Hey fellas,
I will be brewing my first ever home brew this weekend! I KNOW, IM EXCITED TOO! I figured I would post the recipe I'm going to use (Yes I know, its probably child's play in comparison to what you boys are working with) and I was just hoping to catch a few last minute tips/tricks or ideas to make this first batch go as smooth as possible.
All comments and critiques are more than welcome!
My recipe is as follows:
- Briess CBW Pure Malt extract, Pilsen Light (3.3 lbs)
- Pilsen Light Dried Malt Extract (2 lbs)
- Cascade Pellet Hops (2 oz)
- Safale US-05 Dry Ale Yeast
- .... spring water
Again if Im missing anything or if I've made a huge mistake already please feel free to inform me.
P.s. It was a pleasure meeting all of you at the last meeting. I can honestly say your collective passion for brewing has motivated me to start a project of my own. I CANT WAIT to actually drink this... this.. big pile of ingredients in front of me. Hopefully I will see you all again this month.
P.s.s. If anyone is brewing sometime in the near future (and doesn't mind a complete stranger in their house) feel free to give me a heads up. Id really like an opportunity to watch someone who actually knows what they're doing.
I'd love to hear from you all.
Thanks in advance.
Logan
We got a first timer out here boys!
-
Logan.Orcutt
- Posts: 8
- Joined: Tue May 25, 2010 12:54 pm
- Location: Cedar Rapids, IA
Logan,
Welcome to the world of brewing!
A couple of pointers for extract that I have learned:
1. It looks like you're brewing a pretty light colored beer, so I'd recommend the following: Add the dry extract before the water comes to a boil. Take the pot off the burner then add the DME. Make sure you mix it up really well, especially make sure none is stuck on the bottom.
2. Add the liquid extract late in the boil, say the last 10-15 minutes. It really helps to warm the container up first, such as putting it in your sink with hot water. It pours a lot easier that way. Again, take the pot off the burner to add the LME, and make sure it gets stirred in really well. Dipping the container in the wort lets you "rinse" out to get all the malt.
3. You'll need to watch it like a hawk to prevent boil overs unless you have a huge pot. Keep a spray bottle with water handy and spray the foam if it gets too close to the top. You may need to ride the heat control too.
4. Be careful not to boil too hard. You just want it barely boiling. Too hot darkens the wort and increases the chance for scorching. I learned this one the hard way. It also will cause you to boil off more water.
5. I'm sure you've been told this, but be sure to sanitize everything that will touch the wort after the boil, including the yeast package and the scissors you are going to cut it open with.
6. Don't be in too big of a hurry to add the yeast. Get the temp down below 70 first, even if that means covering the carboy opening with sanitized cling wrap and letting it sit over night in your basement.
When are you brewing? I might be able to come over on Saturday if you want backup. Also, what is your hop schedule?
Welcome to the world of brewing!
A couple of pointers for extract that I have learned:
1. It looks like you're brewing a pretty light colored beer, so I'd recommend the following: Add the dry extract before the water comes to a boil. Take the pot off the burner then add the DME. Make sure you mix it up really well, especially make sure none is stuck on the bottom.
2. Add the liquid extract late in the boil, say the last 10-15 minutes. It really helps to warm the container up first, such as putting it in your sink with hot water. It pours a lot easier that way. Again, take the pot off the burner to add the LME, and make sure it gets stirred in really well. Dipping the container in the wort lets you "rinse" out to get all the malt.
3. You'll need to watch it like a hawk to prevent boil overs unless you have a huge pot. Keep a spray bottle with water handy and spray the foam if it gets too close to the top. You may need to ride the heat control too.
4. Be careful not to boil too hard. You just want it barely boiling. Too hot darkens the wort and increases the chance for scorching. I learned this one the hard way. It also will cause you to boil off more water.
5. I'm sure you've been told this, but be sure to sanitize everything that will touch the wort after the boil, including the yeast package and the scissors you are going to cut it open with.
