August 4th Tech Meeting Ideas and voting thread
Posted: Mon Jul 12, 2010 9:59 am
All,
I would like to nail down the topic for next months tech meeting early so that I am prepared. My personal thought is with so many of us growing hops and harvest coming up right around the corner. A Hop Oast would be just the ticket for the August 4th Meeting, however, I will let the masses make the call. Below is a list of topics please reply with your 1st, 2nd, and 3rd choices.
Here is a sample vote:
1st - DIY Hop Drier
2nd - Yeast Profiling
3rd - Home Grain roasting
Here are topics, voting will close on July 26th to allow time to prepare for the next activity.
DIY Stir Plate: For the DIY meetings we would need to find someone who would like that item. They would provide the required parts for the build, and then we would assembly the item with the expertise provided by another in the club who has done this already. The person who provides the parts would take home the item after the meeting. This would help people who are not technically savvy with hands on demonstration of how to build one.
DIY Counter flow Chiller: For the DIY meetings we would need to find someone who would like that item. They would provide the required parts for the build, and then we would assembly the item with the expertise provided by another in the club who has done this already. The person who provides the parts would take home the item after the meeting. This would help people who are not technically savvy with hands on demonstration of how to build one.
Yeast Culturing: While I know of no one yet in the club culturing their own yeast I have plans to start here soon, after I have finished modifying my new setup. This meeting would go over the required items to culture yeast. Preventing contamination, developing your own yeast strains and storage of yeast.
Decoction Mashing: A demonstration would be done of decoction mashing. There are many advantages of this, primarily, this accentuates and increases the flavor of malts. Which is highly desired for your maltier beers. For this meeting a mini brew would be done and the decoction cycle would be performed as a demonstration. We would go over how the calculations are performed to achieve different rest cycles and what those cycles contribute to the beer.
Grain Roasting: A demonstration and discussion of home roasting procedures. This would include a how to determine the Lovibond of your grain when roasting. Roasting profiles used to roast your grain and how those profiles impact flavor. This will also include how to building a malt Lovibond calibration kit.
Home Grain Malting: A practical discussion and demonstration of how to malt your own grain. Discussion and demonstration of sprouting grain and handling.
Yeast Flavor profiling: A practical tasting demonstration of different strains of yeast. This would involve pre-build wort broken down into smaller units with different yeasts pitched. These would then be tasted to identify different yeast esters and what they contribute to the beer.
Hop Flavor profiling: A practical tasting demonstration of different hops. This would involve pre-build wort broken down into smaller units with different hop varieties used to flavor. These would then be tasted to identify different hop flavors and what they contribute to the beer.
Water Testing and modification: Getting to the nitty gritty of your water and how to simulate other famous waters. This will include where to obtain accurate cheap test kids, testing your water, modifying your water. Also a practical discussion on what different elements contribute to your brewing water and impact taste
DIY hop dryer: We will build a hop dryer. This will be a start to finish demonstration for drying the hops that some brewers grow.
Wort Canning: Ever wanted to can wort. This will be a demonstration on proper canning procedures for canning wort. Canned wort is very practical for easy on hand storage for creating starters or to have for propagating and slanting yeast for farming.
Grain Crush Characteristics: Practical discussion about crushing grain what is gained by a finer crush on your grain. Ways to get a finer crush without a stuck sparge. Also will include discussion on Water/Grain ratio and what this has to do with brewing.
Tips&Tricks: Here is your chance, bring forth your greatest tips and tricks, so that others may revel in your cleverness and share in you prosperity. This will be a practical discussion of tips and tricks, that will include a complied circular mailed out to club members.
Batch Vs. Fly Sparging: A discussion of the pro’s and con’s of both methods of extracting sugars from your all grain mash.
Grain Profiling: A discussion and tasting of different grains and what they contribute to your beers. Grains will be mashed isolated in small scale and a tasting will be conducted of different grains. This will help the average brewer build better recipes and know what flavors are being contributed through different additions.
