Homebrewing Stack Exchange
Homebrewing Stack Exchange

Most Popular

more tags
1500 questions
8
votes
2 answers

What is the danger zone for overcarbonating and making bottle bombs?

Just curious how many volumes of CO2 most average beer bottles can hold. Is there a rough number where alarms should start going off? Update -- I'm seeing in different carbonation calculators that some styles suggest being carbonated to close to…
STW
  • 1,522
  • 2
  • 14
  • 23
8
votes
4 answers

What are the pros and cons of adding specialty grains to the mash?

When all-grain brewing, you typically add all your grains to the mash, right? Is there ever a time when you leave some of the specialty grains out and steep them instead? What are the pros and cons of mashing everything versus leaving some grains…
JackSmith
  • 6,433
  • 2
  • 43
  • 54
8
votes
4 answers

How can I achieve smokey flavours?

I'm only just getting started with homebrewing however I have a longer term goal of going all-grain and brewing a porter with a distinctly smokey flavour to it. Something similar to the flavours found in Bombardier Satanic Mills. What factors go in…
Perrin255
  • 401
  • 4
  • 13
8
votes
3 answers

Longevity of bottled mead

I have some mead in bottles, which have been stored in a reasonably cool, dark place for possibly as much as two years old. I had intended to leave it for about a year for bottle conditioning, but now I'm curious what's likely to have happened after…
Herb
  • 653
  • 6
  • 6
8
votes
8 answers

Cleaning bottles - What's a good cleaning agent?

At this point I am using regular dishwashing liquid for cleaning my bottles. This is not perfect, I know and I think, I am seeing a detrimental effect on the foam, but I do not know a good alternative. Can you guys name any?
Tobi
  • 423
  • 4
  • 11
8
votes
1 answer

How to adjust alcohol content of a beer?

I have read stories about people brewing beer with an extremely high alcohol content, and am curious about how they do it. At a basic level, I know that alcohol is a byproduct of yeast breaking down sugars, but how can you increase the alcohol…
Bryan
  • 407
  • 2
  • 6
  • 7
8
votes
4 answers

Is Final Gravity a good indicator of sweetness?

This question is as simple as the title reads. In general, if I know the FG of any given beer, can that be a good indicator to me of how sweet that beer will taste? So the higher the FG, the sweeter the taste. My guess ... 80% of the time that will…
JasonStoltz
  • 573
  • 1
  • 7
  • 15
8
votes
2 answers

How to smoke your malts

How would I go about smoking barley (no points awarded for answering "in a pipe")? My LHBS has a couple of smoked varieties, but not the exact type of smoke I want. I'd like a method that doesn't involve buying a ton of equipment, if possible.
PMV
  • 3,799
  • 4
  • 28
  • 32
8
votes
3 answers

Is There A Way To Get Root Beer Taste/Smell Out Of Kegging Equipment?

I've since learned better, but when I first got my kegging setup, I put root beer on one of the lines. After that keg was empty, I decided to put soda water in instead. Unfortunately, the root beer scent is fairly strong. Like I said, I've since…
J Wynia
  • 1,544
  • 1
  • 10
  • 17
8
votes
2 answers

Refractometer - what exactly can it measure?

I am using a refractometer to determine gravities. I am aware of course that values measured need to be corrected depending on OG of the fermenting batch. What I don't know is, what kind of sugars am I measuring. Am I only measuring fermentable…
Tobi
  • 423
  • 4
  • 11
8
votes
5 answers

Critical Steps to follow for any homebrew beer recipe or process

I've got my second batch of homebrew fermenting, and in just two batches I've learned a lot the hard way (messed up batch priming, possibly under-aerated the wort, etc) What steps are critical to any batch of homebrew regardless of recipe,…
STW
  • 1,522
  • 2
  • 14
  • 23
8
votes
3 answers

How to store wine in hot city?

I'm planning to store wine bottles for several years, but I live in a hot city and don't have any cellar to use. What other alternatives can I use to store the wine in a good environment?
Albert
  • 273
  • 1
  • 2
  • 4
8
votes
2 answers

How long can organic wine be stored without chemicals?

I'm trying to store some homemade organic red wine in bottles. For how long can it be stored without using any chemicals?
Albert
  • 273
  • 1
  • 2
  • 4
8
votes
8 answers

Cardboard alternatives to bottle cases for storage

A problem I hadn't really anticipated was how to store/transport bottled homebrew. I've been reusing old cardboard store-bought boxes, but they seem to be breaking down pretty quickly, especially when exposed to moisture. I've been reinforcing…
Fishtoaster
  • 2,882
  • 6
  • 25
  • 36
8
votes
6 answers

Wort aeration on a budget

To aerate my wort I have been using a whisk, but i am worried about contamination. What are other more effective ways to aerate wort without spending too much money?
mR_fr0g
  • 817
  • 9
  • 20
1 2 3
…
99 100