SwimModSponges Posted June 7, 2020 Author Share Posted June 7, 2020 All right, my unbiased taste-testers have come and gone. Feedback: Alcohol content is right where it belongs, get a little burn but it goes down smooth. Blueberries made it pretty sour, back-sweetening is definitely needed. Otherwise, total success. Kickass. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted June 7, 2020 Author Share Posted June 7, 2020 Phase 2- I'mma take the other half of the bag of frozen blueberries I got and cook them down to a little bit of a syrup, add a bit of honey... and raspberry tea. We're going wild with this critter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted June 8, 2020 Author Share Posted June 8, 2020 Took a picture of my folks hops. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted June 10, 2020 Author Share Posted June 10, 2020 Looks like my secondary fermentation started fermenting again. Which is good, because there's a fair amount of head-space in there that I'm going to be replacing with non-alcohol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted June 29, 2020 Author Share Posted June 29, 2020 I want a yeast stick that looks fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wacky1980 Posted June 29, 2020 Share Posted June 29, 2020 it's literally a dirty wooden spoon. not worth the risk of contamination, unless you have very stringent handling & storage conditions. buy a yeast pack like a good homebrewer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted June 29, 2020 Author Share Posted June 29, 2020 (edited) Yeah I got some, but having a stick is still fun. Also here's my recipe for the next batch, what do you think? ~2 gal water ~3 lb honey ~1 lb maple syrup ~1 cup apple cinnamon tea 1 handful of craisins 1 (2?) granny smith apple, finely chopped (cooked with cinnamon?) 1/2 packet red star yeast. Not sure if I should add more honey or if the rest of the fermentable sugars can take their place. It's going to be less than the full 2 gallons of water with everything in there anyways so... should be ok? Edited June 29, 2020 by SwimModSponges 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wacky1980 Posted June 29, 2020 Share Posted June 29, 2020 i don't make mead so i can't tell you just by reading this, if you'll need more fermentables to hit your target gravity. i know when i'm small-batching beers, i usually use around 2lb of dry extract or 3lb of base grains per gallon of water to get into that 5-7% range. so you're probably in the ballpark on that. the ingredients give me a strong cider vibe, which i think is probably good for a late summer/early fall mead. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted June 29, 2020 Author Share Posted June 29, 2020 The rule of thumb I've hears is about ~3lb honey/gallon of water. I'm using a 2 gallon fermentation bucket this time around but I can guarantee it's not going to be a full 2 gallons of water with everything else I'm mixing in. From what I understand an acerglyn takes a lot longer and backsweeting with more syrup is recommended. Then again I have a friend who tried it and said it tasted like drinking a cup of sugar. But considering how dried out I think my blueberry is going to end up being (she's offgassing right now, not much more visible active fermentation that I'm aware of, so I'll probably drain off a bit and add more honey in the hopes that we've hit the alcohol tolerance for the yeast) I'm probably better of keeping it on the sweeter end. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wacky1980 Posted June 30, 2020 Share Posted June 30, 2020 i felt like participating in the making of the booze portion of this thread, so i talked wife into assisting in a small batch pale ale last night. it was a really simple recipe, just some extract and some azacca hops. i beat my initial gravity projection (was supposed to go into the fermenter at 1.070 but it actually started at 1.076...oh well!) and i over-scaled the batch a bit. when i built the recipe, it was for a gallon of finished beer. but these new little gallon fermenters didn't have additional head space to accommodate a gallon of liquid. i could only put about .85 gallons into it to leave some headspace, and even that was too much, as fermentation kicked off overnight and already has started to clog the airlock. so i have to find some 1/2" tubing at lunch and replace the airlock with a blowoff hose, before it clogs and goes projectile. i do have a small fridge i'm using to temp control my fermentation, which is a new thing for me. should help combat some of the occasional off-flavors i get when fermentation happens at a too-high temp from sitting on a shelf out in the open. if we manage to get this thing fully fermented, i'll be manually carbing it in a 1-gal mini keg. fermentation should wrap up around 7/13 and the carb process should take maybe 3 days total. if all goes well, we'll have about 3/4 gallon of homebrewed azacca ipa. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted June 30, 2020 Author Share Posted June 30, 2020 My must was at 1.080, so that should be a pretty good start. Was super concerned last night because it hadn't really started bubbling yet, worried i might have gotten some sanitizer from my airlock spilled in... Gave it a good shake this morning (acerglyn will form a film on top that stops fermentation otherwise), and boy howdy, i could feel the off gassing flowing out the top. Smells good and is bubbling well enough at the moment. Gotta say i'd rather be brewing in glass so i could see it, give me some peace of mind. