Cellarman turns brewer!

[Darcey]

Hello everyone.

I work in the licenced trade in pubs mainly working in cellars focusing on cask beers and the various peculiaritys of their dispence and condioning. I have recently begun brewing to add to my knowledge for work and maybe.. just maybe push my career towards brewing beer rather than dispensing it.

Today I have brewed my first solo all gain batch and I have done 5 extract / part extract batches over the last few months. Looking forward to asking some questions and getting involved in the community.

Also if anyone wants any information from the other side of the bar I'll gladly help, also looking forward to maybe answering some questions in my capacity as a cellarman / pub manager.

Darcey

 

[battwave]

Welcome and well done on your first AG.

 

[Darcey]

I am slightly disappointed in my final beer volume, but that is getting used to my gear. Some how 15g doesn't seem enough from 6 hours brewing (or am I just used to extract!?!). Maybe the taste will tell.

 

[bungouk]

Hello and welcome to the forum

 

[jonboymentalhealth]

Hello and welcome. :

 

[Cider Minx]

hi :

 

[broadfordbrewer]

I am slightly disappointed in my final beer volume, but that is getting used to my gear. Some how 15g doesn't seem enough from 6 hours brewing (or am I just used to extract!?!). Maybe the taste will tell.

Welcome to the forum Darcey :thumb:
I think you're right to put this one down to experience. Did you make a note of your liquor? If you have then you can go some way to rectifying your final volume. Also, did you calculate and factor in your losses?
E.g.
Loss to HLT dead space
Loss to boiler dead space
Loss to mashtun dead space
Loss to hops
Loss to boil
Loss to grain
All of these added together will give you somewhere in the region of 10 or more litres depending on the weight of your grist, the amount of hops you are using and the dead space in each of your vessels.
For example:
Loss to HLT dead space 1.5L
Loss to boiler dead space 1.5L
Loss to mashtun dead space 0.5L
Loss to hops 0.5L
Loss to boil 2.0L
Loss to grain 4.3L (based on 4.3kg grain)
Total loss 10.3L
After a few brews you'll nail this amount down and end up with a more pleasing final volume of beer!

 

[Darcey]

I am slightly disappointed in my final beer volume, but that is getting used to my gear. Some how 15g doesn't seem enough from 6 hours brewing (or am I just used to extract!?!). Maybe the taste will tell.

Welcome to the forum Darcey :thumb:
I think you're right to put this one down to experience. Did you make a note of your liquor? If you have then you can go some way to rectifying your final volume. Also, did you calculate and factor in your losses?
E.g.
Loss to HLT dead space
Loss to boiler dead space
Loss to mashtun dead space
Loss to hops
Loss to boil
Loss to grain
All of these added together will give you somewhere in the region of 10 or more litres depending on the weight of your grist, the amount of hops you are using and the dead space in each of your vessels.
For example:
Loss to HLT dead space 1.5L
Loss to boiler dead space 1.5L
Loss to mashtun dead space 0.5L
Loss to hops 0.5L
Loss to boil 2.0L
Loss to grain 4.3L (based on 4.3kg grain)
Total loss 10.3L
After a few brews you'll nail this amount down and end up with a more pleasing final volume of beer!

Thanks broadfordbrewer. I have noted all my volumes however I think due to my inexperience and shoddy brew kit afew mistakes were made. Unfortunately there appears to be no action in the FV after 20 hours so maybe its time to rethink.

 

[BarnsleyBrewer]

Welcome to THBF. :thumb:

BB

 

[broadfordbrewer]

Thanks broadfordbrewer. I have noted all my volumes however I think due to my inexperience and shoddy brew kit afew mistakes were made. Unfortunately there appears to be no action in the FV after 20 hours so maybe its time to rethink.

Have you done anything to it yet? there are some things you can be doing to help it start.

 

[Darcey]

Hello broadfordbrewer!

Welcome to THBF. :thumb:

Thanks broadfordbrewer. I have noted all my volumes however I think due to my inexperience and shoddy brew kit afew mistakes were made. Unfortunately there appears to be no action in the FV after 20 hours so maybe its time to rethink.

Have you done anything to it yet? there are some things you can be doing to help it start.

After 2 days of stubborn nothing I introduced a brew belt padded out with a jacket. The ambient temperature in my cellar is about 19-21C this time of year but the FV was closer to the wall than most, it has sprung to life! I turned off the brewbelt and it continues to thrive. However when taking a gavity reading from the tap I was appalled to find it has the most horrendous smell. Astringent and medical alcohol, I was tempted to just bin it but people have urged me to keep the brew. Im not sure it really deserves space in a precious keg and I am certainly not cleaning 30 bottles to find it the same in 4 months.

Since then I have done another all grain brew and paid more attention to my temperatures and cleaning, the finished wort was of a much higher quality and I was very satisfied with a taste test and amazed by the smell of the boiling hops. This was however a different beer I was brewing but hopefully it will not become similar to its younger brother. Some people have suggested it may be due to pH values being wrong with my water but as far as I am aware it is not outside normal values :S

Heres hoping!!!

 

[broadfordbrewer]

Good work! straight back on that bike!! :thumb:

 

[Aleman]

Brew bely + insulation = Too Hot for nice fermentatio -> Crap, nasty, hot tasting, headache inducing, prjectile vomit creating . . . . alcoholic beverage.

Don't add heat to a fermentation UNLESS YOU HAVE SOME FORM OF THERMOSTATIC CONTROL