PhilbyT Posted December 9, 2013 Share Posted December 9, 2013 I know both you & PhilbyT will enjoy the Fruit Salad Ale. [love] Are you both using the re-activated CCA yeast? [unsure] Sadly, for me, no.[annoyed] Lack of time and resources, next time I will though for sure. I don't mind doing it with the kit yeast this time, I can see how different it will be next time.[joyful] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 I have not so much a brew day but a "bottling and re pitching" day tomorrow (or later today). I'm gonna be bottling my Sierra Nevada Pale Ale clone brew, and then throwing the stout recipe that me and SWMBO brewed on top of the yeast cake. First time pitching a brew onto a yeast cake like this. My stir plate is currently out of action so rather than make a starter with the 1275 I decided to do it this way. I have to churn out a couple of batches in quick time to replenish the stocks, as now that I have a better half the rate of consumption has gone through the roof. Not because I can't deal with her sober, it's as I've mentioned on other threads that she's as much of a "beer freak" as I am.[lol] It does mean more brew days though.[biggrin] Another thing I am trying with the SNPA brew is to let it warm up after CCing for a week to around 15C in the FV before bottling. I'm noticing that the beers I'm bottling cold seem to take forever to carbonate. My theory is that because they're all stacked together, they are taking longer to warm up and the yeast is dropping out before it's warm enough to wake up again. If I could leave them 2 or 3 months like previous brews then it would be ok but they are being consumed quite early at the moment, so I'm hoping this idea of warming it up a little before bottling will help the yeast wake up a lot sooner and have the beers carbed quicker. Anyway will know in a couple of weeks how well that worked and also how close the clone recipe got to the original beer.[cool] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hairy Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 Bugger' date=' in a hurry, forgot to put the sediment reducer in the back of the tap, oh well.[/quote'] I wouldn't worry too much about the sediment reducer. I'm not sure it actually does anything. I forgot to do it on my third brew and then realised that there was no extra sediment in the bottles. It has never been used since. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ben 10 Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 Ben 10, the hop schedule in that IPA of yours is a BEAST! [cool] Could do with a little more dry hopping though! [devil] [biggrin] Maybe 30g of each dry hop then? Very excited to eventually drink that one!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ben 10 Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 Sunset Sider\t Blackrock Cider can 1kg white sugar Rosella Cordial SN9 Yeast \t OG 1035 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerlust Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 Ben 10, the hop schedule in that IPA of yours is a BEAST! [cool] Could do with a little more dry hopping though! [devil] [biggrin] Maybe 30g of each dry hop then? Very excited to eventually drink that one!!! Definitely up the Cascade, but be weary of upping the Galaxy. I'm sure someone on the forum posted something a little while back regarding dry hopping with larger amounts of Galaxy that resulted in a slightly "grassy" tone in the end beer. [unsure] I did take note of that comment at the time, & to be honest, I haven't seen any recipes posted on the forum that have used large amounts of this hop for dry hopping. I reckon Hairy mentioned that he enjoyed a 2:1 ratio when combining Cascade & Galaxy also, back when I was asking questions about Galaxy myself. [innocent] Personally I don't mind a little grassiness in an IPA, provided the other wanted elements are there in the beer. IPA's are big on aroma, so largish dry hop additions are the way to go from what I've read & understood. Apologies if I've misquoted you Hairy. [innocent] Good luck with the brew Ben 10, it looks like a hop monster! [biggrin] Cheers, Anthony. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerlust Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 Hi Kelsey. I'm at a similar point with my brewing at the moment. I've got plenty of beer in stock, but prefer to drink it when I know it's aged sufficiently. My current rolling drinking stock is at approx. 6 weeks aged, which is fine, but I prefer to begin drinking most of my brews between 8-12 weeks aged. I've got a couple of Dark brews planned over the next month, so rather than keep plowing through my stock at this age point, I bought my first commercial carton of beer in more than 6 months today, to buy some aging time for my own stock. Coopers Pale Ale of course. Nice beer + usable yeast. [cool] Anyways, enough about me! [lol] How many brews do you have fermenting at any one time Kelsey? Also, regarding your slow bottle carbonation issues, where do you store your capped bottles for secondary fermentation, & is it a warmish area? Cheers, Anthony. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregT5 Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 Lusty, I have made the OS Draught & Amber malt brew before but used Cascade & Nelson Sauvin. I swapped to Centennial because I need the Cascade for another brew. Unfortunately won't be using the Coopers yeast this time but still should be 2 nice brews. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerlust Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 Lusty, I have made the OS Draught & Amber malt brew before but used Cascade & Nelson Sauvin. I swapped to Centennial because I need the Cascade for another brew. Unfortunately won't be using the Coopers yeast this time but still should be 2 nice brews. The OS+Amber+Cascade+NS brew would have made a nice drop indeed. Very similar to the Celebration Ale I mentioned. [cool] Have you ever re-activated the CCA yeast & used it in a brew before Greg? Edit: I just spotted that you said "this time", hence that tells me you have re-activated the CCA yeast before. What were your impressions? & how many times have you used the CCA yeast in brews of your own? [unsure] I'm interested in a broader opinion of peoples thoughts regarding their brews using the yeast. Cheers, Anthony. