HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: bcronk@bnr.ca (Bryan Cronk P125)
Newsgroups: rec.crafts.brewing
Subject: Yet another newbie with questions
Date: 17 Aug 92 16:33:42 GMT
Organization: Bell-Northern Research, BNR-RTP


I hope y'all aren't tired of hearing from us newbies, but I've been 
reading this group attentively for the past couple of weeks and I've 
decided to take the plunge.

So far, I've bought Charlie's book and read significant portions of it, 
bought a large (3 gallon) enamel on steel pot from K-mart for $12.50, 
and visited my local brew shop to have a look-see.  I have about six 
cases of the old squat Canadian returnables (from before they got the 
marketing itch to do twist-offs) to use as bottles.  However, I still 
have some questions:

Question #1:  I have the addresses of several mail-order places from 
the net, and I intend to write and get catalogues.  I thought in the 
interest of time, though (I really would like to get started) someone 
could give me an idea as to whether this "starter" kit from my local 
shop is a good deal:

For $44.00, you get:

7 Gallon plastic pail fermenter with gasketed lid and drilled for 
stopper.  Bottling spigot attached.

3 feet of bottling tubing

Three piece fermentation (air) lock & #2 drilled stopper

delux double level bottle capper w/caps

Bottle cleaning brush

Automatic bottle filler (glass tube with valve at bottom)

Triple scale hydrometer

"Brewing Quality Beers" book (I think the author is Byrun?)

Question #2:  I've heard a lot about 1 and 2 stage fermenting, and 
I'm still foggy on one thing - if I were to do a 2 stage fermentation 
and use a pail (as in the above kit) for my first stage, would I still 
attach the fermentation lock for that stage?  If not, do I plug up the 
hole?  I was thinking that I'd buy the kit above and buy an 
additional glass carboy for the second fermentation.

Question #3:  I assumed that I only needed a wort chiller if I was 
doing all-grain brews, since you need to boil all of your wort, rather 
than just part of it.  Am I right?  I know that it is important to cool 
the wort quickly, but Charlie suggests that you just pour it into the 
cool water in the fermenter and wait (he also says not to use ice in 
the water - is there a reason for this?).

Question #4:  I planned to do my first batch from a kit, but it seems 
easy to use non-hopped extract and add the hops yourself.  Should I 
try it on my first time out?

Question #5:  My brew shop suggests adding priming sugar in each 
bottle, but Charlie suggests batch priming by adding the sweetener in 
a pail (I thought I could use my first stage fermenter) and siphoning 
the wort into it.  The reasons I was given for the bottle method was 
risk of oxidation of transferring the beer.  Should I be concerned?

Thanks for any input.  I've tried to do my homework, but there's 
nothing like the voice of experience.

Cheers,

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bryan Cronk   BNR, Inc., Research Triangle Park, NC   (919) 991-7598
------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: comfrank@ubvmsb.cc.buffalo.edu (Frank Tutzauer)
Newsgroups: rec.crafts.brewing
Subject: RE: Yeast Culturing - No Dregs Here!
Date: 16 Aug 92 05:08:00 GMT
Organization: University at Buffalo
News-Software: VAX/VMS VNEWS 1.41

In article <1992Aug15.011150.58174@cc.usu.edu>, slk6p@cc.usu.edu writes...
>Some of this discussion of yeast culturing bothers me.
> 
>...
>	It makes much more sense to me to culture from a pure culture 
>(namely store bought liquid yeast) and get several batches out of one
>envelope-  than to try reculturing yeast that has already been through 
>your carboy.

I agree with you in principle, but in practice, I'm a little laxer.
If I happen to have a brew planned that would use the same yeast
that's in the primary, or even the secondary, I'll pitch right on
top of the dregs, a la Father Barleywine.  Also, if I don't have
a packet or culture of the kind of Wyeast that I want, I'll make
a starter from the bottom of a bottle that does, and then pitch
that.  I don't guess I would _culture_ from these sources, but
if you just want to use them to brew a batch of beer, you have a
fairly high probability of making a successful brew.
From: hasn@midway.uchicago.edu (Sheheryar Hasnain)
Newsgroups: rec.crafts.brewing
Subject: Test
Date: 18 Aug 92 16:31:07 GMT
Organization: University of Chicago

Ive been having problems posting to this group.  This is a test.
Newsgroups: rec.crafts.brewing
Subject: Re: Canadian Flamewar  (was: Canadian pisswater)
From: kbenoit@isr.harvard.edu (Ken Benoit)
Date: Fri, 21 Aug 92 18:43:50 GMT
Distribution: rec
Organization: Harvard University, Cambridge, MA

Oops!  I just realized that this posting is going to both alt.beer AND
rec.crafts.brewing.  Guess that explains why I'vee been seeing this
debate in alt.beer as well...

