" Ditch's Stout " Master Class .....

[Chrissyr63]

hi,

get a couple of garden tray - about 3ft by 1ft so you can get 3 'beer things' in - they cost about £4-5 but stop the spills from frothy fermentation or barrels that over prime and start leaking a bit ( to me lost beer to the missus stain on the carpet!).
I use one for bottling as well just to catch any spillage.

C

[Chrissyr63]

Hi

sorry to reply to my own mail but more a question.
Can you bottle the Ditch Stout (by the way did love it and have brewed anther to keep me going)? The reason I ask is that I barreled my first one and it is a bit frothy when it comes out - will it explode a glass bottle!! ?

C

[Ditch]

Get a couple of garden tray - about 3ft by 1ft so you can get 3 'beer things' in - they cost about £4-5

Not sure what " Garden Trays " are, C. But, if they fit the bill? Fill ye boots! 3' x 1' and holding three " Beer Things " though? Not making beer in demijohns, are ye?


Regards bottling Ditch's Stout? Of course ye can. Just as ye Can put a large dose of peppermint cordial in a twelve year old whiskey

Frothy stuff out of barrels? Read this thread, C. It's all in there. This is half the reason I just don't bother to 'prime' my gear. Hell; These days I don't even bother to BK it!

Comes out fine, by me

[ianh82]

Why Nottingham yeast, Ian? What ever possessed ye to do that? Yeast is responsible to a good part of the flavour. Coopers own yeast is the best there is, for their beers.

Put the Nottingham in the fridge and crack on with what came with the kit,


Do what ye like with the lid (Except stick a silly air lock in it. You're not making wine here) When that bad baby wants out? It'll get out. Nothing we can do to stop it.

Just be aware that it might get a little lively. Pay attention to the situation. Don't sit it on a carpet. In fact; Look on it as a shook up can. Pull that ring and it's liable to bubble up and pour over ye hand, isn't it? Well, now envisage what a four gallon can might do. Stand the FV in a trug, or at least a black bag.

You ended with " Also, ". Suspense is killing me.

cheers. the reason for the nottingham yeast is i spoke to a homebrewing network and they were on about yeast being a major flavour part as you rightly said and they reckon the nottingham yeast works wonderful with stouts. its in a little bag dried like the coopers with the kit. i just got it because it may improve but i'll use kit stuff if its the best.

my FV is in the conservatory so i can put it in a plastic bin liner incase it explodes but it is not on carpet, wipeable lino.

the also bit i have no idea.

[Ditch]

i'll use kit stuff if its the best.

Better than that; Why not get my way off pat. Then try it with Nott's and see if that improves it, to your tastes?

This is my own principle of rule: Do what the recipe tells ye and get a taste for that. Then, if ye reckon ye can improve on it ....?

Nothing pisses me off more than; " Hullo. I bought a Johnson's Bitter today. I'm wondering if I might use a Clutterbucks Old Slug Bait yeast and throw in some Fuggles hops and a pound of my crack holed roasted chocolate malt scrapings. Might it taste like sh!t? "

I want to Strangle these people!!! Try what Messrs Johnson are trying to bring to ye first! Then, if ye reckon adding ye own chocolate scrapings might help? Go for it later.

[Chrissyr63]

Hi Ditch,

Can get DMs in but they might be a bit bigger than 3x1 (think they are used for growbags) - you can sit 2 fermenters and a barrel in them in the warm room - spills-leaks all contained - just though an nice easy fix to placing towels down and hoping.

By frothy I meant it does prime very well - over half way through a barrel and still a great head on it but it does need a settling time to get a pint out. Maybe straight from FV is the way to go

Bottling was to give to a few friends.
You updating the first screen with new instructions get everyone started so quick - brilliant but it is hard getting all the other info from the thread.

C

[Ditch]

Grow Bag sized? Two FV's and a BK? Well, that sounds like a good alternative for people with limited space, doesn't it? We have enough people on here saying how a trug is too much extra space. Lord knows how they get on?! Poor souls. That could, surely, co on or under a table.

Frothy pints? Ever been to Eire and asked for a pint of Guinness? Bloody soon learn to order the next one before you've just a 1/4 pint left in ye glass!

But, this is actually another thing I rail against. Why do we need bloody nearly an inch of this thick cream on our pints? Ye don't drink it, ye know. It just bloody sits there and sinks. Avoids ye lips like an unwilling girl.

So, why try to emulate it at home, where it doesn't matter? My point exactly. I would point out I do about eight of more pints a night. But, if you're anything like that? The syphon tube hanging out of the four gallons in the bucket has never let me down.