6. Don't be in too big of a hurry to add the yeast. Get the temp down below 70 first, even if that means covering the carboy opening with sanitized cling wrap and letting it sit over night in your basement.
When are you brewing? I might be able to come over on Saturday if you want backup. Also, what is your hop schedule?
Randy Carris
Randy All the Time Brewing
Randy All the Time Brewing
Jeez, Randy. Who'd have suspected that you were a newbie at this, too?? You sound like an expert already!
Logan, this is the guy who kept saying "It can't be that easy to make good beer! and look at him go now!
Welcome to the group and good luck with that 1st brew!!
Logan, this is the guy who kept saying "It can't be that easy to make good beer! and look at him go now!
Welcome to the group and good luck with that 1st brew!!
A Mighty Wind's A Brewing
“Life is short - break the rules, forgive quickly, kiss slowly, love truly, laugh uncontrollably, and never regret anything that made you smile” ― Mae West
“Life is short - break the rules, forgive quickly, kiss slowly, love truly, laugh uncontrollably, and never regret anything that made you smile” ― Mae West
I would be hesitent to use spring water, at least for your entire water bulk. There are minerals in the water that the yeast needs to work well. You may want to consider a 50/50 blend. Or if you want to use 100% spring (bottled) water then make sure you add some yeast nutrient (They have it at Hy Vee Drug on Blairs Ferry or Benz Beverage Depot, or most of us have some if you can't find).
Not to sound like a jerk, Brewhound, but using spring water with extract is no problem, and probably preferable for a beginner. Extract already contains all of the necessary yeast nutrients. That's because it's created by making all grain wort then concentrating it, and the water profile is correct from the start. FYI, Briess would be the 2nd largest beer company in Wisconsin if they fermented and sold their wort.
If you are going to use CR tap water, don't you need to remove the chlorine/chloramine before use? I think that's done by pre-boiling or using campden tablets.
Tony,
Yeah, well, I figure now that I've placed in a competition, that qualifies me as a genuine know-it-all. I'm obligated to share my views with everyone!
But seriously, the fact that I'm still in this newbie stage means that all of these points are very fresh in my mind.
If you are going to use CR tap water, don't you need to remove the chlorine/chloramine before use? I think that's done by pre-boiling or using campden tablets.
Tony,
Yeah, well, I figure now that I've placed in a competition, that qualifies me as a genuine know-it-all. I'm obligated to share my views with everyone!
But seriously, the fact that I'm still in this newbie stage means that all of these points are very fresh in my mind.
Randy Carris
Randy All the Time Brewing
Randy All the Time Brewing
Instead of using a wort chiller you can freeze the left over gallons of water to chill your wort down to 70 degrees quicker. I like to have my chill water slushy not completely frozen for easy pouring. Or you can do an ice bath in the sink stirring the wort to help the temperature drop down to 70. Either way it's a lot of work and a pain in the ass compared to a chiller. I really should to get around to building or buying a wort chiller.
We got a first timer out here boys!
In general, yes, the extract will have the mineral profile of the place where it was produced. Was just reading an article about this somewhere.
As far as CR water goes, you can add campden if you'd like, but it's really not necessary. Keep in mind that the water loses a whole lot of its chlorine as soon as it leaves the tap (which is a neat trick that city water supplies rely on -- it lets them keep the chlorine level at a higher level). This is especially true if you fill your kettle with a faucet that's got an aerator.
-Jim
On Fri, Jun 11, 2010 at 3:00 PM, carrisr <brew-brewing@crbeernuts.org (brew-brewing@crbeernuts.org)> wrote:
As far as CR water goes, you can add campden if you'd like, but it's really not necessary. Keep in mind that the water loses a whole lot of its chlorine as soon as it leaves the tap (which is a neat trick that city water supplies rely on -- it lets them keep the chlorine level at a higher level). This is especially true if you fill your kettle with a faucet that's got an aerator.
