October 2014
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Filtering for Beginners
Many homebrewers bypass the step of filtering their homebrew and instead use fining agents and cold crashing (storing the beer after fermentation has completed in a cold place for a week or
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Build a Mixing Valve for Consistent Water Temperature
Every time I travel I try to visit the local breweries and, if I can, do a brewery tour of each of the establishments. After touring a few breweries I found that
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Brewing with Dark Grains
Dark grains are an important ingredient in brewing many styles of beer. Grains that can be considered to be the “classic dark grains” include chocolate barley, black patent barley and unmalted, roasted
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Understanding Specific Gravity vs. Plato
The simple hydrometer can tell us the gravity of our wort, and therefore the amount of extract we have recovered from our ingredients, and can even be used to tell us what
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2 Beers from 1 Batch: Partigyle, Split Boils & Split Fermentations
I learned early on in this hobby that I needed to find a way to homebrew more beer without taking time away from other areas of life. I adopted a technique that
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Pilot Brewing Lessons & Recipes
In order to think big, you need to start small. That is the prevalent thinking for many of today’s commercial brewers who frequently utilize pilot systems as the brewhouse starting point. Pilot
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Big Batch Brewing Techniques
If you find yourself in need of more homebrew it is time to start brewing bigger batches. If you’re ready to “go Big,” Here is how to go beyond the basic homebrew
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Small Batch Brewing Techniques
I’ve always homebrewed on the “small” side. I don’t mean in terms of gravity (although that’s usually true, too), but rather in terms of volume. Five gallons (19 L) is considered to
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Big Club Brew
Every February, the PA Alers Homebrew Club based in Pennsylvania’s Susquehanna Valley, holds its annual Big Brew. This is our club’s marquee event — a gathering to brew a single recipe and
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Homebrewer’s Library: BYO Writers Pick Favorite Books
New beer books show up in the Brew Your Own mailbox every week, but not every book is an instant classic. We asked some of BYO’s longtime columnists — Ashton Lewis (“Mr.
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Oktoberfest
by the numbers OG:1.050–1.056 (12.4–13.8 °P) FG:1.012–1.016 (3.1–4.1 °P) SRM: 7–14 IBU:20–28 ABV:4.8–5.7% People often ask me, “What is your favorite style?” I tell them that I love all of the styles,
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Bottled Cask Ale, Dry Hopping & Low-Alpha Bittering: Mr. Wizard
Q I think that the best beer you can have is real cask ale. But if you only have equipment to bottle your beers, is there anything you can do to make
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Brewing Beers to Age: Tips from Pros
As wine connoisseurs have known for ages, sometimes your favorite drink is better when aged. Not all beers are ideal for cellaring. It takes the right style, ingredients, and techniques to brew
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Captain Lawrence Brewing Company’s Pumpkin Ale: Replicator
Dear Replicator, Last fall, my wife’s brother brought back a six pack of Pumpkin Ale from New York brewed by Captain Lawrence Brewing Company. I thought it was good and my wife
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Understanding SG and Plato
The simple hydrometer can tell us the gravity of our wort, and therefore the amount of extract we have recovered from our ingredients, and can even be used to tell us what
Article
Big Club Brews
The PA Alers Homebrew Club, based in Pennsylvania’s Susquehanna Valley, share tips for organizing a “big” brew day.
