Built with mostly spare parts I had laying around, it brought the 28qt cooler full of water down from 68f to 33f in 30 minutes. I probably have $100 bucks into this thing.

https://imgur.com/a/y6KI2ay

I’d like to share my experience using Lallemand Philly Sour yeast for fermenting vegetables, maybe it might help someone else.

I grow my own chili peppers and have tried fermenting them several times in the past to make hot sauce. However, the results were always disappointing—both the taste and aroma were off, with "funky" notes that I disliked. As everyone probably knows, vegetable fermentation at home usually relies on "spontaneous fermentation," trusting that the wild local yeast and bacteria will yield something edible, tasty, and healthy. After my failures, I assumed the wild microbiota in my home would always produce those unwanted flavors, so I set vegetable fermentation aside.

That changed this summer while brewing a Berliner Weisse. To keep things simple, I used Philly Sour yeast, when it struck me: couldn't this yeast be the solution to my hot sauce problems? Why wouldn't it break down the sugars in chilis and other vegetables the same way it does with wort? I tried to google if anyone had tried this before, but didn't find anything. So I decided to test the idea.

I used 0.5-liter jars, filling each with chopped chilis, garlic, spices, and a 3% salt brine. I just sprinkled a small amount of Philly Sour yeast on top and placed the jars in a warm spot (kitchen counter).

After ~2 weeks, I drained the excess liquid, pureed the chilis in a food processor, passed the mixture through a sieve and bottled.

The result: it worked just great! There were no funky off-flavors at all, just a clean heat and acidity, and the fruitiness of the chillis. Later, I used the same method to ferment cauliflower with carrots and jalapeños, which turned out just as good.

Of course, this experiment doesn't meet even basic scientific standards since I didn't include a control group. It's entirely possible that this year's wild bacterial and yeast strains were different and that the results would have been fine without Philly Sour. Testing that will have to wait for another year, though, because thanks to a rainy summer, this year's harvest was rather poor.

As a sidenote- I usually have problems with kahm yeast in my vegetable fermentations- this time it didn't show up at all. If that has anything to do with Philly sour is of course up for debate, but my guess is that kahm might have been out-competed.

Hello friends, newbie here,

I've made a small batch of about 4 litres of (hard) cider in a demijohn. It all seemed to be going well, left it alone for 2 weeks, the bubbling through the airlock went from super active down to very very slow. After 2 weeks, i opened the bung, took a sample for a gravity reading and a cheeky taste, with decent sanitisation, It was as i would have expected, I think the gravity was about 1.002? if I'm reading the hydrometer correctly, right at the top, squarely in the yellow section labeled 'bottle'. Also tasted like cider (pretty rough, quite acidic but I was satisfied). I believe the ABV to be in the 8% range. Alas bottling that day was not convenient, so it's been sat a few more days,

My concern is that since then, the bubbling through the airlock has become much more frequent. I didn't expect there to be enough sugar left in there to keep fermenting much longer. And it certainly hasn't gotten any warmer in my flat. So I'm worried that checking the gravity has introduced oxygen and/or whatever it is that starts the process of turning it into vinegar. One possible explanation is that I tipped some of the airlock liquid out, do you reckon that having less liquid in there would increase bubble frequency? Even so, I wouldn't expect it to continue consistently once the gravity got so low?

I have just taken another gravity reading and it's not really moved as far as i can tell, and it still tastes fine (as fine as it was) so that's reassuring at least.

TLDR how likely is it that i accidentally triggered a secondary ACV vinegar fermentation in the 2 minutes exposed to air that it took to check gravity? I thought it was fermented dry but bubbling through the airlock has increased in frequency

So I've brewed for half a year now. Around 10 batches. I've gotten to the point where I make nice beer people like which is nice and for the first time i kegged the last beer and it went amazing. The carbonation was so nice and I got rid of the yeasty taste that sometimes is in bottles. But the few i bottled from this batch and primed with 3 sugar tablets, (where only 2 was recommended for 0,5 liter bottles) went really flat... I've had this issue quite a lot with my last couple of batches. In the past I've had some decent carbonation every now and then, but ultimately they always been kinda flat.

Info about my secondary fermentation:

20 ° celcius stable for 2 weeks once bottled. I always use carbonation drops / tables from the homebrew store and use the recommended amount. Sometimes I have waited 3 weeks no difference.

