Weevils

[johnmac]

Did a brew today, for the first time in a long time. I opened a sealed packet of flaked barley and it was absolutely alive with weevils. I expect it would have made safe and palatable ale, but I'm too squeamish, so now the weevils have set up home in the compost heap.

I checked all my other grains. Some flaked barley from a different supplier also had a couple of weevils in residence. Does barley attract them more than other grains?

[Aleman]

Not that that I am aware of.

There is a standard for the number of weevils per kilo in malt . . . personally I like the number zero . . . the problem with brewing with Weevil malt is that the protein content is so much higher

Another way of dealing with them is to fill the bag (from the bottom of the grain) with CO2, which drives them to the surface where they can be removed.

[steve_flack]

Weevils I can live with....it's the kamikaze fruit flies and minute black wriggly bugs I can't stand. Living in an agricultural area we've got loads of the latter around at the mo. They seem to peak at harvest time.

[johnmac]

Steve, do you still use the grain if you find weevils in it?

[steve_flack]

To be honest I've not noticed them...so I guess I've never had malt that's heaving with them. No doubt you've had beer that's been weeviled in the past and not known about it. I guess it does have a euugghh factor - you will be boiling it so sterility isn;t a problem unlike those b*stard flies!

We have had flour mites in a bag of flour before...SWMBO chucked the flour.

[Stonechat]

To be honest I've not noticed them...so I guess I've never had malt that's heaving with them. No doubt you've had beer that's been weeviled in the past and not known about it. I guess it does have a euugghh factor - you will be boiling it so sterility isn;t a problem unlike those b*stard flies!

We have had flour mites in a bag of flour before...SWMBO chucked the flour.

Steve, were they not psocids? Very prevalent in modern fitted kitchens, which provide them with ideal living conditions and lots of things packed in cardboard or paper outers....they are also known as booklice and are no bigger than a pin-head.

[ADDLED]

A friend who's a baker says about flour; if the weavils wont eat it, is it worth making bread from?
Bugger all use for brewing tho.