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wacky1980 Posted June 30, 2020 Share Posted June 30, 2020 glass is nice for this reason, and this reason only. well...that and it's easier to clean without etching the surface like with plastic, which creates bacteria wells that can survive wash+sanitize cycles. but once you're comfortable with trusting the process and measuring fermentation by other means (airlock activity, gravity readings, etc) glass starts to have drawbacks. it allows light in, which can affect flavor over time. and glass/plastic carboys are a bitch to clean compared to stainless vessels. but as with all things, the nicer stuff costs more money and requires more knowledge/skill to use effectively. i'm still fermenting in glass because it's cheap and accessible. but i'm eyeballing a nice stainless conical fermenter that can ferment up to 10 gal. that will be the fermenter i use for my e-biab setup, that i'm about halfway done building. hopefully this coming winter... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted July 1, 2020 Author Share Posted July 1, 2020 So... looks like it only bubbles when I shake it. Really really worried sanitizer solution leaked out of my airlock and ruined the whole batch... I'm going to wait a few days, pop the lid, and see how everything looks. Might try to pitch more yeast, maybe that would help? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wacky1980 Posted July 1, 2020 Share Posted July 1, 2020 (edited) what kind of sanitizer? some of them don't have any adverse effects on brew. i like to use star-san because you don't have to worry about contamination. it regularly ends up in my wort in small quantities because you don't have to rinse it nor let it dry before using the gear. it's pricey, but a little goes a long way. it's possible that the fermentation just stalled. could have been a weak batch of yeast, not enough pitched at the start, temp is too low, etc etc. it sounds like you're making all the right moves though. as long as there's no sign of infection, i'd say let it go for a bit longer. maybe warm it up a bit. if nothing kicks back off by maybe thursday, maybe pitch the other half of that yeast packet on top. it's difficult to over-pitch but it's really easy to under-pitch. i put a full 11g packet of yeast into my 1 gallon batch, and i'll sometimes pitch 2 packets into a 5 gallon batch if i don't have time to start the yeast several hours prior to brew time. Edited July 1, 2020 by wacky1980 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted July 1, 2020 Author Share Posted July 1, 2020 I use 5-star PBW, i believe. You're supposed to rinse it well. No bubbles when i got home today, shook it up and still didn't get bubble action, though the smell coming from the airlock had a hint of fementation i think. You know me, i worry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wacky1980 Posted July 2, 2020 Share Posted July 2, 2020 19 hours ago, SwimModSponges said: I use 5-star PBW, i believe. You're supposed to rinse it well. No bubbles when i got home today, shook it up and still didn't get bubble action, though the smell coming from the airlock had a hint of fementation i think. You know me, i worry. i have some pbw but i've never used it before. it's only a cleaner, not a sanitizer, so you still want to hit your gear with a sanitizing agent as step 1 in any brew day activities. as for the stuck fermentation, try to take a gravity reading if you have a clean way to do it. then take another reading in 3 days. that way you'll know for sure if fermentation has stalled. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted July 2, 2020 Author Share Posted July 2, 2020 I got all the stuff, actually i have a little chart on the bucket with the dates i plan to test on. I get home today and as i walk down the stairs I see a bubble. Stare at the damn thing for about 2 minutes, don't see any more. Its taunting me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted July 3, 2020 Author Share Posted July 3, 2020 Its relatively chilly in the basement too, when i put my hands on the bucket it feels cold. Took it outside for a bit to maybe warm it up to kick start the fermentation. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted July 4, 2020 Author Share Posted July 4, 2020 Just went ahead and pitched the rest of my yeast this morning, got it outside again warming up. Been shaking it pretty well to avoid much of a fruit cap. It does smell like its making alcohol. With my last one i had bubbles like crazy right after it started, so i'm probably just being impatient. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted July 4, 2020 Author Share Posted July 4, 2020 Yep i'd say that did the trick. 20200704_110216.mp4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted July 4, 2020 Author Share Posted July 4, 2020 Went on ahead and racked my blueberry stuff today too, get it up off the lees and sediment it built up from the step feeding. My hydrometer sunk all the way when I went to take a measurement. Since I didn't take an initial reading I got no idea what that means, but it's been down there 2 months so it's going to get aged out for a few weeks until I can get some bottles and call it done. Took a sample, I'd say it tastes like a red wine but I really don't like wines, so I have no idea if it tastes good or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wacky1980 Posted July 6, 2020 Share Posted July 6, 2020 your hydrometer shouldn't bottom out unless the tube isn't full enough to allow it to float. try it with a tube full of water. should level out at 1.000 at room temp. anything <>1.000 could indicate a problem with the hydrometer. and if it still bottoms out when the tube is full, try finding a longer tube. as for the taste, i'm not sure when the flavor starts to settle in but i want to say 2 months is still probably kinda early for mead. don't get discouraged. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted July 7, 2020 Author Share Posted July 7, 2020 Not discouraged- blueberry batch was literally just me fucking around to see what happens. Legit if it turned into blueberry vinegar I would have been happy- call it a win and make some delicious salad dressing. Also it didn't sink all the way, just about to the water line. This cranapple acerglyn though... pretty sure i'm doing most of it right this time. It smells so goddamn good. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
