Beer Making, Part 1: The Mash

[rocknrollpriest]

Nice set up!

[Snowbeavers77]

I'm so jealous of your set up. Do you sell your homebrew? It seems like a good small operation

[1MtnBoy]

Mmmmmmm.....................I love Lager's. nice cold set up. thanks for posting.

wife wont let me brew at home (yet,lol) one beer-bomb video from my cousin brewing was all she needed to see, sigh.

[PowerliftingWSM]

It looks like you brew a fairly large amount of beer. Do you actually drink all that beer? Also, I am going to start brewing some myself, I want to use all natural and basic ingredients, it looks like your approach does just that. I've seen some vids where people are using extract of this, and concentrate of that... what's the point. Hey anyway, thanks for posting.

[falconoilcompany]

Dear John, we have watched and re-watched this many times and still enjoy it. It is addictive because you know the results are perfect and the taste excellent. Very informative.

[1czechit1]

he is making lagger. Laggers ferment in cold temperature while ales at room temperature.

[jbond59]

I enjoy watching your vids. I may have to say that by observing the operation there. ( you may be a redneck). I would like to be there. This makes me want to brew some beer. Cheers.

[nodogyougay48]

Does the Yeast starter help ferment faster? Or are you just doing because you're using liquid yeast? And is liquid yeast faster?

[lemaitrethemonk]

Brother your inner sanctum is ridiculous!!! You have a fan for life. I am very fortunate that people(you and others like you) share your knowledge. My first batch begins tomorrow and within a month i will switch to all grain. Funds dictate action(unfortunately), so i have to wait till i can afford to make a mash ton. Great video. I just subscribed. Just a forewarning, i will have many questions in the future. thanks

[knewok]

can someone tell me why hes keeping his carboys cold? normally i just keep mine room temperature and everythings fine.. is it because hes using grains for his wort instead of something pre-made and prepared from the store?

[JohnRockwell]

It gets very hot where I'm at. During some months, it is important to keep the fermentations cool. I always find that ale tastes "cleaner" at slightly lower temperatures (I believe Sierra Nevada Pale Ale is fermented at a lower temp), and lagers definitely have to be fermented at a low temp.

[knewok]

@JohnRockwell ok thanks. do you ever add flavour to your beer? like instead of corn sugar or something using brown sugar? or molassus? what are some tips on costumizing beer and the flavour other then which grains you use??

[nodogyougay48]

@knewok I live in Florida and the 2nd beer batch i made turned out sour because i didn't keep it cool enough.

[wes4327]

keep brewin, man i'm on my 5th all grain batch now.

[Christmanite]

You forgot about your strike temp, but I do like your lager cooler

[dr07828]

was that a wooden spoon :O !!!!

[JohnRockwell]

It is a wooden paddle. And it works just fine as long as you don't stick it into the cooled wort. Anything pre-boil is OK.

[Homebrew58]

I like it John. You don't have to have fancy brew sculptures and computer controlled temperature monitors to make good beer.

RDWHAHB

Kevin

[floor121]

why are you fermenting in your "cold storage room"?

[JohnRockwell]

For temperature control--during seasons when I need it.

[5tonyvvvv]

@JohnRockwell Have you tried any gluten free beer brewing?. I made banana honey millet beer, it tastes great, and has the same alcohol content if not more! ,and its way easier to digest .

[sidneyx2]

where do you get malt barley?

[Akerris]

ghetto tastic, no way his set up is sanitized enough. He should really be using malt bags too. Quantity not quality i guess.

[JohnRockwell]

The only thing that needs to be "sanitized" is everything that touches the beer after it has cooled. Get educated, brother!

[Akerris]

Dude leaving all that stuff outside for the wild yeast to have a feild day with can't be good. By the way I've finished my beer internship and will hopefully be working under Maryland's best brewer. If your setup works then fine, but it might explain any abrasive flavors with your beer.

[JohnRockwell]

Once the beer cools, I don't expose it to the air, and I ferment inside in a closed glass fermenter. Now I get where you are coming from--yes, if I were brewing on a 30bbl system, I'd be a bit more careful. Homebrewing allows for some poetic license that a pro wouldn't have. I go for quality, not quantity.

[BobbyFromNJ]

Sorry man, you're so uninformed. Malt bags? Sanitized? Preboil items need no sanitizing whatsoever. Malt bags are for people who don't want to make dedicated tuns with fixed separation mediums. You're clearly a noob extract brewer. If not.. you're playing one on TV.

[BobbyFromNJ]

directed at Akerris of course.

[merkabaradio]

Who cares? A) most people starting out, start out with LME anyway and there's a ton of advantages to using them (including nice contractions of magnesium and other minerals)

B) Why even troll this guy? He's making his own beer and has quite the set up. It's not even like hes forcing you to drink it.

[MartinsBrew]

Its sweet my tap water comes out at 150!!

Very nice, I can only dream.

[alexd29]

Nice fuckin setup dude. I like.

[aarunt1]

So you use a kettle as the mash tun? Would you say that's just as efficient as a cooler mash tun?

[JohnRockwell]

Well, the kettle allows me to monitor the heat a little better. If you're just adding hot water, you have to get the infusion to hit the right temperature. As long as you hit your mark, and the mash stays the same temp for the prescribed amount of time, then the cooler would be OK.

[Keithec49]

thanks for the video. It is nice of you to take the time to share your knowledge

[OPE08]

Did you pop into the lake elsinore lowes looking for a way to sanitize that wooden spoon the other week? Or was it some other wood lover??

Cheers!

[JohnRockwell]

Nope, wasn't me. But as long as the spoon doesn't touch cooled wort or the inside of a fermentation vessel, it wouldn't have to be sanitized.

[rhino7777777]

Is there a specific reason that you don't have the tops on your airlocks? Just curious.

[JohnRockwell]

I probably lost them. Eventually I do put them on, but at the beginning of fermentation, they can blow off a lot of gas and krausen.

[FellowJello]

Very Cook John! We have a local brewery where I live. It's cool to get involved in the chemistry of food. Very neat stuff! Thanks for teaching! Makes me want to make a bach myself!

Jello