I always store at least 24 hours in fridge before pouring or more. I often feel no difference.

I mainly use saf ale 05 and 04 or lallemand neipa yeast.

What do you guys do? More sugar? Is there something I'm missing?

Hey everyone,

I went and added some speciality malts into some orders for shits and giggles with no prior plan what to actually brew with it: 250g of Viking Cookie Malt, 250g of Viking Caramel 400.

Since I also have some Aromatic Amber Malt leftovers, I was thinking of either doing a pastry Brown Ale or ESB (veering slightly toward the latter). Anyone wanna chime in? Would be much appreciated; my questions are down below, but first my recipe so far...

CHOMP BOX v1 - Cookie ESB
Method: All Grain
Batch Size: 23L Mash / 5L Sparge / ~23L Fermenter / ~19L Post-Ferm
Equipment: Speidel Braumeister 20L

Grain Bill:

• 4.5kg (85,7%) Maris Otter Pale Malt
• 250g (4,8%) Dingemans Amber Aromatic Malt
• 250g (4,8%) Viking Cookie Malt
• 250g (4,8%) Viking Caramel 400

Estimated Color: 28 EBC

Hop Bill:

• 30g Challenger (or similar) @ 60min
• 25g East Kent Golding @ 15min
• 25g EKG @ 0min (Hopstand @ 80°C for 15-20min)

Estimated IBU: 31

Mash Profile:

• Mash in @ 35°C
• Single Infusion Mash, 60min @ 67°C
• Mash Out: 10min @ 78°C

Estimated ABV: 5,0%

Yeast: 1pckg Mangrove Jack's M36

Fermentation Profile:

• Active Fermentation: 3d @ 19°C
• Ramp up: 3d @ 20-21°C
• Diacetyl Rest: 4d @ 21-22°C
• Cold Crash: 2d @ 2°C

Carbonation: 1.8 Vol. (Kegging)

Water Profile (untreated local tap water - naturally free of chlorine)

• Calcium (Ca²⁺): 75.7 ppm
• Magnesium (Mg²⁺): 14.2 ppm
• Natrium (Na⁺): 14.6 ppm
• Sulfate (SO₄²⁻): 73.0 ppm
• Chloride (Cl⁻): 27.0 ppm
• Bicarbonate (HCO₃⁻): 196.8 ppm
• Total Hardness: 248 ppm
• Total Alkalinity: 161 ppm
• Residual Alkalinity: 98 ppm

Ratio SO₄²⁻/ Cl⁻: 27.1 : 1

--> Add in 3.5ml Lactic Acid (80%) for a presumed mash pH of 5.42.

Questions:

• Anyone got any experience with the Cookie Malt? Will that plus the Aromatic plus the Caramel be a hat on a hat on a hat?
• Anyone got any experience with the M36? I read that it'd provide a nice, medium-heavy but still dry body which would balance the overall sweetness of the malt - though I have no real world knowledge to back that up.
• Any thoughts on the hops? I'm on the low end of the ESB IBU scale, but don't know how more of the stuff would play with the grain bill.

No priming sugar...I lost it. Looked everywhere. I know I can use table sugar to prime but I do NOT have a scale so I measured a cup and a scant quarter. Some say it must be weighed.....I do not have a scale and no car this weekend. How much is safe to prime a 5 gallon batch of Hefeweizen?

Hello,

Saturday of last week I made a yeast starter with malt extract and german lager yeast. I put it in my fridge at 65F and then promptly injured my back to the point where I could not brew.

It has just been sitting in my fridge for a week now at 65F, do you think it would still be good to cold crash, decant, and add to a beer on saturday or Sunday? Or do you think it has lost viability?

It was a 1 gallon starter, because I wanted to save some to experiment with storing yeast frozen with glycerin and such.

Thanks for any advice you can provide.

I found some Robinson's Iron Maiden line of beers in a Walmart in Northern Mexico of all places, some versions I've never never seen in the US. They appear to be bottle conditioned, with plenty of sediment. Internet says they arent bottle conditioned, but the recipe uses Robinsons house yeast, which I love. Ill try to harvest, but does anyone know if IPA (blue label) and Pale Ale (green label) are in fact bottle conditioned and with what yeast?