resurrected Posted July 7, 2020 Share Posted July 7, 2020 I'm not reading all two pages, but I've been following the progress on Facebook. Anxious to see how it turns out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wacky1980 Posted July 8, 2020 Share Posted July 8, 2020 Thought I'd share a pic of my progress on my first tiny batch. This SMaSH (single malt and single hop) IPA recipe I built uses only 4 ingredients: 2 row pale malt, Azacca hops, US-05 yeast, and water. This gallon batch gets a dry hop addition tomorrow, and then it's into the mini-keg for carbonation on Sunday. Should be ready to drink in about a week. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wacky1980 Posted July 9, 2020 Share Posted July 9, 2020 dry-hopped that little beast last night. it smelled gooooood. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted July 9, 2020 Author Share Posted July 9, 2020 I can definitely smell the booze in mine now. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted July 11, 2020 Author Share Posted July 11, 2020 (edited) Wife ordered me a mead variety pack, came with this fun card listing cocktail recipes for each one. They're really low ABVs for mead though... actually sorta low compared to a lot of beers i've had... Edited July 11, 2020 by SwimModSponges Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted July 11, 2020 Author Share Posted July 11, 2020 Just had a hop swarm, was really interested to see what hops bring to the mead party. I've been considering doing a rough rack and hopping my acerglyn after a few months. Definitely still on the table. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wacky1980 Posted July 15, 2020 Share Posted July 15, 2020 Tried to cold crash this morning. Somehow the fermenter got air-locked and sucked all the water out of the blowoff bucket. When I got home this afternoon, my poor lovely beer had a layer of (thankfully sanitized) water on top of it. And lord knows how much o2 got in there. Anyways, I pulled out as much as I could and transferred it to another fermenter, reset everything, and continued with the cold crash. Hopefully the batch didn't pick up a bug while it was exposed to atmosphere. Shame, it smelled reeeeeally good and it could be ruined now. We'll see what it looks/smells like tomorrow when it's time to keg it up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wacky1980 Posted July 15, 2020 Share Posted July 15, 2020 it's looking like a beer again today. just might sneak away with something drinkable after all on this one. we'll tx to a keg tonight and carb it up, should be ready to drink by the weekend. hope it doesn't start growing something in the meantime... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
resurrected Posted July 16, 2020 Share Posted July 16, 2020 Tell me how to do this. Please. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poof Posted July 16, 2020 Share Posted July 16, 2020 poof's secret recipe: 5 gallons unpasteurized apple cider 10 lbs raw honey Lalvin EC-1118 champagne yeast <-- important! don't substitute! 4 tsp yeast nutrient 1 tsp yeast energizer Ferment completely. There should be no sugar/sweetness left. Then it's poof's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted July 16, 2020 Author Share Posted July 16, 2020 9 hours ago, resurrected said: Tell me how to do this. Please. It is so easy to make booze they do it in prison. 1 gallon grape juice (make sure its 100% real grape juice 1 cup of sugar A few raisins Yeast. Put em together, throw a balloon with a pinhole in it over the top to act as an air lock, stick it in a dark place for a bit. There you go. Alcohol. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
resurrected Posted July 16, 2020 Share Posted July 16, 2020 48 minutes ago, SwimModSponges said: It is so easy to make booze they do it in prison. 1 gallon grape juice (make sure its 100% real grape juice 1 cup of sugar A few raisins Yeast. Put em together, throw a balloon with a pinhole in it over the top to act as an air lock, stick it in a dark place for a bit. There you go. Alcohol. Nice recipe for some wine. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wacky1980 Posted July 17, 2020 Share Posted July 17, 2020 the beer recipe is easy af too: 1.5 gallons of water 2# malt extract boil 1 hour add up to 2oz hops during boil, depending on taste cool to room temp, transfer to fermenter of choice, dump in a packet of yeast. wait two weeks. the process can be a trick though; that part requires a bit of practice. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted July 17, 2020 Author Share Posted July 17, 2020 (edited) So... my "see what sticks" batch... does this look infected to you? I mean it could just be krauson line... but uh, i dont like the look of it. Edited July 17, 2020 by SwimModSponges Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
