13
votes
Accepted
Diluting beer after 11 hours of fermentation. What to expect?
You can safely dilute at any stage.
Contamination is probably the biggest risk. But just takes basic sanitation practices to avoid.
Oxydation: Really only an issue if 50% or more of the alcohol is ...
- 18.5k
8
votes
Diluting beer after 11 hours of fermentation. What to expect?
Regarding contamination, if you boil the water you are using to dilute and let it cool in a sanitised pot, then add it you should avoid bacterial or wild yeast contamination.
At that OG (1080) don't ...
- 7,018
7
votes
Accepted
Lager vs Ale a comparison
Yes, this is incorrect.
You are actually conflating a couple of things, which can be all used in combination, and all of these combinations can be true. These are flavor, fermentation and time to ...
- 3,655
6
votes
Making a strong belgian ale
Mistake 1, really doesn't matter all will be fine.
You may end up with a little more bitterness extraction, but is has been reported that FWH can lead to a more mellow bitterness. I really would not ...
- 7,018
5
votes
Accepted
Unexpected flavours after bottle conditioning
Bottle conditioning, not to be confused with bottle aging, is only for natural carbonation.
You want to use a monosaccharide sugar like powdered corn sugar so it's easily and completely consumed by ...
- 18.5k
5
votes
Problems with sealing fermentation tank
Don't worry so much. Put some sanitized foil over the top and wrap with a rubber band. If the beer is chilled to pitching temp before being transferred to the fermenter, air locks are absolutely ...
- 363
5
votes
Adding graham cracker flavor to a pumpkin ale
Don't use commercially produced Graham crackers, as these will contain unconvertible starches, oils, fats, preservatives, etc that can wreck your beer. Also, you can never assume that a finished ...
- 6,682
5
votes
Accepted
Cidery or wine flavor after bottle conditioning ale
I saw that "cidery due to too much simple sugar" issue mentioned in a few places, but for some weird reason I haven't experienced it, even though my bottling procedure always includes table (cane) ...
- 1,498
4
votes
Accepted
Should I stir the fermentation?
Two weeks doesn't seem like an inordinately long time for a true double IPA. Also depending on the OG 1.019 might be the bottom. As this was an extract beer I'd be surprised to see a double IPA go ...
- 36.2k
4
votes
Problems with sealing fermentation tank
This could be bad for the beer that's in there now. If fermentation vessel doesn't have a good seal the beer could be contaminated. It's not guaranteed to spoil though, it might turn out ok. It is ...
- 933
4
votes
Accepted
Adding extra ingredients/flavouring: what stage should I add?
I would add the ingredients in late fermentation. When there is plenty of alcohol, minimal co2 blow off, but still active yeast. This will allow the yeast to consume those sugars, dominate the culture ...
- 18.5k
4
votes
Adding extra ingredients/flavouring: what stage should I add?
I always recommend adding non fermentable flavorings as close to packaging as possible. This helps prevent that flavor and aroma from getting "blown out" by fermentation.
- 33.4k
4
votes
Accepted
Any hop recommendations for a single hop PA out of these options
For an American Pale Ale, I'd stick with American hops.
Saaz is the classic Czech Pilsner hop, Hallertau is a German noble hop. If you use those, you may end up with something between a Pale Ale and ...
- 1,266
4
votes
Accepted
Didn't reach expected FG. Should I postpone bottling? Also: It looks weird!
That beer definitely needs more time. It's likely that the periods of lower temperature slowed or potentially even halted fermentation, and the sweet smell you describe is probably unfermented sugars ...
- 56
3
votes
Diluting beer after 11 hours of fermentation. What to expect?
At what gravity did it started and what was it when the water was added? If the fermentation only just started and still has a long way to go, oxidation would most likely not be a problem. Also the ...
- 671
3
votes
Accepted
Brewing with chili pepper
There are many commercial examples of beers using chilli peppers.
Most chilli beers tend to be dark ales, like porters and stouts. The roasted flavor of the malts pairs really well with chilli flavor ...
- 18.5k
3
votes
Recipe simply calls for caramalt
No Caramalt is its own thing:
https://bsgcraftbrewing.com/simpsons-caramalt
https://bsgcraftbrewing.com/crisp-cara-malt-15-25-kg
It typically comes in around 15°L, so any crystal/caramel malt in ...
- 6,417
3
votes
Accepted
Controlling fermentation temperatures
I live in the south of England where it has recently been even colder than "oop North". At this time of year I go with the seasons and brew the year's supply of lager(!!!). Its perfectly lagered and ...
- 5,631
3
votes
Accepted
What makes a beer syrupy in texture?
Using today's highly modified malts, mash temp makes a lot less difference than it used it. I'd say it's the rye. I have made many, many rye beers and as the % of rye rises, the beer gets a thicker, ...
- 33.4k
3
votes
What makes a beer syrupy in texture?
Generally the temperature of the mash can give a thicker consistency to the beer as you move from 63-68 degC for you mash temperature the high you go the more dominant alpha-amylase will be. This ...
- 7,018
3
votes
Accepted
Best yeast for bottle conditioning
In theory all strains could be used. One thing to watch out for is the attenuation level of the yeast, you don't want the new yeast to ferment more sugars than its primary predecessor. On top of the ...
- 671
3
votes
Wine or cider yeast for ale
Its pretty safe to say that the yeast is dead. If you can keep the wort sealed and cool at room temperature you should be fine waiting for the ale yeast. However adding the wine or cider yeast may ...
- 69
3
votes
Any hop recommendations for a single hop PA out of these options
If I were to choose only one hop for an APA, it would be Centennial, similar to other hops specifically used for an APA, a little less “grapefruit” notes then Cascade, but still fruity with some pine ...
- 502
3
votes
Increase carbonation in home brewed beer?
It's only been one week? Wait another week before trying another bottle. It often takes 2 weeks to carbonate in my experience. If that doesn't work, maybe you didn't use enough priming sugar. You ...
- 3,417
3
votes
Last bottles are extremely cloudy in my first homebrew bottling
It's safe to drink. There are plenty of articles that claim that yeast is actually healthy (e.g., healthline.com, webmd).
It may not taste great and look too cloudy. If that bothers you, you can try ...
- 1,266
3
votes
Looking for a 1 gallon Pineapple Pale Ale recipe
OK, here goes... First off, do you really want to make just one gallon? Rethink that, I would suggest a minimum of 3 gallons (for big beers), and 5 for typical strength (like a Pale Ale). What if ...
- 101
2
votes
How do I make my ginger beer SPICY?
I once made ginger candy. The secret to the spiciness was in heating the ginger, letting it cool and then heating it again. Each heating and cooling cycle added quite a bit more kick to the ginger. ...
2
votes
How do I make my ginger beer SPICY?
The longer you heat it, the stronger it is. Don't use the liquid into it's cooled with the ginger in it. Acid and chili pepper or Cayanne help as well, I use cayenne and lime.good luck
- 21
2
votes
Adding graham cracker flavor to a pumpkin ale
I have never tried it, but if I wanted to I would rather add grains that have that flavour (pilsner malt) as opposed to adding the actual cracker.
[Added on request]
Here is a document (25Mb) from ...
- 2,466
2
votes
Accepted
Pumpkin Ale Slow Fermentation
11 cans is a lot. Pumpkin is also mostly starch so adding it in the boil probably did give you some flavor, but mostly a starchy mess as you indicated. You didn't mention it but I would suspect you ...
- 36.2k
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