Hey everyone! We finally found time in our busy schedules to get episode three out the door, with episode four recorded and waiting in the wings. It’s been a slow start with the podcast side of SIBT but 2010 will be a promising year for a great SIBT kickoff! We have some great things planned for this year so sit back, relax and have a homebrew while we get things rolling with a short discussion of the differences between ales and lagers in episode three with more content to come in episodes four and beyond!

Myself and Shane brewed a Kiwi infused Belgian Wit a while back and now that the brew is bottled and ready to consume I wanted to post about the brew day. Everyone that knows my tastes in beer will be questioning my recipe choice as I am not one to drink nor actually like fruit based beers.

With that said, as I was perusing through Sam Calagione’s book “Extreme Brewing”, I came across his recipe for a “Kiwit”. A Belgian Wit with kiwi fruit added. This recipe peaked my interest and I decided to get together with Shane and brew it, and I’m glad I did!  This turned out to be an excellent beer and will now be one of my regular rotations on my brewing schedule.

Here is the recipe breakdown:

.5 lb Torrified Wheat Grain

.5 lb 6 Row Pale Malt

2 Teaspoons Gypsum

6.6 lbs Wheat Malt Extract (LME) -65 minutes

1 oz. Tettnanger Hops (pellets) -60 minutes

1 oz. Williamette Hops (pellets) -10 minutes

.5 oz. Crushed Coriander -10 minutes

1 Teaspoon of Irish Moss (optional in my opinion) -10 minutes

4 lbs of fresh, peeled kiwi fruit (peeled and cubed) -end of boil

Yeast: WLP400 Belgian Wit (see hop chart for substitutes)

Starting Gravity: 1.052     Finishing Gravity: 1.014    Target ABV: 5%

Merry Christmas to all! Look forward to a brand new year for SIBT, its been a slow start but we have a lot planned for the new year!

Cheers!

Brad & Shane

Parts:

I used a Netgear router adapter (output 7.5 volt) as my power supply, however any adapter within the 5-12 volt range should be sufficient.

4 inch computer fan.

Hard drive magnets. I only used one. You can also buy rare earth magnets online from a number of places, including Radio Shack (or “The Shack” as it’s now called).

2″ diameter steel washer

Approximately 1′ each of black and red wire

From Radio Shack, you’ll need the following:

7″ x 5″ x 3″ Project Enclosure: Part Number 270-1807

25 ohm 3 watt Rheostat (aka Potentiometer): Part number 271-265

12 Volt DC/30Amp Rocker Switch with LED – Part Number 275-018

Silver Tone Knob – Part Number 274-424

Not handy with a soldering gun?:

3/16″ Fully Insulated Quick Disconnects (16-Pack) – Part Number 64-3134

I have to give credit where credit is due so here is the link to the build steps posted over at http://tinyurl.com/yjjdjx3

Thanks to Anthony Lopez for the post and Tim Grubb for the build assist, I can’t thank you both enough!

Any questions about the build please let me know!

Myself and Shane recently attended one of our latest homebrew club meetings ( http://www.trubrewers.com) where we set up to brew the FAHP Five Acres House Pale Ale:

This video was inspired by the “I am a Craft Brewer” collaboration video created by Greg Koch, CEO of the Stone Brewing Co. and Chris & Jared of Redtail Media…and more than 35 amazing craft brewers from all over the country.

The above picture shows the progress of my second year Centennial Hops. The first year’s growth was not much however this plant seemed to really take off this year. Although not as far along as my Sterling variety, I have high hopes for the Centennial next year! More pictures can be found here!

Hey everyone,
While you are patiently waiting on episode 3, I thought I would share photos of my second year Sterling Hops plant. I am finally starting to see a crop however the Japanese beetles have also found my plant this year. Any suggestions on how to keep them away would be appreciated!

More pics can be found here!

CHEERS!
-Brad

Thanks for your patience!
-Brad & Shane

Welcome back!

For episode 2 we welcome the new permanent co-host for SIBT, Shane Terrick.  We take a beginner’s look at the different techniques and methods of homebrewing, from extract all the way to all-grain.

Listen now!

Download it here!

SHOW NOTES:

Homebrewtalk.com

If you have any questions for SIBT that you would like answered on our show please contact us or send your questions  to us via Twitter!

Welcome to the inaugural episode of Should I Brew That?! I wanted to start a homebrewing podcast for a while now and the timing just seemed right. Thinking back to the start of my homebrewing hobby, I wanted to start this show on the most basic level.