Well why cant we LIMIT it to alt.beer, then?

KB
From: jim@thor.albany.edu (SCHLEMMER JAMES A)
Newsgroups: rec.crafts.brewing
Subject: Re: UV a problem while brewing?
Date: 20 Aug 92 17:42:25 GMT
Organization: State University of New York at Albany

In article <mcnally.714327551@wsl.pa.dec.com> mcnally@wsl.dec.com (Mike McNally) writes:
>ted@telematics.com (Ted Goldblatt) writes:
>
>>However ... there is ... daylight ... Should I worry ... ?
>
>Yes, worry, but it's easy to fix the problem.  Wrap your carboy
>in aluminum foil.  It is quite opaque.
>

I just use inverted black Hefty bags with a hole cut out for the ferm. lock.
I guess that might tend to absorb some heat though, which, as I recall, was
part of your original problem.  Well, maybe if you put it under some white
towels it'd work.

Jim
From: michal+@cs.cmu.edu (Michal Prussak)
Newsgroups: rec.crafts.brewing
Subject: Re: The use of Grolsch bottles?
Date: 13 Aug 92 14:35:51 GMT
Organization: School of Computer Science, Carnegie Mellon

In article <1992Aug11.200136.22447@news.nd.edu> ulick@chopin.helios.nd.edu (Ulick Stafford) writes:
>his own.  Just don't call Grolsch bottles a cheap excuse for not buying
>a capper.  They're not.

They ARE cheap. In some states (including NY), they have a 5 cent deposit -
I bought two cases of empties in a beer store at 10 cents a bottle. 
Certainly beats a capper and caps. 

But here in PA, I get a kick when I see them offered at up to $1.50. 
Sometimes I am thinking of selling my stock for a bargain - 50 cents a piece.

Michal
Xref: sparky rec.crafts.brewing:4564 alt.beer:4802
From: murph@buscard.fidonet.org (Brian Murphy)
Newsgroups: rec.crafts.brewing,alt.beer
Subject: Re: MURPH'S SHIT CAME IN!  MURPH'S SHIT CAME IN!!
Date: 13 Aug 92 17:53:14 GMT
Organization: The Business Card (BBS), Lawrence, MA - Data: 508-682-5329

klett@ghill.enet.dec.com (Michael Klett) writes:

> >                     Your friend in Lawrence, Massachusetts...
> 
> Hmmmm, when you gonna have a party inviting all of your net-friends (myself
> included) to sample yer brew?  I figger the 19th or 20th of September looks
> pretty good.  :-)

Boy, I'd need a tent and large football field at this point!  Those 
target dates for my brew, though, look pretty good!  The chick's birthday 
is the 16th so...  I'll probably crack a bottle open each week, though, 
out of curiosity to see what's happening.

> Good luck with yer first brew,

Thanks!  Should be kewl!  I got a new user on my system named Mr. Dean 
Goulding (or is it Gouldings?) who's a brewer.  I chatted with him 
yesterday and he seems to be a nice guy - very helpful and understanding. 
Naturally, I grilled the poor bastard for longer than I think his 
employer would appreciate paying for.  :-)  Sorry, Dean!

Mr. McNally sent me mail mentioning dry hopping where I stick a hop 
pellet in a "settling tank" for a week.  He didn't go into many details 
but it leads quite nicely into my next concern...

I'm doing a two-stage fermentation (I believe).  I'm going to do the 
primary in a 6 gallon carboy with a lock - no blow-by tube.  I think Mr. 
McNally means that when I rack into the secondary 5 gallon carboy, THAT'S 
the time to stick the hop pellet in.

Please check my timing on racking to secondary where I believe I leave it 
in the primary until the krausen drops back into wort.  Probably leave it 
one more day for any sediment to settle to the bottom - THEN rack to the 
secondary, add that hop pellet, and let it sit for another week or so?  I 
don't believe the final specific gravity will be reached at the time I 
rack to the secondary and that's the idea, right?  Actually, because I'm 
not following any specific recipe, gravity at this point is going to be 
meaningless.  I'll really have to rely on when fermentation ceases and 
the gravity stays the same for 2-3 days before bottling.  I think I 
pretty much have the idea if what I say sounds about right to the net.

If I dry hop, should I omit the finish hopping during the boil?  Probably 
too late to worry about this now as I am going to hop at the end of the 
boil but there is still time to consider the dry hopping.

