You love Indonesian food tooI have a cast iron wok
(Plus a cast steel one, plus cast iron everything)
Now I need to work home brew in it...
I really like nasi goreng. So easy to make and it needs a glass of beer to go with it
What are you doing with homebrew today?
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I've considered exactly that, just to prevent the bubbles going through the batch when I swap the bulb. The volume of the ball is 1 quart, so it'll be interesting to see the effects on the batch adding nearly a half gallon of water (changing the ball twice). I usually toss the first lot that I capture, and then get a much cleaner batch of yeast out of the second capture. Looks to be nearly a half cup of slurry/cake on the second batch. Gonna give one a spin on a batch I'm making today if my repitch doesn't smell like buffalo farts. Got a batch of SAF33 waiting from the last run of my Rapier Wit, and making a new batch today. After bottling a batch of Goose Island Hex Nut Brown and a batch of Mango wine, gonna be a long brew day/bottling day/wine making day. Been at it since 0730.
Plan B was to perhaps draw off some of the wort and refrigerate it just before I pitch, and use that to fill the bulb. OR, just make up a batch of clean wort from some 2 Row DME and fill it with that. The latter would probably be the most convenient method, and hopefully have the least impact on my brew. Dunno.
What a brew day!
Started by bottling 51 bottles of Goose Island Hex Nut Brown (American Brown). I'm thinking there might have been a bit too much Crystal 60 in this batch. It looks a little too dark to qualify as a brown. Looks more like a stout and has that overroasted coffee flavor, too. Time will tell on this one.
Then, I made up a 5 gallon batch of Mango wine (from concentrate, of course). This will be the 4th batch we've done since last November. Sure takes a long ferment cycle on that stuff. We started out with Apricot, then Black Currant, then Pear, and now Mango. So far, haven't been disappointed in any of them.
Then, I brewed up another batch of Rapier Wit, because the fermenter looked so sad when it was empty. Just finished the clean up, so now gotta find out if I smell like the inside of a brewery before I go to the doctor. He probably won't be impressed if I don't. New batch in the dark and waiting for a recovered pitch of SAF33 to wake up. Sure smelled good before I put it in, so hoping it kicks in fast and knocks out my Go-To beer pretty quickly, I noticed before how much faster re-pitched yeast kicked into high gear, and have also noticed how much quicker this conical seems to work. Maybe it's me, but I wouldn't think the air lock would lie.
Time to scrub up a little and maybe take a nap before I go to the doc. Pretty wicked pain lately with neuropathy in both arms and legs (thanks to arthritis in the cervical and lumbar sections of my back). As much as I've tried to avoid it, looks like I gotta do something for pain management. Just hope it doesn't make me stupid and stop me from driving. Albeit, I don't think I've driven 100 miles yet this year. I stay home and brew beer. Most of what I need the missus picks up.
Started by bottling 51 bottles of Goose Island Hex Nut Brown (American Brown). I'm thinking there might have been a bit too much Crystal 60 in this batch. It looks a little too dark to qualify as a brown. Looks more like a stout and has that overroasted coffee flavor, too. Time will tell on this one.
Then, I made up a 5 gallon batch of Mango wine (from concentrate, of course). This will be the 4th batch we've done since last November. Sure takes a long ferment cycle on that stuff. We started out with Apricot, then Black Currant, then Pear, and now Mango. So far, haven't been disappointed in any of them.
Then, I brewed up another batch of Rapier Wit, because the fermenter looked so sad when it was empty. Just finished the clean up, so now gotta find out if I smell like the inside of a brewery before I go to the doctor. He probably won't be impressed if I don't. New batch in the dark and waiting for a recovered pitch of SAF33 to wake up. Sure smelled good before I put it in, so hoping it kicks in fast and knocks out my Go-To beer pretty quickly, I noticed before how much faster re-pitched yeast kicked into high gear, and have also noticed how much quicker this conical seems to work. Maybe it's me, but I wouldn't think the air lock would lie.
Time to scrub up a little and maybe take a nap before I go to the doc. Pretty wicked pain lately with neuropathy in both arms and legs (thanks to arthritis in the cervical and lumbar sections of my back). As much as I've tried to avoid it, looks like I gotta do something for pain management. Just hope it doesn't make me stupid and stop me from driving. Albeit, I don't think I've driven 100 miles yet this year. I stay home and brew beer. Most of what I need the missus picks up.
