![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
You can't tell by looking but that there barrel is now full of beer.
density just before filling was 1.018. Only 3.5% alcohol it seems. It does taste like beer. I'll be very interested to see what it is like after two weeks in the barrel. I added < 1/2cup sugar- this is half or less of a normal sugar charge for carbonation in an attemp to avoid fountaining beer.
The process of getting the barrel ready for the beer was arduous and stressful.
Oxyper fill and soak, leaking from "lid"
drain, rinse, sit upside downish to soak lid
drain, rinse, fill with water
leaking now from the shive which is found to be cracked
leave full over long weekend- I'm away and the beer didn't seem to be ready
drain.
Spend several hours trying to get cracked shive out. Hammer, multigrips, chisel, pliers, drill. Shive well and truly mashed, some is in barrel. Hand and arm swollen from the effort, still sore next day. Bath badly chipped, Couple of wall tiles have small chips too. Argh.
Another oxyper fill and soak overnight, rubber bungs this time. Bit more leakage from lid.
rinse, rinse, taste- is ok. drain
then I finally get to position and fill the ruddy thing.
Now it is stuck there until someone strong enough comes to shift it.
Small beer
is now set up to ferment. Two 10L carboys of wort. One kept at room temp (pretty damn warm at the moment, 26deg or so), One in the fridge. Together we have a starting temp of 19C, density 1.027. Nottingham Ale yeast. The wort doesn't taste of much. I don't think those fuggles hop flowers were fresh enough to offer much. There is very little bitterness or even flavour from the orange and spices. Might be different when not masked by the sweetness? We will see.
density just before filling was 1.018. Only 3.5% alcohol it seems. It does taste like beer. I'll be very interested to see what it is like after two weeks in the barrel. I added < 1/2cup sugar- this is half or less of a normal sugar charge for carbonation in an attemp to avoid fountaining beer.
The process of getting the barrel ready for the beer was arduous and stressful.
Oxyper fill and soak, leaking from "lid"
drain, rinse, sit upside downish to soak lid
drain, rinse, fill with water
leaking now from the shive which is found to be cracked
leave full over long weekend- I'm away and the beer didn't seem to be ready
drain.
Spend several hours trying to get cracked shive out. Hammer, multigrips, chisel, pliers, drill. Shive well and truly mashed, some is in barrel. Hand and arm swollen from the effort, still sore next day. Bath badly chipped, Couple of wall tiles have small chips too. Argh.
Another oxyper fill and soak overnight, rubber bungs this time. Bit more leakage from lid.
rinse, rinse, taste- is ok. drain
then I finally get to position and fill the ruddy thing.
Now it is stuck there until someone strong enough comes to shift it.
Small beer
is now set up to ferment. Two 10L carboys of wort. One kept at room temp (pretty damn warm at the moment, 26deg or so), One in the fridge. Together we have a starting temp of 19C, density 1.027. Nottingham Ale yeast. The wort doesn't taste of much. I don't think those fuggles hop flowers were fresh enough to offer much. There is very little bitterness or even flavour from the orange and spices. Might be different when not masked by the sweetness? We will see.
Tags:
- ale,
- beer,
- brewing,
- small beer