                                - - - Murph

-----------------------------------------------------------------------
The Business Card (BBS), Lawrence, Massachusetts - Data: (508) 682-5329
SysAdmin:  murph@buscard.fidonet.org / ...!ulowell!wizvax!buscard!murph
Newsgroups: rec.crafts.brewing
From: malodah@pbhyf.PacBell.COM (Martin A. Lodahl)
Subject: Re: You Think "Salvator" is Hard? [Re: Salvator (pronunciation)]
Reply-To: malodah@PacBell.COM (Martin A. Lodahl)
Organization: Pacific * Bell, San Ramon, CA
Date: Fri, 21 Aug 1992 18:55:06 GMT

In article <Aug21.154725.24404@yuma.ACNS.ColoState.EDU> copeland@lamar.ColoState.EDU (Jeffrey Copeland) writes:
>In article <01050166.bjqc0b@joebloe.maple-shade.nj.us> joseph@joebloe.maple-shade.nj.us writes:
>>
>>But I have yet to guess at ANY suitable pronunciation of
>>
>>	g u e u z e

[ snip! ]

>I believe its pronounced the same as gauze, as in the bandage.


Sorry, but pronounce it that way in a Belgian cafe, and you will go
thirsty.  They will simply not know what you mean.  Michael Jackson's
suggestion that it be pronounced much like "cursor" comes close, but
isn't quite there either.  Imagine saying "GUR-za" with a speech 
impediment that prevents you from saying the "R" sound, and you'll
be in the ballpark.  At least they'll bring you something to drink ...

	- Martin

-- 
= Martin A. Lodahl    [DoD, AHA, NRA]  Systems Analyst, Pacific*Bell =
= malodah@PacBell.COM		Sacramento, CA, USA     916.972.4821 =
= If it's good for ancient Druids, runnin' nekkid through the wuids, =
= Drinkin' strange fermented fluids, it's good enough for me!!  8-)} =
From: jim@thor.albany.edu (SCHLEMMER JAMES A)
Newsgroups: rec.crafts.brewing
Subject: Re: WYeast - neat stuff
Date: 13 Aug 92 18:25:32 GMT
Organization: State University of New York at Albany

In article <bsxkjm.29r@wang.com> jdr@wang.com (Joe Rolfe) writes:
>
>so now for some questions about the different Wyeasts:
>
>what is the viable cell counts in the packs? (colony forming units)
>what are the doubling rates?
>how old is too old (i know this is storage temp related - ideal storage
>	temps assumed)
>
>any other info - info that was not on the packs - of use?
>
>any one out there have any other data points of intrest - i'd like to hear it??

I was in my local HB supply store a couple of weeks ago and he showed me a
plastic bucket full of expired Wyeast packets.  He had ruptured them all
and said that, without exception, they all puffed up.  A breif visual 
inspection of the bucket verified that.  He went on to say
that one was as old as 1988!  He also showed me what he called the new
"Rambo proof" Wyeast packaging that is now black (or brown) so as to distinguish
it from the defective packaging fiasco.  He said he had *alot* of complaints
of exploding outer packs with said packaging.

I thought it curious that he showed me this little experiment of his and
it's implied conclusion - that Wyeast is more resilient than one might think
- but then went on to say that he wouldn't be getting anymore in until 
the fall because "in the summer this stuff could end up sitting on a runway 
in 100F heat while in transit across the country, which makes for duds."  

Also, he wasn't very enthused when I excitingly told him that I had 
successfully restarted some SN Pale Ale yeast from bottles.  Wonder why...

Jim
Newsgroups: rec.crafts.brewing,alt.beer
From: brown@odin.ins.cwru.edu (Dan Brown)
Subject: Re: Beer dispute?
Organization: Subversive Student Publications un-inc.
Date: Fri, 14 Aug 92 13:43:00 GMT

In an earlier posting palmerp@math.orst.edu writes:

>I moved to Oregon a few years ago. They have a 5 cent deposit on beer
>containers here (3 cents on some quart bottles). The thing I don't understand
>though, and that I've never gotten an answer to, is that no one sells beer in
>longneck returnable bottles.

I can get them here in Cleveland... bud, wiedemans, etc is sold in such
bottles. I just have to go to a beer store and put down the deposit, and
can get a case of empties... usually with all sorts of beer nasties and
cigarette butts, etc etc. Ocassionally, if I am having some people over,
I will even get a case of bubba beer and just keep the bottles. 
I use them for homebrew. 

>Makes no sense to me; it seems like returnable bottles are much more
>environmentally sound than cans and non-reusable bottles.

They are considerably more expensive to make, and the companies probably
never get all of them back, so... they would rather use disposables. 

