Trub?

[Victor Churchill]

...I really want to find the time to try making a beer with baker's yeast (the proper stuff that comes in blocks like putty) just to see what happens. I'm sure yeast was just "yeast for whatever purpose" not so many years ago.

Has anybody tried this, by the way?

Didn't ever try it with beer but I do recall following the old traditional "country wine" recipes where you basically stew the fruit with water and sugar and then chuck in a slice of bread spread with yeast. Just ferment off in a tub covered with a dishcloth.

This would have been ... ohh, maybe 45 years ago - might not have tasted very sophisticated but nobody died.

 

[An Ankoù]

Didn't ever try it with beer but I do recall following the old traditional "country wine" recipes where you basically stew the fruit with water and sugar and then chuck in a slice of bread spread with yeast. Just ferment off in a tub covered with a dishcloth.

This would have been ... ohh, maybe 45 years ago - might not have tasted very sophisticated but nobody died.

If it was 45 years ago, I suspect a good number have died.
Like my poor grandad, smoked all his life and it got him in the end. At 93!

 

[MrL73]

Ask 10 brewers the same question you'll get at least 10 different opinions. That's part of the fun.

 

[chthon]

If it was 45 years ago, I suspect a good number have died.
Like my poor grandad, smoked all his life and it got him in the end. At 93!

And my poor grandfather had to stop smoking somewhere at the end of the 70's, he died in 2015 at 94! :p

 

[Grealish]

Ask 10 brewers the same question you'll get at least 10 different opinions. That's part of the fun.

But all ten opinions will be worthless unless the person giving them has imbibed from the sacred font of truth. And what’s all this about fun??

 

[An Ankoù]

But all ten opinions will be worthless unless the person giving them has imbibed from the sacred font of truth. And what’s all this about fun??

Spot on. No pain, no gain .

 

[chthon]

This sounds really interesting. We have a jar of sourdough starter in our fridge, is it as simple as just adding a bit wort (how much?) to create a starter for beer? I was under the impression bread yeast and beer yeast were different beasts and couldn't be used for either/both. But would be ecstatic to be wrong, I mainly got into brewing because I love messing about in the kitchen so this sounds great fun!!

I just took a teaspoon of starter, and diluted it with wort, e.g. 10 ml, then let it ferment, and scale it up. You should get the same as beer yeast, yeast on the bottom and beer on top.

Hah, I actually also got in brewing because I like messing about in the kitchen. That is also why I brew on the size of my kitchen, which is just ordinary sized.

 

[Grealish]

I just took a teaspoon of starter, and diluted it with wort, e.g. 10 ml, then let it ferment, and scale it up. You should get the same as beer yeast, yeast on the bottom and beer on top.

Hah, I actually also got in brewing because I like messing about in the kitchen. That is also why I brew on the size of my kitchen, which is just ordinary sized.

If you enjoy tinkering in the kitchen, think of using the beer from your starter, especially as it’s not hopped. My last starter, I made two batches of bread, a carbonnade and some Welsh rarebit. All of which were good. Obviously not excellent as I have not studied with. Michelin starred chefs.

 

[chthon]

Me neither, I always say I don't cook, I like to prepare food.

With "carbonnade", do you mean "Flemish stew", "stoofkarbonaden" in Holland Dutch, "stoofvlees" in Flemish Dutch?

 

[chthon]

Yeah, I know we are getting off-topic...

 

[Grealish]

Me neither, I always say I don't cook, I like to prepare food.

With "carbonnade", do you mean "Flemish stew", "stoofkarbonaden" in Holland Dutch, "stoofvlees" in Flemish Dutch?

Love it. I’m thinking French/Flemish style beef cooked in beer. Traditionally thickened with breadcrumbs - and I could use my beer bread for authenticity - but I coat my beef in flour then brown it in butter then add the beer. Outrageous, I know. Veering 100% off topic, the food of the gods is cassoulet.

 

[DavidDetroit]

Topic one: I have wondered, regarding bread yeast, if after a few generations of being used for beer, might it evolve and be a more palatable beer yeast?

Topic two: It is known that brewers are trying to achieve different goals with their beer making. Maybe have a specific forum/category for those who want to go pro, for example, and one for those that want their beer to taste good by observation (or whatever identifier it should be).
This way, I would know not to respond to any of the "Pro" questions. Conversely, a "Pro" would know not to respond to the other category.

