Homebrewers - Whats in the fermenter?

I just bottled my American Brown Ale. Next week a nice Stout will be started.

[JohnnyKay5]

Originally Posted by Darrell

I just bottled my American Brown Ale. Next week a nice Stout will be started.

excellent choices

[kenstogie]

Kits get delivered tomorrow.

After brewing my own, I find it hard to drink off the shelf stuff.

Is this wrong?

[BeerAdvocate]

2 kits from Northern Brewer:

Phat Tyre
Patersbier

[kenstogie]

Originally Posted by BeerAdvocate

2 kits from Northern Brewer:

Phat Tyre
Patersbier

I was checking their site and notice they mention using white ordinary table sugar for priming. Is this recommended? I kind of like the idea as it's cheap and readily available. Although I would probably not be inclined to use it, What about using DME?


Here's a link on the subject but doesn't really say if there are any downsides to them.

http://www.howtobrew.com/section1/chapter11-4.html

Also heres a chart I found on the matter also.

The only downside to using table sugar is that sucrose is a disaccharide of fructose and glucose that the yeast has to break apart, then convert the fructose into glucose before it can metabolize it. That's why most people use corn sugar, being pure glucose it can be metabolized without any extra work. You can use DME, but it takes more of it since it's less fermentable, as well as being more expensive to start with.

[kenstogie]

Am I understanding this the only down side is time? No flavor difference?

Since you're working the yeast a bit harder, there's a potential for there to be a flavor difference, but since we're only talking about a few ounces for priming, you'll never taste it. Using DME could certainly change the flavor since you're adding unfermentables as well. There are people that claim DME gives them "finer" carbonation, as in smaller bubbles, but there's nothing to back that up, and many others that tried it and claim no difference.

[kenstogie]

Originally Posted by Scimmia

Since you're working the yeast a bit harder, there's a potential for there to be a flavor difference, but since we're only talking about a few ounces for priming, you'll never taste it. Using DME could certainly change the flavor since you're adding unfermentables as well. There are people that claim DME gives them "finer" carbonation, as in smaller bubbles, but there's nothing to back that up, and many others that tried it and claim no difference.

THanks for the INFO BRO!!

Any time. Just make sure you use the correct calculation for whatever type of sugar you end up using!

[kenstogie]

Originally Posted by Scimmia

Any time. Just make sure you use the correct calculation for whatever type of sugar you end up using!

It could be worse than that, glass bottles tend to explode if overcarbed too much. That would take quite a bit, but it's happened over and over again.

[kenstogie]

Originally Posted by Scimmia

It could be worse than that, glass bottles tend to explode if overcarbed too much. That would take quite a bit, but it's happened over and over again.

I never had a bottle explode (thankfully). I assumed that the caps would blow off. The actual glass blow apart?

[BeerAdvocate]

Originally Posted by kenstogie

I never had a bottle explode (thankfully). I assumed that the caps would blow off. The actual glass blow apart?

Leaving too much headspace in the bottle can cause bottle bombs also.
I learned this the hard way on my 2nd beer I brewed. It was the last amount of beer in my bottling bucket and I didnt want to waste it so I bottled it and it only filled the bottle half way. I went ahead and capped.
Two weeks later, at about 4am I hear glasses shattering. Im still finding little pieces of glass in my brewing room in the basement.

Yep, they generally call them "bottle bombs". It's usually from bottling before fermentation is done, but way too much priming sugar could do the same thing.

Is Northern Brewer a pretty good site to order from?

Also, what are "prime" conditions for aging beer?

[MarkinAZ]

My new 'Williams Brewing' Winter 2009 catalog arrived in the mail today...

Originally Posted by Darrell

Is Northern Brewer a pretty good site to order from?
Also, what are "prime" conditions for aging beer?

Darrell, here are some sites I've used and for continuous reference:

http://www.williamsbrewing.com/

http://morebeer.com/

http://breworganic.com/

http://www.whitelabs.com/

http://www.wyeastlab.com/

http://www.freshops.com/

http://www.howtobrew.com/sitemap.html

http://www.realbeer.com/hops/

http://www.byo.com/

http://www.qualityales.com/index.php

http://www.maltosefalcons.com/

I think you'll find information in some of these sites to help in your homebrewing adventure...


PS. In regards to your 'aging' question, if you're brewing an English Bitter Ale for example, a prime temperature range is cellar conditions being between 50 - 55* in the bottle following the carbonation process...

[cherrybomb]

darrell pretty much the same conditions for wine; cellar temperature 55- 60 degrees and try to keep the temperature as constant as you can

Is beer even worth aging?

Originally Posted by Darrell

Is beer even worth aging?

Depends on the beer. Generally beers like barleywines and imperial stouts age well, while hoppy or ligher beers don't.