That is so cool!I prefer brewing the hard stuff, but the principle is the same. Mead is my demon of choice
Old house, forgive the carpet. We're blessed with full hardwood in the new place lol.
View attachment 1048326
View attachment 1048327
Any home-brewers???
- Thread starter Greg24
- Start date
That's my fridge! It was meant to be! So no issues with drilling through the side, and tightening the tap down onto the metal/foam insulation?
Slash McCoy
I freehand dog rockets
Ya buys yer ticket, ya takes yer chances.
I didn't encounter a problem. Of course some fridges might have refrigerant lines in all sorts of strange places, and some boxes are more flimsy than others. Don't overtighten. run a bead of silicone on the flanges and let set a half hour before assembling is what I did.
I would have gone through the door... no way any lines are going through there. But it would have been in the way of getting between the fermenting room and the brewing room, AKA the dining room and the kitchen. On the side was out of the way and so I rolled the dice and got my seven.
Of course you can add a reinforcing plate inside and outside. Maybe 1/8" aluminum, 6" square or so? Or bigger? Or steel? Stainless steel door kick plates would work good. Find them at home depot. Thats what I use when I need some thin stainless plate like right now and no time to order it.
Most guys look for old antique fridges like from the 40s and 50s. Adds a bit of class. You can also just get a $50 beater on CL for a more trashy vibe. I bought this one new.
Slash McCoy
I freehand dog rockets
https://youtu.be/x1iPAePvGyw
Here is my latest batch, bewed last night, working hard in the Big Mouth Bubbler fermenter. This is a fairly big beer, over 8% ABV when done. Note the high tech anti-UV shield. This one is really taxing the air lock, putting out enough CO2 to start another round of global warming.
Mash bill:
14-1/2lb Viking 2 row pale malt
1/2lb Briess 350L Chocolate malt
1lb unmalted oats
Brewing was BIAB. 1oz Cascade hops boiled 1-1/2hrs. This will be in primary for 2 weeks, then secondary for 10 to 15 days, then to keg for 2 weeks keg conditioning.
A similar batch is already in secondary but it has a whole pound of the Choc malt and no oats. all malt.
Here is my latest batch, bewed last night, working hard in the Big Mouth Bubbler fermenter. This is a fairly big beer, over 8% ABV when done. Note the high tech anti-UV shield. This one is really taxing the air lock, putting out enough CO2 to start another round of global warming.
Mash bill:
14-1/2lb Viking 2 row pale malt
1/2lb Briess 350L Chocolate malt
1lb unmalted oats
Brewing was BIAB. 1oz Cascade hops boiled 1-1/2hrs. This will be in primary for 2 weeks, then secondary for 10 to 15 days, then to keg for 2 weeks keg conditioning.
A similar batch is already in secondary but it has a whole pound of the Choc malt and no oats. all malt.
Nice! So for that you didn't pitch any yeast, just added the chilled wort on top of the old trub, correct?
Slash McCoy
I freehand dog rockets
Yeah. I have done this several times now. Saves a few bucks per batch, and the next batch gets thoroughly populated with already active yeast. Only catch is you have to pay close attention to temp so you don't weaken or kill the yeast culture.
Just cracked open the keg of doppelbock (well didn't just crack it open, but just this weekend)... it's been patiently lagering in covid isolation in my basement for 6 months.
Never tried a barleywine, but I figure since I'm doing it less often than I used to, I should get as much ABV as I can per batch!
Never tried a barleywine, but I figure since I'm doing it less often than I used to, I should get as much ABV as I can per batch!
If you're thinking about an American Barleywine, I'm happy to share my award-winning, all-grain recipe (if I can find it).
Hadn't really settled on one, but absolutely!
Patiently waiting on a brown ale and a farmhouse saison to finish up.
I apologize for taking so long to get to this! Obviously, you'll need to adjust this according to your system, AA%, etc. I usually got around 82-83% mash efficiency, so it's all based on that. Also (obviously), all the stats are approximate. I included percentages in the grain bill for easier adjusting.
Old Campfire Stories (American Barleywine)
6 gallon batch (i.e., 6 gallons into the primary)
OG: 1.100
FG: 1.025
ABV: ~9%
IBU: 101
Grain Bill/Mash:
- 15.75 lbs. (85.1%) Marris Otter pale malt
- 1.5 lbs. Munich 20L (8.1%)
- 1.0 lb. Crystal 80L (5.4%)
- 0.25 lb. Special B (or 120L crystal) (1.4%)
Pre-boil wort volume 8-8.5+ gallons. Pre-boil OG approx. 1.084.
Prepare for a long boil. That's the real secret to this recipe. I keep letting sparge run from the mash tun and adding it to the kettle until virtually none comes. That often added about a quart. Just boil until you get your post-boil volume (about 6.5 gallons) and OG. The boil might be 90 minutes or more, but that just adds a character you can't get any other way. It's never a bad idea to have a little DME ready, just in case you need lift.
