Basic brewing instructions

General homebrew discussion, tips and help on kit and malt extract brewing, and talk about equipment. Queries on sourcing supplies and equipment should go in The Store.

Re: Basic brewing instructions

Postby Kevnlis » Thursday Jan 17, 2008 5:17 pm

Yes the dish washing powder is mostly the same as the alkaline salts. I use a cheap Aldi brand that does not contain a rinse aid and have no problems getting head ;)
Prost and happy brewing!

Image
O'Brien Gluten Free Beer
User avatar
Kevnlis
 
Posts: 3380
Joined: Tuesday Jul 10, 2007 5:15 pm
Location: B-Rat

Re: Basic brewing instructions

Postby matr » Wednesday Apr 09, 2008 5:32 pm

Going back to the start - "Making the Brew"

When adding DME's is there any special way to do it? Just that last time when doing my mix most of the DME disolved but some of it stuck together in chunks (kind of like honeycomb).

I just kept mixing until most was disolved and assumed it would all disolve over the next few hours.

Is this ok or do I need to use a different process?

Cheers, Mat.
User avatar
matr
 
Posts: 364
Joined: Tuesday Apr 08, 2008 1:13 pm
Location: Perth

Re: Basic brewing instructions

Postby Kevnlis » Wednesday Apr 09, 2008 5:36 pm

I always put the DME into cold water in a small saucepan on the stove, I cover it with water and slowly heat and stir constantly until it all dissolves.
Prost and happy brewing!

Image
O'Brien Gluten Free Beer
User avatar
Kevnlis
 
Posts: 3380
Joined: Tuesday Jul 10, 2007 5:15 pm
Location: B-Rat

Re: Basic brewing instructions

Postby matr » Wednesday Apr 09, 2008 6:00 pm

Thanks mate, I'll try that next time.

Cheers, Mat.
User avatar
matr
 
Posts: 364
Joined: Tuesday Apr 08, 2008 1:13 pm
Location: Perth

Re: Basic brewing instructions

Postby Boonie » Wednesday Apr 09, 2008 6:46 pm

Another method that works for me is add the LDM to a dried and clean saucepan/pot.

Boil the kettle (full) and pour over the malt. I get a couple of chunks at worst, then heat on stove.

1 other point, watch it carefully, if you heat it too quickly you will get a quick boilover and what a mess it makes.

Cheers

Boonie
A homebrew is like a fart, only the brewer thinks it's great.
Give me a flying headbutt.......
User avatar
Boonie
 
Posts: 1760
Joined: Friday Jul 21, 2006 6:41 pm
Location: Lake Macquarie

Re: Basic brewing instructions

Postby drsmurto » Thursday Apr 10, 2008 9:27 am

+1 for Boonies method, its how i make my yeast starter solutions.
User avatar
drsmurto
 
Posts: 3300
Joined: Friday Nov 17, 2006 11:53 am
Location: Adelaide Hills

Re: Basic brewing instructions

Postby matr » Friday Apr 11, 2008 10:12 am

Well I got impatient last night and decided to try a bottle from my first brew (Cooper's Lager which came with the kit). It's only been in the bottle 5 days but I thought what the hell....

Suprisingly it tasted pretty good..Better than a VB but that's not hard. And I didn't even vomit, gag or crap my pants.. so I must be doing something right

Anyway, The sediment in the bottom is white / grey in colour. Is this normal? It's just that the sediment in Coopers is a brown colour.

Is this due to the age of the beer?

Cheers, Mat.
User avatar
matr
 
Posts: 364
Joined: Tuesday Apr 08, 2008 1:13 pm
Location: Perth

Re: Basic brewing instructions

Postby Kevnlis » Friday Apr 11, 2008 12:49 pm

matr wrote:The sediment in the bottom is white / grey in colour. Is this normal? It's just that the sediment in Coopers is a brown colour.

Is this due to the age of the beer?

Cheers, Mat.


What you are seeing in the bottom of the bottle is live yeast. The Coopers yeast has been in the bottle for at least a month before you see it, so will mostly be dead.
Prost and happy brewing!

