Home brewing thread anyone?

[kborndale]

My RO unit has a re-mineralizer. It reads higher ppm than out of the tap. Some times I do add something like brewers salts. I forget what it’s called.

Brewers salt is Burton salt.

 

[djlew]

My ingredients are on the way and should be here this week for the cream ale. I am planning on brew day being sometime this weekend. I may or may not forego the mint in this brew since reality is I am trying to get a good base recipe for different styles. I've wanted to brew with cacao nibs for a while now so I will still use those to at the very least do a "chocolatey" cream ale. I've learned to get a little bit extra grain just in case, but this recipe will be 8lbs 2 row, 2lbs flaked corn, 1oz Cluster hops at start of the boil. I am using the CALI American Ale yeast. Consensus for the nibs seems to be toast them for a little bit, make a tincture on brew day and let it sit until either secondary or bottle day and mix into bottling bucket. Sounds like it could be a nice holiday beer which is what I am going for. We'll see!

 

[Burnin Since 1991]

My ingredients are on the way and should be here this week for the cream ale. I am planning on brew day being sometime this weekend. I may or may not forego the mint in this brew since reality is I am trying to get a good base recipe for different styles. I've wanted to brew with cacao nibs for a while now so I will still use those to at the very least do a "chocolatey" cream ale. I've learned to get a little bit extra grain just in case, but this recipe will be 8lbs 2 row, 2lbs flaked corn, 1oz Cluster hops at start of the boil. I am using the CALI American Ale yeast. Consensus for the nibs seems to be toast them for a little bit, make a tincture on brew day and let it sit until either secondary or bottle day and mix into bottling bucket. Sounds like it could be a nice holiday beer which is what I am going for. We'll see!

I grew up in Cincinnati and one of the coming of age beverages of choice was Schoenling Cream Ale. The quart size was called Big King and the small 8 pack of bottles were called Little Kings. I don't recall how many ounces were in the Little Kings, but I might of had a few over the years.

I haven't home brewed in many years but I think it's time to make up a batch of cream ale.

 

[djlew]

I grew up in Cincinnati and one of the coming of age beverages of choice was Schoenling Cream Ale. The quart size was called Big King and the small 8 pack of bottles were called Little Kings. I don't recall how many ounces were in the Little Kings, but I might of had a few over the years.

I haven't home brewed in many years but I think it's time to make up a batch of cream ale.

This thread has gotten me back into the hobby! Something to be said about a simple recipe too. Nice, crisp, great mouth feel, not a lot to mess up. I don't know a lot of people who brew cream ales, it would be fun to compare notes! I love their versatility also even though they are just a slightly different take on a traditional American beer. Coffee, cacao, fruited cream ales, list goes on. I'll have to do a Google on the Little Kings, I like a little beer history too!

 

[Burnin Since 1991]

This thread has gotten me back into the hobby! Something to be said about a simple recipe too. Nice, crisp, great mouth feel, not a lot to mess up. I don't know a lot of people who brew cream ales, it would be fun to compare notes! I love their versatility also even though they are just a slightly different take on a traditional American beer. Coffee, cacao, fruited cream ales, list goes on. I'll have to do a Google on the Little Kings, I like a little beer history too!

The Schoenling company went out of business some time back, but another company still makes it. I was in town for a Bengals / Patriots game and a bar right near the stadium had it on tap. My boys were with me so I bought a round. Neither had ever had a cream ale before. One liked, the other didn't. Me, I was 18 again for a few minutes! This was before the 21 age limit and I was 21 when it went into effect. Another company that has a decent cream ale is from Lexington Brewing Company, Vanilla Barrel Cream Ale.

 

[Burnin Since 1991]

I just dug out my home brew kit from Northern Brewer. The box had never been opened I'm pretty sure I got this kit in 2017 based upon the fact that the yeast in the recipe kit expired in 2018. I put that Block Party Amber Ale kit off to the side for now. I have home brewed in the past and it came out pretty good and then life got in the way.