Just got back from the doc. As I figured, gonna wind up getting another epidural in the lumbar for now. Cortisone in the left elbow today, and yep, compression at L3/L4 and C5/C6/C7. It'll feel a lot better when it quits hurtin'.
Picked up another New Glarus Spotted Cow recipe while I was over that way. Can actually see my LHBS from the parking lot of my orthopedist. Silly me didn't think to pick up some DME to make up sediment bulb filler for this batch of Rapier Wit. Not only that, I keep forgetting to use the $50 gift certificate that my stepson gave me for Xmas. I remember it just as he's swiping my credit card, every time.
Checked on the Rapier Wit that I brewed right at lunch time when I got home. WOWSERS! Instead of a new packet of dry SAF33, I did a repitch with the yeast cake from the last batch of RW. It's already bubbling like crazy and temperature climbed nearly 3 degrees since I put it downstairs at about 2 PM. Now let's see if I hosed up a batch. Had quite a discussion about repitching with my LHBS when I bought the ingredients for that batch. He's a beer judge as well, so kinda like asking an engineer about how to go about doing something that needs engineering. If you want 5 ONLY WAY TO DO IT opinions, just ask 5 engineers. I can say that, because I am an engineer. I said something about repitching the SAF33 cake, and I thought he was going to pass out. Him: "There are many impurities introduced in the drying process that might cause a problem or spoil the batch" Me: "Huh? Why wouldn't it happen in the first batch?" Him: "It won't in the first batch, but is likely in the second batch" Me: "Would that be because of my handling or maybe long term storage?" Him: "NO, it just isn't done. No one repitches with yeast cake from dry yeast." At this point, I'm thinking back to a previous discussion about rinsing yeast to make a new starter, etc, and his suggestions to just throw the slurry straight into the new batch. My mouth came open, but my brain prevailed and I decided not to antagonize him with his own suggestions in my earlier stages of home brewing. Best pay the man and leave at that point, because I was quite agitated at him for criticizing me for doing something that he was the very person that told me to do it. So, for better or worse, a repitch with SAF33 yeast cake, which was the second harvest from the conical on my last batch of Rapier Wit, which was VERY tasty. It does seem to be a LOT more aggressive than pitching the dry stuff again, considering 4 hours after pitch, the airlock is rattling. Maybe I killed a batch, but it sure isn't looking like it at the moment. I did have a bit of krausen in the harvest that sunk after falling off the wall of the fermenter. But a nifty little tea strainer took care of that. I decanted most of the old beer off the cake, shook hell out of it, and poured it into a mixing cup through the strainer. Had a beautiful white milk-shake looking yeast slurry that smelled like Smith's Bakery in Mobile. Beautiful bready smell, no buffalo farts. We'll see what happens.
Picked up another New Glarus Spotted Cow recipe while I was over that way. Can actually see my LHBS from the parking lot of my orthopedist. Silly me didn't think to pick up some DME to make up sediment bulb filler for this batch of Rapier Wit. Not only that, I keep forgetting to use the $50 gift certificate that my stepson gave me for Xmas. I remember it just as he's swiping my credit card, every time.
Checked on the Rapier Wit that I brewed right at lunch time when I got home. WOWSERS! Instead of a new packet of dry SAF33, I did a repitch with the yeast cake from the last batch of RW. It's already bubbling like crazy and temperature climbed nearly 3 degrees since I put it downstairs at about 2 PM. Now let's see if I hosed up a batch. Had quite a discussion about repitching with my LHBS when I bought the ingredients for that batch. He's a beer judge as well, so kinda like asking an engineer about how to go about doing something that needs engineering. If you want 5 ONLY WAY TO DO IT opinions, just ask 5 engineers. I can say that, because I am an engineer. I said something about repitching the SAF33 cake, and I thought he was going to pass out. Him: "There are many impurities introduced in the drying process that might cause a problem or spoil the batch" Me: "Huh? Why wouldn't it happen in the first batch?" Him: "It won't in the first batch, but is likely in the second batch" Me: "Would that be because of my handling or maybe long term storage?" Him: "NO, it just isn't done. No one repitches with yeast cake from dry yeast." At this point, I'm thinking back to a previous discussion about rinsing yeast to make a new starter, etc, and his suggestions to just throw the slurry straight into the new batch. My mouth came open, but my brain prevailed and I decided not to antagonize him with his own suggestions in my earlier stages of home brewing. Best pay the man and leave at that point, because I was quite agitated at him for criticizing me for doing something that he was the very person that told me to do it. So, for better or worse, a repitch with SAF33 yeast cake, which was the second harvest from the conical on my last batch of Rapier Wit, which was VERY tasty. It does seem to be a LOT more aggressive than pitching the dry stuff again, considering 4 hours after pitch, the airlock is rattling. Maybe I killed a batch, but it sure isn't looking like it at the moment. I did have a bit of krausen in the harvest that sunk after falling off the wall of the fermenter. But a nifty little tea strainer took care of that. I decanted most of the old beer off the cake, shook hell out of it, and poured it into a mixing cup through the strainer. Had a beautiful white milk-shake looking yeast slurry that smelled like Smith's Bakery in Mobile. Beautiful bready smell, no buffalo farts. We'll see what happens.