Back to all the questions I had at the beginning, all the frustrations that makes one want to give it up (i.e. bad batches!). I want to motivate YOU to brew! I want you to learn from me and learn from the mistakes I have made in the past so you don’t repeat them.

So check out the show and I hope you enjoy it!

Happy Brewing!

Download it here!

SHOW NOTES:

Williams Brewing

Northern Brewer

CFF fundraiser at Clarkehead Brew (Phil’s website)

Brewing up a Cure

A special thanks goes out to Phil for helping me host episode 1.

The recipe (also listed on Trav’s site) is a Stone Ruination IPA clone originally published in BYO magazine:

5 Gallon/19 L All-Grain

Ingredients
14 lb 2 oz (6.4 kg) – 2-row malt
14 oz (0.40 kg) – Briess crystal malt
2.25 oz (64 g) – 36 AAU Magnum Hops 16.6% AA (90 Mins)
1.50 oz (43 g) – 16 AAU Centennial Hops 10.5% AA (15 Mins)
2.20 oz (57 g) – Centennial Whole Hops (Dry Hops)
1 tsp Irisu Moss (15 Mins)
2 qt (2L) White Labs WLP002 (English Ale) Yeast
7/8 cup – Corn Sugar (for priming)

Step by Step
Mash your grains at 149 F (65 C) for 60 minutes. Collect enough wort to boil for 90 minutes and have a 5.0 gallon (19 L) yield. Ferment at 68 F (20 C).

5 Gallon/19 L Extract With Grains

Ingredients
7 lb 2 oz (3.2 kg) – Light Dried Malt Extract
1 lb (0.45 kg) – Briess 2-row malt
14 oz (0.40 kg) – Briess crystal malt
2.25 oz (64 g) – 36 AAU Magnum Hops 16.6% AA (60 Mins)
1.50 oz (43 g) – 16 AAU Centennial Hops 10.5% AA (15 Mins)
2.20 oz (57 g) – Centennial Whole Hops (Dry Hops)
1 tsp Irisu Moss (15 Mins)
2 qt (2L) White Labs WLP002 (English Ale) Yeast
7/8 cup – Corn Sugar (for priming)

Step by Step
Steep the two crushed grains in 3 qts (3 L) of water at 149 F (65 C) fr 45 minutes. Remove grains from wort, add water to make 6.0 gallons (23 L) of wort, add malt extract and bring to a boil. Boil for 60 minutes, adding hops at the times indicated in the recipe list. Cool the wort, aerate and pitch yeast. Ferment at 68 F (20 C) and hold at this temperature until the yeast has finished fermentation. Add Centennial hops and dry hop for 3 to 5 days.

I personally will be cutting this recipe in half as the only available fermenter I will have is a 3 gallon better bottle! Whether you are an  experienced homebrewer or a novice we would love to see you there on the 28th! If you are having trouble finding the right ingredients please let us know and we may be able to point you in the right direction. I also have hops and yeast substitution charts on this site (see sidebar on the right!) that may be helpful.
CHEERS!

Thanks to James Spencer and Steve Wilkes over at Basic Brewing Radio I was motivated to attempt my first 1 gallon batch of barley wine:

.1 lbs Briess Caramel 90

1.5 lbs Amber DME (@60 min)
1.5 lbs Amber DME  (@15 min)

.4 oz of cascade
.2 oz Willamette

US-O5 yeast

Before fermentation began, I took a refractometer reading which clocked in at a whopping 30 (1.116)!  This one should be  a monster. I also used the entire 11.5g of US-05 yeast which started bubbling away almost immediately. I can’t wait to see how this one turns out, might be one chewy beer!

As described by Northernbrewer, the HopShot is CO2-extracted hop resin that can be used for bittering or late additions to boiling wort — treat it just like leaf or pellet hops added during the boil. The HopShot syringe contains 5 milliliters of extract. One milliliter of HopShot yields approximately 10 IBUs in 5 gallons of 1.050 wort when boiled for 60 minutes. Test batches indicate that this bitterness may be slightly less agressive on the palate than your average hop addition.

Anyone have any thoughts, opinions or experience with the Hopshot? Let me know!

Since it’s mid-winter here in PA I always do extract partial boils this time of year.  I decided to make an Imperial Stout,  figured this would be easy enough for an indoor brew.  My shopping list is as follows:

0.5 lbs. Roasted Barley

0.5 lbs. Black Malt

0.5 lbs. Chocolate

6 lbs. Dark Malt Syrup (boil for 60 min.)

6 lbs. Dark Malt Syrup (boil for 15 min.)

Boil Additions

2 oz. Galena (60 min)

Scottish Ale Yeast.