Give ye friends mineral water bottles, mate. Litre or two, what ever they are. Just explain to them about the foam thing being a toss off.

Hard to find the nitty gritty in this thread? F**king hard getting into the SAS too

[mrbisback]

Well me old china I got amongst it tonight .... win is all ill say ,followed by thanks for sharing the recipe that you worked out. Everyone should give your way a go then ,if it dont suit em ,try something else. Personally it suits me as is . Maybe stout that aint guiness doesnt suit everyones idea of a pint but I reckon they are missing a trick, beer shouldnt be poncey or pedantic it should be honest, shared and drank. I like a pint and I like the pint that you showed me how to make so cheers fella and good health

[WalesAles]

And let this be a lesson to you all: Ditch's 3 Gallon shit can Seriously f**k with your senses!

One of my friends was suggesting that if I reduced the water a little further I could make a double brew (2 kits, 2KG Dark DSM, couple of mugs of sugar...) and get it into a single FV and PB... (

Hello Everyone,
I`m bored, bored, bloody bored, yes I`ve just made 30 pints of TC and 34 pints of Styrian Golding Hopped Bitter today, but somehow it`s not the same if a Stout is not made! Anyway, cut to the chase, I`m going to make `Tazzys Stout` on Tuesday! The Dark Stuff should arrive in the post by then. Get ready for the photos, should be / could be fun! Have`nt told Mrs Ales yet but she`ll smell it when it kicks off!!!

I`ve come into some money! Just had a w@nk in my wallet!

WA

[tazzymutt]

And let this be a lesson to you all: Ditch's 3 Gallon shit can Seriously f**k with your senses!

One of my friends was suggesting that if I reduced the water a little further I could make a double brew (2 kits, 2KG Dark DSM, couple of mugs of sugar...) and get it into a single FV and PB...

I`m going to make `Tazzys Stout` on Tuesday! The Dark Stuff should arrive in the post by then. Get ready for the photos, should be / could be fun! Have`nt told Mrs Ales yet but she`ll smell it when it kicks off!!!

Don't you go blaming me... If this goes wrong I don't need a rabid Mrs WA coming around to ask me to explain why her husband has been eaten by a krausen monster

Happy brewing,


Ian.

[seymour]

Hey Ditch, my man:

I brewed an all-grain stout this weekend (I know, I know, it's a departure from your seal-of-approval Coopers kit mod, alas...) I used your drill-powered-paint-stirrer-aeration-method for the first time. I gunned-it hard for several minutes, churning up lots of heavenly brown froth, then sprinkled the dry yeast right on top because my bucket was big enough and I was ready to move on with my life. No rehydration, no waiting, no special care whatsoever. There were visible signs of active fermentation within minutes, and most of the heavy-lifting of an OG 1061 stout appears to have completed in less than two days. I sh!t you not! Feckin' mental, as you'd say.

I never doubted you, but wow..seeing is believing! I don't know why anyone would bother with those expensive oxygen tanks, regulators, air stones, etc. As long as the final beer doesn't taste oxidized (and maybe even if it does, for big brown beers like this anyway), I'll be adding this cool step to all my brewdays.

All hail Ditch!

[tazzymutt]

Just mixed up my second Ditch's stout and, once again, I over watered it. I used a plaster mixer to blend the brew and then added water stopping when the bottom of the head was at around 17 litres and left it to settle. half an hour later I still have two inches of head and the bottom of the froth is at 21 litres. Never mind, the last one was superb and I suspect this will be just as drinkable.

I will learn to calibrate the water for the froth the drill can produce; one day.

Happy brewing,


Ian.

[seymour]

...I will learn to calibrate the water for the froth the drill can produce; one day...

Couldn't you simply take note of the wort volume before stirring it up, then you'd know the balance of water to add later regardless of the depth of foam?

[seymour]

DUPLICATE POST

[Ditch]

I brewed an all-grain stout this weekend. I used your drill-powered aeration method. I gunned it hard for several minutes.

Seeing is believing! I don't know why anyone would bother with those expensive oxygen tanks, regulators, air stones, etc.

Glad ye got a result, Seymour

Personally? I think I tend to take my inspirations from our ancient ancestors. They basically lived in mud huts. And got pissed.

Okay. Their stuff might not have had the palette pleasing, certain *Ting* provided by todays hops. Whatever. They certainly had no 'No Rinse Sanitisers'. But, they Par Tayed! They are my inspiration.

They had no power drills either. Of course. But, I'm sure; Came the time? The whole damn tribe gladly joined forces and thrashed the f**k out of that mix.

I'm the last of my tribe, as it happens. Thank f**k for my power drill!