Im sure there likely isnt any more info out there, but thought id try

Hi. Im pretty new to beer brewing, but I want to experiment a little with it. I have pilzner brewkit from coopers and some of fresh walnuts. I want to add them without skin to the beer to add some new tastes. What is the best way to add them? I heard adding them durning the fermentation can add too much oil to the beer. Is it big problem? The other way I heard is making extract from walnuts and vodka and next freeze out the oil from it. Is it the better way? How vodka will change the taste of the beer?

Welcome to the Daily Q&A!

Are you a new Brewer? Please check out one of the following articles before posting your question:

• How do I check my gravity?
• I don't see any bubbles in the airlock OR the bubbling in the airlock has slowed. What does that mean?
• Does this look normal / is my batch infected?

Or if any of those answers don't help you please consider visiting the /r/Homebrewing Wiki for answers to a lot of your questions! Another option is searching the subreddit, someone may have asked the same question before!

However no question is too "noob" for this thread. No picture is too tomato to be evaluated for infection! Even though the Wiki exists, you can still post any question you want an answer to.

Also, be sure to vote on answers in this thread. Upvote a reply that you know works from experience and don't feel the need to throw out "thanks for answering!" upvotes. That will help distinguish community trusted advice from hearsay... at least somewhat!

The once a week thread where (just about) anything goes! Post pictures, stories, nonsense, or whatever you can come up with. Surely folks have a lot to talk about today. If you want to get some ideas you can always check out a [past Free-For-All Friday](http://www.reddit.com/r/Homebrewing/search?q=Free+For+All+Friday+flair%3AWeekly%2BThread&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all).

I had a stripped wash in my Anvil and I just left it there for a while bc I was lazy then discovered it leaking last week. It was trickling through the bottom past the control panel. I don't know where the leak came from. Since then I've let it dry out and I emailed MoreBeer who bought out blichmann/anvil but they've already said they don't know anything on how to fix it. I'm so bummed. Anyone else have a leak and fix it?

Hi y'all! We had a very successful hops season with our Nugget hops plant, and want to start homebrewing! My partner and I have never brewed beer before (only cider), and need a dummy's guide to brewing, if you will. A few questions I have are:

-What malt(s) should we use with our nugget hops (we are not huge IPA fans, and are looking to brew more of an amber ale or a lager....basically anything that is not an IPA....)?

-What grains should we use?

-Any suggestions for a good beginners guide to follow?

We already have a gallon carboy from cider making, as well as an airlock, racking cane etc.

Thanks y'all and happy brewing! :)

Hey everyone,
I’m newly joined to the brewing hobby. And I’m looking for some input on hoppin a beer made with just two row malt. I got my gear 2nd hand from someone hanging up their kettle to move in with a new SO and they threw in malt and hops with the deal. So, what I’m doing is a brew day with just what I have at hand.
40 lb 2 row and 3 lb muntons Extra light dme ,
Amarillo, mosaic, sultana, el dorado, cascade and hallertua mit hops. Plus Irish moss and yeast nutrient type stuff.
I’m looking for any suggestions for hoping and flavoring.
My current batch recipe is something like 7.1 target abv with 10lb 2row, 0.5 dme, 0.5 Honey

Edit: oh and my yeast is a 2nd generation starter made from washed yeast. It was originally “crisp English ale yeast” it’s happily bubbling away in a wort made from the dme.

2nd edit: Amarillo 4.5 oz , mosaic 8.0 oz, sultana 9.0 oz, el dorado 7.0 oz, cascade 2.0 oz and hallertua mit 1.0 oz

So i am making an ipa which requires a sizable dry hop. I will transfer from 1 keg to another (containing the hops) then after 3 days transfer the hopped beer to another, empty keg.

What would be the best option? Use a hop sock where the hops are contained or just throw them in and cold crash after 3 days then transfer?

I want to get all the hop flavour but don't want to transfer a load of hops over to the "clean" keg

Hey Folks

This fall I decided to mail out a few brews to a couple competitions. I really enjoyed the feedback provided from the judges.

Unfortunately, one of the competitions never provided my scores or scoresheets. It’s been a few weeks since the results were posted so I had reached out to the organizer via email provided of the competition website. They responded by telling me they are posted on the website and I just need to login.

