PilgrimHudds Brewdays

[foxy]

This was earlier, bigger and more central now.

View attachment 21355

I think yours is weirder.

 

[matt76]

Thanks, I'm very thorough with my cleaning so i'd be really disappointed if I found out it was my cleaning regimen! I had thought it was the bottling bucket but I have done nice beers and have used it to bottle with so wasn't convinced.

I have a feeling that my clansman was infected, I had a stuck fermentation and it sat in the fermenter for 4 days doing nothing. These bottles were tcp flavoured but also gushed at room temp. Since then i've had some nice beers and obviously some bad ones, no rhyme or reason for it which is why I was veering towards chlorine too.

What strength of bleach do you use? i've been using 2.5ml per litre?

Just a thought re. TCP flavour - do you at any point use a garden hose, for example to fill your HLT? This can introduce off flavours.

 

[matt76]

I came up a bit short, 7l in the fermenter, an og of 1060 something. Fermentation has started and its bubbling away nicely, it's a bit stronger than I was hoping for, not read if this is possible, could i add 2l of bottled water into the fermenter now or would that bugger up the fermentation process?

With all due respect to @foxy who I've no doubt is correct in pointing out the oxidation risk.....

As you may have read, I regularly recover the leftover crud from the boil kettle and put it in bottles in the fridge to settle out. Then I add the clear wort to the FV, perhaps 0.5-2L at a time. I'm doing this perhaps up to 3-4 days after pitching when fermentation is most definitely very active.

I hadn't particularly considered the oxidation risk (but will do so now!) but I've not noticed any issues so far (may just be too early to tell!)

However, maybe you could gently add some water very carefully to avoid splashing, even pouring it down the side of the FV to break its fall so to speak, and making sure it doesn't glug glug glug from the bottle???

Up to you I guess to weigh up the risks and decide.

 

[pilgrimhudd]

Hi matt, I use the garden hose to clean with but use the tap for hlt. The water from the hose seemed to have bits in it.

 

[pilgrimhudd]

Yes I've read with interest your adding wort to the fv, very clever! Though maybe not if your oxidising your beer! Yes I was tempted to go ahead and put another couple of litres of water in carefully, however I so want a drinkable beer this time that I don't want to cock it up!!! I will do it next time though!

 

[foxy]

Breweries add water after the ferment has finished, I have no idea the process they use but to save fermenter space they ferment a high ABV wort and then add the water to get the ABV they are looking for. Googling may help find a process to do this. I would say a boil to remove oxygen and then a careful pour into your beer. Just a guess.

 

[matt76]

Where do you think the oxidation risk is @foxy? Is it purely splashing, or could oxygenated water or wort be harmful too?

 

[pilgrimhudd]

I presume that by previously boiling the wort matt you are removing the dissolved o2 and therefore just have to be wary of splashing?

 

[foxy]

Both, water carries oxygen, the boiling evacuates it and splashing can create an ingress of oxygen.
Have a read on the LODO site they have really good information on there.

 

[matt76]

I presume that by previously boiling the wort matt you are removing the dissolved o2 and therefore just have to be wary of splashing?

Yeah, I guess. Thinking about it, I aerate the wort before pitching but the recovered wort that I add in the following days has not been deliberately aerated.

 

[pilgrimhudd]

Bottled up my Dunkel user upper today.

FG was 1010 giving me an abv of 7% after I added some bottled water post boil I had more in the FV than expected so that's a bit more drinkable than the 9% I thought it might be. I used 5g sachets of sugar to prime each bottle as there was a load going to waste at work.

The beer was very cloudy (no protofloc) tasted ok but not blown away...haha glowing praise for it. Smell was nice, banana light I would say.

I had a nightmare bottling, made a right mess in the mother in laws kitchen so after 14 bottles I gave up and chucked the last few litres. To be honest this one is a test brew in the hope i'll get something drinkable. Anyway 14 bottles is better than nothing and so far so good hopefully!

 

[pilgrimhudd]

Another Amarillo semi smash 10l brew this morning.

Small difference to the last one, treated my water to half a campden tab before the mash. I also have protofloc so hopefully wont be so cloudy. Again, the aim is to get something drinkable after my previous disasters.

2.25kg of Maris Otter
200g oats

15g amarillo @60
15g @10
Another 20g will be dry hopped.

Mashed in at 70 and allowed to cool to 65, doesn't take long in my tea urn.

American west coast yeast to be pitched at 21. Going to leave this one to cool outside for a while so I can go shopping, when I come back will be chucked in the fv and put in the sink to cool further.

 

[pilgrimhudd]

Oh, and I bought a klarstein last night....the maischfest 25l....

 

[foxbat]

Oh, and I bought a klarstein last night....the maischfest 25l....

Nice one! Lots of people on here have that.

 

[pilgrimhudd]

Nice one! Lots of people on here have that.

Ha! Yes that's why I got it in the end, far more positive comments than negative, and seems perfect for the 'dabbler' such as myself.

Don't tell the mrs though.

 

[An Ankoù]

Oh, and I bought a klarstein last night....the maischfest 25l....

Merry Christmas.

 

[pilgrimhudd]

Bottled up my first amarillo semi smash last night. 15 500ml bottle and 1 330ml bottle. Tasted wonderful, smelled even better orangey, melony perhaps.

Og 1012 which makes a slightly pokier than planned 5.6% pale ale. No taste of tcp either yet!!!!

 

[pilgrimhudd]

Had a bottle of my Dunkel this evening, its rather nice, fruity. Lots of alcohol, however it's only been in bottle for 2 weeks so it's very fresh. The best thing by a country mile though? No TCP flavour, I feel like when rocky runs up those steps in Philly. Looks dreadful though, like a muddy Mississippi river.

I had a Guinness West Indian porter after, I was pleasantly surprised.

In other news, my Klarstein arrived today

 

[samale]

West Indies porter is a nice drink. Good old kick of it as well

 

[matt76]

Had a bottle of my Dunkel this evening, its rather nice, fruity. Lots of alcohol, however it's only been in bottle for 2 weeks so it's very fresh. The best thing by a country mile though? No TCP flavour, I feel like when rocky runs up those steps in Philly. Looks dreadful though, like a muddy Mississippi river.

I had a Guinness West Indian porter after, I was pleasantly surprised.

In other news, my Klarstein arrived today

Nice one dude, I know that feeling