Making a Cheese Press

One goal I have in 2014 that didn't make my brew years resolution post is to be more honest. That's like a life goal so I didn't put it on here sooner. It's hard to drink all of the beer I brew by myself. A good deal of it gets wasted. It's unfortunate because I've brewed some good things. I attempt to give much of it away to Kyle and Derek as well but I really need more friends so I can give it to more people.

In that spirit last year, even further back, I started posting other things on this blog about brew food, sodas, at home soft pretzels, and more. I eat food every day so it's easier to post about more often than making beer. Seeing as my blog is 100% add free, and reading it is totally voluntary I don't feel bad subjecting you to my amateur hour cooking. I'll try to keep the blog brewfood/fermentation centric.

Onto the thrust of post. (read more after the break.)

Easy Cleaning a Keg Line

So the ideal way for many to clean a keg line is to take an empty keg filled with cleaner and flush the lines. Step 1 is repeated with sanitizer. I meant to do this prior to filling my brand new keg with Imperial DoppelWeizen Bock but the timing didn't work out. What's a man to do? I could clean out a keg of old IPA or Black IPA in my tiny apartment but that seems a touch on the difficult side given a lack of space. Instead I am going to improvise using an old empty two liter bottle and a device I made myself. For my results read past the break!

(Please read more after the break.)

Lambic Tasting and American Kriek 2013 Blend

So I finally got around to sampling the Lambics that I've made over the past two years and it was a humbling experience. I thought that I would have some tasty tart beers that were good enough to drink on their own and would blend together to form a magical concoction that I could ride to a home brew competition winner. Wrong. Two of the older lambics were undrinkable. They had an industrial solvent flavor to them. I can't imagine blending these to create anything other than paint thinner. To say that after 2 years of waiting this was devastating is a bit of an understatement. Some of the others were drinkable and I will blend bottle and age them in an attempt to get this going. 

(Please read more after the break to see what tasted okay, what I liked, and how the American Kriek came to be.)

The Grind - MM3 - 2.0

The MM3 has three rollers. Two rollers are fixed in place and the third roller is adjustable. The roller sits in a cam that is firmly in place inside the housing. The cams have a slightly off center bushing approximately three one-hundredths off center. This gives the roller some adjustment within the given range. The cams can then be set with set screws.

(read more after the break.)

American Lambic - Yeast Schedule.

These things make the beer!

My first lambic of the season was a turbid mash. In the spirit of discovery, and education I am going to attempt to use a more complicated inoculation schedule. The various microorganisms used to make lambics and other sour beers thrive under different conditions during the fermentation cycle. When you pitch all of the various microorganisms at once in the 'set it and forget it' method you're leaving things up to chemistry and chance. This isn't wrong; it's not a bad way of doing things.

I like experimenting and learning. My hopes are that by using a few different techniques I can begin to figure out what works for me. I am aware that the more scientific method for doing this would be to isolate one variable at a time: mash technique, yeast strain, or inoculation schedules; then to devise a series of experiments altering only one variable to discover what is best. I've decided that this isn't the best way of home brewing. One reason is that I can't replicate laboratory conditions at home; this may seem like a trivial point but each wort I produce is unique, the boil times are precise but not meticulous, my measurements are close but not exact, etc., etc.. If I could produce uniform wort, maintain exacting fermentation conditions, measure pH, dissolved oxygen, etc. it might be worth doing this a bit more carefully. I'm content making beer, and taking rough notes. Producing lambic style beers is about the art of it all, not laboratory precision.

(please read more after the break.)

Keg Cleaning

Fact: Kegs save time over bottling.

Fact: You still have to clean kegs.

I remember listening to a podcast about sour ales with Jamil Zainachef and he said something to the effect of, "I clean my kegs every time. I take them apart, clean them, and replace the seals." This led me to ask myself? do I care enough to do that? "Yes" I answered, "at least once." So bought a set of new seals for less than five dollars and got to work on an emptied keg.

(read more about keg cleaning after the break.)

Making a Handle

So I needed a handle and I had some ideas. I went shopping and then a friend suggested that he has some ideas. Those ideas looked as good as mine so I went with them. This is the handle I constructed. It works well. If you are making a handle for your MM3- 2.0 Malt Mill please consider my designs.