Well, I have no scores or scoresheets under my entries. I know they were delivered and received as I verified before the competition.

I emailed back and never got a response. I have emailed once more with no response.

Is this just a lost cause? I am bummed as the feedback is the entire reason I took the time to bottle, package and mail out my brews. I am new to competition so I’m not sure if this is common?

Any advice is appreciated!

I bought Whirlfloc to try to clarify my beer without adding anything on the cold side once the keg is purged and put into fridge.

I transfer the wort while it’s still warm. My concern is that if I add Whirlfloc 10 minutes before the end of the boil, it will do its job and the trub will settle to the bottom. However, I use a standard kettle on the stove without a spigot, so I have no easy way to transfer only the clear wort while leaving the trub behind.

My current process is to transfer the wort to the fermenter immediately after the boil, while it’s still hot, so the heat also helps sanitize the fermenter. I then cool the wort directly in the fermenter and pitch the yeast.

Does anyone have any suggestions for how I could use Whirlfloc effectively with this setup without transferring too much trub into the fermenter?

Hello fine brewers! I'm just about ready to bottle my second homebrew. I would like to use a bottling bucket this time. I'll probably order it off Amazon because the nearest homebrewing store is kind of far from me. Do y'all have any recommendations for a bottling bucket? Or is there a specific spigot that you've bought and installed on your own bucket that you recommend?

Hey y’all!

Am making a 2.5 gallon batch of homemade wine, and am just getting from secondary fermentation to the point where I can cork my own bottles.

I have this lying around and it seems perfect to hold a large amount of wine, but since it is a metal twist-off top, I am wondering:

Would the built-in top work, or would it likely be too weak and explode or let gases escape? And, if not, is there any alternative way to cork this bottle that would likely work? Have seen some other people online say that the neck is too thin to accommodate a typical cork. Thanks so much!!

Sorry in advance as I expect these types of posts are probably overwhelming on this sub, but I'm a total beginner (2nd brew) and would just appreciate what I hope will be some reassurance that all is fine with my beer.

It smelled fine, and I tasted the samples I've been taking to measure gravity, and it tasted fine too (a bit stronger than I was aiming for but like I said, complete beginner here!).

I've checked the article in the wiki so reasonably confident it's OK but just wanted a second opinion from those who know what they're doing 🙏

Pictures of the top of the beer and the trub below:

 https://i.imgur.com/aQAUzxs.jpeg

https://i.imgur.com/Bo2O5cx.jpeg

Welcome to the Daily Q&A!

Are you a new Brewer? Please check out one of the following articles before posting your question:

• How do I check my gravity?
• I don't see any bubbles in the airlock OR the bubbling in the airlock has slowed. What does that mean?
• Does this look normal / is my batch infected?

Or if any of those answers don't help you please consider visiting the /r/Homebrewing Wiki for answers to a lot of your questions! Another option is searching the subreddit, someone may have asked the same question before!

However no question is too "noob" for this thread. No picture is too tomato to be evaluated for infection! Even though the Wiki exists, you can still post any question you want an answer to.

Also, be sure to vote on answers in this thread. Upvote a reply that you know works from experience and don't feel the need to throw out "thanks for answering!" upvotes. That will help distinguish community trusted advice from hearsay... at least somewhat!

Milwaukee was rumored to be one of the two locations. Looks like it’s confirmed. Asheville was quite a good time this year!

So long story short I have been thinking about trying my hand at making cider for awhile now, and this morning by complete chance I ended up with 3 air-lock stoppers.

I also have a 1 gallon jug and some other supplies.

I was thinking about getting a gallon of cider and just trying my hand at fermenting it, as far as I know I will also need 1. Some yeast, and 2. Yeast nutrient.

Does anyone have advice on what yeast to use? Not a fan of the dryest cider but also don't need anything apple juice like, ideally hoping for around 8%.

Any strong opinions on yeast nutrient? Or will pretty much any brand work?

Also do I strictly need to pasteurize and re-bottle this? Or can I just siphon it into a bowl to remove the sediment and then put it back in the gallon jug and bring it to Thanksgiving to drink? I know it won't keep doe long out of the fridge but I don't imagine it will last that long anyways.

Also any opinions on using concentrate to backsweeten it for taste? Or am I better of with sugar or something?