I just open the sample valve, fill up the collection jar and screw it back on. I do use a piece of silicone tube to make sure I minimize splashing.
Ya know, I got a sample valve with the fermenter too, just haven't installed it yet. DUUUUUUHHHH. Don't use force, get a bigger hammer. This has not been one of my better thought processes. That technique guarantees almost ZERO impact on the batch or exposure risk. Me LIKEY! My step son gave me the fermenter, sample valve, thermometer and thermocouple well, a couple air locks, and a $50 gift certificate for the LHBS. Been too busy marveling at the new-fangled conical to realize I had the solution right in front of me. DOH!
Holly Crap mate spinal tap aye that's hardcore not that I can say I've been on the receiving end.
Watched the nearest n dearest get one before she had bub not for the faint hearted.
I wish you an accurate jab
.
This will be the 6th for me since 2016. Best damn 20 minute nap I've ever had. Wake up feeling like Rip Van WInkle's sleep was just a blink.Holly Crap mate spinal tap aye that's hardcore not that I can say I've been on the receiving end.
Watched the nearest n dearest get one before she had bub not for the faint hearted.
I wish you an accurate jab
I have a cousin that was anesthetist chief at Druid City Hospital in Tuscaloosa. Got his training in the Navy. The told me a few things about knocking out grown-ups. The same drugs used on kids can't be used on grown ups. Kids just go to sleep when they hallucinate, because they haven't seen enough in life for the hallucinations to bother them. Adults have HORRIBLE hallucinations that can put them in shock, so most of what they give adults is an amnesiac. If you don't remember it, it didn't hurt. They give a pretty good local block before they put the big needles in. Even that's done after they knock ya out. Albeit, they keep telling me that they have me awake the whole time. Guess the amnesiac works. GOOD. Wake up about 20 minutes later, boom, good to go for a few months with slippery cortisone in the bad joints. Doesn't really fix the problem, but sure make it hurt less. For a while. Gave me a script for some other 'roids too. Methinks I'm about to get fat again. I usually put on some serious weight when I get on the 'roids. Takes longer to get it back off now than it did when I was younger. I had the metabolism of a speedboat when I was in my 30s. 6'1" and 145 pounds (65Kg), couldn't gain an ounce no matter what I ate. Now, I have to watch my diet a little better. Nearly hit that 200 pound (91Kg) end-stop right after my shoulder surgeries in 2020. Got up to 198. Not good for someone with a small frame and back/knee issues. Took a lotta long walks to get rid of that and get me back down to a reasonable 170 - 175. Strangely enough, I don't gain weight and my cholesterol gets better with my home brewing. I'll take that.
I've herd about this!
My little bro twisted his wrist playing rugby league once literally his hand was the other way around.
Anyhow they had to put it back with his full awareness so they could do it right (something about growth plates in wrist) anyhow old man rekons he was screaming like a Banche but they gave him some Amnesia stuff so he can't remember it.
Yeah that probably hurt a lot. It makes me shudder to even imagine it.
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2022 NHC registration is open now. Got 4 in and crossing my finders.
Good luck @HighVoltageMan!
What are your entries? Or is that Top Secret until after comp is over?
Might wanna cross your fingers instead of your finders. It'll be easier to see, and probably a whole lot safer around High Voltage.