resurrected Posted July 18, 2020 Share Posted July 18, 2020 10 hours ago, wacky1980 said: the beer recipe is easy af too: 1.5 gallons of water 2# malt extract boil 1 hour add up to 2oz hops during boil, depending on taste cool to room temp, transfer to fermenter of choice, dump in a packet of yeast. wait two weeks. the process can be a trick though; that part requires a bit of practice. Awesome! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wacky1980 Posted July 21, 2020 Share Posted July 21, 2020 (edited) On 7/17/2020 at 6:45 PM, SwimModSponges said: So... my "see what sticks" batch... does this look infected to you? I mean it could just be krauson line... but uh, i dont like the look of it. It's hard to say. Krausen is some pretty nasty-looking shit, and it could also just be off-gassing of ingredients or yeast. Has it grown since this pic, or fallen back in? I kegged up my baby IPA on I think Friday. I was not pleased with the product because there was a horrible off-flavor that I assumed at the time was the result of blow-off contamination. Regardless, I kegged it and carbed it and left it in the fridge. Just took the first pull from the keg tonight... It's still off, but much improved. Tastes a little buttery and has an odd aroma that I can't quite pin down...kinda like medicine. But the nastiness from a few days ago has faded off almost entirely. Clarity is decent for a non-filtered IPA, and it's carbed almost perfectly. Burps taste like IPA burps, so that's good. At this point, another week of age might just clean it up the rest of the way. I'm actually almost satisfied, all things considered, with our first batch on this tiny stovetop brewery. I ordered a new fermenter and upgraded a couple pieces. Should have it all in by the weekend. I guess we'll have to try it again and see if it comes out better on round 2... forgot to add final stats on the beer: abv: 7.8% (est) ibu: 48 srm: 8.6 Edited July 21, 2020 by wacky1980 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted July 21, 2020 Author Share Posted July 21, 2020 It looks the exact same way as it has for weeks now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wacky1980 Posted July 21, 2020 Share Posted July 21, 2020 (edited) 12 minutes ago, SwimModSponges said: It looks the exact same way as it has for weeks now. I think if it was growing bacteria, you'd see significant growth / spread. Mold would look fuzzy. From what I can tell, this just looks like foam. My guess is it's probably fine. But I'm also not a mead guy so I don't necessarily know what kinds of infections might show up. Edited July 21, 2020 by wacky1980 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted July 21, 2020 Author Share Posted July 21, 2020 Thanks, that puts my mind at ease a bit. That's a nice looking beer you got there. Did you give it a name? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wacky1980 Posted July 21, 2020 Share Posted July 21, 2020 (edited) 34 minutes ago, SwimModSponges said: Thanks, that puts my mind at ease a bit. That's a nice looking beer you got there. Did you give it a name? i've yet to ever name a beer i made, beyond a descriptive label. "Azacca SMaSH IPA" is how i refer to this one, because it uses azacca hops, it's a Single Malt and Single Hop recipe, and the style is IPA. very clever, i know. i do have a portfolio of names and concept art for the beers i'll eventually develop when i launch a brewery. not sure if any will survive til that day though. Edited July 21, 2020 by wacky1980 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted July 23, 2020 Author Share Posted July 23, 2020 So I wasn't even going to look at my cranapple acerglyn until I hit the 1 month mark, but the wife wants me to let some of her work friends have a bit of a sample. Figured I can take a SPGR now, figure out my ABV, then have something to check it against when I check again in a few days. 9.19%. Figured I'd check on "See What Sticks" while I was down there. No idea what the ABV is but I'm pretty sure the SPGR hasn't changed in weeks so I'd say it's done. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted July 23, 2020 Author Share Posted July 23, 2020 Reviews are in- See What Sticks- Very smooth, strong honey flavor, good blueberry flavor too. Cranapple Acerglyn- Does not taste like 9%, more like 6%. Very sweet, very smooth. Very fruity- can't get much of the cranberry flavor though. Huge on cinnamon.. Will be a great mead for the fall. Both were excellent, according to them. After they tried mine we had them try the blueberry mead we bought. Mine was better. Hot damn I'm apparently good at this. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wacky1980 Posted July 24, 2020 Share Posted July 24, 2020 uh-oh... you got the bug now. may as well add ingredients and equipment to the monthly budget for the next couple years. also, congratulations on a great first (and second) brew! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted July 24, 2020 Author Share Posted July 24, 2020 I got plans for the next one already- peaches and ginger. Eh? Eh? Yeah. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted July 27, 2020 Author Share Posted July 27, 2020 Check it out- just whipped up this label for brew#1 in Paint: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted July 29, 2020 Author Share Posted July 29, 2020 Gonna bottle it today- share a bottle with the inlaws this weekend, promised a bottle to the guy at work i've been talking shop with, then probably a bottle for my folks. Hope i get that much out of there. Picked up a Mr. Beer on a whim for like $4 the other day too. 4 gallon brewing vessel that ill probably have to retrofit to make it worth anything. But hey cheap af so why not Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwimModSponges Posted July 29, 2020 Author Share Posted July 29, 2020 Meet Blueberry SeeWhatSticks and its younger sibling, cranapple acerglyn. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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