I would like to nail down the topic for next months tech meeting early so that I am prepared. My personal thought is with so many of us growing hops and harvest coming up right around the corner. A Hop Oast would be just the ticket for the August 4th Meeting, however, I will let the masses make the call. Below is a list of topics please reply with your 1st, 2nd, and 3rd choices.
Here is a sample vote:
1st - DIY Hop Drier
2nd - Yeast Profiling
3rd - Home Grain roasting
Here are topics, voting will close on July 26th to allow time to prepare for the next activity.
DIY Stir Plate: For the DIY meetings we would need to find someone who would like that item. They would provide the required parts for the build, and then we would assembly the item with the expertise provided by another in the club who has done this already. The person who provides the parts would take home the item after the meeting. This would help people who are not technically savvy with hands on demonstration of how to build one.
DIY Counter flow Chiller: For the DIY meetings we would need to find someone who would like that item. They would provide the required parts for the build, and then we would assembly the item with the expertise provided by another in the club who has done this already. The person who provides the parts would take home the item after the meeting. This would help people who are not technically savvy with hands on demonstration of how to build one.
Yeast Culturing: While I know of no one yet in the club culturing their own yeast I have plans to start here soon, after I have finished modifying my new setup. This meeting would go over the required items to culture yeast. Preventing contamination, developing your own yeast strains and storage of yeast.
Decoction Mashing: A demonstration would be done of decoction mashing. There are many advantages of this, primarily, this accentuates and increases the flavor of malts. Which is highly desired for your maltier beers. For this meeting a mini brew would be done and the decoction cycle would be performed as a demonstration. We would go over how the calculations are performed to achieve different rest cycles and what those cycles contribute to the beer.
Grain Roasting: A demonstration and discussion of home roasting procedures. This would include a how to determine the Lovibond of your grain when roasting. Roasting profiles used to roast your grain and how those profiles impact flavor. This will also include how to building a malt Lovibond calibration kit.
Home Grain Malting: A practical discussion and demonstration of how to malt your own grain. Discussion and demonstration of sprouting grain and handling.
Yeast Flavor profiling: A practical tasting demonstration of different strains of yeast. This would involve pre-build wort broken down into smaller units with different yeasts pitched. These would then be tasted to identify different yeast esters and what they contribute to the beer.
Hop Flavor profiling: A practical tasting demonstration of different hops. This would involve pre-build wort broken down into smaller units with different hop varieties used to flavor. These would then be tasted to identify different hop flavors and what they contribute to the beer.
Water Testing and modification: Getting to the nitty gritty of your water and how to simulate other famous waters. This will include where to obtain accurate cheap test kids, testing your water, modifying your water. Also a practical discussion on what different elements contribute to your brewing water and impact taste
DIY hop dryer: We will build a hop dryer. This will be a start to finish demonstration for drying the hops that some brewers grow.
Wort Canning: Ever wanted to can wort. This will be a demonstration on proper canning procedures for canning wort. Canned wort is very practical for easy on hand storage for creating starters or to have for propagating and slanting yeast for farming.
Grain Crush Characteristics: Practical discussion about crushing grain what is gained by a finer crush on your grain. Ways to get a finer crush without a stuck sparge. Also will include discussion on Water/Grain ratio and what this has to do with brewing.
Tips&Tricks: Here is your chance, bring forth your greatest tips and tricks, so that others may revel in your cleverness and share in you prosperity. This will be a practical discussion of tips and tricks, that will include a complied circular mailed out to club members.
Batch Vs. Fly Sparging: A discussion of the pro’s and con’s of both methods of extracting sugars from your all grain mash.
Grain Profiling: A discussion and tasting of different grains and what they contribute to your beers. Grains will be mashed isolated in small scale and a tasting will be conducted of different grains. This will help the average brewer build better recipes and know what flavors are being contributed through different additions.