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Thread ID: 85331	2007-12-06 23:53:00	Beer brewing -- questions	Morgenmuffel (187)	PC World Chat

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
618555	2007-12-06 23:53:00	Ok i have just bottled a batch of beer and i have a few questions This is about the third batch of beer i have made in 3 years and they have all been OK, i use the tins you buy in the supermarket Coopers, Geordie etc Anyway i have just found a tin thats been sitting around a few years, the yeast is well and truley expired, but i thought well as i have just brewed and bottled one batch, if i reserve a bit of the liquid from that batch and add it to the batch i am going to brew this afternoon, (along with the expired yeast), would that work, i know expired bread yeast still works in baking, just not as well, but surely the liquid would have a good dose of yeasy thingies in it Also Should i stringently sterilise the gear i am going to use for this new brew or would it be fine as i have just pretty much taken a brew out of it, obviously i will give it a good rinse How much do bottles cost (The empty ones), as most of mine are in use now, so i need to increase my stock What exactly do finings do, i have had a brief read but they seem to be well mainly for clearing the beer, do they improve taste or even effect it? How do you keep your bottled beer at 18 - 25 degrees for 5 days, as i can't figure it out and there were more questions but i have forgotten them	Morgenmuffel (187)
618556	2007-12-07 01:36:00	Anyway i have just found a tin thats been sitting around a few years, the yeast is well and truley expired, but i thought well as i have just brewed and bottled one batch, if i reserve a bit of the liquid from that batch and add it to the batch i am going to brew this afternoon, (along with the expired yeast), would that work, Also Should i stringently sterilise the gear i am going to use How much do bottles cost (The empty ones), as most of mine are in use now, so i need to increase my stock What exactly do finings do, i have had a brief read but they seem to be well mainly for clearing the beer, do they improve taste or even effect it? How do you keep your bottled beer at 18 - 25 degrees for 5 days, as i can't figure it out No it won't work. There won't be enough. Throw it and get a new tin. Yes you need to sterilise. Unless you like contaminated beer. As finings are used to clear sediment etc yes I suppose it would improve the taste. I wouldn't bother. The temperature and stuff is in the pamphlet that comes with the tin.	pctek (84)
618557	2007-12-07 03:02:00	How much do bottles cost (The empty ones), as most of mine are in use now, so i need to increase my stockBetter to increase your drinking - problem solved!	Greg (193)
618558	2007-12-07 03:07:00	Better to increase your drinking - problem solved! The beer is no good if you drink it before it is ready.	Greven (91)
618559	2007-12-07 04:08:00	How do you keep your bottled beer at 18 - 25 degrees for 5 days, as i can't figure it out If you are good at DIY you can make a little cabinet to keep your beer warm for 5 days. Use a light bulb and a thermostat to keep it at a constant temperature. The heat from the light bulb being your heat source. :)	Trev (427)
618560	2007-12-07 04:10:00	Brewing and bottling problems are a bit out of school here. Testing is probably where you will get the most help. ( For real mystery stuff, use old yeast. The coroner may appreciate the unusual diagnostics involved. )	R2x1 (4628)
618561	2007-12-07 04:13:00	Better to increase your drinking - problem solved! No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no No no no and no again Last time i drank underdone home brew I woke up in a toilet with my regurgitated dinner in my jocks (who knew noodles could survive 8 hours in your belly intact) my left eyebrow and the right hand side of my goatee shaved off and realising i had an 8am lecture in about 3 hrs, so no to drinking the underdone home brew	Morgenmuffel (187)
618562	2007-12-07 04:18:00	If you are good at DIY you can make a little cabinet to keep your beer warm for 5 days. Use a light bulb and a thermostat to keep it at a constant temperature. The heat from the light bulb being your heat source. :) My DIY skills make Tim the tool man taylor look good, I managed to get my drill jammed into a joist and it took me 3 weeks to wriggle the bloody thing out So me and anything electrical are probably a bit of a no no	Morgenmuffel (187)
618563	2007-12-07 06:13:00	Nigel, I'm casting my mind back to when home brewing was a regular event in this household, but fear I've now forgotten most of what I learned - as an observer. I did ask questions when Mr Laura was going through his learning curve, but lost interest once he'd got it off pat, as beer wasn't my own choice of refreshment. Apart from the first stages of mixing & the cleaning up, it all happened "out in the shed," (which is of course where it traditionally belongs) What I remember about the system for keeping it warm may be no use to you. But just in case it prompts an idea... The first version was a small heating pad - like a tiny electric blanket - donated by a friend who'd originally bought it to keep pedigree pups warm in winter. Above that were draped some of my old gardening jerseys. Mark 2 was a lucky find at a 2nd hand auction - also a heating pad, but taken out of a weird tartan bag supposed to be a footwarmer (No, I've never seen another one) As for bottles, what kind are you using? We started saving the old glass half-Gs (a peter in the south) once plastic started replacing them. Later, you could still get 2 litre glass bottles from sherry-drinking friends - though I think those may have shrunk to 1.5 litres by now..? A pity you're not closer. There's still a collection of them behind other stuff waaayy back in the shed... And a bent glass tube thingy keeps turning up every so often... Yes, he used finings. Sterilising wasn't any flasher than hot water, Sunlight Liquid & a large bottlebrush. Brewtec Draught rings a bell, plus Coopers & Geordie are familiar names. Happy brewing.	Laura (43)
618564	2007-12-07 09:25:00	I'm a bit like Mr Laura - home-brewing very popular in my younger days when money was tight (when isn't it??!!). I recall I purchased a warming strap/heater from the Home Brew shop - wrapped around the keg and plugged in - you could move it up or down the keg to maintain temperature. I found I only really needed it in the winter (being located in Auckland) but found some success in using an old down ski jacket which fitted over the keg perfectly when the weather was marginal (with or without the heater, depending on conditions). I generally used the brown 750ml bottles, with a few of the flip-top Grolsch bottles and a good number of the small green Steinie bottles. I worked for a pub back then, so the standard glass bottles were pretty easy to come by - the Grolsch bottles, I had to "invest" in - a worthy cause!!! :D After I left the pub and had given away many of the glass bottles, I experimented with brown plastic 750ml screw-tops, purchased from the Home Brew shop. They were OK, but didn't stay cold long enough!! Had to give up brewing when I noticed my weight had increased by 10kg over 18 months!! Ahh, but those were the days! :D If you get a chance, try a ginger beer, but make it an alcoholic one - chilled well, it's great in the summer!	johcar (6283)
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