How to Home Brew a Batch of Beer Part 2

[backyardsounds]

3:15 - WTH!?

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[AK4tsevEn]

brilliant videos, cheers mate!

[Jackdg1984]

Hay nice video im looking to start brewing my self and its cool that there are video on YouTube like this....thank you for the info.

[AUdioHipster]

Thanks for the Vid... really enjoyed it being stay at hone dad myself, and like the way you put the hops in the the end not more the 15 min & hopefully it won'y turn out to be a bitter undrinkable mess. Rate your Buzz & Drink Better Beer Brew Your Own... Thanks Doyen Audio Hipster

[smoothlarryhughes]

@benshomebrew...it looked like you only had 2.5 gallons of water in your pot...but after you dumped it into your bucket you had about 5 gallons. Did you dilute the wort at all to get it up to the 5 gallons?

[benshomebrew]

@smoothlarryhughes

Yes, it's a partial boil of 2.5 gallons and then you top up the rest to achieve 5 gallons.

[jmohno]

wouldn't that starsan spray drip onto the yeast and kill it? when u sprayed the lid. and also is it neccessary to cover the lid when cooling it or not?

[benshomebrew]

@jmohno

Star san is fantastic because it actually breaks down into a yeast nutrient when it gets diluted into wort.  Give it a try some time.

[OPE08]

Seriously? table sugar?? and 2 POUNDS of table sugar?? Was that beer or root-beer?

[benshomebrew]

@OPE08

Table sugar is just fine to use. In another comment I mentioned that Ommegang brewery uses table sugar in many of their beers. It's 100% fermentable and doesn't add off/cidery flavors. Give it a shot some time. :)

[OPE08]

@benshomebrew - Sorry Ben, I don't mean to come off as a jerk, I agree that table sugar is okay for priming, altho' in general I don't use it at all. And you're right, in priming the small amount wont effect flavor, but in this case? 2 pounds of table sugar seems a bit odd?

I've done Belgian quads that used a pound or two of candy sugar, but I have yet to see table sugar listed in any recipe I've ever looked at.

cheers!

[benshomebrew]

@OPE08

Candy sugar is nothing but sucrose (table sugar), so you have seen it listed in recipes, it just goes by a more expensive name. :)

[OPE08]

@benshomebrew - I've talked to a few Brewers who I know and respect the opinion of, and they all seem to agree that if kept within 8-15% of the total fermentables of a recipe then straight sucrose has no negative attributes. All of them say they know recipes that use more, but none of them are comfortable using more than 15% as an absolute max.

Belgians are, obviously, a different story than most other categories, but I have to admit to being suprised that so many felt exactly the same.

cheers

[thezodiac8973]

can we get a review of the final product

[benshomebrew]

zodiac,

The final product was awesome. Had a decent amount of bitterness and a ton of piny-resin flavor in it with some great head retention and well balanced. Give it a shot. I think you'll like it if you like hoppy beer.

[RANGER2D]

Ben-- Just curious how long I should wait to rack to the secondary fermenter. Local brew shop says 1 week. Books say 2-4 days. I have kept my American Red Ale at 68 degrees for 2 days now, and fermentation is slowing down... bubbles in the airlock are not nearly as regular as they were the first days. I am patient, but anxious as well. I just don't want to rush things...

[benshomebrew]

7-10 days is pretty standard. If I were you I wouldn't even bother racking off to secondary. I don't think it's necessary. Just leave it in primary for another week if you want to. But the only real way is to take hydrometer readings. If you are hitting the same numbers a few days in a row then go ahead and rack. DON'T rely on the airlock. Good luck.

[RANGER2D]

How do you feel about adding cold tap water for cooling?? I have heard that you should boil and chill water used for cooling, but I have seen it done many different ways. For my first batch I used cold tap water..... input??

[benshomebrew]

@RANGER2D

You can use cool tap water. I've used store bought ice plenty of times to cool down wort. If you go that route, remember that 1 bag (7lbs) is 1 gallon of water. Two bags will bring a partial boil down to pitching temps in less than 10 minutes. It works great. And don't believe the nay sayers that say it's not clean. I've done it dozens of times and have never had an infection.

[jmeckle1]

I brewed a batch yesterday and realized I probably didn't aerate it enough. Is this going to be a problem? If so, should I go back and stir it up, or should I just let it be?

[benshomebrew]

jmeckle,

If you've already added the yeast, then don't do anything right now. If you're using dry yeast you don't have to aerate because they come packed with all the nutrients they need. Only liquid yeast needs the wort aerated well.

You'll be fine.

[gbluesrocker]

thank you sir, looking forward to brewing!

[gbluesrocker]

great video! could you tell me how many gallons you made from that batch and cooling temp when the yeast is added?

[benshomebrew]

5 Gallons of beer was made and the yeast was added at 68 degree temperature.

[26862]

shouldnt you mix the yeast into the wort? just wondering

[benshomebrew]

It's not necessary. Once the yeast rehydrate then they'll fall into solution and then come back up to the top, especially if it is Ale yeast; because it is top fermenting yeast.

[RGH1502]

Great vid! I usually just shake the hell out of my carboy when I aerate it. I think I like your way better. I noticed you didnt make a starter for your yeast. I usually do, have you ever tried it? How long did it take to cool the wort with the snow? that seems like a pretty green way to do business! I use an immersion chiller. Its really the only "good amount" of money I have spent on my gear at about $70. Thanks for sharing your videos!

[benshomebrew]

I only make starters with liquid yeast. You don't have to make starters for dry yeast. They come packaged with all their essential nutrients. Just hydrate and pitch or do a direct pitch like I did.

Glad you enjoyed the vids.

[kamuimusackie]

Does it compare to any IPA you are familiar with? Looks good hop-wise, but I can't speak for the malt and grains.

[benshomebrew]

Yeah, it would be on par with double simcoe IPA, however not a DIPA. Malt sweetness was there but if I did this all grain I would add munich malt instead of 2 row for more malt backbone. Because I added sucrose I dried it out a bit and that takes away from the malt balance.

[mac8794]

adding sucrose?

[japetus]

So, how did it taste? Anything like a Lagunitas IPA? :)

[benshomebrew]

I've never had a Lagunitas IPA, so I can't compare, but it did taste really great. I think the keg was gone in two weeks! I shared sparingly with some family members! :)