Nice. Are the trees yours or do you pick from an orchard?
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This set up is offered for $100.00 on craigslist here. I may go get it today. Or not. I do want a burner and a brew pot for sure though.
https://images.craigslist.org/00M0M_...L_1200x900.jpg
I have about 100 mature trees that were left wild for about 20 years before I bought the place. I have 6 years into pruning and nurturing what was close to becoming maple/wild cherry/ash forest. We have some harsh spring weather that's tough on the buds... this year about 15 trees are holding solid amounts of apple. Even at 15 trees though.... IF I could manage to harvest it all and store it and get it to press that would be well over 200 gallons of juice; goal for the season is 100 gallons.
2 new five gallon corny kegs a bubblin'
:D
Any thoughts on using these for fermenting?
I'm wondering if they will stand up to fermenting without degrading.
https://images.craigslist.org/00404_...84_600x450.jpg
https://images.craigslist.org/00Q0Q_...uG_600x450.jpg
https://seattle.craigslist.org/sno/zip/5816139142.html
Plastic containers are bad for brewing. too easily scratched and those little scratches can allow bacteria to get into a brew and cause off flavors. I avoid plastic at all costs.
That bottle capper is your basic begginers type of capper. Clumsy and a bit of a wrist breaker. Youll use it once or twice and be like fuck this! Its ok for a 1 or 2 gallon brew, but if youre bottling 50+ bottles, youll quickly be hating life.
Burner looks ok, almost looks like a turkey fryer. This is the burner I use and it is a beast!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
http://www.northernbrewer.com/brewin...tar-burner-2-0
The bottles are no good. They work for a few brews and then start to leak. My guess is this guy has used them a few times and they are at that point of starting to leak and need replaced.
I picked up a nice 6 gallon (24 quart) pot to brew in from a local Ross store for $15.
Looking at the setup he is selling, I would guess he is upgrading his system, probably going to all grain type setup, and looking to unload his starter kit. Only thing in that pick of value might be the burner and pot. Offer $25 for that and leave the rest.
Ummm no, just no.
http://www.northernbrewer.com/brewin...o-2-6-5-gallon
I think they have these is like a 2 or 3 gallon size as well. Better than a typical carboy because it is glass as well, but a LARGE mouth opening which makes cleaning a breeze.
When it comes to bottling you are better off just collecting your pop off top bottles yourself. There are a lot of great ways to do this. Buy cases of empty bottles from online (my least favorite way to do this). Drink beers you buy from the store and save the bottles. Cant be screw off like Budweisers etc. Need to be a pop off like Sam Adams etc. My friends beer of choice is the Beck's Sapphire.
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/32/88206/
Which brings me to the next option, ask your beer drinking friends to save their empties for you. He saves these for me, and they are GREAT! Dark black bottles which are great because they keep that horrible beer killing light put of the beer.
those were both 71B-1122; one didn't take (it was 18 months old)... so I restarted it with 1118 which is pretty die hard
10 more gallons bubbling for total of 20 (4 corny kegs); the two new ones are safale 4 and safale 5
bloop..... bloop .....bloop bloop
bloop bloop ..bloop ...bloop
bloop ................bloop bloop.. bloop
We've been boiling off the press tailings into syrup/jelly at 235F or about SG 1.33 or so. Thats some pucker on yer pancakes!
Exactly. Trying to help you from experience. Youll have a pile of trub at the bottom to clean and remove and then the layer of foaming from the fermentation process will coat the upper 15% of your fermenter with a nice coating of sludge to remove as well.
PBW is the best for cleaning. Oxyclean is the best for soaking to remove old labels from used beer bottles. I use star-san for the sanitizing, but it does foam. As it is a no rinse sanitizer, the saying is "dont fear the foam" it wont harm your brew.
I've been buying Grolsch and drinking them but I don't much care for the beer. It's "ok". That's what my first batch went into. I think I will just get a capper and caps, I have a neighbor that owns a local tavern and I'm sure I can get all the cappable (is that a word?) bottles I need.
I use oxyclean on wine bottles before bottling my applewein, I find 24-72 hours is ideal soak; any longer and the oxyclean can re crystalize on inside of your bottles and you have to get it off with vinegar; oxyclean unlike star-san will harm your brew.
For sanitizer, I tend towards bulk potasium metabisulphite.
I use cornelius kegs for primary:
here's 4 for $200
http://www.ebay.com/itm/SET-OF-FOUR-...AAAOSw4shX6e82
http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=cornelius+keg
For wine bottles I put out a craigslist ad for 750's and 1.5l's. I ended up w/ 200 750's that I paid 0.25 each for from a single party.
For gallons I've been collecting over the years from anyone with a bottle laying around or in the recycle bin. Before I bought this property w/ apple trees I had collected about 50 gallons by buying a glass gallon of apple juice twice a month at the grocery.
I have a bunch of tubing, brushes, and airlocks that I bought online.
