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As Dr Mick says, you should always make a starter with out of date yeasts. That said, I've never had a smack pack inflate, but about half the Wyeast products I've tried were duff, which is why I only use White Labs and Yeast Bay (same people really) at present.

I have the 55 litre SS Brewtech pot and it overhangs by quite a bit, but I have no problems with it.

I wouldn't be too quick to label it as an infection. Bacteria will eat stuff that yeast can't, so whilst they might have been set back by the Sacc, they'd have regrouped once it had finished. It might just be one of those things. It might even have been caused by the unhealthy yeast, and a...

What temperature did you ferment at? I've just done a brew with WLP072 in primary. It was mashed high (67.5 degrees C) and after primary it'll be going in secondary with Yeast Bay melange for 9 months. My WLP072 was very slow (started at 17 degrees C) and I added some heat the next day. When...

If I had a penny for every time I forgot to add Irish Moss, I could buy a tub of Irish Moss to forget to add! Patience is a great alternative to Irish Moss. That and chilling before bottling. Gelatine can work well; it's a bit like some of the wine clearers. You add in secondary and let it...

I was just playing Devil's Advocate! I also understand the reasons of reduced engagement, but maybe a different approach might stimulate more entries. My gut feeling is that I wouldn't be too interested in very generic competitions, especially as the forum conversation mainly consists of people...

Playing Devil's Advocate for a second, has this not 'dumbed down' the competition to a point where it becomes somewhat too simple? You might see a short term increase in entries, but at the expense of it being people chucking in a bottle of whatever they have. Judging becomes difficult, but more...

I wish them well and all, but when I read through the bumph it just leaves me cold. It feels a bit like they didn't want to commit, but now that others have covered the start-up costs they'll ride the gravy train as hard as they can. Really successful events start because of a vision that is...

I'm not fussed by gay pride; I'm too busy burning witches and raking the moon out of the pond!

That's the way!

I don't understand the use of default yeasts. Yeast contributes the highest level of flavour to beer unless you're brewing a basic lager or a fairly clean pale ale to be hopped to buggery. I have found that using carefully selected yeasts, or even yeast blends, can create a depth of complexity...

One point to remember is that induction hobs need a soft start (i.e. use with timers where they're powered up in the 'on' position will seriously degrade their lifespan. Also, never switch it off until the fan has stopped running.

I have an SS BrewTech 55 litre pot and I use the Buffalo 3kW induction hob. They're available for £99.99 ex VAT from Nisbets at present.

A bit of a heads-up: Nisbets are currently running offers on the Buffalo 3kW induction hob (I personally recommend this to anyone going the induction route) and the Buffalo 30 and 40 litre boilers (well, all the boilers but those are the ones most people will be interested in). They also have...

The weekend came and the weekend went, and with it was a brew day. The Melange Lambic has been done, and has emerged more with a limping gait than a full throttle charge towards funky sour goodness. There has also been an additional experiment (some might say ****-up but I'm not too fussed by...

That email is Amazon secret code for hiding a Chinese malt mill fraud. It's a bit like the old 'cleaner to aisle 7, wet spillage' announcement is supermarkets, which really means Doreen from green grocery is getting her baps out in the canteen!

I like my stouts toasty and aggressive without being harsh. Barely, and especially roasted barley, gets on top of sweet liquorish flavours but you have neither. I go for at least 5 per cent roast barley. I do have WLP007 down to try for stout but I've found S-04 to be great for an oatmeal. I...

Is anyone running a book on the potential outcome? If so, I'll have a score on people receiving a sheet of tin with a note stating 'some assembly required'.

So I'm not alone in the early start brew days!!!

Buy in. You'll not achieve anything worthwhile, and surely the point of making your own is to end up with something you have pride in? Don't waste your time and effort. Make a decent beer and enjoy it afterwards...