-Jim
On Fri, Jun 11, 2010 at 3:00 PM, carrisr <brew-brewing@crbeernuts.org (brew-brewing@crbeernuts.org)> wrote:
Post generated using Mail2Forum (http://www.mail2forum.com)Not to sound like a jerk, Brewhound, but using spring water with extract is no problem, and probably preferable for a beginner. Extract already contains all of the necessary yeast nutrients. That's because it's created by making all grain wort then concentrating it, and the water profile is correct from the start. FYI, Briess would be the 2nd largest beer company in Wisconsin if they fermented and sold their wort.
If you are going to use CR tap water, don't you need to remove the chlorine/chloramine before use? I think that's done by pre-boiling or using campden tablets.
If you want to build a 1/2" chiller you can get the parts to do a 20' for about $30. I'm think you can do 50' for around $80. I didn't see the local price though.
The build is easy. I can walk you through it or do it for you. If a few people want to buy parts we could set it up for a tech meeting as well.
The build is easy. I can walk you through it or do it for you. If a few people want to buy parts we could set it up for a tech meeting as well.
Runamok Brewing
Jesus must have been a yeast. Who else could turn water into wine?
Jesus must have been a yeast. Who else could turn water into wine?
Re: We got a first timer out here boys!
As I re-read this, I think my comment might be misleading. The majority of chlorine reduction between the water company adding it and it reaching your glass, is due to decay. Chlorine has a pretty reasonable half-life in water, but it's still limited. In large cities, they actually need to use chlorine boosting stations within the distribution system.
Regardless, CR doesn't use a whole heck of a lot of chlorine when compared to many cities, and the amount that they add is higher than the amount that you'll actually see.
Regardless, CR doesn't use a whole heck of a lot of chlorine when compared to many cities, and the amount that they add is higher than the amount that you'll actually see.
JimPotts wrote:Keep in mind that the water loses a whole lot of its chlorine as soon as it leaves the tap (which is a neat trick that city water supplies rely on -- it lets them keep the chlorine level at a higher level).
Hmm, I thought you could set your water out the night before and the chlorine would dissipate. On checking for a back-up resource I see that chlorine will dissipate, but chloramine will not.
Cedar Rapids uses chloramine so this might be why my fish used to die. It looks like you might have to boil or use a charcoal filter to remove chloramine. I don't do either and haven't noticed an off flavor from the chlorine. Maybe someone else has and just tells me my beer is ok. You guys would tell me right?
I would say if you can't smell it or taste it you should be ok.
Cedar Rapids uses chloramine so this might be why my fish used to die. It looks like you might have to boil or use a charcoal filter to remove chloramine. I don't do either and haven't noticed an off flavor from the chlorine. Maybe someone else has and just tells me my beer is ok. You guys would tell me right?
I would say if you can't smell it or taste it you should be ok.
Runamok Brewing
Jesus must have been a yeast. Who else could turn water into wine?
Jesus must have been a yeast. Who else could turn water into wine?
We got a first timer out here boys!
And I'll shut up now, since I didn't realize CR was using chloramine.
That said, the concentrations are still quite low compared to many other cities.
Post generated using Mail2Forum (http://www.mail2forum.com)
That said, the concentrations are still quite low compared to many other cities.
Post generated using Mail2Forum (http://www.mail2forum.com)
I read once that major breweries use campden tablets (potassium metabisulfite, I think) for removing both chlorine and chloramine, since it's much cheaper than other techniques on large scales.
I have had good luck using about 1/2 tablet for 15 gallons of water. I mostly do it, though b/c I'm paranoid about the chlorine/chloramine removing the surface passivation from my stainless steel equipment.
I have had good luck using about 1/2 tablet for 15 gallons of water. I mostly do it, though b/c I'm paranoid about the chlorine/chloramine removing the surface passivation from my stainless steel equipment.