I bought a 3 legged corker locally at the brew shop. $70ish
For wine that's about all you need; there's nothing to cook. That said... this year I'm looking at picking up a 30qt "all american" canner so we can can 14qts of juice at once for non-alcoholic.
I've also got about 100 750ml liquor bottles that I've been collecting from friends and family for the past two decades. I don't use them yet... but... I've got a 500g stainless tank that will one day be filled with corn mash given the appropriate abundance. A friend of mine runs a 15.5g home made beer keg still; while I don't own one yet, I'm inspired; I've caught the bug and can handle the plumbing. He's a few hours out but next time I'm there he's promised to cook me a 1/2 gal growler of shine at 180proof :D I might end up passing the 500g tank along because he's more remote than me. Cool thing about corn mash though... its really fast. 14 days of bubble and you're on the other side.
Beer Keg Kit 2" inch Copper Pipe Moonshine Still Pot Still Distillation Column
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Beer-Keg-Kit...QAAOSwHnFV1VCi
Admittedly haven't brewed a beer in almost 3 years since my family and work dynamics have drastically changed and things have been CRAZY. Going to try to find some time over Christmas and brew up a Belgian Dubbel recipe that I posted. It's a go to for consistency and it's delicious.
I've tried to brew but that was waste of time, for me. I know absolutely nothing about it
I got back into brewing almost two years ago and got decent equipment. I made some batches of beer that turned out very good. However, beer is too much trouble. It also puts serious weight on me. So, I took up my old meadmaking practice and mastered it. By carefully controlling fermentation conditions and sourcing excellent raw honeys, I now make fantastic meads that are crystal clear and ready to bottle inside of two months - and at 16-17% abv and dry, yet no alcohol heat. This stuff is amazing. My favorite is made from a wildflower honey I source in bulk from Central America.
I also make a few different products from various botanicals including cactus fruit brandy and a spirit made from the body of the cactus that is amazing. These have a tequila like nose and may be substituted for tequila in mixed drinks with good results, but retain a unique flavor. I have had more than one person claim to prefer my oak aged cactus fruit brandy over high end tequilas including Don Julio 1942.
My experience is one can make their own beverages at a fraction of the cost of purchasing directly, and make a far superior product. Beer is a pain in the ass. Working with fruit is messy, so I don't bother with fruit wines (but brandy is easy). Mead is surprisingly easy and makes a divine product ONLY when done properly. Stilling is the easiest of all because control of primary fermentation is not so critical and aging and clearing is not a factor (unless one is looking to barrel age). Fruit brandies (eau de vie) are easy and excellent - and low cost if you get the fruit at low cost.
But if you don't you will get your own unique local yeast started with no need to add any. Just like sourdough. They made brew for thousands of years before they knew about sanitizing. My next batch is going to be a sweet potato/yam ferment, Heard about it from ancient South America and want to try it.
I've never brewed beer before. Then again why would I when I don't drink alcohol?
The best part of taking honey supers off the hive this time of year is that it gives a good excuse to start a batch of mead. I set the scrapped wax cappings off in a separate 5-gallon bucket. I then fill the bucket half full with water and wash the honey off the wax. Skim the floating wax off and drop a hydrometer in the wash water. Add a little more honey to get to a specific gravity of 1.125, add some yeast and nutrients, then off she goes!
XNN
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Preparing a batch of Stone Fence. I have two cider apples trees in the orchard - Calville Blanc D'Hiver and Kingston Black. I have a six gallon batch of cider going right now. I added some of my honey to bring the potential alcohol content up to 16%, which technically makes it a cyser. I will probably mate it with Eagle Rare, which is a straight bourbon whiskey.
What is Stone Fence you ask?
http://allintocider.com/recipes/amer...irst-cocktail/
XNNQuote:
Most colonial towns had few if any civic buildings, making taverns de facto sites for every sort of meeting. In this case, meeting at a tavern undoubtably had its benefits, for although Arnold had an official commission and orders to lead the mission most of the assembled company was unwilling to follow anyone but Allen. As the story goes, all sat down for cups of the local tipple – cider mixed with rum, that other New England staple – a compromise was reached, and the fort was easily captured the next day. The confiscated canons were used six months later to drive the British troops from Boston effectively ending major military activity in New England.
At what point the mix of rum and cider became known as a Stone Fence isn’t clear. Over time, though, taverns across the land would serve cider mixed with whatever spirit was made locally – rum in New England, rye in Pennsylvania, bourbon in Kentucky, or applejack in New Jersey. By the time anyone got around to writing the first bar manual, the Stone Fence had been enfeebled by exchanging cider for sweet apple juice. This version of the Stone Fence isn’t awful, but it lacks a certain thrill. A better approach is to follow the lead of Ethan and his Boys. Take a bottle of your favorite local cider and mix it 1:1 with something from your favorite local distillery, preferably something barrel-aged.