Homebrewers - Whats Fermenting?

[Stew]

First, read and research a lot. Howtobrew.com is a free web version of the home brewers bible and while it may not be the most up to date version it will tell you what you need to know. Start with simple recipes that are tried and true before getting crazy with things. I only brewed 4 Mr Beer extract kits before jumping into all grain but many people stick with extract for longer. As long as you enjoy it, that's what matters. Temperature control during fermentation is the most important thing followed closely by sanitation and cleaning. It's difficult for me to control fermentation temps without room for a temp controlled freezer currently so when it's hot I brew Saison and wines as they don't require cool fermentation. Feel free to pm me with any questions

Good advice here. Get the Palmer book and read at least the sections on brewing your first extract batch. It's a very good starting point.

Also, take a trip to your local home brew supply store and see what advice or direction they can offer. The better ones should be able to give you pointers, set you up with a basic kit, and get a recipe together for you.

 

[smokemifugotem]

Crappy photo but blood orange shandy...got a couple more weeks. Should be perfect timing for the 90 degree summer!

 

[HIM*]

American Wheat with coriander and citrus zest. Second all all grain batch!

I just got the ingredients for something similar Ive been putting off. The plan is a chocolate witibier. Hopefully it turns out how I want it to.

This weekend I should be kegging my bourbon chocolate stout. I tweaked the recipe a bit jacking up the roast % and mashing @ 162. So far it looks like motor oil This should finally get this beer into the 40s in comp.
Next batch I think Im going to mash low and use maltodextrin to get a more fermentable wort yet keep a nice full body. Aiming to get the ABV at 7% and the FG around 1.030 or higher.

 

[Stew]

I just got the ingredients for something similar Ive been putting off. The plan is a chocolate witibier. Hopefully it turns out how I want it to.

This weekend I should be kegging my bourbon chocolate stout. I tweaked the recipe a bit jacking up the roast % and mashing @ 162. So far it looks like motor oil This should finally get this beer into the 40s in comp.
Next batch I think Im going to mash low and use malt dextrin to get a more fermentable wort yet keep a nice full body. Aiming to get the ABV at 7% and the FG around 1.030 or higher.

That will be an interesting brew! There's a small brewery up here in Grand Haven (Oddside Ales) that does a coffee wheat called Bean Flicker thats excellent. Sort of the same idea...and a bizarre combo. Chocolate wheat is a great idea!

I'm just getting the hang of all grain...doing simple single temp infusions and batch sparging. Taking it slow until I've got the fundamentals down.

 

[HIM*]

Took a gravity reading while kegging today and finished up at 1.032 / 6% ABV. This stuff is thick but not cloying at all. All coffee and dark chocolate deliciousness.

 

[HIM*]

Been a damn long week. Just finishing up my 5th brew day in the past 7 days. Brewed up 2 different APAs, a Weizen with a new yeast strain, Oatmeal Stout, and my Caribbean Cream Ale. Feels good having all the fermenters filled. Though it feels even better coming in over the estimated batch size while nailing efficiency 13% higher than expected. That's what I call kicking ass!!

 

[BrewinHooligan]

Been a damn long week. Just finishing up my 5th brew day in the past 7 days. Brewed up 2 different APAs, a Weizen with a new yeast strain, Oatmeal Stout, and my Caribbean Cream Ale. Feels good having all the fermenters filled. Though it feels even better coming in over the estimated batch size while nailing efficiency 13% higher than expected. That's what I call kicking ass!!

Hell yes!! I'm hoping to get a batch in real soon and break in the mash tun that @MoldMan gifted me. Got a busy couple weeks ahead but I am dying to brew... Can't decide between a Brett IPA or a saison with citrus and peppercorns though.

 

[rfraser]

About to brew this Friday. Its called a Not Sure Wheat, a recipe I found online. It a pretty good whear beer that I have brewed once before aerentnd now iam brewing with a different yeast. First time was an ale yeast, this time with wheat beer yeast. Probably be my last extract brews. About to pull the trigger on a bigger kettle to BIAB.