The pipes on the left were my idea. The piece of stainless on the right was his idea. He used his lathe to machine the key piece of steel. He drilled a half inch hole two inches down the long axis of the piece and a quarter inch hole from the other end to meet it. This allowed the handle to be made and attach to the mill.

(please read more after the break.)

New Equipment: Monster Mill MM3-2.0

The baddest home brew mill on the market is now in my home. The best money can buy is the Monster Mill MM3-2.0. The grand total of this baby with all parts included is 305 dollars plus shipping. That is a chunk of change for a hobby, but it gives you the flexibility to grind your own malt, and in my opinion offers the best grind on the market. I don't mean to disparage the competition at all; there are many fine products available to crush your grain.

After the break you can read about the features and specifications of the monster mill and why I think they matter. Also you can read about the competition. I will provide the comparative information where available  I am not consumer reports, I will not be doing a side by side test, and I am not unbiased.

(please read more after the break.)

Flowery Teas

I'll be making a wit bier again. After the vanilla didn't quite show up in the STL Wit I wanted to go a different way with my second wit bier. I've decided to try out a few varieties of flower blossoms, or petals, as a tea. My inspiration for this beer has been a number of flower beers that I haven't had a chance to try, and some that I have. The original batch of Goose Island's Fluer is having a large influence over this beer.

(please read more about my flowered teas after the break.)

Culturing Dregs

Sour Starter

You can culture up dregs into a usable pitch of critters. I did this to great success in Batch 001 Sour Ale. I will do it again in Batch 002 Sour Ale with the dregs of a Cascade sour ale (Sang Noir). I have chosen a Cascade sour ale because it has a sharp lactic sourness from some very aggressive lactic bugs. This can also be done to clone a brettanomyces character as in Orval or The Bruery's Grand Funk Aleroad. This can be done to clone a funk character such as Russian River's Beatification or most Belgian Lambics. Whatever you're after where there is a will there is a way.

(please read more after the break.)

The Color of Your Beer

SRM chart

In reference to cooking I have often heard it said that presentation is 25% of a meal. At first I thought that flavor was 100% of the experience. As my ideas have matured I have realized the importance of presentation, and how the overall experience of a meal is shaped by plating. Flavor is still king but we first eat with our eyes before tasting with our mouths. This is no different for beers, girly drinks, or sodas.

(please read more after the break.)

I'm Freaking Out Man

I strive to be honest in my everyday life, and my blog should be no compromise.

Confession: I freak out all the time.

So it was a regular Sunday night, I was accustomed to a lack of activity from the airlock on my Batch 001 sour ale. Then as quickly as could be, white dots had formed, I was sure this was mold, how could it be anything but disaster?! I checked, airlock in place firmly, liquid topped off, but there it was, something new on top of my fermentor long after I thought things were done. I was freaking out. I did what any sane person would do, I consulted Michael Tonsmeire (TMF) an expert in the field of sour ales.

(Please read more after the break.)

Making a Starter

Starters are essential for making beers with an original gravity higher than 1.060 for a 5g batch. A good calculator for deciding if you need a starter and what size starter you need can be found at Jamil Zainasheff's site MrMalty.com. I normally just use the calculator that is built into beer-smith.

After resolving to make a starter should gather your equipment. You'll need a sanitary container, preferably glass (it's harder to scratch so it's less likely that micro scratches will contain bugs, plastic sucks imho). I use an Erlenmeyer Flask made from borosilicate glass so my instructions will be tailored to this vessel; the use of other vessels is possible but you should do your own research into sanitation and procedure.

(Please read more after the break.)

Bottling with an Italian Champagne Corker

In the spring after tax season I purchased an Italian Wine Corker. This is an amazing machine and the premium model with all the bells and whistles is worth the money. Why is it worth the price tag? almost all metal. Everywhere you want metal there is metal. The only plastic I have found is on the nonskid red base, and the red plastic grip. The cork reducer is all metal construction. Because of the persistence of souring bugs I thought this was important. Any place beer can touch and the bottle touches should be sanitized. This is easier with metal than plastic. Starsan and Idophore are great but all plastic sucks the same when it comes to scratching and bacteria.

(read more after the break.)

American Lambic - Turbid Mash

This year's ECY01 blend Bugfarm VI has "three wild yeast strains from northeast cider makers, brett from a well known brewery and from a well known lambic producer. Pedio from a lambic producer, and lacto delbreuckii." I have two vials of this and I plan to use one for an American made lambic. Year two is all about improving my craft and experimenting. I'll be brewing one lambic using the same method that I did last year. The other lambic will be made using a traditional recipe and a turbid mash.

