Otto Von Blotto Posted May 10, 2018 Share Posted May 10, 2018 We've all had brew day or bottling day or just general brewing related stuff ups etc. but how often does something happen that just makes you lose your temper and curse or worse? It doesn't happen often for me, I have a pretty smooth brewing operation and generally everything goes the way it should, but sometimes something happens and it just shits me to tears. Like just now while making up this yeast starter for my next lager batch. I didn't have enough of the decent dry extract for the starter so I had to add about 80g of the crappy stuff* to top it up to the required amount, not a real issue in itself. But then, I couldn't close the bag properly again because it was a brand new 1kg bag and I'd only used 80g of it. I figured I'd hardly use the shit again anyway, so rather than split it up and put some in the emptied bag I just cracked it and went and threw the whole thing over the balcony in a big cloud of dust. Some time in the next few weeks I'll be going to Craftbrewer for some more of the decent extract in time for the next starter. *For those not in the know, the decent extract refers to the coarser powder. It dissolves easily and boils well (i.e. not explosively). The crappy extract is a lot finer powder, clumps up like shit when you try to dissolve it, releases a bunch of grey rubbish into the wort when it boils and always ends up in a volcanic boilover on the stove unless you watch it like a hawk and turn the gas off in time - and then repeat that process about 303461 more times to actually get a decent length boil. Hence why I have avoided using it as much as possible! Cheers Kelsey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karlos_1984 Posted May 10, 2018 Share Posted May 10, 2018 I hate the Cooper's LDM. It clings to the bag from the steam when u tip it into the pot or your FV and it always goes lumpy. The LDM I get from my LHBS doesn't do this, and it's cheaper. It also pisses me off to no end when I tell my Mrs well ahead of time that I'm either brewing or bottling on a certain day, which she is ok with, but for whatever reason she gets the shits up about me using the kitchen or taking X amount of time on the day, even though she's been prewarned it was happening. While I'm on a rant, I hate that whenever I reply to a post on here using my phone, I've always got to almost re-type the whole reply because of bloody autocorrect and the full stops that seem to inject themselves because this spaz phone thinks I've hit the space bar twice. I've literally corrected this twice as I've written it... I'm sure I'll think.of something else soon enough haha. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joolbag Posted May 10, 2018 Share Posted May 10, 2018 hahah @Otto Von Blotto i would have loved to see you throw the LDM off the balcony in frustration. sounds like the local cockroaches are going to have a field day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted May 10, 2018 Author Share Posted May 10, 2018 @karlos_1984 I dissolve the DME in cold water for my yeast starters, but it still clumps up badly. It's not Coopers brand but from what I've read it's basically the same stuff. I'm not sure who makes the coarser one but it is certainly much better suited to the task. The LHBS used to sell it, but then randomly changed to the finer powdered one so now I have to drive all the way to Craftbrewer to get it. Cannon Hill Brewing is closer but not sure what type they sell and I don't really want to drive there just to find it's the crap stuff. @joolbag Yes, the cloud looked like I'd started a fire in the backyard I think the majority of the stuff ended up in the sky, but there is still some down on the grass lol. Cheers Kelsey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerlust Posted May 10, 2018 Share Posted May 10, 2018 1 hour ago, Otto Von Blotto said: ...I didn't have enough of the decent dry extract for the starter so I had to add about 80g of the crappy stuff* to top it up to the required amount, not a real issue in itself. But then, I couldn't close the bag properly again because it was a brand new 1kg bag and I'd only used 80g of it. I figured I'd hardly use the shit again anyway, so rather than split it up and put some in the emptied bag I just cracked it and went and threw the whole thing over the balcony in a big cloud of dust. Some time in the next few weeks I'll be going to Craftbrewer for some more of the decent extract in time for the next starter. *For those not in the know, the decent extract refers to the coarser powder. It dissolves easily and boils well (i.e. not explosively). The crappy extract is a lot finer powder, clumps up like shit when you try to dissolve it, releases a bunch of grey rubbish into the wort when it boils and always ends up in a volcanic boilover on the stove unless you watch it like a hawk and turn the gas off in time - and then repeat that process about 303461 more times to actually get a decent length boil. Hence why I have avoided using it as much as possible! The "crappy stuff" Kelsey refers to is actually the better stuff. We're talking about band dried malt extract vs spray dried malt extract. As Kelsey mentioned though, the band dried version is easier to use & is less prone to clumping. 