 

[HIM*]

About to brew this Friday. Its called a Not Sure Wheat, a recipe I found online. It a pretty good whear beer that I have brewed once before aerentnd now iam brewing with a different yeast. First time was an ale yeast, this time with wheat beer yeast. Probably be my last extract brews. About to pull the trigger on a bigger kettle to BIAB.

Which yeast strain? Make sure you have a decent amount of head space because wheat yeasts tend to have some pretty crazy krausen.


Speaking of yeast I just brewed up another batch of my mango cream ale for our upcoming Brewfest but this time I used some Conan. I usually use Notty but I have a feeling the ester profile of the Conan will go great with the Amarillo and mango.

 

[rfraser]

Bad memory, will have to check which strain when I get back. I will be fermenting in my 6.5 gal wide mouth, so I should be ok.

 

[skullnbones]

Hey Brothers,

I was given a Craft a Brew kit for Xmas last year and I'm just getting around to getting a batch going. This is my first brew and whats in the kit is all I have. Is there anything else I may need to be successful? Here's a link to the kit.

http://craftabrew.com/collections/brewing-kits/products/starter-kit-american-pale-ale-recipe-kit

 

[rfraser]

Well, for just a 1 gallon brew, you should easily just whatever big kettle you have in the house. I like putting those temperature strips on the carboy so you can monitor temperature during fermentation.

 

[rfraser]

If you want to get bigger batches going you will have to get some other equipment. Also, there are some brewing brothers in the area, brewinghooligan and moldman that have brewing for quite awhile and can guide you down this rabbit hole

 

[rfraser]

Which yeast strain? Make sure you have a decent amount of head space because wheat yeasts tend to have some pretty crazy krausen.


Speaking of yeast I just brewed up another batch of my mango cream ale for our upcoming Brewfest but this time I used some Conan. I usually use Notty but I have a feeling the ester profile of the Conan will go great with the Amarillo and mango.

Oh and that mango cream ale sounds interesting. Would you mind sharing the recipe?

 

[MoldMan]

Getting the bug back after a long dry spell. Need to dig my brew stand out of retirement with a few new mods. I'll keep it simple for the first batch or two and start with a black cream ale to blow the cobwebs out of my system. Then bring out the big guns and shoot for a smokier version of my smoked märsen (crowd pleaser) followed by a triple decocted bo pils. Get a few lagers in the keezer. Thinking about rehashing my black Friday RIS this year and see if we can push the sg past 1.110. Oooo, and a return of the Evil Bastardized Twin sort of imp red rye. Did I mention I may be getting the bug back? Lol

 

[MoldMan]

Hey Brothers,

I was given a Craft a Brew kit for Xmas last year and I'm just getting around to getting a batch going. This is my first brew and whats in the kit is all I have. Is there anything else I may need to be successful? Here's a link to the kit.

http://craftabrew.com/collections/brewing-kits/products/starter-kit-american-pale-ale-recipe-kit

Biggest thing I can think of off the top of my head is to relax, don't worry. Keep everything clean through the boil and sanitize everything that touches the cold wort after chilling. When adding your first bittering addition of hops move your kettle off of the burner until you stir them in. At a good boil they will trigger a boil over in a flash. Cooked wort is a bitch to remove from your stove top.

 

[rfraser]

Yep, good advice. As long as you have good water and yeast and keep everyting clean, you will make drinkable beer. And take notes to refer back on.

 

[HIM*]

Give the beer 17-21 days in the fermenter before you try to move it to a secondary or bottle it. Wait until the wort is under 75f before pitching, under 70f is even better.

 

[Mathen]

We did a Saison today.

 

[HIM*]

Oh and that mango cream ale sounds interesting. Would you mind sharing the recipe?

To give credit where it's due I got the grist proportions from the "Cream of 3 Crops" recipe. But I changed the base malt, hop variety, hop schedule, and yeast variety. IMO it's an entirely different beer and is much more of a craft effort. I don't have all the numbers off the top of my head by here's the bare bones....


Step mash - 15min @ 135f, 90min @ 150f

6# Maris Otter
2# Flaked Corn
7oz Minute Rice(white)

60 min boil -

Whirlfloc tab @ 15min
1oz Amarillo @ 7min

Fermentation - 17 days @ 64f
Yeast - Nottingham

Secondary on 5# mangoes until fruit ferments and settles.