Hi Fivetide,
Thanks for the pictures they were really informative, being new to brewing, seeing other peoples brewing pictures is really helping my understanding. I also have a Burco boiler and I am about to do my first extract recipe, I've only being doing kits so far, and I noticed your hop strainer. Did you make it yourself and if so what parts did you buy or is it available at a home brew shop complete to purchase.
Thanks again for the great pictures
Ian
AG#2 - EKG Sunray - 24/4/08 (new photos)
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fivetide
Cheers Ian!
Well, I did originally make a hop strainer out of a cut section of stainless steel splatter guard rolled up and shoved in the back of the tap. Lots of people have done this and found it to be fine - they call them bazooka filters in the US.
However, I didn't get on with it, it clogged and made the end of my first AG very tricky indeed.
So I bought and fitted a Brupaks one for £12 from an online HBS. I could have made one out of copper pipe and drilled holes, but for the price, as Daab suggested, it was a no brainer really.
Well, I did originally make a hop strainer out of a cut section of stainless steel splatter guard rolled up and shoved in the back of the tap. Lots of people have done this and found it to be fine - they call them bazooka filters in the US.
However, I didn't get on with it, it clogged and made the end of my first AG very tricky indeed.
So I bought and fitted a Brupaks one for £12 from an online HBS. I could have made one out of copper pipe and drilled holes, but for the price, as Daab suggested, it was a no brainer really.
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fivetide
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Ian R
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fivetide
Morning all.
Tested this again today and it's now down to just over 1.010 after just a week, although it was supposed to finish around 1.013.
I plan to move it into a secondary bucket leaving as much yeast behind as possible and then let it clear in there for a further period off the yeast before racking to a keg, does that sound reasonable?
If I leave it in the primary for another three or four days it's just going to get stronger and drier than intended, I'm sure. Still throwing off a lot of CO2 nose, but tastes clean and fine.
Tested this again today and it's now down to just over 1.010 after just a week, although it was supposed to finish around 1.013.
I plan to move it into a secondary bucket leaving as much yeast behind as possible and then let it clear in there for a further period off the yeast before racking to a keg, does that sound reasonable?
If I leave it in the primary for another three or four days it's just going to get stronger and drier than intended, I'm sure. Still throwing off a lot of CO2 nose, but tastes clean and fine.
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MightyMouth
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fivetide
Ah, but I don't prime you see. I like to get it as clear as possible either in primary or more usually primary / secondary before kegging. I then force-carbonate later.
But, I do usually let it finish the bulk of fermentation before moving it to a secondary. This whole top-fermenting yeast thing is tricky to judge and I don't really want the gravity to fall any further if possible.
Secondary and colder temperature perhaps. I'll have a proper plan of attack later.
But, I do usually let it finish the bulk of fermentation before moving it to a secondary. This whole top-fermenting yeast thing is tricky to judge and I don't really want the gravity to fall any further if possible.
Secondary and colder temperature perhaps. I'll have a proper plan of attack later.
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MightyMouth
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fivetide
I've used both methods. My Linthwaite Light with Amarillo currently conditioning is primed with spraymalt 'traditionally', but I like using Cornies and CO2 if possible.
You have to draw your own line with tradition I feel, and loop it where you feel comfortable around sanitising solutions, hops, hermatic yeasts, plastic barrels, steel kegs, hydrometers, refractometers, AA values, dispense gas etc... etc...
My earlier concern was about halting this fermentation and why it was cracking on so... ...I assume it's the US-05 yeast which isn't used in Ollosson.
You have to draw your own line with tradition I feel, and loop it where you feel comfortable around sanitising solutions, hops, hermatic yeasts, plastic barrels, steel kegs, hydrometers, refractometers, AA values, dispense gas etc... etc...
My earlier concern was about halting this fermentation and why it was cracking on so... ...I assume it's the US-05 yeast which isn't used in Ollosson.
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MightyMouth
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fivetide
Righto.
So having flown past the expected FG I decided to move this into secondary on its eighth day of fermentation. My plan is now to give it a full week to settle out and then take another look. At this stage I will either rack as is to a Corni and bottles or fine with Condessa and rack.
I hadn't had a really good look at this brew because it's been sitting in a bin liner and/or covered in break for its whole life, but it gives every indication of being a cracker. It smells fresh and hoppy and is a glowing pale amber colour which should go very well with its Sunray name. At this stage I'm very pleased and hope it matures well.
