today based solely on the shape of the bend of glass. If the mold isn't growing up the tube, then I wouldn't worry about it as long as it tastes good.

Raise the temp ~68, let it sit another week, sample it, see what its doing. if it starts dropping, then leave it. Make sure you get a few consecutive samples at the same FG before calling it done. If it stays consistent, then taste it, if you like it, bottle it. If not, then go ahead and try...

Are there different "grades" of CO2? I work in an industrial setting where we have our own fire protection systems. We have the capability to refill the portable CO2 fire extinguisher bottles. The label just states CO2. The fittings work. It's free... (well, probably would cost me a 6 pack...

If you haven't looked at these guys yet, check out the Brulosophy website. They do experiments and comparisons on this type of thing. Specifically what your asking is here: http://brulosophy.com/2016/04/04/single-infusion-vs-step-mash-brudragon-collaboration-exbeeriment-results/ Granted...