A Question About Taking Samples...

[katana]

Howdy guys.

First post here after lurking for a couple of months. I am all ready for my 1st brew (after about 2 decades since the old days of K&K).
Being a Tooheys Old guzzeller for a while, I thought I`d go with this recipe -


Tooheys Dark Ale

1 can Tooheys Dark Ale

250g Light Dry Malt Extract

250g Dark Dry Malt Extract

250g Dextrose

5g Salt

1 Pkt Tooheys Dry Yeast (from the kit)







I have everything I need and plan on brewing this evening.

Question - I plan on having my carboy in my laundry tub with frozen 2L milk containers to try and get to 20C. What is holding me up is, how do I draw off a sample of my brew with the tap at the bottom of the tub? I`m thinking along the lines of turning the tap to the side and attaching a length of tube to it and see if I can draw some that way.

Any ideas?

Also, feel free to comment on the recipe shamelessly taken from http://www.geocities.com/lesjudith/AleReci...AleRecipes.html


Thanks.

 

[neilb]

I just found some large books and carefully built a stack for my fermenter to stick on so I could use the tap. For more stability you could use a milk crate, breezeblocks, bricks, etc.

 

[Wrenny]

I usually don't bother taking samples until I think it's done. Taking heaps of samples during the primary fermentation isn't going to help or change or show anything, it's just going to introduce another chance for infection.

I take a sample before the yeast is pitched. Then another after 12 days fermenting. Another the next day, and if they haven't moved, chill overnight to drop out the yeast and bottle the next day (ie 2 weeks after brewing).

I have my fermenter in a garbage bin full of water and ice blocks. To take a sample I have to lift it out onto the table. Bit of a pain in the arse, but it works. I have to move it into the fridge anyway. And then back up onto the table for bottling. It gets moved around a lot.

 

[katana]

Thanks Guys.

I guess for this batch, I will just lift it out and refine the process as I go.

I intend to rack to secondary, so I guess I`ll know how it goes in 5-6 days.

Cheers & Beers!

 

[katana]

I just found the perfect solution...

My 6 year old has out-grown his "step", a moulded plastic height adjuster for the littlees.

Works a treat and is easy to clean.

Yeast is in the starting solution and I`m nearly ready to mix extracts.

Man, this is fun.

 

[Tyred]

Don't bother trying to get a sample during primary if you are going to rack to secondary. Just take a sample when you rack. That will give you an idea of how it is progressing.

 

[clarkey7]

Howdy guys.

First post here after lurking for a couple of months. I am all ready for my 1st brew (after about 2 decades since the old days of K&K).
Being a Tooheys Old guzzeller for a while, I thought I`d go with this recipe -
Tooheys Dark Ale

1 can Tooheys Dark Ale

250g Light Dry Malt Extract

250g Dark Dry Malt Extract

250g Dextrose

5g Salt

1 Pkt Tooheys Dry Yeast (from the kit)
I have everything I need and plan on brewing this evening.

Katana,

I too don't mind a tooheys old on tap at the pub.

I was very disappointed with the home brew versions of both the tooheys kits I made especially the dark ale one.....

I hope you have a different experience - but I doubt it....Sorry.

Some better news. The beermakers old was a fairly similar match to commercial Toohey's old. Just not sure if it is still available.

Better news - I settled on Morgan's Ironbark Dark Ale as my got to black beer. It is Bloody Beauuuuuuudiful :beerbang: every time..... (no affiliation etc etc..)

I've also found the Morgans supplied yeast to be better than most other included ones on the market....IMHO of course.

PB

 

[katana]

Cheers for that Pocket Beers.

Re- Tooheys Old on tap.... Mothers Milk.

I don`t expect to put Lion Nathan out of business this batch, give me a month or two .

A couple of my older mates, 60 odd, won`t drink anything but Old on tap, so I`m sure the critics
will prevail. From what I`ve read, trying to replicate the big boys is nigh on impossible, so my
expectations aren`t that high.

Tyred - Thanks for the tip. Will make life easier!

 

[Fatgodzilla]

Cheers for that Pocket Beers.

Re- Tooheys Old on tap.... Mothers Milk.

I don`t expect to put Lion Nathan out of business this batch, give me a month or two .

A couple of my older mates, 60 odd, won`t drink anything but Old on tap, so I`m sure the critics
will prevail. From what I`ve read, trying to replicate the big boys is nigh on impossible, so my
expectations aren`t that high.

Tyred - Thanks for the tip. Will make life easier!

From memory, the last (only) Tooheys Dark I made wasn't actually black beer but real dirty brown. Or am I mistaken ?
If so, you might need something to darken the mix and to add a touch of "burnt" flavour.

 

[Adamt]

mmm... Tooheys Old... Tooheys New with black malt

It does crap all over drinking New at a dodgy bar with only swill, though.

As said this won't turn out like Tooheys Old, won't be dark/roasty enough. Just a question, why the salt?

 

[katana]

Just a question, why the salt?

I was hoping someone here could answer that as well.

The source of the recipe is above.

 

[tcraig20]

I tend to set up my fermenter on a towel and just put a couple of frozen 2L milk bottles next to it then wrap that in another towel. It gets things down to 18C fairly effectively. No drips or mess, not much fuss.

I agree with the comments about Old being about the best of the megaswill. I made a fairly decent dark a while back on a tin of Blackrock NZ company bitter, 1kg dark dry malt extract and a pack of S04. Might throw a little black grain in if I make it again. Went down well with the mother in law too - she drank most of it on me

 

[katana]

OK, After 6 days at 22C, racked this brew yesterday.

OG - 1038, Racking Gravity 1014.

Will let it sit for 14 days and then bottle with the lolly drops that came with the kit.

Only problem I had was with the sediment trap in the carboy. Darn thing was blocked and would only
let the brew trickle through the transfer hose. I ended up sanitizing my spoon and tapping the trap till it came good.
Will leave it off in the future, as I will be racking most future brews.


Here`s what next for me -

Rich Old Stout

1 can Coopers Stout

750g Light Dry Malt Extract

750g Dark Dry Malt Extract

250g Dry Corn Syrup

250g Raw Sugar

150g Golden Syrup

50g Roasted Barley

175g Cooking Chocolate

20g Instant Coffee

5g Salt

18g Willamette Hop Pellets (Boiling)

1 Pkt Coopers Dry Ale Yeast.

Note: If you have a spare packet of Coopers Yeast

use 2 pkts in this brew as it will ferment out better.

Bottle Conditioning----6 weeks (min)







I will be using SAFALE 04 and Fuggles for the 1st time, as I can`t source any Willamette atm.
I`m also still trying to find some Roasted Barley, might have to go for a drive outta town.

Any comments?

Cheers.

 

[Simon W]

RE: Salt

The Sodium in the salt will round-out the flavours and accentuate sweetness.
The Chloride in the salt will also accentuate the flavour and can accentuate the mouthfeel to seem fuller.

5grams in a 22.5L batch will add enough of each ion to fall midway in the acceptable range, assuming there wasn't too much of either pre-existing in the water.

A description of mineral Ion's in water can be found Here.

 

[katana]

Thanks for that Simon.

I finished reading How to Brew by John Palmer last night and came to the conclusion that
the addition of salt might have something to do with the water.

I can`t track down any Roasted Barley for my #002 Brew, so I`m going to leave it out this time.

Cheers!