Image
O'Brien Gluten Free Beer
User avatar
Kevnlis
 
Posts: 3380
Joined: Tuesday Jul 10, 2007 5:15 pm
Location: B-Rat

Re: Basic brewing instructions

Postby randb » Thursday Nov 13, 2008 2:35 pm

jackmarshall wrote:The best thing I ever did was ditch the lid, airlock and grommet. Just cover the top of the fermenter with gladwrap and an elastic band to hold in place. Got this tip from some book and have never looked back.


Do you put a pin prick in the top of the gladwrap to allow gas to escape ???
"Life is like a box of beer"
randb
 
Posts: 20
Joined: Friday Oct 27, 2006 12:13 pm

Re: Basic brewing instructions

Postby FazerPete » Thursday Nov 13, 2008 2:44 pm

I use gladwrap too and I never bother with a pin prick. The gas finds it's own way out.
FazerPete
 
Posts: 69
Joined: Wednesday Nov 15, 2006 7:47 pm
Location: Arthurs Seat, Vic

Re: Basic brewing instructions

Postby warra48 » Thursday Nov 13, 2008 2:46 pm

No need to put a pin hole in the gladwrap.
The rubber band does not give you a hermetic seal, and the gas will find its own way out.
User avatar
warra48
 
Posts: 2081
Joined: Wednesday Apr 04, 2007 12:45 pm
Location: Corlette NSW

Re: Basic brewing instructions

Postby squirt in the turns » Wednesday Dec 17, 2008 9:34 am

I think I want to ditch the airlock and go with the gladwrap (concerns regarding the noise of the airlock bubbling). Is there more of a risk of infection doing this, especially when fermentation finishes and the positive pressure inside the glad wrap equalises? My fermenter is in the bathroom at the moment, so I guess it stands to reason there's more wild bacteria flying around in there than elsewhere in the house.
User avatar
squirt in the turns
 
Posts: 274
Joined: Thursday Dec 04, 2008 8:26 pm
Location: Gold Coast

Re: Basic brewing instructions

Postby Boonie » Wednesday Dec 17, 2008 11:00 am

squirt in the turns wrote:I think I want to ditch the airlock and go with the gladwrap (concerns regarding the noise of the airlock bubbling). Is there more of a risk of infection doing this, especially when fermentation finishes and the positive pressure inside the glad wrap equalises? My fermenter is in the bathroom at the moment, so I guess it stands to reason there's more wild bacteria flying around in there than elsewhere in the house.


I wouldn't brew in the bathroom......do you have a laundry.

In regards to the airlock, you can get a 2 Part Airlock from Big W, Brigalow I think, and they are pretty quiet.

I tried Gladwrap and did not like it, nothing wrong with it as it works fine, just not my thing.

Cheers

Boonie
A homebrew is like a fart, only the brewer thinks it's great.
Give me a flying headbutt.......
User avatar
Boonie
 
Posts: 1760
Joined: Friday Jul 21, 2006 6:41 pm
Location: Lake Macquarie

Re: Basic brewing instructions

Postby Biernut » Wednesday Dec 17, 2008 5:00 pm

I agree with you there Boonie ditching the hard top,seal and airlock seems to be a retrograde step. I have a dedicated corner in my workshop where all the action happens so noise from a vigorous fermentation isn't a problem. Years ago I had the fermenter's in the kitchen and there were times in the night I would wake up and hear them burping away. The gladwrap method would take care of that if it was a problem. We have a young very curious Maine Coon cat, and with gladwrap she would end up in the fermenter for sure.

Cheers.
Biernut
 
Posts: 163
Joined: Thursday May 29, 2008 4:01 pm

Re: Basic brewing instructions

Postby chadjaja » Wednesday Dec 17, 2008 7:31 pm

Boonie wrote:In regards to the airlock, you can get a 2 Part Airlock from Big W, Brigalow I think, and they are pretty quiet.



I got one of those but the stem of it is too thick to fit the whole in the lid with the grommet. I think they only fit the brigalow kit lids?

I've done the glad wrap thing but I actually like the bubble sound :lol:
chadjaja
 
Posts: 458
Joined: Sunday Feb 17, 2008 5:39 pm

Re: Basic brewing instructions

Postby squirt in the turns » Wednesday Dec 17, 2008 11:20 pm

Boonie wrote:
I wouldn't brew in the bathroom......do you have a laundry.

