Jim's Beer Kit

I love the smack packs, but they are a ballache to smack sometimes, particularly if some nutrient has escaped and the pack is semi swollen when you receive it. Two ways I’ve found that work: 1. Get the nutrient pack in the V at the bottom. Then just put it on a solid surface, put the heel of your pa...

I agree you can't beat the thermapen; I repeat you can not beat the thermapen. So you like it then? I love it! I love it's precision and nearly instant readings during the mash. I have a Thermapen One. One of my best brewing buys. So much so that I bought a second one for the kitchen when they were...

Yes there would be PTFE tape on the threads of the disconnects, but you shouldn't need to undo those to do a brew day clean. I'm pretty certain the issue you have is that a dribble of wort is getting trapped in the thermometer end of the T piece. It's a little nook that isn't in the path of flow of ...

How long since you last cleaned it? Never! Bought it at least 2 years ago. Always washed it through with water at 60C after use. Obviously didn't do the job. If I dismantle it after every brew will the PTFE tape need to be changed every time? Bit of a PITA if it does. The simplest thing is to put a...

Yuck.

It's a good reminder that anything the wort touches on the cold side (i.e. post boil) should be disassembled and cleaned after each brew. That includes things like kettle and fermenter taps/ball valves.

Why not just use the Salifert test kits, they are accurate enough for brewing and a lot cheaper. They were accurate, but the last kit I bought was miles off. I bought the Hanna meter and it was within 10ppm of the water report I’d previously received. What is the alkalinity of your water Jocky, how...

Not sure I can recommend under £15, but plenty of people like the Inkbird IHT-1P (currently £17.74 on Amazon). For me the ultimate brewing thermometer is the Thermapen Pro - currently £39.99. It’s very fast reading, turns itself off to save battery and it’s waterproof, which is very useful with brew...

clarets7 wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 24, 2022 1:49 pm

Why not just use the Salifert test kits, they are accurate enough for brewing and a lot cheaper.

They were accurate, but the last kit I bought was miles off.

I bought the Hanna meter and it was within 10ppm of the water report I’d previously received.

Substitute it, it’ll be fine. UK barley is a bit more rich and flavoursome than either US 2-row or 6-row, so to really reproduce US recipes it’s sometimes worth replacing some of the pale malt with a pilsner or lager malt. But until you’re really trying to hone a recipe it’s not really worth worryin...

Yeah, it looks identical to a Corny PRV except for the colour.

I would, however suggest that you only use this as a backup to a spunding valve on your corny keg. If one gets blocked or fails then you have the other as a backup.

This is a age old debate and It's all about surface area. I have "jaded brewing" type immersion chiller. And IMO beats the pants off these other contraptions 😄😄 30litres wort 95c to 20c in 6-10. Makes 45 litres of washing up water. No pump. No filter. No hassle. No Sterilising. No back flush. No ca...

I have a bucket full of Ernest. I might try some Notty. @Jocky. Is the benefit of the blend, soley for the Windsor to add flavour & Notty to finish well? Yes. Windsor produces some lovely esters, but it tends to finish with a high gravity and is quite reluctant to flocculate. Nottingham is quite ag...

When you used Windsor and Nottingham, did you pitch them at the same time or stagger them?

I’ve seen it suggested to pitch the Nottingham 24 hours after the Windsor, just to give Windsor some time to develop some flavour before Notty takes over.

The interest in brewing circles I’ve seen for ‘clean’ kveik has been down to not needing temperature control.

There were plenty of ways to make ropey alcohol quickly before kveik.

Here is another nudge. This brewing example hasn't been casked/kegged yet because of other commitments so it's still sitting pretty in the fermenter (which is cooled hence the very active temperature fluctuations in this hot weather). But it's an "ordinary" British-style dried yeast (S-33) with hal...