 

[chthon]

Love it. I’m thinking French/Flemish style beef cooked in beer. Traditionally thickened with breadcrumbs - and I could use my beer bread for authenticity - but I coat my beef in flour then brown it in butter then add the beer. Outrageous, I know. Veering 100% off topic, the food of the gods is cassoulet.

Not really outrageous, this is standard fare here. Instead of breadcrumbs we use slices of bread covered with mustard, or peperkoek. As for the beer, I have used St.-Bernardus Abt 12, Chimay Rouge, Westmalle Dubbel, Rochefort 8. Also add an onion. I sometimes even add some garlic. Lots of pepper, and a bit of beef broth.

 

[Grealish]

Not really outrageous, this is standard fare here. Instead of breadcrumbs we use slices of bread covered with mustard, or peperkoek. As for the beer, I have used St.-Bernardus Abt 12, Chimay Rouge, Westmalle Dubbel, Rochefort 8. Also add an onion. I sometimes even add some garlic. Lots of pepper, and a bit of beef broth.

I’ve only just spotted you live in Belgium. I love so many styles of beer, but nothing touches Belgian beer and, specifically, Trappist ale. In the UK I would revere Rochefort 10 above all others. I remember drinking something amazing in Bruges at the suggestion of a local but can’t for the life of me remember what it was. It will have been a similar style to Rochefort. Of all the styles I’ve brewed and felt I’d done justice to, Trappist beers always come out wrong. I love cooking, but I’d have a real problem pouring any of the beers you’ve mentioned anywhere but in a glass. And, yes, we’re now firmly off topic.

 

[The Baron]

If some of theses apostles of writing brewing books are so good where are most of the beers they brew in the pubs and shops, me thinks they are good at spouting science to us but not all are as good as they seem to think at actual brewing. I was in the motor trade for years running garages and it is a kin to the Parkers guide who were that good at valuing cars to the public - so why did they not have a garage in every town and make some real money instead of selling a comic of a guide IMO

 

[DavidDetroit]

where are most of the beers they brew in the pubs and shops

Great point. It would behoove one to see if maybe they are head brewers somewhere. What you said also reminded me of book/movie critics. If the critic knows exactly what is right and wrong with every movie or book, then they would only be able to make perfect movies and write perfect novels. So where are these perfect works of art?

 

[DavidDetroit]

the food of the gods is cassoulet.

I had to Google "cassoulet." I saw the recipe from the link below. It sounds amazing and something I would prepare. Could you glance at it and see if it is a very good representation of the dish?

https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/classic-cassoulet

 

[An Ankoù]

I had to Google "cassoulet." I saw the recipe from the link below. It sounds amazing and something I would prepare. Could you glance at it and see if it is a very good representation of the dish?

https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/classic-cassoulet

Cassoulet is the devil's job to make from scratch not least because you have to prepare confit de canard before you can even start with the rest. Here, it comes in tins and big, flat, round tins. If you want to make your own, you can buy confit de canard already made. Because of the time and effort involved, it's not worth making in small quantities- make as much as you can. Don't be tempted to add curry powder, it doesn't really work (I speak from experience).
Or buy online:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=cassoulet&ref=nb_sb_noss

And Amazon's prices are comparable with those in the supermarket unless you get a crpa brand which is no more than baked beans and sausages.

 

[Grealish]

I had to Google "cassoulet." I saw the recipe from the link below. It sounds amazing and something I would prepare. Could you glance at it and see if it is a very good representation of the dish?

https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/classic-cassoulet

That's pretty much how I'd do it. Cook it with pork skin too, although I take it out before serving.

Always respect the opinion of a local, of course. I have always thought it is odd that the French - who definitely do not have a strong tradition of convenience food - seem to buy the stuff in cans. However, I've never tried it so, as it is ubiquitous over there and they basically have high standards of cuisine, I'm guessing it's pretty good. As An Ankou says, preparing it from scratch is a massive undertaking and I only cook it in huge batches for that reason. Confit duck is a wonderful thing and I had to break it gently to my wife that, essentially, it involves taking a fairly fatty piece of duck, curing it to remove the water and then gently boiling it in fat to replace the water with extra fat...

An Ankou, am I right in thinking that, historically, it was pretty much a dish of beans with a few bits of meat thrown in?

Edit - just seen there are tomatoes in that recipe, I don't use them - AA might tell you which is traditional (with or without).

 

[The Baron]

me and the wife love cassoulet but no good on slimming world a syn or too Ps not me the wife