In regards to the airlock, you can get a 2 Part Airlock from Big W, Brigalow I think, and they are pretty quiet.
Boonie


Yeah, I would like not to have to brew in the bathroom. The spot the fermenter was previously in is now occupied by a fridge (unfortunately not exclusively a beer fridge, and I can't put the fermenter in it - good though, as before there was only 1 fridge/freezer between 5 housemates!)

The laundry is a maybe, but space is an issue and I want to be able to ice-bath the fermenter, so I'll have to go get a big bucket or something.

Biernut wrote:Years ago I had the fermenter's in the kitchen and there were times in the night I would wake up and hear them burping away. The gladwrap method would take care of that if it was a problem. We have a young very curious Maine Coon cat, and with gladwrap she would end up in the fermenter for sure.


Our bathroom has a double entrance, one door opening straight into my housemate's room - hence the noise concern while fermenting in there. Actually, moving the thing would solve all my problems :P

I was thinking I'd leave the lid on, just without the airlock and gladwrap + rubber band over the top of that. That way there's still a hard lid to provide protection (in our case from a boisterous staffordshire terrier).
User avatar
squirt in the turns
 
Posts: 274
Joined: Thursday Dec 04, 2008 8:26 pm
Location: Gold Coast

Re: Basic brewing instructions

Postby Boonie » Thursday Dec 18, 2008 8:33 pm

chadjaja wrote:
Boonie wrote:In regards to the airlock, you can get a 2 Part Airlock from Big W, Brigalow I think, and they are pretty quiet.



I got one of those but the stem of it is too thick to fit the whole in the lid with the grommet. I think they only fit the brigalow kit lids?


Push harder..... :lol:

All of my grommets are stretched out, spot for a rude pun there, but if you wet the grommet and the airlock, you will find it slides in eventually............man that sounds rude :lol: .

I have three different sizes of airlocks and specific kegs they go to, but when I purchased new grommets the Brigalows did not fit for ages.

Cheers

Boonie
A homebrew is like a fart, only the brewer thinks it's great.
Give me a flying headbutt.......
User avatar
Boonie
 
Posts: 1760
Joined: Friday Jul 21, 2006 6:41 pm
Location: Lake Macquarie

Re: Basic brewing instructions

Postby Bubble » Friday Apr 15, 2011 4:02 pm

When doing a brew, and you reach the bottling stage and you do find it to be bad smelling or just 'off', do you still bottle and hope or what? Also is it still drinkable, what i mean is whats the worst that could happen - the shits maybe? :shock:
BEER IS LIKE A QUIET WOMAN
User avatar
Bubble
 
Posts: 34
Joined: Tuesday Apr 05, 2011 7:29 pm
Location: Perth

Re: Basic brewing instructions

Postby warra48 » Friday Apr 15, 2011 4:13 pm

Bubble wrote:When doing a brew, and you reach the bottling stage and you do find it to be bad smelling or just 'off', do you still bottle and hope or what? Also is it still drinkable, what i mean is whats the worst that could happen - the shits maybe? :shock:


Depends what the smell is like. Different yeasts can give off rather unpleasant aromas during fermentation, such as sulphur (think of a thick fart) etc, so I wouldn't be put off by that. I normally give my brews at least 2 weeks in primary, and up to 4 weeks, before bottling. Time gives the yeast an opportunity to clean up fermentation by-products, and will also often remove objectionable aromas, such as a sulphur smell. Even when bottled, it often still cleans up.

I'd go for bottling it. Why chuck a brew when it may turn out well after sufficient time in primary and bottle?

The beer will not kill you, even if it is infected. Remember there are some styles of beer which deliberately use what are effectively infections (such as Lambics, Berliner Weisse etc)), and people survive very nicely after consuming those. An infection shouldn't give you "shite" symptoms.
User avatar
warra48
 
Posts: 2081
Joined: Wednesday Apr 04, 2007 12:45 pm
Location: Corlette NSW

Re: Basic brewing instructions

Postby Bubble » Friday Apr 15, 2011 4:22 pm

You da man, man.
BEER IS LIKE A QUIET WOMAN
User avatar
Bubble
 
Posts: 34
Joined: Tuesday Apr 05, 2011 7:29 pm
Location: Perth

PreviousNext

Return to Making beer

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 30 guests