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilbyT Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 I wouldn't worry too much about the sediment reducer. I'm not sure it actually does anything. I forgot to do it on my third brew and then realised that there was no extra sediment in the bottles. It has never been used since. Thanks Hairy I will keep that in mind. I expected that may be the case. I'm using the coopers kit ale yeast this time, from my past experience its seems to flocculate well, so be it, see how it goes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 Hey Lusty, That's one area where I'm differing - the beer stocks. I've got about 30 stubbies of the English ale left.[lol] Obviously the SNPA clone is bottled now but it won't be ready for a little while. I do have a few random 500mL bottles of the last 3 batches and some of my Toucan Stout from last year as well. I could probably handle drinking them around the 6-7 weeks aged mark, or earlier. I usually find with most batches apart from stout type brews that they taste their best when they are fresh. I'm buggered if I know how the stocks disappeared that fast though because we were mainly drinking SNPA so I could save the bottles over the last couple of months, and also going out to beer boutiques etc. Anyway, I only have one brew fermenting at a time as that's all my brew fridge can handle. The laundry tubs I need for soaking and rinsing empties, so I don't really wanna put a batch in there with ice blocks etc. I'm also not keen on fermenting any batches with just a wet towel because I know it won't get below 25C. The bottles are stored in a cupboard in the garage. I would estimate at this time of year it's probably sitting around the 27-29C mark during the day and obviously a little cooler at night. The thing is, they are all stacked next to each other in rows 8 deep, so I think the coldness of them as a collective when bottled at zero or thereabouts is causing them to take longer to warm up. This wasn't an issue when they were left for 2 or 3 months because they'd eventually carbonate but at the moment they aren't getting that time. I'm not worried about leaving them to age necessarily because as I said above I often find most of my brews taste better fresh, but it's annoying having them half flat. I bottled the SNPA today at 14C - probably cool enough to stop the yeast working on the priming sugar in the bottling bucket but warm enough so they get up to yeast working temperature in a matter of hours, rather than days. Anyway, will see how one goes next Saturday when we do another brew day. [cool] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ben 10 Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 I reckon Hairy mentioned that he enjoyed a 2:1 ratio when combining Cascade & Galaxy also I may take that on board as I have heard that about Galaxy as well and this is my first use of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ben 10 Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 Yesterdays quick brew: Sunset Sider Blackrock can, 1kg white sugar, homemade Rosella cordial, SN9 yeast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hairy Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 I did take note of that comment at the time, & to be honest, I haven't seen any recipes posted on the forum that have used large amounts of this hop for dry hopping. I reckon Hairy mentioned that he enjoyed a 2:1 ratio when combining Cascade & Galaxy also, back when I was asking questions about Galaxy myself. Apologies if I've misquoted you Hairy. You didn't misquote me. But that is just my preference though, others may prefer a more pronounced Galaxy hit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerlust Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 Hi Kelsey. Anyway' date=' I only have one brew fermenting at a time as that's all my brew fridge can handle. The laundry tubs I need for soaking and rinsing empties, so I don't really wanna put a batch in there with ice blocks etc. I'm also not keen on fermenting any batches with just a wet towel because I know it won't get below 25C.[/quote'] I, like you, only have a brew fridge big enough to brew one beer at a time. That said, I still have two brews fermenting at any one time right through the hotter months of the year. How do I do this? I ferment my ales for the first 7 days in the brew fridge, & then that brew is removed from the brew fridge & placed in a cooler room of the house where I maintain the temperature of this brew for the following 7 days at below 22\xb0C with the ice pack method I have outlined a number of times previously in other threads. On the day I remove the brew from the brew fridge, my new brew goes in it, & the cycle continues. [joyful] I urge you to try this method, as it will allow you to brew more regularly, the yeast cleans up & clears the brew well in the second week of primary fermentation at or around this 20-22\xb0C temperature mark, & will solve your slower carbonation related issues as well. I wouldn't do you wrong. [innocent] Cheers, Beerlust. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 Hey Lusty I probably could do something like that too, the only problem in my case is that I wouldn't have a bottling bucket to bulk prime the batches. Of course, there are other options for carbonating, I just prefer bulk priming. Although I do agree that it would help boost the stocks in the short term and help with the slow carbing. The stout I currently have in the fridge won't be cold crashed, you can't see through it anyway so I don't really care about the clarity, so it will be ready for bottling next Sunday, which means I will have two batches bottled and another pale ale going straight into the FV. I would like to age the stout but I daresay SWMBO will have other ideas.