I want to brew a cream ale and I see some good recipes at Northern and I'm also looking at a company called; My Brew Supply out of Ohio. Has anyone used either of these companies?

It seems to me that My Brew Supply has more basic beer recipe kits, while Northern charges extra for different options that basically double the price of the beer recipe kit.

It appears I have some learnin' to do.

 

[Whitenuckler]

I just dug out my home brew kit from Northern Brewer. The box had never been opened I'm pretty sure I got this kit in 2017 based upon the fact that the yeast in the recipe kit expired in 2018. I put that Block Party Amber Ale kit off to the side for now. I have home brewed in the past and it came out pretty good and then life got in the way.

I want to brew a cream ale and I see some good recipes at Northern and I'm also looking at a company called; My Brew Supply out of Ohio. Has anyone used either of these companies?

It seems to me that My Brew Supply has more basic beer recipe kits, while Northern charges extra for different options that basically double the price of the beer recipe kit.

It appears I have some learnin' to do.

Are you doing all grain? I have a good reference called BREWHQ. They have a few premade kits. You might be able to find something similar.

 

[Burnin Since 1991]

Are you doing all grain? I have a good reference called BREWHQ. They have a few premade kits. You might be able to find something similar.

I'm trying to understand the difference between the all grain and the extracts. I just have a very basic beginners brew kit and I've only made one batch about 15 years ago. I don't remember having those choices then.

As long as they can be made with a basic kit, then I'm up for trying whatever works. I guess it's time to see if the library has an updated book on home brewing.

Wouldn't you know that the library has the ebook: Homebrewing for Dummies

I've never read a Dummies book, but there are a ton of them. The author has been homebrewing since the 80's so he must know a thing or two about a thing or two.

Looks like I will be working with the extract kits for now.

I will check out brewhq's website. Unfortunately, it looks like they don't ship to the US from NS.

 

[Whitenuckler]

I'm trying to understand the difference between the all grain and the extracts. I just have a very basic beginners brew kit and I've only made one batch about 15 years ago. I don't remember having those choices then.

As long as they can be made with a basic kit, then I'm up for trying whatever works. I guess it's time to see if the library has an updated book on home brewing.

Wouldn't you know that the library has the ebook: Homebrewing for Dummies

I've never read a Dummies book, but there are a ton of them. The author has been homebrewing since the 80's so he must know a thing or two about a thing or two.

Looks like I will be working with the extract kits for now.

I will check out brewhq's website. Unfortunately, it looks like they don't ship to the US from NS.

All grain is the best, but the most work and most complicated, and needs the most equipment. You are getting the sugars from the malted grains. I have done both ways. Extract kits cost more, but the malt and hops have been pre-done for you, and there is hardly any work or guess work. I did some all grains enough to know there is a lot to it. Since I moved, I have been doing extract as it's so much easier. Brew hq website would just be for reference. If you like ale, then get an ale kit...Coopers or Mangrove Jack (which I like in the box). Brew in a bag is the easiest way to do all grain , but like I say, it would still be advanced. If you have any questions we can help. Happy brewing.

 

[djlew]

I just dug out my home brew kit from Northern Brewer. The box had never been opened I'm pretty sure I got this kit in 2017 based upon the fact that the yeast in the recipe kit expired in 2018. I put that Block Party Amber Ale kit off to the side for now. I have home brewed in the past and it came out pretty good and then life got in the way.

I want to brew a cream ale and I see some good recipes at Northern and I'm also looking at a company called; My Brew Supply out of Ohio. Has anyone used either of these companies?

It seems to me that My Brew Supply has more basic beer recipe kits, while Northern charges extra for different options that basically double the price of the beer recipe kit.

It appears I have some learnin' to do.

Agree with @Whitenuckler extract kits are the way to go to get back into the hobby. Once the bug bites you, move into all grain. I do brew in a bag all grain. My brews are generally good but hit or miss for my taste. Extract kits get the most consistency for me. I like to be a bit more creative, and extract kits are all made up so you pretty much follow the recipe to the letter and don't deviate much. Brew in a bag has been the most affordable entrance into all grain for me. I highly recommend it if you end up moving to all grain in the future. I'll keep the thread posted if my cream ale turns out any good, maybe something to try for you in the future.

