Anna's Brewdays

[An Ankoù]

I had hoped to spend the weekend bottling but I’ve discovered I need to have a draft of my dissertation proposal in for Monday which is a bit eek! As such I’m going to be spending all weekend stuck in front of a computer screen☹

Good luck, Anna. I remember those happy days writing assignments and dissertation into the early hours of the morning of the deadline. Forty **** and two hours sleep. Happy days. Glad they're behind me.

 

[The-Engineer-That-Brews]

Is it a new settlement of yeast, or could it be cold break?

 

[DocAnna]

Good luck, Anna. I remember those happy days writing assignments and dissertation into the early hours of the morning of the deadline. Forty **** and two hours sleep. Happy days. Glad they're behind me.

Well I'm too old to be doing this really, I've more letters after my name already than in my full Sunday name, and quite frankly I'm a bit barking for taking this on at this age. However, I have an odd addiction to studying under pressure, and even when like right now it feels awful, I do enjoy the expanding my ignorance thing. That is the fact that the more I learn about things the more I realise I don't know. Personally I'm quite genuinely thinking about doing a brewing qualification after this one. Yes I know, completely mad! ( Oh and thank you for the well wishes - I think I need them this weekend)

Is it a new settlement of yeast, or could it be cold break?

It's definitely new yeast on the sloping sides of the snubnose. I'd already had it at close to zero deg for I think a couple of weeks, so any cold break would have settled during that time.

 

[An Ankoù]

Oh and thank you for the well wishes - I think I need them this weekend

You certainly will if "stuck in front of a computer screen" means chatting with us lads in the snug.
Nose to the grindstone. Shoulder to the wheel and all that. I, on the other hand am off on our hols with The Wise One, visiting the chateaux on the Loire. Hope they've got some decent beer in those parts. Merde. I, too, am procrastinating. Better get packed or I won't be going anywhere.

 

[Brewnaldo]

Ah yes..... This is certainly taking me back to....

Let me think now...... Ah yes, the struggle to achieve standard grade maths!

 

[DocAnna]

Numpty, I'm a complete numpty .

I've been looking forward to a weekend all things brewing after too long doing other things. I wanted to bottle a beer that's been lagering for ages but noted that the pressure on the spunding valve was near zero, and thought it was probably that the CO2 had been absorbed ... duh did I not think I might have a leak.

So last evening I attached it to my CO2 cylinder to force carbonate it a bit. This morning my cylinder is empty hence I am this weekends prize one numpty. Friggin daft snubnose is clearly leaking somewhere, and I'm not sure if I'm more upset by the wasted CO2, the fact it's leaking or that it messes up my plans for the weekend ☹.

 

[Rodcx500z]

Hi Anna i have read quite a few story's about the snub nose leak problems, i know it won't help your situation now but i would fire an email off and see what they have to say

 

[An Ankoù]

Numpty, I'm a complete numpty .

I've been looking forward to a weekend all things brewing after too long doing other things. I wanted to bottle a beer that's been lagering for ages but noted that the pressure on the spunding valve was near zero, and thought it was probably that the CO2 had been absorbed ... duh did I not think I might have a leak.

So last evening I attached it to my CO2 cylinder to force carbonate it a bit. This morning my cylinder is empty hence I am this weekends prize one numpty. Friggin daft snubnose is clearly leaking somewhere, and I'm not sure if I'm more upset by the wasted CO2, the fact it's leaking or that it messes up my plans for the weekend ☹.

Happiness is brewing and bottling at ambient temperature and pressure (ATP) not having ever heard of a snubnose until I walked into the door after several flaggons too many, and the only concern for full or empty cylinders are those relating to propane for the burners. As for spunding valves and gadgets of a similar kidney, I'm going to buy one just see what it is and to be able to boast that I've got one; send photos of it to friends and relatives and compose an "ode to a spunding valve".
Really, Anna, this is supposed to be fun and relaxing, not a job of work.

 

[Brewnaldo]

An Ankou with the tough love there

 

[DocAnna]

Happiness is brewing and bottling at ambient temperature and pressure (ATP) not having ever heard of a snubnose until I walked into the door after several flaggons too many, and the only concern for full or empty cylinders are those relating to propane for the burners. As for spunding valves and gadgets of a similar kidney, I'm going to buy one just see what it is and to be able to boast that I've got one; send photos of it to friends and relatives and compose an "ode to a spunding valve".
Really, Anna, this is supposed to be fun and relaxing, not a job of work.

I do get this - but I can't dispense, force carbonate or counter pressure fill without the cylinder. Also I do think my beer tastes a lot lot better when minimising air/oxygen contact. Yes I could go back to bottle carbonation but I prefer to give beers to friends without having to warn them about letting it settle and decanting in one pour to leave the last part in the bottle.