Dunno if I'll EVER do anything competitive with HB. It isn't the possibility of rejection I mind, it's when a beer that I think is great is rejected by someone that doesn't like the same kind of beer as me starts telling me how wrong I am about how much I actually like it. Who the heck is anyone else to tell me what I should like? Why would I try to make my beer like someone else's if I changed a recipe to make it something I want? Maybe I'd do an extra batch for a little friendly presentation at a completely benign gathering or event for folks that wanna try it, but even then, it'll have labels that say "Drink it or leave it alone, I don't care what you think unless you like it". If I won't drink it, I sure as heck ain't gonna make it for someone else to possibly reject, too.
But, I laud your efforts and ambitions.
Ok, maybe I know now why I was told to NOT use a repitch on SAF33, starting from dry pitch on the first batch, but not sure it's the reason I was being given. The little yeasty buggers learned something in the first pitch. I've been warned over and over about temperature and headspace in a fermenter, so have been fairly observant of my batch sizes and keeping it as cool as I can with no temperature control other than my HVAC system in my house and the fermentation being done in the coolest room in the house. Now I'm beginning to wonder if I'll ever be safe from a puking fermenter.
Started this batch of Rapier Wit yesterday, pitched with SAF33 slurry captured from a RW batch I did a month ago. Just over 5 gallons in a 7.9 gallon conical, so head space of about 8 inches between batch surface and the end of the airlock. The wort was at 68F when I pitched, chilled VERY quickly by using clean ice to make up some of the volume. Once I got to 68, I topped off with tap water because we have very good water and it's still relatively cool (about 64F). Went to the doctor, and checked on the fermenter when I got back about 3 hours later. It was RAGING in the airlock already. Wowsers, I say. Temp was just under 70F (22C).
Got up at 6 this morning to make sure my granddaughter got up and off to school, and then went down to check the fermenter again. As soon as I opened the door on the fermenting room, I smelled Rapier Wit. Uh oh. The room was full of fermenter farts. The Krausen is up to the lid and has contaminated the airlock. A bit of sticky residue on the airlock, and a little yeast in the bottom of it, but a solid mass of foam in what WAS headspace in the conical. Nothing running down the side, so that's a plus. It's a VERY dense white foam about an inch thick on top of the batch, and there's a slight brownish ring about an inch above that where it sat for a while, apparently, allowing byproducts to stick. Temperature's about 70 at the moment, but I'd wager it was kind of excited last night and a bit higher. Hopefully not too high.
This batch would have been fun to watch with a Tilt (if not a little frightening). Holy smokes, I've never had a batch this vigorous, and I've probably brewed at least 15 batches of this recipe since I started brewing, with very minor modifications to procedure or ingredients. I've had a few puke, but that was my fault trying to stretch the batches a little to make up for wastes caused by racking from buckets. Pretty sure the only time I've ever repitched in this recipe before is when I've used a liquid Belgian Ale yeast (don't remember the White Labs number) and that was also all-grain (to see if it was actually better than the extract based recipe). This one was an extract because it's so much easier and quicker, and the missus will let me do it on the stove since it doesn't smell up the house (much). The yeast was SAF33 repitched from a slurry, which was actually a second capture from the first batch. Call me impressed, because I had no clue if I threw out the good stuff with the first capture, but the second capture was a much prettier color than the first.
I just hope such a positive impression isn't spoiling my beer. This is my go-to beer that I'm trying to restock my shelves with. If there was ever a justification for temperature control, this might be it. I don't think I want it going quite that vigorous, but tasting will decide that, I guess. I may have to do the first sediment bulb dump a lot earlier than anticipated (like maybe today). I think I'll get a lot more secondary yeast cake from this batch. Might be time to make two more batches right behind this one. The wort is currently about the color of a mocha milkshake and it smells heavenly in that room. Nothing stinking yet, so maybe I'm good to go. This batch has the potential to be the fastest one I've ever done. I may be wishing I'd taken the time for the sample valve install and purchased a refractometer so I can see when the gravity stops dropping.
![IMG_2921[1].JPG](https://www.brewersfriend.com/forum/data/attachments/19/19790-25480edec93c829bd0cdf02b36532fa9.jpg "IMG_2921[1].JPG")
![IMG_2923[1].JPG](https://www.brewersfriend.com/forum/data/attachments/19/19791-6834d0990830da3317514aeec700d2a0.jpg "IMG_2923[1].JPG")
Started this batch of Rapier Wit yesterday, pitched with SAF33 slurry captured from a RW batch I did a month ago. Just over 5 gallons in a 7.9 gallon conical, so head space of about 8 inches between batch surface and the end of the airlock. The wort was at 68F when I pitched, chilled VERY quickly by using clean ice to make up some of the volume. Once I got to 68, I topped off with tap water because we have very good water and it's still relatively cool (about 64F). Went to the doctor, and checked on the fermenter when I got back about 3 hours later. It was RAGING in the airlock already. Wowsers, I say. Temp was just under 70F (22C).
