Brew Dudes Homebrewing Blog

Lager Brewed At Warm Temperatures

On October 17, 2019

Mike wanted to try out a technique that he read about – brewing a lager at room temperatures with a dry yeast strain. He prepped his recipe, got his ingredients, and brewed as normal. When it came to fermenting, he chilled his wort to ale temperatures and pitched his yeast just like the packet said.

That’s great and all, but how did the beer taste? Watch this video and we see if this technique really works as an alternative to the standard lager brewing practices.

The Power of Fermentis Saflager W-34/70

With just one packet of dry Fermentis Saflager W-34/70 yeast, Mike started his fermentation process by sprinkling its contents on top of the wort that was sitting at room temperature. The fermentation went wild for four days and stayed in his basement at 70-75 degrees Fahrenheit for a total of two weeks. After that period of time, he moved the primary fermentor to his fridge where it cold crashed for six weeks.

The beer fermented clean like you would expect for a lager. The fermentation did not give off any rotten egg, sulfur odors, and with the cold crashing, the beer ended up clear.

We both think that this warm lager fermentation technique has merit. Even though what he did went against all conventional wisdom when it comes to lager brewing, Mike was successful in brewing a great tasting hometown lager.

Let us know what your experience has been with brewing lagers at ale temperatures.

BREW ON!

Review: Inkbird ITC-308 Digital Temperature Controller

By John Krochune

On October 10, 2019

In Equipment, Videos

We have talked about how controlling your fermentation is one if not the most important skill in homebrewing beer. Along with yeast health and pitch rates, controlling your fermentation temperature is an important factor to dial in and not leave up to chance. With that in mind, we present this review about a piece of equipment that can help you control your fermentation temperature. Check out this review of the Inkbird ITC-308 Digital Temperature Controller.

Fermentation Temperature Control From Your Phone

Since we’re comparing this device to what we are used to, which is a Johnson Controller, the Inkbird is so much easier to use. The inputs on the unit are simple. You can set the temperature with a few button presses. It also has plugs for both heating and cooling. I plugged my fridge into the cooling outlet and my heating pad into the heating outlet.

Once you download the app, you have control from wherever you have cell reception. I have been able to monitor and adjust the temperature from my phone at work. In addition, I was able to adjust the degree difference between the set temperature and the probe’s recorded temperature. I like to keep it tight – 1 degree difference.

What Do You Think?

Many of the comments we have received backed up our thoughts. It is easy to use and does a good job at controlling fermentation. The price point is nice too. It is less expensive than other units on the market. Check it out and let us know what you think.

Brew ON!

American Brown Ale With Homegrown Hops

By John Krochune

On October 3, 2019

In Brew Log, Experiments, Hops, Videos

For this year’s harvest, I create a plan to brew a beer to showcase each of my hops plant cones. With three plants, there was going to be three beers. The first one that I brewed was an American Brown Ale with Nugget hops. These cones were the first to ripen so they got used first. Check out this video where we discuss the results of this beer:

Sometimes Beers Are ‘Just OK’

Although I used a large quantity of my homegrown hops, the flavor that came through in the finished beer was more earthy than pine and more herbal than citrus. It was a fine, drinkable beer but it didn’t fit an American hop profile.

Mike found that the hop profile actually had a black tea component. The malt background was strong because of my use of Special Roast malt. The hops flavor made for a nice autumn beer.

So What Did We Learn?

Thinking about it from the time we tasted this beer and writing this post, I have come to the conclusion that the ol’ Nugget hops won’t be used in any of my single hop beers again, if at all. Where I planted this variety is near my vegetable garden and I think it’s choking out my plants. I may need to rip this one up and plant it somewhere else (if it survives).

BREW ON!

Beer Brewing 101 – Our Book

By John Krochune

On September 25, 2019

In Beginner, General, Videos

After 12 years of writing this blog, the last 6 years focused on posting videos on YouTube and following up in this space, we were presented with a book writing opportunity. The book is called Beer Brewing 101 and it will be available in stores on October 1, 2019. Watch this video as we talk about our approach and to whom this book would be valuable.

A Book For Beginners Who Love Craft Beer

We wrote this book for the person who is driven by the love of beer. When we first started out, we wanted the quickest and cheapest way to get into brewing beer at home. To this day, brewing using malt extract in partial boils is the easiest entry point for beginners.

This book covers all the bases. It has all the information someone needs to know regarding equipment and ingredients. It also has 30 of our recipes and some of them were created with well-known craft beers in mind.

If you ever enjoyed any of our content over the years, we would be honored if you would buy this book. Maybe you can add it to your collection, or maybe give it as a gift!

Here’s the link: Beer Brewing 101 Book on Amazon

BREW ON!

Brew Dudes Homebrew Swap – Exchange #37

By John Krochune

On September 19, 2019

In Homebrew Club, Videos

We’ve been getting all kinds of beers sent to us over the year(s). This time around, we got a special one. It is a crystal clear Czech Pilsner and we were excited to dive in. Watch this video about what we thought about this remarkable homebrewed beer in our Exchange number thirty seven:

Our Tasting Notes

Chris in Indiana sent us this beer. He had some questions about brewing lager and after corresponding about it, he sent us one of his beers.

Appearance: This beer was extremely clear. It was impressive.

Aroma: The floor malted pilsner malt brought a lot of graham cracker aroma in the nose.

Flavor: Mike described it as round and smooth. Not as crisp in the finish, but the malt presence was great throughout. The beer had the same kind of hops flavor I am used to getting in my lagers. I wish the Saaz we got as homebrewers was as good as commercial breweries.

We’re splitting hairs – this beer was great. Hope it does well in competition.

BREW ON!