Newbie question - planning my second batch

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azaj
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Post by azaj »

thanks lethal.
so pitching is just adding the yeast. its that easy.
one other thing, sorry if these questions sound stupid i am only new.
when using the dregs from a coopers bottle, do you just add that once the ingredients are mixed, or can you do it mid brew or something?
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lethaldog
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Post by lethaldog »

With the dregs from a bottle you need to make a starter, which is:
steralise a longneck 750ml
grab a spare bung and airlock from your local HBS to go in the top of the bottle or just use gladwrap and an elastic band
put 1 heaped tablespoon of light dried malt in a cup and pour in about a 1/4 of a cup of boiling water, mix.
Fill the longneck about half way with cold water, add the malt mix, top up to about 150-100mm from the top with cold water and whack your dregs in, shake well and whack the steralised bung and airlock in, or opening with glad wrap and put an elastic band around it, leave it for about 24-48 hours( times can vary) at room temp then pitch this, be sure to swirl to get all the sediment from the bottom, thats it :lol:

Add it when you brew your beer as you would with a normal dried yeast :lol:
Danzar
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Post by Danzar »

Aussie Claret wrote:Me bad didn't read the first couple of pages. :lol:
Just try steeping the torrified wheat, (which will give you a cloudy wort perfect for a wit) then boil the liquid to kill any nasties. If you add orange rind and coriander only add it toward the end of the boil 5mins should be sufficient. (add the orange toward the end or you will extract too much oranginess, and possibly the oils in the rind which can have an effect on the head retention, I made the mistake of boiling too long).

Steep in 2.5x the weight of grain.
Cheers
AC
Dammit! I must have simmered the fermentables AND orange/corainder for a good 20 mins before letting stand for 15. When tasting during fermentation there's a strong orange flavour.

I did buy enough for two batches so no great stress. I'll let this batch condition for six months or so - hopefully, the taste will balance itself out.
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Danzar
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Post by Danzar »

lethaldog wrote:With the dregs from a bottle you need to make a starter, which is:
steralise a longneck 750ml
grab a spare bung and airlock from your local HBS to go in the top of the bottle or just use gladwrap and an elastic band
put 1 heaped tablespoon of light dried malt in a cup and pour in about a 1/4 of a cup of boiling water, mix.
Fill the longneck about half way with cold water, add the malt mix, top up to about 150-100mm from the top with cold water and whack your dregs in, shake well and whack the steralised bung and airlock in, or opening with glad wrap and put an elastic band around it, leave it for about 24-48 hours( times can vary) at room temp then pitch this, be sure to swirl to get all the sediment from the bottom, thats it :lol:

Add it when you brew your beer as you would with a normal dried yeast :lol:
EDIT - wrong post. Sorry lethal!
Last edited by Danzar on Thursday Oct 26, 2006 9:32 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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lethaldog
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Post by lethaldog »

?????
Sorry i dont understand the question, are we still talking bout yeast?
Danzar
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Post by Danzar »

Aussie Claret wrote:Me bad didn't read the first couple of pages. :lol:
Just try steeping the torrified wheat, (which will give you a cloudy wort perfect for a wit) then boil the liquid to kill any nasties. If you add orange rind and coriander only add it toward the end of the boil 5mins should be sufficient. (add the orange toward the end or you will extract too much oranginess, and possibly the oils in the rind which can have an effect on the head retention, I made the mistake of boiling too long).

Steep in 2.5x the weight of grain.
Cheers
AC
One question - how much water per kilo of wheat? I'm now thinking 4-5 litres per kilo if I want to steep for 30 mins, or I could reduce the water if I'm steeping for less tim (in the same relative increments).
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lethaldog
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Post by lethaldog »

Im guessing AC means 2.5 litres per kilo :lol: :wink:
Danzar
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Post by Danzar »

lethaldog wrote:?????
Sorry i dont understand the question, are we still talking bout yeast?
Sorry lethal - hit reply on the wrong post. :roll:

Damn you were quick. Since edited.
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Danzar
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Post by Danzar »

lethaldog wrote:Im guessing AC means 2.5 litres per kilo :lol: :wink:
Dammit time two! Didn't see that bit :? :? :oops: :roll: :oops:
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lethaldog
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Post by lethaldog »

Danzar wrote:
lethaldog wrote:?????
Sorry i dont understand the question, are we still talking bout yeast?
Sorry lethal - hit reply on the wrong post. :roll:

Damn you were quick. Since edited.
:lol: :lol: :lol: Cool NP
Adzmax
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Post by Adzmax »

OK, couldn't wait and cracked one on the weekend, little light on the fizz but other than that pretty bloody good! If it's this good so early cant wait for summer! Should be nice are carbed by then too! Cheers guys!
Danzar
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Post by Danzar »

Fermentation's finished on mine. Will rack for a week.

My SG read 1010!!

That's low (although I forgot to take an OG so have no idea what the end content will be. I'd expect the OG would have been 1055).

BUT - I made the mistake of boiling the orange too long. Way too much. Will boil for 5 minutes next time.
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Adzmax
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Post by Adzmax »

Yeah I think next time I'll use less orange or boil it for a shorter time. VERY orange, still nice though. Will use some more coriander too.
Danzar
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Post by Danzar »

Just put down another. Boiled the fermentables, coriander for 15 minutes. This time I added the orange in two parts - five minutes at the end of the boil (half) then added the rest of the orange when I took it off the heat.

I then let it stand for 15 minutes.

I slightly burnt the malt extract - I guess that will simply add a slight toasty taste yes?

I also re hydrated the yeast (K97 Safwheat) but I misjudged the time and they were in there for a good 45 minutes (tepid water). When I poured the little blighter's in, they spread out in lumpy clumps across the top of my brew.

I'm considering adding about 2 or 3g of the coopers wheat beer yeast that came with the can a bit later. Just to spark things up. The label says 19806 W. Any views on this approach?
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afromaiko
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Post by afromaiko »

pixelboy wrote:My fav Wheat/Hoegaarden requires some fiddling but its easy mate :)....

1. Thomas Coopers Brewmaster Selection WHEAT BEER
2. Thomas Coopers Wheat Extract 1.5kg
3. Rind from 2 Oranges
4. 15gms (one pack) Corriander Seeds
Is it ok to use fresh corriander leaves, or are only the seeds recommended for this? I'm not sure of what the taste differences are.
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rwh
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Post by rwh »

I think the difference is quite huge; coriander leaves and seeds are not generally interchangeable in cooking, so I doubt they are in brewing either. The seeds cost like $1.50 from the supermarket anyway.
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timmy
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Post by timmy »

I cracked one of these over the weekend (after about 2 months in the bottle) and was delicious.

The only thing is that it was low on fizz and head. But I did boil all the ingredients together so perhaps got too much of the orangy stuff out.

next time will try lethaldog's recipe with the Whispering wheat kit and see how it compares.
Adzmax
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Post by Adzmax »

timmy wrote:I cracked one of these over the weekend (after about 2 months in the bottle) and was delicious.

The only thing is that it was low on fizz and head. But I did boil all the ingredients together so perhaps got too much of the orangy stuff out.

next time will try lethaldog's recipe with the Whispering wheat kit and see how it compares.
I found this too, low on fizz although I used dex this time and may not have used enough. VERY orangy though, I'll use les next time.

I also picked up some Hoegaarden wyeast which I'll give a go.
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rwh
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Post by rwh »

Wouldn't surprise me if it was low on head as it's got the oil from the orange rind in it. As for the fizz, that's surprising, mine was fine.
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timmy
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Post by timmy »

It just means you have to drink 'em quicker.... Fine by me.
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