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Learned my lesson the hard way over the weekend. Brewed a 5-gallon batch of Hefeweizen, and began fermentation Saturday night with a standard airlock on my carboy. Sunday morning, I woke up to chunks of wort protein and yeast all over the CEILING of my bathroom. The pressure became too intense...

I am trying a fermentation in a carboy for the first time (always used buckets), and it's going crazy. I attached a blow-off tube, and I've noticed that a lot of yeast particles seem to be getting ejected. Any reason for concern here? Am I losing valuable yeast and flavors? It's a 6-gallon...

Hey guys! I've got about 8 extract kits under my belt now, so I decided to wing it and try my own recipe, based on input and inspiration from other kits. Hefe's are inherently simple, so there's not a whole lot "original" about this recipe, but it's my first "scratch" attempt. I've decided to...

Hey guys! I've got about 8 extract kits under my belt now, so I decided to wing it and try my own recipe, based on input and inspiration from other kits. Hefe's are inherently simple, so there's not a whole lot "original" about this recipe, but it's my first "scratch" attempt. I've decided to...

Have a weizenbock that I pitched last night at 71°. (Roughly 280 Billion yeast cells - 3068 WYeast). It has climbed all the way up to between 77-79° today. This seems too warm. Should I move the fermenter to the basement to cool it off closer to 70°? I've read undesired esters can occur at these...

Just took a drink of my all-extract Hefeweizen that's been in the bottle about 3 weeks. To my surprise, it has a distinct caramel/roasted flavor, and a much more muted banana/clove flavor than I expected. I'm guessing this is due to my malt extract caramelizing too much in the boil? Here's the...

Just cracked open my first bottle of Hefeweizen from my very first brew. While it has the typical banana nose, I'm detecting a strong "tinny" or "metallic" flavor and scent. What's the typical (if any) cause of this undesired flavor? Brewer's Best "Weizenbier" kit: 6.6lbs German Wheat LME...

Just cracked open my first bottle of Hefeweizen from my very first brew. While it has the typical banana nose, I'm detecting a strong "tinny" or "metallic" flavor and scent. What's the typical (if any) cause of this undesired flavor? Brewer's Best "Weizenbier" kit: 6.6lbs German Wheat LME 1.5...

Have a Java Porter currently sitting in secondary with cacao beans and vanilla beans, both of which were soaked in vodka. Took a taste sample after a week of sitting in secondary, and it just tastes like awful, room-temp bitter coffee. No vanilla or cocoa notes whatsoever. Is there even any...

Got a quick question to clear up a confusion of mine. I'm fully aware of what an all-grain brew is, but it's unclear to me as to what qualifies as "partial mash" brew and what is qualified as an "extract and steeping grain" brew. Or more specifically, what the difference really is. I did a...

Have a Porter finishing primary fermentation, ready for racking to secondary, where I'll add vodka-soaked vanilla beans. The issue is, this brew is currently DOMINATED by coffee flavor. It just tastes like room-temp coffee. No Porter/beer flavor at all. What can I do (if anything) to tone down...

Have a Porter finishing primary fermentation, ready for racking to secondary, where I'll add vodka-soaked vanilla beans. The issue is, this brew is currently DOMINATED by coffee flavor. It just tastes like room-temp coffee. No Porter/beer flavor at all. What can I do (if anything) to tone down...

Have any of you devised an easy way of keeping fermenters warm during the winter months? I know there's bucket/carboy heating pads and the like, but I was wondering what other methods have been successful for you all. I'm wanting to brew a Hefeweizen next month and keep it above 70° to...

Just bottled my first batch of brew ever. In my overly-anxious state, I forgot to stir the beer/priming sugar mixture once it was in the bucket. I simply poured the hydrated and boiled priming sugar solution in the bucket at room temp, and siphoned the beer on top of it. Will this result in...

My first hefeweizen batch has just completed fermentation, and is ready to bottle (SG readings 3 days apart confirm it's ready. Since I had beer left over in my test tube, I decided to give it a taste - boy, am I really bummed out. Almost no banana flavors, and very little clove notes. It tastes...

Quick question: My Hefe has completed primary fermentation, and is ready to rack into the bottling bucket. Do any of you have an opinion on whether or not it's advisable to scrape the yeast off the inside of the bucket (where the krausen once sat) back into the beer before priming? Is this a bad...

The local HB owner told me to activate the yeast pack, and let it sit overnight at room tempand start. I won't be brewing until 10am or so, and likely not pitching until 2-3 hours after that. Is that necessary? What's your methods?

I've just purchased my second extract kit (Brewer's Best Coffee Porter) and wanted some tips from those who have done "flavored" coffee beers. When did you add the vanilla bean? I'm assuming, based on research, that it should occur in the secondary. Any tricks or different approaches here? How...

First brew fermenting as we speak. It's now been 48 hours in the primary bucket, and no sign of bubbling. How long should I let it go before checking for krausen to ensure fermentation? Brewed a Brewer's Best Weizenbier kit with a White Labs Hefeweizen Ale liquid yeast. Bucket has yet to hit...

Hello to all! I'm a new HBT member, and just finished my first batch of the Brewer's Best Weizenbier beer kit. Although perhaps a lofty goal, my intent is to shoot for a Weiheinstephan Hefeweizen clone. As such, I chose to use a liquid yeast (Hefeweizen Ale Yeast) vs. the included yeast, at the...