Birth of a Beer...

[Lanky Livingston]

That was the striking thing about the 120-minute for me, it had very little hop flavor to it.

 

[tshile]

picked up my kegerator last night. guy didn't know what he was selling me. he built it out of his college mini fridge, and to be honest the fridge almost looks shot.

but I got a 5 lbs co2 tank, 2 sankey kegs (I know a lot of people don't like them, but I think I will), a low profile sankey coupler, and the faucet system.

Minus the fridge there's about 350$ worth of equipment there, and it's all in pretty good condition as far as I could tell. I got for $290 plus I got the fridge with it.

Even if the fridge breaks in the next 3 months I can buy a new one and still be ahead. I'm eventually going to go with a chest freezer system. I can reuse all this equipment for that. This shady fridge will due in the meantime. I'm hoping I can pick something up on black Friday for cheap. When I move over I can repurpose this fridge for fermenting lagers.

 

[Boone]

Kegging is awesome. Beyond how much simpler it is compared to bottling, my favorite advantage is being. Able to force-carb your beer instead of carbonating with sugar and being able to drink it immediately. Let me know if you are not familIar with how to do it and I'll walk you through it.

 

[tshile]

Yeah those are the two reasons I decided to go this route. I bottled my first batch and it wasn't the bottling that pissed me off - it was the cleaning the bottles that pissed me off.

I'm going to still bottle some of my beer because I want to be able to take it with me and kegging presents some interesting issues with that - still doable but not if you want to bring 3 or 4 beers over to watch a game with a friend.

I'm familiar with force carbing but it's looking like it's quite a challenge with sankey kegs. With the Corny kegs it's relatively easy. I have whats called a low profile sankey coupler - http://www.amazon.com/Low-Profile-Sankey-Keg-Coupler/dp/B006IW80HY

There's no shutoff for the beer. You install the coupler and when you're ready to tap it you snap it down - CO2 starts flowing in immediately, and beer comes out when you open up the faucet.

So there's 3 routes I can go:
1 - force carb with the faucet hooked up. This isn't ideal but will work if all else fails
2 - Try to pick up a cap nut that fits the coupler on the beer-out side. I can cap it off, force carb, release the coupler, hook the beer line back up, re-tap the keg and be on my way.
3 - buy one of the sankey-to-corny-style-fittings like this http://www.williamsbrewing.com/SANKE-US-KEG-COUPLING-HEAD-P1897C118.aspx
But I can't use that in the current fridge because there isn't enough room. I could use it solely for force carbing, but it's the most expensive option.

I'm going to try for option 2. We'll see how it goes. I believe I can get a cap nut from home depot/lowes.

The only real issue I have with force carbing, from what I can tell from reading, is how to tell when you've effectively bled all the air out to start the process. I want all the air out, but I don't want to just waste a ton of CO2.

 

[tshile]

aw that asshole didn't use Teflon tape so the beer out barb is seized into the coupler.

 

[Boone]

Yeah those are the two reasons I decided to go this route. I bottled my first batch and it wasn't the bottling that pissed me off - it was the cleaning the bottles that pissed me off.

I'm going to still bottle some of my beer because I want to be able to take it with me and kegging presents some interesting issues with that - still doable but not if you want to bring 3 or 4 beers over to watch a game with a friend.

I'm familiar with force carbing but it's looking like it's quite a challenge with sankey kegs. With the Corny kegs it's relatively easy. I have whats called a low profile sankey coupler - http://www.amazon.com/Low-Profile-Sankey-Keg-Coupler/dp/B006IW80HY

There's no shutoff for the beer. You install the coupler and when you're ready to tap it you snap it down - CO2 starts flowing in immediately, and beer comes out when you open up the faucet.

So there's 3 routes I can go:
1 - force carb with the faucet hooked up. This isn't ideal but will work if all else fails
2 - Try to pick up a cap nut that fits the coupler on the beer-out side. I can cap it off, force carb, release the coupler, hook the beer line back up, re-tap the keg and be on my way.
3 - buy one of the sankey-to-corny-style-fittings like this http://www.williamsbrewing.com/SANKE-US-KEG-COUPLING-HEAD-P1897C118.aspx
But I can't use that in the current fridge because there isn't enough room. I could use it solely for force carbing, but it's the most expensive option.

I'm going to try for option 2. We'll see how it goes. I believe I can get a cap nut from home depot/lowes.

The only real issue I have with force carbing, from what I can tell from reading, is how to tell when you've effectively bled all the air out to start the process. I want all the air out, but I don't want to just waste a ton of CO2.

I have no experience with sankey kegs, so I won't even attempt to advise you there. But the air in the keg is a non-issue. First of all, CO2 is heavier than air, so if you turn on the CO2 attached to your keg, it's going to fill it up from the top to the bottom - essentially the CO2 just pushes the air out as it fills the container, then you siphon in your beer. Even if there's air in it, it's a non-issue (I told you before, you read enough you'll start to worry about everything ). The C02 is forced into solution/dissolves into the beer, it's irrelevant if you've got a little air in there with it imho. Btw - if/when you do force carb (you don't have to do that, you could set the C02 to on and leave it for 7-10 days and it'll carbonate great that way - it's actually better in my experience to do that if you have the patience - force carbed beer always tastes a little 'new' and artificial to me) you want the beer very cold. The colder the beer, the easier it is for the CO2 to move into solution. It's the coolest thing, when you're 'rolling' a keg hooked up to CO2, it hums/vibrates as the CO2 is absorbed. Basically, you stop rolling when you don't feel that humming happening anymore. It's pretty cool

 

[tshile]

Sweet, thanks for the tips.