I have been thinking lately about this whole lambic experiment. I am as committed as ever but I've learned a few things. The first rewards are slow to happen; I am 12 months in and I haven't had a single sip of home made lambic. It's hard to wait, and it's even harder to wait for 2-3 years before you have enough lambic to make a gueze. I'm still 24 months away. The good news is eventually I'll have a house, barrels, fruit trees, and friends who I can share the waiting with.

(read more after the break.)

Fruiting My Batch 001 Sour

Tonight I tried my batch 001 homegrown sour. The dregs from the jolly pumpkin beer that I cultured have given the batch a refreshing sourness. It didn't quite have the tart bite I wanted so I decided to go with blueberry for my fruit. I have around 2-2.5 gallons of brew in my carboy. So tonight I went out to buy 5 pounds of blueberries. Buying blueberries in this volume gave me a nice discount over the per pint price. Blueberries have a special place in my heart as well. My grandfather Emil was a blueberry farmer. When my mother needed a break from having kids my sister and I were sent to the farm to play. This often involved peanut butter and jelly lunches and all you can eat blueberries. I could eat lots, and often did. My over exposure to blueberries as a child caused me to detest the flavor of blueberries for the longest time. I didn't regain an appreciation for the flavors of this delicate fruit until my mid twenties (a few years back).

(read more after the break.)

Ordering Hop Rhizomes

Ordering Hop Rhizomes was the moon to me. Gardening is not my foray, my green thumb is novice at best. Hops are hardy plants though right? Strong growing vines with a medium to high yield.

So I read, researched, and scoured the internet for information. I learned a few things, Hops grow from root stock. They grow vigorously and yield well in their 3rd year. This post is going to run through my process and decision making from having cash in my pocket to having roots in the ground.

(read more after the break.)

Choosing the Right Glass

Having the right glassware can enhance a beer. The fine people at the Boston Beer Company have raised awareness of this through a successful commercial campaign to sell the Sam Adams Pint Glass. A glass can change the way carbonation leaves the beer, the rate at which it heats up, it can disperse the aroma or keep it close. If you've had the same beer from two glass types you could swear they were two different beers. I first became aware of this phenomenon when I had Canadian Breakfast Stout from a tulip and it was absolutely amazing. The second time I had it was from a snifter and it was not as good. The third time was from an imperial pint glass with a more open top. The aroma makes that beer. It's best from glasses designed to help get that scent to your nose. The glass made all of the difference.

I want to detail the types of glasses I have. I want to detail which beer to drink from which glass. Please read on.

(read more after the break.)

Oak Staves

Barrel Staves

There are many reasons to use oak in beer: to get an oaky flavor, to mellow and round out other sharp flavors, and to carry bugs between batches. I use it for all three. When you make a beer with bugs you can use oak to retain the bugs by giving them a home and a habitat. The oak can be reused over and over to reinfect worts with souring organisms. This is why I keep my oak, if the sour beer turns out I'll have a starting point to replicate it. To this end I bought a barrel...well, part of a barrel...I got 10 staves.

(read more after the break.)

Saving A Beer - Under Carbonation

It doesn't take much yeast to carbonate.

So my smoked porter was a huge let down. It didn't carbonate so the flavors were the flavors flat and dull. It had no carbonation to bring it to life. There is a reason beer isn't served still, it's better carbonated. So what can you do? Well the sugar drops I put in there are still in there somewhere. I am counting on their being enough fementable sugar that a 1/8 tsp of dry champagne yeast does the trick. The yeast must have been tapped out by the long secondary on bourbon soaked oak cubes and the higher alcohol of this beer. This is a dynamic I'll have to watch in my other beers.

Step 1: Pop the Cap
Step 2: Add the Yeast
Step 3: Recap and Agitate

Results:
This saved the beer; I had 4 undrinkable bottles of beer. If you see my original review you'll read that they were not good. With carbonation the beer was pretty good, the alcohol was still a bit too hot, the rye whisky and smoked malt really came through with carbonation. The mouthfeel was spot on. A real re-review will happen in a few months when I think the alcohol and other sharp flavors mellow a little bit.