Got up at 6 this morning to make sure my granddaughter got up and off to school, and then went down to check the fermenter again. As soon as I opened the door on the fermenting room, I smelled Rapier Wit. Uh oh. The room was full of fermenter farts. The Krausen is up to the lid and has contaminated the airlock. A bit of sticky residue on the airlock, and a little yeast in the bottom of it, but a solid mass of foam in what WAS headspace in the conical. Nothing running down the side, so that's a plus. It's a VERY dense white foam about an inch thick on top of the batch, and there's a slight brownish ring about an inch above that where it sat for a while, apparently, allowing byproducts to stick. Temperature's about 70 at the moment, but I'd wager it was kind of excited last night and a bit higher. Hopefully not too high.
This batch would have been fun to watch with a Tilt (if not a little frightening). Holy smokes, I've never had a batch this vigorous, and I've probably brewed at least 15 batches of this recipe since I started brewing, with very minor modifications to procedure or ingredients. I've had a few puke, but that was my fault trying to stretch the batches a little to make up for wastes caused by racking from buckets. Pretty sure the only time I've ever repitched in this recipe before is when I've used a liquid Belgian Ale yeast (don't remember the White Labs number) and that was also all-grain (to see if it was actually better than the extract based recipe). This one was an extract because it's so much easier and quicker, and the missus will let me do it on the stove since it doesn't smell up the house (much). The yeast was SAF33 repitched from a slurry, which was actually a second capture from the first batch. Call me impressed, because I had no clue if I threw out the good stuff with the first capture, but the second capture was a much prettier color than the first.
I just hope such a positive impression isn't spoiling my beer. This is my go-to beer that I'm trying to restock my shelves with. If there was ever a justification for temperature control, this might be it. I don't think I want it going quite that vigorous, but tasting will decide that, I guess. I may have to do the first sediment bulb dump a lot earlier than anticipated (like maybe today). I think I'll get a lot more secondary yeast cake from this batch. Might be time to make two more batches right behind this one. The wort is currently about the color of a mocha milkshake and it smells heavenly in that room. Nothing stinking yet, so maybe I'm good to go. This batch has the potential to be the fastest one I've ever done. I may be wishing I'd taken the time for the sample valve install and purchased a refractometer so I can see when the gravity stops dropping.
Finished cleaning up from yesterday, added the spunding valve to the pale lager that I pitched yesterday, cleaned and sanitized a keg, and made a vitality starter from some fridge slurry for another run of Shady Boh tomorrow. Whew I'm pooped and need a beer also placed an order from some keg and party faucet odds and ends and finally decided to order an immersion chiller will hopefully break it in on my next brewday in a couple weeks.
also placed an order from some keg and party faucet odds and ends and finally decided to order an immersion chiller will hopefully break it in on my next brewday in a couple weeks.
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It's hard to cross your finders for sure! That's what you get for having fat fingers.
As far as competing, a lot of people feel the same way. But for me I find it fun and challenging. I can say for sure it's made me a way better homebrewer. Most winning beers are some of my favorites, so it's a win win for me. I don't think it's so much about pleasing judges, it's about hitting the mark. A good beer is a good beer and even a bad judge can recognize that most of the time.
Thank you. I'm entering all lagers again this year. Czech Pils, German Pils, International Lager and an American Lager. Should be done brewing them by May or so.
Like I said, competing just isn't for me in this hobby. I'm all about those that want to doing so, though. I'm just not really a competitive person until you put a backgammon board down in front of me. Then I turn into a Little League Baseball daddy and start foaming at the mouth. Otherwise, bragging rights and a couple bucks will get ya a cup of coffee as far as I'm concerned. I do like to see others do well, though, especially if they're competing in something that takes talent, skill, and as much patience as this hobby requires.
Good luck to him, indeed, and I meant it. Hope he has 4 entries win gold medals this year. Just curious what they are.
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