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Got a brew on at the moment with wlp028. It's a 1880s Youngers' IPA recipe so yeast should be appropriate to the recipe. Does seem to be a slow fermenter. Grew it in a 1.8L starter on a stir plate and it was going within 6hrs of pitching but seems to have really slowed down after a day or two...

I'm not sold on BX as a late hop addition, I once did a Bitter which had it as a flameout addition (with Fuggles) and the beer had a sort of 'dusty' taste which others have also reported from using it late. I find I still get it's distinctive black current fruity character when it's used in...

5G of 1885 Younger's XP on Saturday. Added to Francois' 40G (I guess mead is counted in the other thread?) Makes 1236 Gallons

All done. Missed OG target by a couple of points but got the full volume. Found a small stone in the bottom of the boiler. Guess it must have been in the hops. Been through the boil so shouldn't be an infection risk. Final wort sample

Thanks Ed. Glad to hear your's has turned out great. The No.3 looks like a monster!

Brewing this one today. http://barclayperkins.blogspot.co.uk/20 ... er-xp.html (also in "The Home Brewer's Guide to Vintage Beer") Here is the Beersmith version Youngers XP (1885) Type: All Grain Batch Size: 23.50 l Boil Size: 33.56 l Boil Time: 90 min 5800.00 g Pale Malt, (Golden Promise)...

Even amongst professional brewers and brewing scientists, there appear to many areas subject to ongoing debate & conjecture.

If your water report has "Hardness as CaCO3" in mg/L then dividing that number by 3 will give you a reasonable estimate if the Ca content. As above, "Hardness as CaCO3" is not the same as "Alkalinity as CaCO3"

It's quite a complex subject, but I think viscosity is probably the most significant aspect. Some suggest that un-fermented sugars play quite a small part in mouthfeel and that it is proteins which are more significant, which is why unmelted grains add mouthfeel.

I can't help but think the MrMalty prediction on viability with age might be over-pessimistic. According to that, a four month old package, which is still 'in date', would only be 10% viable. I don't believe Whitelabs or Wyeast would claim a 4 month shelf life if it went away that quickly.

As others have said, bicarbonate only releases CO2 when mixed with an acid. I doubt that beer is acidic enough on it's own to drive off any more than a token amount of CO2. To get enough, you'd need to add bicarbonate and a stronger acid (eg vinegar) in the right amount. I'm sure you don't need...

It is missing all the nutrients needed for yeast growth. Remember you're trying to grow yeast, not make alcohol. Sugar (I assume you mean refined white sugar) is just 'empty calories'

+1. You can follow recipes to the letter but if fermentation isn't great (pitching rate, yeast strain, temp control) you won't get great beer.

You might want to try using Protofloc or Whirfloc instead of 'straight' Irish Moss. I might be miss-remembering this but I'm not sure it is that effective if not rehydrated.

Before they changed the names, "Styrian Goldings" was used for pretty much any hop grown in Slovenia which covered, I think, 3 or 4 varieties so you never really knew what you were getting. At least now you do!

I'd think about losing the Black Malt as well. GW puts this in his recipes where the original brew is coloured with caramel or where he otherwise can't get the colour match. The problem is Black Malt will add a roasty character. If you want to replace that colour contribution without the...

I was listening to one of the old Brew Strong podcasts the other day in which they interviewed the guy from five star chemicals and talked a lot about Star San. Quite a few interesting points made. It works as long as the pH is below 3.5. The guy from five star doesn't think there is any tap...

Tried the first few bottles if this now. Nice beer and I think it will improve with a bit of age. Smells quite malty/toffee and has an initial sweetness which then turns into a dry finish with quite a bit of bitterness.

Using rehydrated S-04 (11g in 23L) in normal strength beers, I usually get to FG in 3 or 4 days. I usually give it another couple if days to clean up and then cool it. I pitch at 18C and then let it free rise to 20C after 12 hours. Nottingham is about as quick but others (US-05 or BRY-97) are...

Thanks Hoppy for that detailed info. I was relaying the advice from John Palmer and in the yeast book. I believe it is osmotic shock which can cause viability issues when sprinkling. Do commercial breweries who sprinkle compensate with a higher pitching rate ? A 11g Fermentis sachet is just...