I do most of my ingredient shopping in 2 places - MoreBeer and Lancaster Homebrew. It's easy to hit the free shipping marks over there! They have some good kits and good equipment too. All of my grains have been really good and shipping was really fast. I highly recommend them.

 

[Burnin Since 1991]

Agree with @Whitenuckler extract kits are the way to go to get back into the hobby. Once the bug bites you, move into all grain. I do brew in a bag all grain. My brews are generally good but hit or miss for my taste. Extract kits get the most consistency for me. I like to be a bit more creative, and extract kits are all made up so you pretty much follow the recipe to the letter and don't deviate much. Brew in a bag has been the most affordable entrance into all grain for me. I highly recommend it if you end up moving to all grain in the future. I'll keep the thread posted if my cream ale turns out any good, maybe something to try for you in the future.

I do most of my ingredient shopping in 2 places - MoreBeer and Lancaster Homebrew. It's easy to hit the free shipping marks over there! They have some good kits and good equipment too. All of my grains have been really good and shipping was really fast. I highly recommend them.

I have been snooping around and I see some beers I really look forward to trying. Half a dozen cream ales and other various beers. I'm not a fan of the IPA's. We have a bunch of local brewers and I've tried a lot of IPA's and they don't suit my tastes. I do like the occasional different beers that are fruit flavored so I want to do a blueberry and a blackberry at some point.

The brew in a bag sounds like a great second step after the extracts. You guys have given me a lot of ideas!

 

[djlew]

I have been snooping around and I see some beers I really look forward to trying. Half a dozen cream ales and other various beers. I'm not a fan of the IPA's. We have a bunch of local brewers and I've tried a lot of IPA's and they don't suit my tastes. I do like the occasional different beers that are fruit flavored so I want to do a blueberry and a blackberry at some point.

The brew in a bag sounds like a great second step after the extracts. You guys have given me a lot of ideas!

The hobby is really addicting when you get going! I am a big fan of fruited wheat beers and cream ales, it seems like we have really similar taste. I'm not an IPA guy either. If you ever go for a fruited wheat, let me know, I have a lot of experience in different kinds of fruited beers and what works/what doesn't. Believe me, I have made some horrible mistakes and some great discoveries! 🤣

 

[djlew]

Brew day for the cream ale is done! It was a long day. I haven't brewed a 5 gallon batch in a long time. I attempted to use my basement brewery setup and my burners do not cut it for 5 gallons... I ended up using my burner on the grill. Otherwise, very smooth and simple brew day! OG 1.048. Not mad at it, hoping to hit around 5% ABV. Ended up just short of 5 gallons of volume, but that's OK. I will also lose some to trub. I'll get there one day. I forgot to try and break down the grain a little bit more before mash... I know some folks say that can increase gravity. I buy my grain milled so maybe in the future.

Didn't get to roasting the cacao nibs and making the tincture. I will do that either tomorrow or sometime during the week. I have some time before needing to rush that part. I'll probably get some corn sugar to batch carb before bottling. I probably won't have my keg setup before needing to bottle.

 

[Whitenuckler]

Oxebar Mono Keg 8l​

I was just looking at these little PET kegs. I could fit two in my mini fridge although I not 100% how high the tapping heads is.
I have never kegged before, so I wondering about the process.
After I have made my beer, would I fill 3 x 8l kegs and then just let them sit at room temperature to mature with a cap on?
Then after a week take one and put the tapping head on and get a CO2 tank and carbonate?
If I get it carbonated, can I then disconnect the CO2 and put it it my fridge overnight?
Then bring it out and put a "dispensing tap" on it and the CO2 again?
I gather unless I add a hole to the top of my fridge to run the liquid tube and CO2 in I would then disconnect the CO2
and put it back in the fridge. Probably not a good idea to plan it that way. Mini fridges are pretty cheap so I wouldn't mind modifing one.
The big issue appears to be the cost of the tapping head and other items. The keg itself is not that expensive. Just not sure if I can put the beer in them at room temp and leave them like that until I want to use it.
Thanks

I started kegging. Need to measure my height with the 4l, and see if I can fit the 8l in there. I can easily cool an 8l down in my porch his time of year.