Later.
Dan
-- 
Dan Brown
brown@ins.cwru.edu
"If two years isn't enough time, why would five minutes be?" Chester Ramey.
Newsgroups: rec.crafts.brewing
From: bf703@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Patrick J. Volkerding)
Subject: Re: Brew pots from Kegs.
Reply-To: bf703@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Patrick J. Volkerding)
Organization: Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH (USA)
Date: Thu, 13 Aug 92 20:14:40 GMT


In a previous article, shirley@fdr.jsc.nasa.gov (Bill Shirley [CSC]) says:
>
>I heard that stainless has very bad heat distribution problems, and
>that (the expensive) stainless steel pots have some kind of alloy
>bonded to the bottom of the pot to aid in heat distribution.
>
>Do you attatch something to the bottom of the kegs?
>Do you set in on an aluminum plate?
>Do you pound copper to the bottom of the keg?
>Do you just count on your MegaBunsenBurner (TM) to do the job?
>

When I went pricing Vollrath SS pots ($$$) I did notice they were
all aluminum-clad on the bottoms. You could see where the color of
the metal changed about 1/2" from the bottom.

I went with the (cheap :^) SS keg boiler and I use the MegaBunsenBurner
to torch the hell out of it. _No_ problem getting a rapid boil. I have
noticed, however, that if I don't syphon the wort out right after
chilling it, that the temp can go up as much as 10-15 degrees as the
heat migrates up from the rim on the bottom. This actually works ok,
because I can get a good cold break, and then let the trub settle for
a while, and have the temp be a little higher so the yeast takes off
quickly :^)

Pat
From: kbrennan@girtab.usc.edu (Kirk Brennan)
Newsgroups: rec.crafts.brewing
Subject: Why is my beer so bitter?
Date: 14 Aug 1992 17:59:24 -0700
Organization: University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA
NNTP-Posting-Host: girtab.usc.edu

I just tasted my "Steam Beer" which came from a Brewtek kit.  Brewtek 
encloses dried extracts, specialty grains, anonymous hops and liquid yeast.

Man, this stuff is -BITTER-.  I almost (almost..) can't drink the stuff.

What happened?  The Steam Beer uses a lager yeast at a fermentation 
temperature closer to ales.  AKA California Classic.  

The Brew guru at the home brew shop in Woodland Hills recommended I 
ferment at 58 degrees farenheit.  My ice-water-in-the-trash-can method of 
chilling the brew was not as efficient as I had hoped.  The temperature
ranged from 58 degrees to 68 degrees, when I would come home from work and 
dump more ice in the water surrounding the pail.  

My guess is that the variance in temperature did it.  

Or, it's possible that it hasn't conditioned long enough.  There's a fair
amount of carbonation, although the bottles aren't "outies" yet, as described
earlier.  They've been conditioning at room temperature (maybe 78 degrees?)
for about 17 days.  Seems like enough time to me.  But I've never worked 
with a lager yeast.  

Is my conditioning the reason?

Unfortunately the kit doesn't tell you what the ingredients are.  Didn't look
like more'n two ounces of hop pellets, though.  Maybe one once for finishing.

I'll still drink it, but I don't think I'll make it again.  My explosive
Brown Ale (brewed during the L.A. riots, BTW), was much better.

Kirk out
From: pepke@gw.scri.fsu.edu (Eric Pepke)
Newsgroups: rec.crafts.brewing
Subject: Re: How much mash water?
Date: 17 Aug 92 15:28:03 GMT
Organization: Florida State University, but I don't speak for them

In article <1992Aug14.183936.1148@news.nd.edu> 
ulick@angelico.helios.nd.edu (Ulick Stafford) writes:
> I'd like to 
> really minimize this to make strong beers without adding extract, or 
much  
> more water, and will probably try soon with about .75-1.

The way breweries usually handle this problem is to use one mash to make 
two batches of beer.  Use just the first runoff to make your barley wine 
or whatever and use the rest to make something like a mild or an ordinary 
bitter.  Or you can use all the runoff for one batch and boil for a long 
time.


Eric Pepke                                    INTERNET: pepke@gw.scri.fsu.edu
Supercomputer Computations Research Institute MFENET:   pepke@fsu
Florida State University                      SPAN:     scri::pepke
Tallahassee, FL 32306-4052                    BITNET:   pepke@fsu

Disclaimer: My employers seldom even LISTEN to my opinions.
Meta-disclaimer: Any society that needs disclaimers has too many lawyers.
From: rclopton@hoss.unl.edu (richard clopton)
Newsgroups: rec.crafts.brewing
Subject: Extra-Special Bitter
Date: 19 Aug 92 20:31:25 GMT
Organization: University of Nebraska - Lincoln

My brewing buddy and I are looking for a good extra-special
bitter recipe.  We're going to start all-grains in the late
fall - as of now we're brewing with extracts (dries or canned -
we don't care).  What we need is for one (or Several) of you
to send us a Hop-heads delight sort of bitter recipe.

