Hello from North Yorks

[DrGMc]

Hello, I'm new to the forum and just back from Belgium where I learnt a far bit about beer, commercial stuff (yum!) and also a bit about how to brew from a guy that worked with me {one of the troubadours if you want to look that craft brewer up - him not me!}.
2Cents about me: Used to brew for fun as a teenager, came back to it in my late 40s even distilling in Austria and love to brew dark hoppy beers. Had enough of mucking about {I'm getting old :-)} and just bought a grainfather to go "proper without silly" so all and any advice on grainfathers (quirks, hiccups and good bits) is more than welcome as I jump on another steep learning ramp. My aim is to replicate some of the trappist style beers dark first and then blondes - after that (or as a learning process) anything goes {as long as its drinkable}
Look forward to learning and sharing as much as I can
Graham

 

[Bigcol49]

Hi!
Welcome to the forum from Sunny Donny (where it's pouring down).

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Welcome to the forum.:

 

[JFB]

Hello, like the sound of those dark Belgium beers..

 

[EddtheBrew]

Hi ,
Welcome to the forum , I'm a brewer & brewing historian and I've got a few recipies in your line of country , including Henry Bentley & Co : College Ale , and the famous Old Timothy , based on my conversions of historical brewing records that I've looked at , if you'd like any, drop me a message and I'd be happy to send you some ! ,
Cheers,
Edd

 

[Dutto]

Welcome to the Forum. :thumb:

 

[EddtheBrew]

Welcome to the Forum. :thumb:

Cheers mate , hope you all enjoy the good Yorkshire beer recipies I'll be posting up !! ,
Edd

 

[Gerryjo]

Hi and welcome to the forum.....

 

[EddtheBrew]

Hi ,
Thanks for all the welcomes, hope you all enjoy the recipies I'll be popping up !! ,
Cheers,
Edd

 

[DrGMc]

Thanks for all the welcomes and yes I'm looking forward to some Yorkshire receipes - this is going to be fun (hic!)
Graham

 

[EddtheBrew]

Hi Graham,
As you're just back from Belgium, would you like to start off with the Henry Bentley (Eshaldwell Brewery) of the famous 'Old Timothy'? , it's a bit potent ! , see the attached list of that brewery's beers I've transposed.
Cheers
Edd

 

[DrGMc]

Thanks Edd
Oh yes the porters and strong ales would be fun although I know from experience its tricky to get the end result in the bottle to not "taste" lets just say 'over fermented' perhaps I start by filtering most of into the bottles to prevent errors whilst I get the hang of it
Where do I start regards
grains
yeasts
extras

Cheers
Graham

 

[EddtheBrew]

Hi Graham,
The only 'ockert sod' on there would be the College Ale recipe.
As to yeast : a Yorkshire Square strain for everything bar the Porters , I'll have a cast around for suppliers on the Malt & Hops for when I pop you the recipe ,
Regards
Edd

 

[LarryF]

Welcome to the forum Graham, you've certainly hit the ground running, looking forward to reading about your brews.

 

[EddtheBrew]

Hi Graham,
I'd age the beers for as follows before bottling , (preferably in an oak cask!)
Pale Ales : a 2-3 month minimum
Bitter Beers: a 1-2 month
Mild Ales , depends on which one , minimum of three weeks though
XP Porter , 1-3 months , Brown Stout 3 months , DBS 3-5 months .
Strong Ales (Old Timothy, College Ale & the XXXX @ a minimum of three months, College Ale , up to three years !!
That should obviate any gushing etc ,
Hope that helps ,
Regards
Edd

 

[EddtheBrew]

Hi Graham,
Just a quick note , if you're interested in ageing in an oak cask, the excellent Alastair Simms @ White Rose Cooperage in Wetherby still makes & sells most sizes , but a pin (4 1/2 gallons) would be the best size for home brew, not the cheapest of options, but the best for older style beers !! , he can be reached at www.White rose cooperage.co.uk , I'll be looking into the suppliers of ingredients for you and update as and when,
Cheers
Edd

 

[DrGMc]

Edd,
Wow thanks for the information seems I need to look into pins!

Hic Graham

 

[EddtheBrew]

Hi Graham,
No problems mate , from the top of my head, a re made Pin from Alastair is about £160.00 + VAT ( re made means staves from various pins used up to make a 'new' pin .
The other info should be with you soon;
Cheers
Edd

 

[DrGMc]

I know about getting what you pay for but I've seen a reasonable 20L barrel for about £80. I'm not saying that because I'm looking for the cheapest rubbish rather I'm Yorkshire/Scottish so have a natural tendancy when it comes to value for money :-) I've seen some obviously shoddy E-bay stuff not suited to beer or whisky and will avoid such things like the plague but think it must be worth a punt to try if its half price. Torn and I know many will say that thats why we have so few UK coopers left we should support them. Hard decision as money is still money and unfortinately doesn't grow on trees for any of us. Damn first week and already facing a hard decision at the first hurdle ...

 

[EddtheBrew]

Hi Graham ,
Aye , decisions decisions eh ?? , maybe a group of home brewers could club together for a discount ? , I also heard (a while ago) that Thakston's up in Masham were selling officially some pins , not sure as to price though.
I'd go with a decent plastic or stainless pin as a starter barrel , then once a few brews are under the belt who knows ?? .
I'll get on with the recipies for you , I'd say for a starter from the Bentley beers , the X mild would be a good one to try ,as it'd only need a couple of weeks maturation , still happy to do the others , and as I've not got permanent access to a big computer, I'll write the recipies out and post photos of my notebook pages ,
Regards
Edd