 

[Burnin Since 1991]

you're making me thirsty

 

[djlew]

Nice! I decided to give the Kegland 5 gallon PET one a try after the conversation here and seeing it on sale online. Has yet to arrive along with the necessary goodies that add up (co2, regulator, liquid and gas lines, etc). Brew looks good! Keep up posted how everything holds up.

I think my cream ale is almost done fermenting. I haven't taken another gravity reading yet but the krausen is settling and not much activity in the airlock. I'll probably bottle this weekend or next. I did make the cacao nib tincture and mannnnnn is it good. I'm excited for it in the beer. We'll see!

 

[Whitenuckler]

Nice! I decided to give the Kegland 5 gallon PET one a try after the conversation here and seeing it on sale online. Has yet to arrive along with the necessary goodies that add up (co2, regulator, liquid and gas lines, etc). Brew looks good! Keep up posted how everything holds up.

I think my cream ale is almost done fermenting. I haven't taken another gravity reading yet but the krausen is settling and not much activity in the airlock. I'll probably bottle this weekend or next. I did make the cacao nib tincture and mannnnnn is it good. I'm excited for it in the beer. We'll see!

Excellent. I am in a holding pattern right now. I finished my 4l no problem. I was able to extract all but a little from the bottom. I closed the regulator, and put the CO2 system in the fridge. No leaks that I can hear. I made a little brewers cleaner mix and put it back in the empty keg. Then I used an air pump cleaner kit to force clean the hose ect. So far so good. I am disappointed that my store is out of stock on the 8l kegs as I have room for sure in my fridge. The 8l kegs would be easy to chill in the winter, just put them outside. If I had say 9 8l kegs I could start a new rotation of bottle conditioned beer. I can still see bottling some in my 750 pet bottles for the beach. The 4lmight be good for that too, just pour them out. The little keg land air pumps can be used for cleaning and dispensing, although you should use the beer up that day.

 

[djlew]

Those are pretty cool! I should look into one of those too. Like I mentioned previously in the thread the one I have is stainless steel but came with the regulator and a tap head. If I went the PET way it would be way cheaper to have more. Great for smaller batches and conditioning right into tapping. I've been "doom scrolling" brewing stuff and now I am getting interested in low/no oxygen beer transfers and not cold crashing or doing secondary. I'm wondering if I introduced too much oxygen in my beer but I still don't understand the whole "cardboard flavor" thing. I'll be honest, people get REALLY technical even though my motto has been KISS. I've seen some takes that not only cold crashing and secondary are bad, bottling buckets are also bad, and for some folks closed loop transfers into pressurized bottling buckets and bottle fillers to fill from the bottom is the only way. And man, here I am just popping off air locks and siphoning out into an open bottling bucket and using the spigot to fill. Other folks say you won't even notice a difference in flavor unless you are brewing IPAs. Trial and error I guess.

Either way, long winded way to say I'm into these PET kegs and they can even be a decent option for closed loop transfers. Would probably have to get a filter on the transfer line. I know the 20 liter Kegland has a dip tube screen but essentially using these as pressure fermenters may be an interesting option at the price. Last thing I want though is hop residue into the keg! 🤣 Maybe that's a voice saying to use a hop spider........