Any takers?

Thanks,
(send either post or e-mail)

Rich


-- 
RICH CLOPTON           |"These chapters, then, are the annals of a long and
Parasitology (Yeehaa!) |uncompleted running.  I leave them here lest the end
University of Nebraska |come on me unawares as it does to all fugitives."
rclopton@hoss.unl.edu  |     - Loren Eiseley  'The Night Country'

--
RICH CLOPTON           |"These chapters, then, are the annals of a long and
Parasitology (Yeehaa!) |uncompleted running.  I leave them here lest the end
University of Nebraska |come on me unawares as it does to all fugitives."
rclopton@hoss.unl.edu  |     - Loren Eiseley  'The Night Country'
From: kaz@watson.bms.com (Joe Kazimierczyk)
Newsgroups: rec.crafts.brewing
Subject: aeration - when?
Date: 18 Aug 92 13:58:00 GMT
Organization: Bristol Myers Squibb Pharmaceutical Research Institute
News-Software: VAX/VMS VNEWS 1.4-b1

Here's a question from another newbie (first batch in progress, but not doing
too well:(

From what I've read, it seems that aeration of the wort is important for
proper fermentation to take place.  I recall reading somewhere (can't
remember where) that one should avoid aeration when pouring the
hot wort into a fermentation bucket.   Is this correct?  If so, why?
Is violently stirring the wort after it's cooled, but just before pitching,
the generally accepted method?  Should I relax or should I worry?

Thanks in advance...

Joe Kazimierczyk
kaz@bms.com
Newsgroups: rec.crafts.brewing
From: gal2@ellis.uchicago.edu (Jacob Galley)
Subject: Re: labels...
Reply-To: gal2@midway.uchicago.edu
Organization: University of Chicago Computing Organizations
Date: Thu, 13 Aug 1992 21:52:27 GMT


I used milk for glue, until I noticed that it did not work for some
kinds of paper. (I could not distunguish between the two kinds of
white office paper except that the one from Kinko's liked milk and
the one out of a laserprinter didn't.) So now I add a smidgen of
cornstarch to the milk, and all my labels stick better than with
milk alone.

Jake.
-- 
Reinheitsgebot <-- "Keep your laws off my beer!" <-- gal2@midway.uchicago.edu
Newsgroups: rec.crafts.brewing
From: gdw@po.CWRU.Edu (Gary D. Wright)
Subject: Re: aeration - when?
Reply-To: gdw@po.CWRU.Edu (Gary D. Wright)
Organization: Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH (USA)
Date: Tue, 18 Aug 92 14:50:37 GMT


In a previous article, kaz@watson.bms.com (Joe Kazimierczyk) says:

>Here's a question from another newbie (first batch in progress, but not doing
>too well:(
>
>From what I've read, it seems that aeration of the wort is important for
>proper fermentation to take place.  I recall reading somewhere (can't
>remember where) that one should avoid aeration when pouring the
>hot wort into a fermentation bucket.   Is this correct?  If so, why?
>Is violently stirring the wort after it's cooled, but just before pitching,
>the generally accepted method?  Should I relax or should I worry?
>
>Thanks in advance...
>
>Joe Kazimierczyk
>kaz@bms.com

The yeast needs plenty of oxygen for respiration, so give your wort
a good stir before pitching.  From that point onwards through the life
of the brew, keep oxygen away.

The problem with pouring hot wort, and thereby introducing lots of air
into it, has to do with the rather long period your wort needs to cool
before you introduce your own yeast.  There are lots of wild yeasts
floating around in your air, particularly in the kitchen, and any of
those may take hold as soon as your wort chills down under 100 degrees,
producing all sorts of nasties.  Keeping these guys out of your wort
diminishes the chance of foreign yeasts taking hold.  

Absolutely, absolutely build a wort chiller, even for kit brews.  E-mail
me and I'll give you instructions on how to build mine.  It's very 
effective (I cool 5 gal to pitching temperature in about 15 min), and
quite cheap to build.

Good luck.
Gary.
>
-- 
Gary D. Wright                       "Somewhere, back in the 60's, we got
Dir., Ctr for Music & Tech               Art confused with Entertainment."
CWRU Music Department                         American composer Donald Erb
gdw@po.cwru.edu