Brew UK Forum | Beer Kits
getting cocky I threw the box away
Hi
I must have 20+ brews under my (now very tight) belt and other than the odd leaky tap its been too easy. Even my wife is enthusiastic for her nightly pint.
However today I have 2 pieces of advice to ask for.
1) we have 5 barrels so by the time we start drinking the next one its always well settled and clear. But my Nelsons Revenge insists on keeping a haze about it though it tastes fine. Any ideas? Any lessons to learn?
2) I was about to barrel up my Headcracker (woodforde) brew. I never bother checking the SG until just before I barrel up. Mr Patient I leave it 'too long' in primary and its always SG 1010 or so when I go to barrel up, I dont rush it. But today I was surprised that my Headcracker which bubbled like the clappers then sat quiet for a week is SG 1020. I gave it a big stir but its still quiet. My wife threw the box away and I was wondering if because this is a 24 pint 7% ale kit maybe 1020 is right. Any advice?
Responses
Posted 1 year ago by Admin
1020 seems a little high to me. Maybe the temp is a bit low as its pretty cold at the moment?
As for the haze, does it clear when its warmed up a bit?
Posted 1 year ago by Moderator
I was gonna second the "chill haze" bit for question 1. What temp is it at and how long have you had it in keg for?
As for no2. I dunno, never done a head cracker. If its been the same fg for over 2-4 days at a reasonable temp (20c + ) then I would barrel. As you barrel instead of bottle there is no possibility of a explosion unless you are extremely extremely (carry on if need be) lucky!
Plannin'-
Loads a beer after an upgrade!
nathbrew@gmail.com
Posted 1 year ago by Member
I have a Headcracker kit ready to go at the moment and the box says 2 days at 1020 or below.
Don't take this as advice as I am a clueless newbie, this is simply what's written on the box.
Cheers.
Conditioning; Diabolo, TTL
Planning; SNPA
Drinking; Headcracker, Pinot Grigio, WTA
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Thanks all. Maybe it is the cold garage hazing the one brew, the other barrel (different ale) was crystal. Anyway it tastes good and if your collective wisdom cant spot a mistake I might have made then thats fine.
Great to hear the box says 1020 or below kilconlea - I was hoping it said that as the brew behaved right. Sad sucker that I am I spent ages trying to read the print from a low res photo of the box on Amazon!
So I will let it settle after my big stir and check it again mid week before barreling up.
You jumped in quick to the Headcracker kilconlea, brave man, I practiced with the normal brews first.
Our favourites BTW are St Peters IPA and Woodfordes Admirals and Nog.
Posted 1 year ago by Member
My first Wherry tastes lovely (only problem is with a leaky barrel).
Reading all the posts on this site, which mostly suggested that the Wherry was not the best, has me very excited indeed.
I have acquired a lot of 450ml Grolsch bottles which seem perfect for a stronger brew, which sent me down the Headcracker route.
Might give the St Peters IPA a go, all their beers are nice.
Conditioning; Diabolo, TTL
Planning; SNPA
Drinking; Headcracker, Pinot Grigio, WTA
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Like you kilconlea my first brew was Werry and with nothing to judge it against I was impressed but I was more impressed by the others I mentioned that I made later but I just set up a 2nd Werry yesterday to check my assessment.
I tried a few kits from other sources but except for St Peters IPA which is soooooo great the Woodfordes are the best in this house.
Dont mention swollen barrels and leaky taps to me - grrrr. Its easy to cope with but I wish the first kit arrived with a warning/advice sheet instead of keeping this problem secret. I dont understand why the tap is such a design fault really. I know its a cheap and cheerful hobby but I would pay extra for a bit more robustness.
Posted 1 year ago by Moderator
Hi Biggles
You've hit the nail on the head. Cheap and nasty. I've been thinking about replacing it with a proper tap, but I'm not sure it could be secured in the thread properly without some sort of sealer, and that would cause more problems than it solves. On the other hand, just letting a bit of pressure out usually solves it. Good excuse for drawing off a pint!
Planning: - To get some more brews on now the weather's a bit cooler
Fermenting: - Ginger Beer experiment
Conditioning: - A normal bitter with Styrians
Drinking: - All of it!!
E-mail: arnyfris@gmail.com
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Guys
Thank fock it's not just me. When you say "easy to cope with", how do you mean?
Does everyone have this problem or do they simply use more expensive barrels?
Or do they draw one or two off to release pressure after priming?
I'm not sure cheap and cheerful are most peoples' reason for brewing, well maybe a bit. I was drawn to it as I couldn't find anything to drink at home which was as good a quality as in the pub, other than bottle conditioned beers at 2 quid a go (London prices).... okay so cost was a factor. And the satisfaction of creating your own.
I'd certainly pay more for a barrel, i.e. a long term investment, which had no leakage issues.
Conditioning; Diabolo, TTL
Planning; SNPA
Drinking; Headcracker, Pinot Grigio, WTA
Posted 1 year ago by Member
How do I cope? Well my 2 Youngs budget barrels seem sturdier than my other 3 which look the same. The Youngs taps can take a spanner wheras the others just slip their threads - which can lead to a leak.
I learned that the top cap only needs a hand tight twist but the tap needs as tight a twist as the kit will allow. Then not to add as much sugar as the kit suggests for secondary fermentation. Then to keep a close eye on the barrels feet and as soon as they rise away from the tabletop I move the barrel into the cold garage to settle and mature. As I brew in my warm utility room and use a heater belt I find 2/3 the sugar and just a few hours - not days - gets the secondary fermentation job well done.
The other thing is to really watch for leaks around the tap during the secondary fermentation period, a big leak even in the utility room can be really messy. I was lucky to be at home collecting advice from this forum when my little tap drip became a monster spill in just a few minutes. It was very unexpected how it went from fine to emergency in 20 minutes or so. I blame my inexperience and trusting the instructions (20 teaspoons and 2 days - hah!)
Secondary fermentation is not a good time to choose for a weekend away!
Now that I dont get a barrel too pressured (by excess sugar and time in secondary fermentation) I find the garage leaks are a thing of the past.
I used to be mopping up, catching drips, draining off immature pints (yuk) or struggling to release pressure via an overtight cap (not a pretty sight, fat man wrestles fat barrel!)but no longer.
So thats my system, cap just hand tight, tap as tight as kit allows, care to keep tap shut in correct position, reduce sugar and time for secondary fermentation, watch closely during that period, swiftly move to final cold position.
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Thanks Biggles.
I've got a second barrel now which I'll drain the contents into, after following your instructions re tightening. I'll add ten spoons of sugar and fingers crossed.
Cheers
Conditioning; Diabolo, TTL
Planning; SNPA
Drinking; Headcracker, Pinot Grigio, WTA
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