4 hours ago, karlos_1984 said: I hate the Cooper's LDM. It clings to the bag from the steam when u tip it into the pot or your FV and it always goes lumpy. The LDM I get from my LHBS doesn't do this, and it's cheaper. Pour the Coopers LDM (spray dried extract) into cold water to begin with as this will help avoid much of the sticky clumping scenario that occurs when adding it to steamy hot water, then add some freshly boiled water & swirl to help dissolve any clumps that appear in the FV. You can also add the spray dried malt extract directly into the FV first, then pour your hot water over it. Cheers, Lusty. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bladeca Posted May 10, 2018 Share Posted May 10, 2018 I give the Mrs warning that I'm about to either start mixing up a batch of K&K or am going to bottle the brew thats ready. So I set stuff up like get the sink filled with hot water and the other sink cleaned out with all rubbish/scum washed off and even some time have it filled with hot water and sodium percarb. I have the area empty of all dishes/cups etc... I'll start and then she decides to come and clean her paint brushes or wash the coffee cup out. So any hot water that was in the tap ready to go is now cold or I have the clean the sink and surround again to make sure my santising regime hasn't been stuffed. She hasn't been in the kitchen for the past 2 hours but sure as soon as I need the space to be cleaned and prepped to do a batching/bottling job she is in having to use. Drives me up the wall something chronic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaddyBrew2 Posted May 10, 2018 Share Posted May 10, 2018 my missus cant complain cos she is the one who got me into this. sick of me paying $32 for a craft 6 pack, she got me the diy kit for xmas. She's an army child so is pretty regimented when it comes to having a clean house/kitchen but when im brewing and she's keeping an eye on me, all i say is that shes the one who got me into it and this is what happens on brew day but to answer the OP, nothing has really made me angry, i get frustrated sometimes by my exuberance but lack of knowledge which can hold me back. that and how i always forget to sanitise the tap in starsan. every fecking time. but i have gotten away with it this far , touch wood Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted May 10, 2018 Author Share Posted May 10, 2018 Lusty is quite right about the decent vs. crappy extract; my reasoning for reversing it is simply due to the ease of use for the task at hand. I'm only making yeast starters with it so I don't really care about much else than it dissolving easily and boiling without creating a foam volcano. I also get annoyed when SWMBO whinges about my brewing, but not to the point of throwing things off balconies Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Captain!! Posted May 10, 2018 Share Posted May 10, 2018 I get angry when you get all excited about a recipe and the bloody LHBS doesn’t carry what you need. They have done previous but for one reason or another it’s out of stock. Then when you put your strike water in, get it up to temp that’s when you realise your 3yo son was run away with your mash paddle/spoon and has thrown it under the couch, along with everything else he throws under there. Forks, crackers, dead stuffed toys. Hes a cool kid but does my head in at times. Cheers and have fun Captain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spiggo Posted May 11, 2018 Share Posted May 11, 2018 Finding a mouse has been into my DME when I went to put a brew on. Nearest LHBS is 2 hours away so had to wait another 10 days before I could get anything into my FV, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlackSands Posted May 13, 2018 Share Posted May 13, 2018 On 5/10/2018 at 1:09 PM, Otto Von Blotto said: ....and then repeat that process about 303461 more times to actually get a decent length boil. Hence why I have avoided using it as much as possible! I'm surprised that it took 303461 times before you to finally realised! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted May 13, 2018 Author Share Posted May 13, 2018 Well it took once - the first time, but at the time I didn't have any alternative Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Worthog Posted May 21, 2018 Share Posted May 21, 2018 Today I did an Irish Stout with Liquid Dark Malt, 200g of ChocMalt steeped, 200g of Brown Sugar and a Columbus Hop tea. That busy friggin' around with steeps, sparges and hop teas, I end up with too much hot liquid in the FV even though I had 8 litres of chilled water. When I topped to my 20 litres I still had a 29c wort. Very upset! I did the OG check which was 1.047, and not giving that another thought I pitched the Nott/Kit rehydrated yeast and into the fridge the FV went to drop the temp asap to 19c. Checking my recipe I should have had a 1.052 OG. Forgot to add the Sugar, didn't I? Now I'm getting really narky. Boiled 400ml of water, stirred in the Sugar, stuck it in the freezer until 21c. Then poured it into my FV in the fridge. Fingers