 

[Whitenuckler]

Those are pretty cool! I should look into one of those too. Like I mentioned previously in the thread the one I have is stainless steel but came with the regulator and a tap head. If I went the PET way it would be way cheaper to have more. Great for smaller batches and conditioning right into tapping. I've been "doom scrolling" brewing stuff and now I am getting interested in low/no oxygen beer transfers and not cold crashing or doing secondary. I'm wondering if I introduced too much oxygen in my beer but I still don't understand the whole "cardboard flavor" thing. I'll be honest, people get REALLY technical even though my motto has been KISS. I've seen some takes that not only cold crashing and secondary are bad, bottling buckets are also bad, and for some folks closed loop transfers into pressurized bottling buckets and bottle fillers to fill from the bottom is the only way. And man, here I am just popping off air locks and siphoning out into an open bottling bucket and using the spigot to fill. Other folks say you won't even notice a difference in flavor unless you are brewing IPAs. Trial and error I guess.

Either way, long winded way to say I'm into these PET kegs and they can even be a decent option for closed loop transfers. Would probably have to get a filter on the transfer line. I know the 20 liter Kegland has a dip tube screen but essentially using these as pressure fermenters may be an interesting option at the price. Last thing I want though is hop residue into the keg! 🤣 Maybe that's a voice saying to use a hop spider........

Yes they are great and I have room for 8l. It turns out my taphead ect really don't make it any taller. Willneed to rig up a stand though as they are tippy end once you get low on beer and the weight on top like I have it will tip over. I might make a velcro strap systemto hold it in my fridge. I plan on getting the 8l, bottle condition, and go into my usual rotation with 3 (18gal) kits on the go. I don't want to order them as other places charge more than my place (which is out of stick for months probably) but I'm looking into it. Need to check all the Kegland distributors. I only worry about keeping things clean ect and have 2 bottles of starsan on the go. The way I figure it, when I transfer to my bottling bucket and add dextrose, the air that gets in there won't contaminate it since it's already made. Then it'sgoing to continue to ferment in the bottle/keg anyway and needs some O2. No only bad beer I made was when I first started and then I had no temperature control etc. I was also playing with adding hops ect before it was done. I made some stuff that was so acidic I had to throw it out.
If you use a hop spider that will cut down on free hops. The tapping head has a stainless filter so I imagine the 20l has it too but you don't want to ever have it plug. You might be able to use a floating dip tube?
The keg should be easy to clean as you can use the PBW and shake it. I clean my 4l after it's done and use the air pump ect to send the PBW through the system and then fresh water.
Going on line to check other Kegland distibutors for kegs.

 

[djlew]

Yes they are great and I have room for 8l. It turns out my taphead ect really don't make it any taller. Willneed to rig up a stand though as they are tippy end once you get low on beer and the weight on top like I have it will tip over. I might make a velcro strap systemto hold it in my fridge. I plan on getting the 8l, bottle condition, and go into my usual rotation with 3 (18gal) kits on the go. I don't want to order them as other places charge more than my place (which is out of stick for months probably) but I'm looking into it. Need to check all the Kegland distributors. I only worry about keeping things clean ect and have 2 bottles of starsan on the go. The way I figure it, when I transfer to my bottling bucket and add dextrose, the air that gets in there won't contaminate it since it's already made. Then it'sgoing to continue to ferment in the bottle/keg anyway and needs some O2. No only bad beer I made was when I first started and then I had no temperature control etc. I was also playing with adding hops ect before it was done. I made some stuff that was so acidic I had to throw it out.
If you use a hop spider that will cut down on free hops. The tapping head has a stainless filter so I imagine the 20l has it too but you don't want to ever have it plug. You might be able to use a floating dip tube?
The keg should be easy to clean as you can use the PBW and shake it. I clean my 4l after it's done and use the air pump ect to send the PBW through the system and then fresh water.
Going on line to check other Kegland distibutors for kegs.

That's fair, I think that's why there is a lot of debate on "hot side" vs. "cold side" oxygen and how the yeast will clean up any introduced oxygen during fermentation. Who knows, that's for science people way smarter than me. I go trial by taste! The 20l has a floating dip tube and screen which is nice. I'm sure that is a super helpful feature. I got mine from morebeer. Not sure what they do for Canadian folks price wise. I just had to jump on the sale for $34.99 USD for the 20l, that was too good a bargain to pass up imo.

