From: kurt@dna.lth.se (Kurt Swanson)
Subject: rec.crafts.brewing Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Followup-To: poster
Summary: This posting contains a list of frequently asked questions
	posted to rec.crafts.brewing, involving home beer making.
Organization: Dept of Computer Science, Lund University, Sweden
Date: Fri, 21 Aug 1992 10:37:11 GMT
Expires: 1 Oct 1992 00:00:00 GMT

Archive-name: brewing-faq
Last-modified: 1992/07/29
Version: 1.4
Frequency: bi-monthly

[V1M4: send comments/corrections to Kurt.Swanson@dna.lth.se]

Frequently Asked Questions in Rec.Crafts.Brewing:

1. How is beer made?
2. What is the HomeBrewDigest (HBD)?
3. Where can I access archives?
4. Where can I get a copy of "The Cat's Meow" (recipe book)?
5. What is a good text on brewing?
6. Where can I get mail-order supplies?
7. What are the "lambic-list" and "beerjudge-list" ?
8. What is the A.H.A./Zymurgy?
9. I'm going to (city), what brewpubs are there?
10. My terminal gravity seems high, should I worry?
11. Why hasn't my yeast done anything yet?
12. Are there any homebrew clubs in (city)?
13. What's the word on Bottle Fillers?
14. What is CAMRA?

-------------------

1. How is beer made?

   Beer is made from extracting sugar from the starch in malted grain.  This is
   boiled with sufficient water & hops to make a "wort."  When this has cooled,
   brewer's yeast is added to ferment the wort to create this finished product,
   which is suitable for bottling or kegging, and maturation.  Some people mash
   their own grain, while others buy canned malt extract.  Either method is
   suitable for creating an award-winning brew, though mashing does allow
   greater control over the finished product, and "mash'ers" claim better beer
   is made.  For more complete information get the compressed file beginners.Z
   from the stanford server (see #3).

2. What is the HomeBrewDigest (HBD)?

   The Digest is an alternate forum for discussing homebrewing.  It is not
   associated in any manner with this newsgroup, or Usenet in general, except
   that a high percentage of people contribute to both forums.  The digest is a
   list-group which is sent out daily, containing all postings from the
   previous 24-hours.  The HBD generally handles a more advanced discussion of
   brewing issues.  Flames are not permitted.  Currently the HBD is being
   posted to this newsgroup as a courtesy.  Beware that some newsreaders will
   split the digest into its component articles, and that follow-up posts will
   not be seen by the original poster, nor other HBD subscribers.  Direct
   replies should work - but make sure the address is correct.  To subscribe to
   the digest, send a message containing "subscribe" to
   homebrew-request%hpfcmr@hplabs.hp.com. 

3. Where can I access the archives?

   Currently no one that I know of is archive rec.crafts.brewing, but the
   archives to the HBD are available.  They can be obtained via anonymous ftp
   from sierra.stanford.edu in the pub/homebrew directory.  Get the file called
   index for a complete description of what is available.  Many other "goodies"
   reside in this directory.  Please limit access to non-business hours.
   If you do not have ftp access, you can send a mail message containing the
   word "help" in it, to listserv@sierra.stanford.edu, and you will receive
   instructions.

   Another server does exist for those who do not have ftp access, send a mail
   message containg only the word "HELP" to archive-server@wang.com for more
   information. 

4. Where can I get a copy of "The Cat's Meow" (recipe book)?

   This is available on the archives, in the recipe-book subdirectory.  See #3
   for information on accessing the archives.

5. What is a good text on brewing?

   It is generally agreed that "The Complete Joy of Home Brewing," by Charlie
   Papazian is an excellent beginners text.  Other find David Miller's "The
   Complete Handbook of Homebrewing" just as good for the beginner, as well as
   containing more information suited for intermediate/advanced brewers.  I use
   both.  Other texts include "The Big Book of Brewing," by Dave Line, which is
   a British text (with British & metric measurements), and "Brewing Lager
   Beer" by Greg Noonan.  Mr. Line has also written a recipe book which does
   contain basic instructions, called "Brewing Beer Like Those You Buy."  Also
   you might try "Brewing Quality Beers," by Byron Burch, which has been
   described as "short enough to read for the extremely impatient, yet has lots
   of good information."  Lastly, CAMRA (see below), publishes "Home
   Brewing: The CAMRA Guide," by Graham Wheeler, 1990.  Write to CAMRA
   directly, at the  address given below.

6. Where can I get mail order supplies?

   The wang archive server contains the file "suppliers" which is a good place
   to start, or try the classifieds in any copy of Zymurgy.  Also, try the
   yellow pages under "Beer making supplies" and "Wine Making."

7. What are the "lambic-list" and "beerjudge-list"?

   These are two special topic mailing lists, unassociated with Usenet.
   Subscribers send mail to the list and then copies are immediately mailed out
   to every other subscriber.  The lambic-list covers information on brewing a
   special type of Belgian brew called lambic (ask for it at your liquor
   store).  The beerjudge-list covers topics related to judging beer in
   competitions, as well as administration of the judge test.
   To subscribe, send mail to lambic-request@cs.ulowell.edu, and
   judge-request%synchro@uunet.uu.net.

