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Thanks, Baron. That sounds a good tip about the orientation of the plates. I had been thinking of some sort of drilled copper circle or coil to go even out the flow over the top plate, both when mashing and sparging, but I can see that the top plate probably isn't necessary during the mash...

Thanks, Scrattajack. That got me thinking..... Only one pipe was supplied, but it is telescopic to accomodate different mash capacities. However, the one I have seems absurdly long. I've just had a play with it and, fully extended, it is much, much taller than the grain basket - which is...

Excellent! It looks beautifully made, too. Funnily enough, I've just ordered a dolly to wheel my fermentor to the fridge (but fortunately for me, mine's at floor level). Getting older ain't much fun!

Well, I have bought myself a Beacon 40, so as to cut down on my extremely labour-intensive way of mashing, sparging and boiling. I was very happy with my method, but due to increasing decrepitude my body wasn't!! However, I am surprised at the volume of water it seems to need for mashing...

Overall, it is likely to improve with age. The hop flavour and aroma won't, though. Did you dry hop it?

just seen there's a new map. I'm at St John's Town of Dalry, Dumfries & Galloway

I've never brewed a Bulldog kit, but I agree that it's quite likely to be the yeast. Some yeasts do introduce a sulphurous character, which does reduce after fermentation is finished. It may dissipate completely with time, or it may slightly persist as a characteristic of the beer - I'm...

As far as I'm aware, pure sodium percarbonate releases oxygen (via hydrogen peroxide), leaving a residue of mildly alkaline sodium carbonate (aka washing soda). This would indeed leave a white deposit after the water evaporated, and I reckon I'd prefer to rinse rather than have it in my beer -...

Yes, I know that's the issue. My problem, though, is that I'm already paying a top-price Idagio subscription for lossless streaming of classical music, and I can't really justify another outgoing. Especially since I'd mainly want it for modern jazz - which my wife isn't too keen on! I've just...

Not at all - I think it likely depends on what kit you play it through. I've got reasonable HiFi gear. Not silly-expensive, though: in my lounge I've got a £400 amp hooked up to some large floorstanding speakers that were highly rated in the 1980s. The difference in sound quality between, say...

All of my vinyls and CDs (there's a lot! Classical, rock, jazz, blues, folk, you name it) are now ripped to FLAC, so I play them through my desktop PC (lounge) or laptop (elsewhere). I've got 3 amp/speaker setups, in my lounge, kitchen and outside workshop. I also stream a lot of stuff, either...

I guess a lot depends upon how old you are & what you grew up drinking. I started drinking beer from the late 60s onwards - but never liked the chilled, fizzy crap that caused CAMRA to be born. Some of the beer I drank was awful, but a lot was very good indeed - if not to everyone's taste. I...

I use a reptile heating mat - different wattages available. Got mine via eBay

I use these: https://ampulla.co.uk/shop/plastic/stackable-un-approved-jerry-cans/10-litre-un-natural-stackable-jerry-can-p-din51-t-e-cap/ No 15l size though, unfortunately, the next one up is 20l. If you live near Manchester you can collect & save delivery (or at least you could - not sure in...

Same rifle as me - bought when we had a flock of free-range chickens, to keep down the rats. I went for the .22 since the range was never far & I felt that the extra weight of shot was more important. It seemed pretty damned accurate to me, despite the break-barrel. Clamped into a B&D...

To prepare my tube before siphoning beer, I use boiling water. I've a v small funnel, which fits inside my 10mm siphon tube, and a small washing-up bowl that I use only for cleaning brewing stuff. I boil a kettle of water, then slowly pour it down the funnel into the siphon tube, with the...

Just a quick thought. Any possibility that this was bottle conditioned & the cloudiness and colour are due to the yeast?

Very sad to hear that, especially if the shop is going to close. I used to live in Lancaster, but a lot of my work was in Wales. It was a very regular event for me to pull off the motorway & top up with everything I needed. For the last 10 years I've pretty much had to rely on internet...

You might find it easier to just warm the tins up in a water bath that isn't that hot, pour off most of the liquid, using a long spoon to scoop it out, then rinse out the residue with small amounts of very hot water. Less chance of getting scalded. For your original question then I agree. No...

Well.... Unfortunately it is not quite that simple. As I understand it, it ain't just a guideline, it is actually illegal to feed "kitchen scraps" to poultry, even if they are not being kept commercially. Kitchen waste includes anything - even if it is of purely vegetable origin - if it came...