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I know this seems like this question is completely out of season, but its quite the opposite. I am trying (in a very nerdy attempt) to breed a perfect beer pumpkin. I am having a very hard time to find what varieties of pumpkin are best for brewing. So far my pumpkins are a Nantucket Pie...

My current setup leaves me with smaller batches if I want to all grain brew. Today I tried to fiddle around with Brewers Friend and ended up with pretty low efficiency. I'm pretty sure it revolves around the amount of water used in my mash and sparge. Which leads to my question... how do I...

I am new to all grain. I realize that I can buy ingredients per batch, but am curious about buying in bulk. I also realize that my brewing styles will affect what I buy in bulk but am curious how people handle buying in bulk. What do you buy in bulk and what do you buy per batch? I do have a...

Can I dry hop in a keg of finished beer? I made something like a pale ale that seems to need a little something extra. Thanks,

Someone please tell me why this is a bad idea... Would it be possible to keep the grains in a basket and run water/wort through it until you have removed all the sugars? Similar to brewing coffee or a percolated coffee. It seems it would eliminate the need for sparging and possibly save...

This post is intended to be humorous BTW... I personally don't grow hops to save money, I'm a DIY type and like growing things. This past weekend has been my harvest of my three varieties of hops. I did some math to see how much money I saved and it got me thinking... The going rate for hops...

I'm brewing a batch right now. I did it last year and the spicy of the rye complimented the pumpkin so well. I have never seen a recipe for pumpkin and rye so I am mostly posting this as a shout out for people to try. I am using 3.3 lbs LME Rye and about 4 lbs of last years pumpkin (frozen...

My Centennials are infested with aphids this year. I did not notice it until harvest. I just dragged my hand through some drying hops (to mix them up for even drying) and my hand got coated in aphids. I just did some reading on the internet and I am surprised that my plants did not show ANY...

My Teamaker is being deemed a failure for brewing. So that means I get a new variety to grow!!! I currently have lots of Centenial, a Mt Hood and a Spalter Select. I want a variety that is not like what I currently have. I would go for a Mosaic or a Citra but they are not available for home...

I have read repeatedly that adding extract at the end of the boil gives it a lighter flavor. I fully understand the concept but what about sterilization? Should it boil for a couple minutes? Why do you add some for the full boil? Could I boil my hops for the full amount of time and put all...

Has anyone tried to brew a wine specifically for cooking or even stranger, cooking fish? I can imagine some grape concentrate with a touch of lemon, thyme and oregano added before brew and salt before bottling. Thoughts?

Time for another brew the leftover ingredients batch. I have flaked maize and some crystal malt. From what I can read, I need to heat the the maize in a 50/50 mix with 2 row barley to break down the starch. Is the crystal and two row interchangeable? I'm trying to make this a "free" batch so...

I have hops and I have bees. I have not ever heard if hops are source of pollen for bees. Hops are just female plants so the bee is not going to help the plant out as there is no male to fertilize, but do hops produce enough pollen to be useful to the bees? I have Googled this and have not...

Out of curiosity, has anyone tried non-conventional hops trellises? I have some hops growing over my hoop house/chicken coop and some other hops giving us privacy to our porch. They both give me plenty of hops to harvest. I don't have any pics but might have to take some.

Hey all, I just read a post about a hops picking machine and noticed that all the posts are for a small farm. GVH Dan mentioned prototyping one based off of a hand drill. Has anyone attempted to make something small, cheap and simple for the hobby grower? Last year I was dreading picking so...

A couple of my hops plants are getting quite large at the base (the root mass as a whole). How can I maintain the size of the plants and is it necessary? Do I just cut the roots as they spread without digging it up? they are about 4 yr old plants. Thanks,

So far my beer brewing has been limited to essentially extract pseudo smashes. Since I grow hops all my beers have been one or two extracts and a combination of the hops I have. My beers have been nothing special but very drinkable. My hops are gone (not the plants, the picked hops) so I can...

It seems new people are looking for a recipe for cider when you really don't need one. So for the sake of having a recipe, here yah go. Put cider in a carboy. Add yeast. Ale, sweet mead, champagne and English Cider all have been good choices. If you are lucky, you can get wild yeast to help...

I'm in the process of brewing a batch right now and will be useing all my hops from last year. I do have two gallon bags full of hops from the year before last. Will this old hops give me bad results with my beer? Should I (gasp)... Buy... Hops instead of using my old hops? Thanks,

Hey all, I am getting more comfortable brewing beer now (but I'm pretty good with cider). I'm using mostly single extract malt, no extra grains and home grown hops, so very simple recipes. After I am done boiling and I have a pot full of hops floating on the surface, what do I do with the...