8. What is the A.H.A./Zymurgy?

   Zymurgy is a quarterly publication, plus one special topics issue, put out
   by the American Homebrewers Association (AHA).  Zymurgy contains many
   article on brewing as well as information & ads regarding clubs and
   supplies.  Contact the AHA by phone or US mail to:

   American Homebrewers Association, Inc.
   P.O. Box 1679
   Boulder, CO 80306-1679
   (303) 447-0816

9. I'm going to (city), what brewpubs are there?

   The Wang archive server contains a file listing brewpubs.  The file is call
   brewpub-list.  See question #3 on how to access the server.

10. My terminal gravity seems high, should I worry?

   Worry?  No.  There are several possibilities.  First, depending on your
   recipe, an acceptable terminal gravity may be high.  For example, a Barley
   Wine with an initial gravity of 1.120, might completely ferment out at
   1.040.  On the other hand, a lite lager, with an initial gravity of 1.025
   might ferment all the way down to 1.002.  Thus you should check with your
   recipe, or a similar recipe of that style, to determine what might be
   proper.  If you still believe it is high, and this is a frequent occurence,
   you may have a "stuck fermentation."  This occurs for a variety of reasons.
   The wort might not have been sufficiently aerated to start with, you might
   slosh it around in the fermenter.  Or, fermentation temperature might have
   dropped to the point where the yeast may go dormant.  Also, the yeast might
   not have enough nutrients in the wort to work with.  This often occurs in
   extract brewing.  In these latter two cases,  you might try adding a yeast
   nutrient, according to the instruction that come with it.  Lastly, give it
   time, as fermentation may slow, then suddenly accelerate at a later date.

11. Why hasn't my yeast done anything yet?

   Some yeasts take longer to start than others.  Make sure your fermentation
   temperature is in the right range (lower temps slow yeast activity).  Also,
   high temperatures are bad for yeast.  Besides probelms of mutation, yeast
   may be killed if pitched before the wort has sufficiently cooled.  You might
   try aerating the wort by sloshing it around in the fermenter.  Lastly, the
   pitching rate affects startup time.  If you pitch too little yeast, not only
   will the lag time be greater, but you also risk infection.  Many people
   either use 2 packets of dry yeast (Whitbread excepted), or make a starter
   culture from one packet, or from liquid yeast.

12. Are there any homebrew clubs in (city)?

   Steve Russell has compiled an on-line list of homebrew clubs.  You can
   contact him by sending mail to: srussell@msc.cornell.edu or
   srussell@crnlmsc2.bitnet.

13. What's the word on Bottle Fillers?

   The following was graciously submitted by Paul Chisholm regarding a recent
   discussion on bottle fillers in this newsgroup... Thanks, Paul...

   Some people Worry (for shame!-) that a bottle filler causes more
   oxidation (because of spraying through the smaller opening, rather than
   through the whole opening at the end of the siphon tube, I guess).  The
   solution is to tilt the bottle at the beginning, and stick the end of
   the bottling wand into the bottom "corner" of the bottle.  The wand's
   end is soon covered with beer, and no amount of spraying will cause any
   extra air to be mixed in with the beer.  Also, if the end of the wand
   (or siphon tube, or whatever) isn't much lower than the end of the
   siphon tube in the priming carboy (or whatever), the beer will be
   siphoned slowly, at low pressure, reducing spraying.  (This works for
   any bottle filling procedure.)

   Another problem is the bottle filler has beer in it.  When you lift the
   filler from the bottle, that beer doesn't go into the bottle, and the
   headspace is greatly increased.  Even if you fill the bottle almost
   full, the resulting headspace is larger than some people consider
   optimal.  You can fill the bottle, move the filler to the top of the
   bottle, and press the tip of the filler to drizzle enough beer down the
   side of the bottle to reduce the head space.

   There are two kinds of fillers.  One kind has a spring.  The other has
   a stopper that's held down by the weight of the beer.  The latter is
   slower.  Does that mean oxidation is less of a problem?  I expect it's
   easier to finish filling (using the side-of-the-bottle trick) with a
   springless filler.

   (There's also something called Phil's Philler, which has a hole at the
   top as well as at the bottom.  You can remove the filler without
   removing the beer in it, thus eliminating the headspace problem.)

   My take on all this is that there are ways to use a bottle filler to
   reduce problems (and reduce Worry).  I didn't find enough evidence of
   problems to bottle my beer without a bottle filler.

14. What is CAMRA?

   CAMRA stands for "the CAMpaign for Real Ale," a British consumers'
   group that is concerned with changes, primarily in the quality of
   British beers.  For membership details write:
        Campaing for Real Ale, Ltd
        34 Alma Road
        St. Albans
        Herts AL1 3BR
        United Kingdom

Kurt Swanson, Dept. of Computer Science,
Lunds universitet.  Kurt.Swanson@dna.lth.se
Newsgroups: rec.crafts.brewing