crossed that my first stout will work out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted May 21, 2018 Author Share Posted May 21, 2018 Your OG would have been about 1.049 if you took the reading at 29 degrees. Temperature affects it, the higher the temp the lower the hydrometer reads. I'm sure the brew will work out though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tömmy8888 Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 I use the plastic filler (dont know if thats the right name for it) from Coopers ki to fill the bottles. You really need to use force to fit it into the valve and sometimes during filling of the bottles it slips out and i loose few mililiters ..... that one gets me very very angry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beer Baron Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 I know my answer has nothing to do with brewing but the thing that makes me the most angry is my sports teams losing. It makes me furious and if they play real bad and get flogged I lay awake at night and struggle to get to sleep. BB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Captain!! Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 43 minutes ago, Beer Baron said: I know my answer has nothing to do with brewing but the thing that makes me the most angry is my sports teams losing. It makes me furious and if they play real bad and get flogged I lay awake at night and struggle to get to sleep. BB Are you a CARLTON supporter too. Over the years I’ve simply stopped watching less and less games ha ha ha ha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beer Baron Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 Ha ha ha. I go for the MIGHTY MAGPIES in the AFL but the sport I follow the most is the football (soccer to some) Sydney FC and Leeds United have given me many many sleepless nights!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hairy Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 I very rarely get angry but maybe I should. Sometimes Lusty makes me angry when he says that a Pilsner isn’t a Lager but then I take a deep breath and I calm down Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boot Straps Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 2 hours ago, Tommy1525230200 said: I use the plastic filler (dont know if thats the right name for it) from Coopers ki to fill the bottles. You really need to use force to fit it into the valve and sometimes during filling of the bottles it slips out and i loose few mililiters ..... that one gets me very very angry That happened to me on the weekend Tommy. Scared the crap out of me when it popped out. I quickly turned the tap off and as I tried to re-insert the filler my tap started pulling out and I was worried the whole thing would pop out. Very frustrating it happened about 4 or 5 times. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaddyBrew2 Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 Surprisingly enough the coopers bottle wand fits perfect onto the generic FVs you get from the LHBS. I bottled a batch tonight and it was a pleasure. Unlike when bottling from the coopers FV when you need to be a contortionist to fill 30 bottles Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King Ruddager Posted May 23, 2018 Share Posted May 23, 2018 Getting spots on account of someone else bringing the spotty child to my son's daycare made me a little angry. Couldn't brew at all last weekend Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PB2 Posted May 23, 2018 Share Posted May 23, 2018 On 5/22/2018 at 6:53 PM, Tommy1525230200 said: I use the plastic filler (dont know if thats the right name for it) from Coopers ki to fill the bottles. You really need to use force to fit it into the valve and sometimes during filling of the bottles it slips out and i loose few mililiters ..... that one gets me very very angry Yep the new snap tap is harder material, which is less compliant than the old style taps. My method - hold the tap body firmly then insert the bottling valve tube with both a twisting and pushing action. Make sure the tube and your hands are dry. How do you know it's in far enough? With the tap removed and separated, insert the tube all the way in (you can check that the tube is hard up against the internal lip inside the tap). Draw a line on the tube with permanent marker (I prefer red). Then you can use this line as a gauge for how far the tube is inserted each time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted May 28, 2018 Author Share Posted May 28, 2018 Kegs blowing dry when you don't feel like you've actually had that much out of them yet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerlust Posted May 28, 2018 Share Posted May 28, 2018 On 5/22/2018 at 9:12 PM, Hairy said: I very rarely get angry but maybe I should. Sometimes Lusty makes me angry when he says that a Pilsner isn’t a Lager but then I take a deep breath and I calm down If a pilsner was a lager it wouldn't have a different name now would it! An apple isn't an orange for the same reasons! Cheers, Lusty. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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