[innocent] [lol] If it becomes apparent that we can't keep up with 'demand' then I will give up the bulk priming on a couple of batches and try that method you mentioned. We are looking at a 3 week cycle at the moment for each brew - basically every 3rd weekend we'll have a weekend in, I'll let the brew in the fridge come up to 14-15C on the Friday, do a brew day on the Saturday and bottle whatever batch is in the FV on the Sunday and then I'll throw in a new batch the following Tuesday, which will free up a cube for the next 3 weekly brew day, and the cycle will repeat. I'm hoping this will keep the stocks up enough that we don't end up in another situation of running low on brews and having to drink them half flat. But if it doesn't work out then I will give your method a whirl to get the beer cupboard full and then go back to the 3 weekly cycle. [cool] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerlust Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 I'm glad you could see how it would help speed up your production Kelsey. [joyful] Would I be right in assuming your cubed brews stay cubed for approx. a week before being fermented? Hence the 3 week cycle? [unsure] One benefit I have with doing much smaller mashes etc. is that I can "chill" my wort fairly easily & begin fermentation as part of my brew day. With my 2 week cycle, I pretty much bottle a brew every weekend, & begin fermenting a new brew every weekend. If you do decide to give it a go, I know you won't be disappointed with the results. It works well for me. [biggrin] Cheers, Anthony. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 Yeah it definitely would speed it up so if I need to I'll definitely give that a go. I did have to have two brews going at once some time last year because Dad had a GB in the FV for ages. But that was before I was bulk priming or had a fridge. I'm not sure yet, we only just decided on this 3 week cycle on the weekend.[lol] But I'm planning they would be cubed for 3 weeks. e.g. We will do a brew day next Sat (22nd), bottle the stout on the Sunday, and then I will put another pale in that's been cubed for months. This will free up that cube for the next brew day on the 11th of Jan, and that pale will be bottled on the 12th, which frees up the fridge for the cube done on the 22nd to be put in the FV the following Tuesday (14th), so it's 3 weeks and a couple of days in the cube. Then there will be another brew day on 1st of Feb and the cycle repeats. I suppose I could give up the week of CCing on these next few to do a 2 week cycle instead of 3 to try and boost the stocks a bit too, but we'll see how it all pans out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilboBaggins Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 I'm only gonna CC if I have time from now on, or if I have loose hops in the FV. I've CC'd a dozen or so times now (alternating with a standard 2-week turnaround), and while there is less sediment in the bottle, I don't reckon it's done much else for my beer. [bandit] Without CC'ing, my beer is still quite clear, and tastes great. I know it's popular, but like FWH, I'm not entirely sold yet. [bandit] [devil] [ninja] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hairy Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 CC'ing gives me something to do in the 2-3 week period when I am too lazy to bottle the beer [wink] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scottie Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 A mid week brew day to free up the weekend [cool] Another English Bitter, this time I swapped the Munich for Vienna and the Amarillo for Willamette. Still using Maris Otter and Dry Wheat Malt and bittering with Challenger. I'm also going to be using a whirlfloc for the first time. By the time I had the whirlfloc I'll be down to 12 litres in the boil is 1/2 too much? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scottie Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 Went with a 1/4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hairy Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 Went with a 1/4 1/4 is perfect for 12 litres. Do you have a tap on the kettle? I never had a tap on my pot for partials; I would use whirlfloc but then stir it all up when pouring into the FV. I not sure how worthwhile it was. I did pour it through a strainer so perhaps the whirlfloc clumped most of it together and prevented it from going through the strainer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scottie Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 Went with a 1/4 1/4 is perfect for 12 litres. Cheers Hairy Do you have a tap on the kettle? I never had a tap on my pot for partials; I would use whirlfloc but then stir it all up when pouring into the FV. I not sure how worthwhile it was. I did pour it through a strainer so perhaps the whirlfloc clumped most of it together and prevented it from going through the strainer. No Tap, I've been doing the whirlpool since I started partials and I have always used a strainer. The only problem is I used to get greedy and kept pouring through the strainer till the kettle was empty, trying to get all the flavour into the FV. I didn't do this on my last two brews and guess what they taste just as good Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilboBaggins Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 CC'ing gives me something to do in the 2-3 week period when I am too lazy to bottle the beer [wink] [lol] Awesome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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