The yeast head showed no sign of going despite having done its work already and some. Most of this moved to the inside walls of the fermenter during transfer
You can see how bright the brew is in this picture and also that a lot of the US-05 yeast had settled firmly with the remaining unskimmed trub in the bottom of the FV as well as forming a head:
In it goes:
I only left what I had to..
It's dropped below 1.010 now from an expected 1.013 but will hopefully stabilise there.
Can't wait to taste one of my all grain brews. I'm out of capacity after this is racked and it's a matter of drinking Fixby and Crusader and waiting for conditioning. I'll have to amuse myself with making some TC or something.
So having flown past the expected FG I decided to move this into secondary on its eighth day of fermentation. My plan is now to give it a full week to settle out and then take another look. At this stage I will either rack as is to a Corni and bottles or fine with Condessa and rack.
I hadn't had a really good look at this brew because it's been sitting in a bin liner and/or covered in break for its whole life, but it gives every indication of being a cracker. It smells fresh and hoppy and is a glowing pale amber colour which should go very well with its Sunray name. At this stage I'm very pleased and hope it matures well.
The yeast head showed no sign of going despite having done its work already and some. Most of this moved to the inside walls of the fermenter during transfer
You can see how bright the brew is in this picture and also that a lot of the US-05 yeast had settled firmly with the remaining unskimmed trub in the bottom of the FV as well as forming a head:
In it goes:
I only left what I had to..
It's dropped below 1.010 now from an expected 1.013 but will hopefully stabilise there.
Can't wait to taste one of my all grain brews. I'm out of capacity after this is racked and it's a matter of drinking Fixby and Crusader and waiting for conditioning. I'll have to amuse myself with making some TC or something.
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Wez
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fivetide
I have high hopes for this brew and hope they're well founded. At least 5/6 weeks more to wait though and I'm still yet to taste an AG brew! It'll be a further fortnight or so before even my AG#1 will get a test. A Linthwaite kit I made up before that one still hasn't fully cleared, I have enough to be getting on with, so I'm trying my best to be patient. 
Anyway, I gave this EKG Sunray nine further days in the secondary after fermentation had stopped to settle out as much as possible, then racked Sunday. Little bottler plus a swan-neck siphon for the keg.
A friend gave me nine really sturdy 660ml swingtop Fischer bottles he had been storing for some years in his chicken shed. I gave them several rounds of thorough cleaning and sanitising and they came up really nicely eventually with good seals. Took forever!
I managed to get 19L of good bright beer into my last and most battered Corni unprimed and purged with CO2, plus five full bottles, also nice and bright but primed with half a tsp glucose each for gentle carbonation. I also relented and allowed a little yeast into the bottles in the end.
One of the bottles stays with me as a control, the other four go back to the original owner full up, as thanks for the donation! I'm quite jealous actually, the bottles look really promising and can be chilled more readily than my Cornis, which are getting warmer all the time now.
Anyway, I gave this EKG Sunray nine further days in the secondary after fermentation had stopped to settle out as much as possible, then racked Sunday. Little bottler plus a swan-neck siphon for the keg.
A friend gave me nine really sturdy 660ml swingtop Fischer bottles he had been storing for some years in his chicken shed. I gave them several rounds of thorough cleaning and sanitising and they came up really nicely eventually with good seals. Took forever!
I managed to get 19L of good bright beer into my last and most battered Corni unprimed and purged with CO2, plus five full bottles, also nice and bright but primed with half a tsp glucose each for gentle carbonation. I also relented and allowed a little yeast into the bottles in the end.
One of the bottles stays with me as a control, the other four go back to the original owner full up, as thanks for the donation! I'm quite jealous actually, the bottles look really promising and can be chilled more readily than my Cornis, which are getting warmer all the time now.
Last edited by fivetide on Tue May 13, 2008 12:59 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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fivetide
This brew turned out very well by the way. Tastes as good as any of the new commercial golden ales I've been drinking this summer, so I am very pleased.
This is a picture of the cold bottle sample, but the draught is even better (but warmer). It's also in my favourite ever style beer glass ever - the 20th Chappel CAMRA fest! I'll put a clearer picture up shortly. I certainly recommend the recipe if you enjoy Gold summer ales under 5% and want to check out a single hop variety.
This is a picture of the cold bottle sample, but the draught is even better (but warmer). It's also in my favourite ever style beer glass ever - the 20th Chappel CAMRA fest! I'll put a clearer picture up shortly. I certainly recommend the recipe if you enjoy Gold summer ales under 5% and want to check out a single hop variety.