Stovetop Brew no.1
Posted: Sun Mar 01, 2009 2:49 am
Tonight my little pilot brewery (ie a couple of saucepans) made its debut. I kicked off with a five-litre version of an all-Fuggles brew I did a few weeks ago.
920g Maris Otter
45g Crystal
11g Fuggles (4.4%) 60mins
4.3g Fuggles (4.4%) 15mins
Safeale04, 1/4tab whirlifloc
9 litre stockpot heating up mash water:
So far it's rather like making porridge:
Into the dark depths of the oven. I've often wondered what the 'E' stood for on the gas knob. Today I discovered it's an 'Economy' setting for slow-cooking casseroles at 65°C ... which is nice.
The lauter tun, made from an old ali pot which I never use and a plastic picnic plate:
Recirculating:
Running-off:
The boil:
I'm using the hop-strainer from my main set-up, with a new run-off tube fitted:
Cooling it down. It took about twenty minutes with the cold tap running:
Run-off was a disaster, hence no pictures. I didn't occur to me to remove the stock-pot from the washing-up bowl, so as it emptied it started bobbing around and spraying wort all over the floor.
Still, I managed to get about 4.5 litres into the Tesco own-brand fermenter:
Gravity was 1036 -- I was aiming for 1039.
Well, that seemed to go pretty well.
The plan is to use it for more experimental brews that I won't necessarily want 23 litres of. Also to satisfy the brewing urge when I already have a hundred pints waiting to be drunk.
920g Maris Otter
45g Crystal
11g Fuggles (4.4%) 60mins
4.3g Fuggles (4.4%) 15mins
Safeale04, 1/4tab whirlifloc
9 litre stockpot heating up mash water:
So far it's rather like making porridge:
Into the dark depths of the oven. I've often wondered what the 'E' stood for on the gas knob. Today I discovered it's an 'Economy' setting for slow-cooking casseroles at 65°C ... which is nice.
The lauter tun, made from an old ali pot which I never use and a plastic picnic plate:
Recirculating:
Running-off:
The boil:
I'm using the hop-strainer from my main set-up, with a new run-off tube fitted:
Cooling it down. It took about twenty minutes with the cold tap running:
Run-off was a disaster, hence no pictures. I didn't occur to me to remove the stock-pot from the washing-up bowl, so as it emptied it started bobbing around and spraying wort all over the floor.
Still, I managed to get about 4.5 litres into the Tesco own-brand fermenter:
Gravity was 1036 -- I was aiming for 1039.
Well, that seemed to go pretty well.
The plan is to use it for more experimental brews that I won't necessarily want 23 litres of. Also to satisfy the brewing urge when I already have a hundred pints waiting to be drunk.