I just ordered all new lines, a new coupler *sigh*, and cleaning equipment for the kegs and the lines.

I probably could have gotten away without a new coupler, but I want to be able to clean this stuff appropriately, especially since it's used, and you can't clean it right if you can't take it apart.

 

[tshile]

So I decided to just buy a hose plug and cut a short (like 2 inch) section of hose, plug it, and connect it to the beer side when i'm force carbing.

I can't wait to tear these kegs apart and clean them this weekend. I ordered 8lbs of cleaner. I'm afraid to open them up before then, I'm sure it's quite disgusting in there...

 

[Lanky Livingston]

With 25 new breweries opening in 2012, Texas jumps onto list of Top 5 fastest growing beer-states, 3rd behind Calif (56) and Colo (29).

 

[tshile]

I'm curious what the cost of opening a brewery is in all the states.

I know VA is ridiculously expensive, it's something like 5k just in licensing fees and it takes forever to go through the process.

Compared to NC where I think it's like $300 for a license and takes like 2 weeks.

 

[Neophyte]

Texas is not the most brewery friendly state. I looked at it a couple of years ago and there are a number of hoops you have to jump through, although it is getting easier.

I'd like them to open up the regulations on nano-breweries like some other states have done so I could do that in my garage to supply a buddy who owns a bar and wants to put home-brew on tap.

 

[Lanky Livingston]

Texas is not the most brewery friendly state. I looked at it a couple of years ago and there are a number of hoops you have to jump through, although it is getting easier.

I'd like them to open up the regulations on nano-breweries like some other states have done so I could do that in my garage to supply a buddy who owns a bar and wants to put home-brew on tap.

Neo, have you been following the "Open the Taps" campaign? I know they just passed some legislation recently (as in yesterday, I believe) that loosens a lot of the restrictions on craft breweries. They can now sell beer at the breweries, among other things. Not sure if they passed anything in regards to starting a new one, but they may have.

 

[Neophyte]

Yeah, I have been following it, Lanky. And yeah, they are working at loosening things up here in Texas but that legislation was really aimed at currently operating breweries.

What I would like to see is legislation that makes the step from homebrewing to commercial brewing smaller. In NY, they have what they call nano-breweries where guys get 1 to 3 barrel systems and the produce and sell beer out of their garage. I doubt I will ever want to get into it to the point of opening a big craft brewery or even a brew pub but I could see myself running a nano-brewery in my garage where folks could come fill a growler or I produced enough to supply local restaurants or bars with kegs.

 

[tshile]

neo - at that point would you be crafting your own recipes (maybe you already do?) ?

 

[tshile]

so I have tasted the first batch. it's not really carbonated yet though. it's also awful. tastes like it's watered down like natty light, also tastes stale because it's not really carbonated.

so yeah, stale natty light. pretty awful. can't wait for the IPA to be ready, I have expectations that will actually taste like a beer.

 

[Neophyte]

neo - at that point would you be crafting your own recipes (maybe you already do?) ?

I already do my own, t. In fact, with the exception of the first batch of beer I ever brewed, I have always done my own recipes.

 

[Boone]

Don't give up on your first batch...uncarbed beer rarely tastes like the finished product. Generally if I sneak a taste when bottling and it's 'not bad' it turns into good beer in 3-4 weeks. If it tastes good uncarbed that's usually a sign it will be amazing.

 

[tshile]

Oh I'm not giving up. I've got an ipa I'm kegging this weekend that'll be ready next weekend and the porter will sit and age for a while. I'm just sneaking a bottle here and there. I actually tasted it a few days ago, and just tried another and it's finally got some head when it pours and it's not that bad.

I'll have plenty of beer, just have to wait a bit longer. If the bottles have to wait a few more weeks it won't bother me a bit. Just have to make it to next weekend

Favorite hobby ever at this point. I love watching it ferment.

 

[tshile]

I already do my own, t. In fact, with the exception of the first batch of beer I ever brewed, I have always done my own recipes.

When I get into all grain I'm hoping to go that route. I need to learn what does what better first. I have a... Mediocre pallet so I'm not sure how well it'll work out.

Do you stick to one general style of beer or are you able to whip up recipes of all types?

 

[Neophyte]

When I get into all grain I'm hoping to go that route. I need to learn what does what better first. I have a... Mediocre pallet so I'm not sure how well it'll work out.

Do you stick to one general style of beer or are you able to whip up recipes of all types?

I'm all over the place, sir. I have brewed everything from Rye Ales and Belgian Wits to Porters and Stouts. Looking at my recipe list, I have 10 different beers I have brewed, however that doesn't account for changes I have made in the recipes to try and improve them.

Sometimes the change is as small as adding something to the boil instead of to the secondary fermentation (or vice versa) and sometimes it's as major as changing the yeast (or even using two different yeasts together).

I also do a lot of research into the style I want to brew before I start a new recipe so even when making up my own it isn't just about throwing whatever looks or sounds good into the mash. I usually try to stick to the style guidelines to a close degree.