 

[Whitenuckler]

That's fair, I think that's why there is a lot of debate on "hot side" vs. "cold side" oxygen and how the yeast will clean up any introduced oxygen during fermentation. Who knows, that's for science people way smarter than me. I go trial by taste! The 20l has a floating dip tube and screen which is nice. I'm sure that is a super helpful feature. I got mine from morebeer. Not sure what they do for Canadian folks price wise. I just had to jump on the sale for $34.99 USD for the 20l, that was too good a bargain to pass up imo.

69.99 is what my BREWHQ sells them for at regular price so $34.99 USD is a great price! I just looked up all the Canadian Distributors and emailed two. Heard back from one, and they only sell 4 with accessories but they referred me to another one I emailed as well. $12.99 CAD for the 8l but not sure about stock and shipping yet. They are checking

 

[djlew]

Hopefully you can get a pretty good and reliable source for this stuff!

I think later today is going to be bottling day for the cream ale. I want to make sure I can let them sit and carbonate for a while before giving away as presents. Going to try out these 16oz PET bottles I got. I have my sanitizer in my bottling bucket already so just need to sanitize the bottles, caps, etc. and go to town. Going to try and get some pics during bottling, I keep forgetting to take any and I haven't posted a pic of the ale yet! LOL. I am going to do some plain and some with the cacao nib tincture. If I hit 1.01 FG I should hit 5% ABV on the nose which is perfect.

 

[Whitenuckler]

Hopefully you can get a pretty good and reliable source for this stuff!

I think later today is going to be bottling day for the cream ale. I want to make sure I can let them sit and carbonate for a while before giving away as presents. Going to try out these 16oz PET bottles I got. I have my sanitizer in my bottling bucket already so just need to sanitize the bottles, caps, etc. and go to town. Going to try and get some pics during bottling, I keep forgetting to take any and I haven't posted a pic of the ale yet! LOL. I am going to do some plain and some with the cacao nib tincture. If I hit 1.01 FG I should hit 5% ABV on the nose which is perfect.

The other store in Winnipeg has them, and gave me the shipping costs. It's pretty high, so I have a decision to make.
I bought 4 cases of 750ml PET (25oz)this year, and they don't seem to hold pressure exactly the same as my glass and flip tops.
They are good though, and light. In the summer I bottle about half my batch in them. Tippy to work with.

 

[djlew]

The other store in Winnipeg has them, and gave me the shipping costs. It's pretty high, so I have a decision to make.
I bought 4 cases of 750ml PET (25oz)this year, and they don't seem to hold pressure exactly the same as my glass and flip tops.
They are good though, and light. In the summer I bottle about half my batch in them. Tippy to work with.

Yeah that's unfortunately the kicker is shipping most of the time. That's interesting about the bottles. One of the main reasons I decided to give them a try is because I saw a trick that people super concerned about introducing oxygen is to be able to give them a bit of a squeeze to get the air out before capping. I wanted to try that experiment and see if it made a difference in quality. I need to use some glass since I only have 384oz of PET bottles for maybe 500oz of beer. We'll see, I am very optimistic about this batch so I am hoping it will end up as my base for kegging.

 

[Whitenuckler]

Yeah that's unfortunately the kicker is shipping most of the time. That's interesting about the bottles. One of the main reasons I decided to give them a try is because I saw a trick that people super concerned about introducing oxygen is to be able to give them a bit of a squeeze to get the air out before capping. I wanted to try that experiment and see if it made a difference in quality. I need to use some glass since I only have 384oz of PET bottles for maybe 500oz of beer. We'll see, I am very optimistic about this batch so I am hoping it will end up as my base for kegging.

I have free shipping from my regular supplier (over $100), but I have to ask them today about shipping 8l PETs as they are bulky.
If you are bottle conditioning, you don't need to squeeze, as the air will get used during fermentation, and the CO2 will absorb into the beer. Just leave a small air space as normal.