Hopping:
1.5 oz. Summit 16.5% First Wort Hop (75+ min)
1.5 oz. Centennial 9.5% 20 min
1.0 oz. Cascade 5.5% 15 mins
1.0 oz. Ahtanum 6.0% 7 mins
1.0 oz. Cascade 5.5% 7 mins
1.0 oz. Cascade 5.5% 3 mins
1.0 oz. Ahtanum 6.0% 0 mins (knockout)
1.0 oz. Cascade 5.5% 0 mins (knockout)
1.0 oz. Ahtanum - dry
1.0 oz. Cascade - dry
All hops were whole. Since I did first wort hopping, I just added the Summit to the kettle and let the runnings go on top. Just start the 20 minute clock when you figure you're that far out from getting your volume.
Chill, whirlpool, rack, and pitch.
Fermentation:
Yeast: WLP051 (California V) or WLP041 (Pacific Ale) - it's a matter of personal taste and whim, but use something that kicks out some esters, accentuates malt, and comes in around 75% attenuation.
Work up a large starter (or double pitch). I usually brew a ~4.5 ABV, low IBU, SMaSH ale with Marris Otter and one of the hops, ferment that for a week, and then use that cake. Start fermentation on the cooler side (around 65F) and slowly let it rise up to 72-75F. Keep roused (daily works well). Primary fermentation can take up to 14 days. Rack to secondary, and continue to rouse for few days, allow trub and lees to settle for a day, and then dry hop for 7 days.
Bottle/keg, age as desired, and enjoy!
Doh! Just placed an order for 50# worth of grain... Gonna do a few more cracks at a hazy NEIPA. I figured if I bought a bunch of grain, I'd be less likely to put off brewing since I have everything ready to go. Made one a couple years ago and everyone keeps mentioning it, so I figure I gotta givem what they want, right? I'll file this into my Beer Tools Pro for the winter. Thanks!
You're quite welcome. That recipe is 11 or 12 years old. It'll keep a little longer!
Not sure what you mean, but if you just mean sugary water that has been fermented, I haven’t tried that. I did make mead once, which is almost that but with honey instead of sugar.
Since this thread has been resurrected, I may as well add to it! Seeing some familiar names in here. I've been homebrewing beer for +30 years now, I guess, along with mead and wine more recently. 95% keg, with a sixer of the bigger beers put aside. My water is way better suited for lower bittering hop amounts, so I tend toward Belgians and maltier beers (Wee Heavy, Imperial Porter...)
The last 2 summers I have made "Hula Hop'd Coconut Milkshake IPA" from Northern Brewer.
A ton of hops (all at flameout), a bag of coconut and a couple vanilla beans. Sounds gross, but I and everyone who has tried it love it. It will be in the rotation every summer, without a doubt! I used the Omega Tropical yeast on it and a Wheatwine and it works very well. It really seems to bring out tropical fruit flavors, just know that it is a hazy one.
The last 2 summers I have made "Hula Hop'd Coconut Milkshake IPA" from Northern Brewer.
A ton of hops (all at flameout), a bag of coconut and a couple vanilla beans. Sounds gross, but I and everyone who has tried it love it. It will be in the rotation every summer, without a doubt! I used the Omega Tropical yeast on it and a Wheatwine and it works very well. It really seems to bring out tropical fruit flavors, just know that it is a hazy one.
This is my chicken. She is also a homebrewer.
I am about to brew some mead. I have all the necessary equipment purchased. Some local honey from a friend.
basic recipe is
3lbs of honey
Gallon of water
San Diego super yeast wlp090
Touch of yeast nutrient
Dried hibiscus
I have everything except the hibiscus, which is taking forever to arrive. I suppose I could just make it without.
Any advice from mead makers on here?
basic recipe is
3lbs of honey
Gallon of water
San Diego super yeast wlp090
Touch of yeast nutrient
Dried hibiscus
I have everything except the hibiscus, which is taking forever to arrive. I suppose I could just make it without.
Any advice from mead makers on here?
So here’s my two meads. The one on the left is just 2 days old and the other with the big headspace is about a fortnight in.
The young one is a hibiscus, orange, ginger mead and the other is just hibiscus.
The young one is a hibiscus, orange, ginger mead and the other is just hibiscus.
I've made some basic meads and apfelwine recently. I used to brew but don't want to take the time anymore. I don't want to bottle what I have (mead and apfelwine). My last batch of mead was in secondary for five years with no Ill result.
I clean and sanitize enough at work. I never thought I would have gotten tired of homebrewing when I started. My MLT and two of my fermenters sit empty.
I have a gallon and a half of honey waiting for the next batch of mead. It is from my father in laws hives. I'll start it soon.
I say that every day off.
I clean and sanitize enough at work. I never thought I would have gotten tired of homebrewing when I started. My MLT and two of my fermenters sit empty.
I have a gallon and a half of honey waiting for the next batch of mead. It is from my father in laws hives. I'll start it soon.
I say that every day off.