 

[Brewnaldo]

I do get this - but I can't dispense, force carbonate or counter pressure fill without the cylinder. Also I do thing my beer tastes a lot lot better when minimising air/oxygen contact. Yes I could go back to bottle carbonation but I prefer to give beers to friends without having to warn them about letting it settle and decanting in one pour to leave the last part in the bottle.

I get the impression that An Ankou ferments in open paddling pools, intervening only to remove rogue pigeons and the largest of the twigs and branches that fall in there. Like a Dunder Pit full of hearty brown ale..... His beers are dispensed to his friends using a wooden ladel into a drinking horn.....

 

[An Ankoù]

I do get this - but I can't dispense, force carbonate or counter pressure fill without the cylinder. Also I do think my beer tastes a lot lot better when minimising air/oxygen contact. Yes I could go back to bottle carbonation but I prefer to give beers to friends without having to warn them about letting it settle and decanting in one pour to leave the last part in the bottle.

I know.
You know I was joking, too.

 

[Clint]

I get the impression that An Ankou ferments in open paddling pools, intervening only to remove rogue pigeons and the largest of the twigs and branches that fall in there. Like a Dunder Pit full of hearty brown ale..... His beers are dispensed to his friends using a wooden ladel into a drinking horn.....

Jealousy is a poor trait..

 

[Brewnaldo]

Jealousy is a poor trait..

Oh yes, by no means a criticism.... I regularly.hint for a drinking horn at Xmas

 

[Clint]

Oh yes, by no means a criticism.... I regularly.hint for a drinking horn at Xmas

Ah...the old horn at Christmas...

 

[DocAnna]

Finally getting a brew day - This year’s version of Winter Wassail which I’ll post the recipe for a bit later. After too long away my brew space feels a mess . So a good part of this morning will be spent tidying up. I’m getting there with the business end but I’m not daring show the mess of grain and bottle stores.

This is a whopper of a grain bill and lots of dark malts so I’m going to be tweaking the settings of the grain mill to try to get the best out of each of the grains. I did consider a capped mash aka the Gordon Strong method of late dark grain additions but From my reading I’m not convinced it improves the flavour or avoids astringency so I’m going with the Mary Berry all in one method instead .

oh just worked out to attach a pdf from my phone so here is today’s recipe sheet.

 

[Brewnaldo]

Finally getting a brew day - This year’s version of Winter Wassail which I’ll post the recipe for a bit later. After too long away my brew space feels a mess . So a good part of this morning will be spent tidying up. I’m getting there with the business end but I’m not daring show the mess of grain and bottle stores.
View attachment 56237
This is a whopper of a grain bill and lots of dark malts so I’m going to be tweaking the settings of the grain mill to try to get the best out of each of the grains. I did consider a capped mash aka the Gordon Strong method of late dark grain additions but From my reading I’m not convinced it improves the flavour or avoids astringency so I’m going with the Mary Berry all in one method instead .

oh just worked out to attach a pdf from my phone so here is today’s recipe sheet.

I actually got half way through making up a recipe kit for this based on your last version, then lost the will to stay awake and research what GEB had available versus your grains. (was on nightshift at the time). Are you working from your grain stocks or did you order all these in a recipe builder.....

Christ what a long winded way to ask where you got the grain bill from....

 

[DocAnna]

...what a long winded way to ask where you got the grain bill from....

Oh, there’s a mistake in the recipe which I’d forgotten to amend.

I couldn’t source the red crystal malt from anywhere this year so substituted for flavour rather than necessarily colour with Château Cara gold and increased the quantity.
I’ll amend the recipe and include it later. Most of the grains were from the home brew company as I like the Irish Minch modified malts.

I accidentally ordered well over all the grains that I will need and have enough of dark malts to last well past their expiry dates. I’d be very happy to drop off a measured set of grains (whole or crushed whatever your preference) for you to use if you’d like?

 

[Brewnaldo]

Oh, there’s a mistake in the recipe which I’d forgotten to amend.

I couldn’t source the red crystal malt from anywhere this year so substituted for flavour rather than necessarily colour with Château Cara gold and increased the quantity.
I’ll amend the recipe and include it later. Most of the grains were from the home brew company as I like the Irish Minch modified malts.

I accidentally ordered well over all the graibs that I will need and have enough of dark malts to last well past their expiry dates. I’d be very happy to drop off a measured set of grains (whole or crushed whatever your preference) for you to use if you’d like?

A very kind offer Anna that would be amazing, but if you dont mind, can we wait until maybe next week. Theres no way I can have you going to that effort without some reciprocation, and by next week I should have bottled a very promising Weissbier and hopefully managed to get some of that Festbier into bottles aswell.

 

[DocAnna]

From earlier - grains milled and now mash complete which took longer than planned since I forgot to switch the heat back on after mash in so I went for a 90 min mash - with the first 40 at about 62deg