Search results

Brewing a saison today, and had an absolute disaster using a ferulic acid rest. Have done this step before with no problems in wheat beers. However, today it caused the wort to gelatinise, forming milky clumps, and burned onto the element, causing the mash tun to trip out. I emptied and cleaned...

I was planning a few brews with wyeast London Ale III, and was wondering if anyone has compared Lallemand's Verdant yeast alongside it. I'm aware that this is a dry version of London Ale III (be it a mutation or not), just wondering if anyone has compared the two for performance, ester...

I'm trying to devise my first dubbel recipe. The title says it all - does anyone have any advice on building a grain bill? Thanks!

I perform a split boil for my brews due to space/gear restrictions, and the two pots are combined in the fermenter. I have made good beer for years this way, but have a few questions: - Is it ok to have the first runnings from the wort in one pot and the second runnings in another? Or should...

Recently I've been experiencing problems with efficiency. I've been brewing for about 5-6 years on the same equipment. Up until about a year ago my efficiency was consistently between 75 and 80%, but recently it has been very unpredictable. For example, my last two brews were a Kolsch and an...

I recently made a Kolsch using Wyeast 1007, which resulted in a soapy-tasting beer. I repitched the yeast from this batch into an Altbier, which turned out very clean and delicious. Both were fermented for 21 days at exactly the same temperature, and both brews were subjected to exactly the same...

Does anyone have any experience with Wyeast 1007 producing off flavours? I used it for the first time recently on a kolsch, and my father - in-law tried a sample, commenting that it tasted like 'chemicals'. It could do with another week or two lagering, so hopefully it will clean up a little. I...

My efficiency has been fluctuating recently, and I'm wondering if it's something to do with my sparge technique. I usually batch sparge by recirculating, then draining slowly while keeping the sparge water around an inch or two above the surface of the grain. I've been reading around and...

I've been an all-grain brewer for about four or five years now, but haven't yet attempted a sour beer. I've got a load of cherries from a tree in my garden sitting in the freezer, so I though 'let's go for it', and picked up a smack-pack of Wyeast 3278 Lambic Blend. I've been searching around...

I know there is a lot of info out there that states that Kellerbier is simply an unfiltered, lightly carbonated pilsner or helles, but, to me, it has a distinct flavour. As all of my beers are unfiltered, I don't see how making a lightly-carbonated pils or helles would produce a Kellerbier. Like...

Just wondering if anybody has any advice on using citrus-y or high alpha acid hops in hefeweizens. I'm planning a weissbier for the summer, and instead of making something 'to style' I might experiment with a new hop variety. The hop I have in mind at the moment is Wai-iti, a New Zealand...

I've got some family coming down for a weekend soon, an empty keg, and a pale ale in the fermenter... the question is, can I go from grain to glass in two weeks? The OG was 1.045, it's pale, pretty hoppy (Columbus, Cascade, Citra and Simcoe), fermented using US-05, and has fermented out in a...

I picked up some rototaps, which have flow control, for my kegerator project a while back. These are the European-style taps with a thin spout: http://www.divinity-systems.com/euro_rotary_beer_faucet_p/4933roto.htm Very common in Belgium. However, the shanks attached were too short for my...

Hi all! I racked Vienna lager at the weekend and wanted to save the slurry for a helles brew next weekend. I decanted the slurry into two sanitized containers - a PET bottle and a kilner jar (see pics attached). I've been keeping the PET bottle in my kegerator and all seems fine with...

Sorry for the dodgy title, I couldn't resist... I've bought some lovely taps for my kegerator project, which have come equipped with 1" shanks - will these be long enough to get through a fridge door? Or shall I get hold of some replacements?

I've acquired a free fridge for my kegerator project. The fridge will just fit two cornelius kegs and a 2.5kg co2 tank. I am wondering: how best to secure the co2 tank in the fridge? There is no access to the sides of the fridge when everything is in there, and nothing on the rear or sides...

Has anyone ever hooked up a fridge drinks dispenser to a keg? If so, how successful was it?

I have a cherry tree in my garden, and, instead of leaving them for wasps and blackbirds, I plan to use the next crop in a kriek. I haven't made a kriek (or a lambic at all, for that matter) so I'm looking for some advice on how to use the cherries. Thanks in advance!

Hi all, I've been making beer for a few years now, but I'm just about to make my first foray into the world of cider. My parents have apple and pear trees in their garden, and have given me two big bags full of the stuff - about 10% apples and 90% pears. The apples are definitely brambleys...

I'm planning a kellerbier this winter, and I've been thinking, would it work if I kegged or barrelled beer during late fermentation? This could then produce enough carbon dioxide to gently carbonate the beer, which is what I'm looking for in the kellerbier, and I don't want to prime or carbonate...