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Freeper self sufficiency
djf

Posted on 12/05/2008 9:10:10 AM PST by djf

OK.

I have a bunch of empty Grolsch bottles and have been thinking about doing some moon shining of sorts.

Any Freepers ever home-brew? Beer? Hard cider?

Curious about experiences and recommendations, and since Freepers are the smartest people in the world, figured it needed a thread!


TOPICS: Food; Hobbies
KEYWORDS: depression; homebrew; recession; ridingthestormout; survival
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To: ArrogantBustard
"I think it's a chicken$#!+ rule, but it's not a hill worth dying on (IMO). And this is the BATFE we're talking about; dying is not a hperbole." You can think General Washington for that. This precedent goes back to the beginning of the Republic.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whiskey_Rebellion
61 posted on 12/05/2008 11:00:26 AM PST by neb52 (Go Frogs!)
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To: djf

Do you bake your own bread? That is a good and easy way to get use to yeast making things! Doing so has got me interested and brewing my own wine, but I don’t think that is going to work in a one bedroom apartment. LOL!

http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2007/11/04/homemade-bread-cheap-delicious-healthy-and-easier-than-you-think/


62 posted on 12/05/2008 11:04:42 AM PST by neb52 (Go Frogs!)
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To: neb52

I know every Goodwill I ever went into has like 6 of them homemade bread machines for sale.


63 posted on 12/05/2008 11:17:49 AM PST by djf (...heard about a couple livin in the USA, he said they traded in their baby for a Chevrolet...)
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To: castlebrew

correction - conditioning is another name for fermentation. It is a secondary fermentation.


64 posted on 12/05/2008 11:19:47 AM PST by Soliton (This 2 shall pass)
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To: djf

No, no I mean handmade from scratch! I it is very easy. A lot of people are terrified by the idea, but it is actually really easy. Kneading the dough isn’t that big of a deal.


65 posted on 12/05/2008 11:20:48 AM PST by neb52 (Go Frogs!)
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To: Red_Devil 232

It's the plastic thing on this mason jar...keeps the air out so you don't end up with vinegar. The one I have is in a rubber stopper that fits in the top of the jug.

Or you can make your own by punching a hole in the bottle lid and putting in a piece of tubing so that one end is in the bottle headspace and the other end is sumerged in water. (seal around the lid with wax)

66 posted on 12/05/2008 12:09:27 PM PST by Overtaxed (Starve the Beast)
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To: Red_Devil 232

Make that “submerged”


67 posted on 12/05/2008 12:13:57 PM PST by Overtaxed (Starve the Beast)
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To: AuntB

I saw a recipe for tomato wine years ago and always wonder what that would taste like.


68 posted on 12/05/2008 12:19:01 PM PST by Swiss
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To: Overtaxed

Since I have had two beers I understand sumerged.


69 posted on 12/05/2008 12:33:43 PM PST by Red_Devil 232 (VietVet - USMC All Ready On The Right? All Ready On The Left? All Ready On The Firing Line!)
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To: Red_Devil 232

“Like a cap on the jug with a hose connected”

that’s one way to skin the cat.

If the jug is a 5-gallon (or 3.5-gallon) glass carboy, that method works well because of the large hose diameter. The outlet end of the hose should be submerged in a bucket containing water and some unscented bleach (as a sanitizer). Something along the proportions of 1/4 cup bleach added to 5 gallons of water (though not necessarily that quantity).

If using a gallon jug, the smaller diameter hose in the cap will plug easily, resulting in a big honkin’ mess (overflow (bad) or explosion (really bad)). I usually use a large planter tray (~ 24” diameter) to set my fermenter on to catch overflow.

Skip the cap and use a hose with a large enough diameter to fit snugly inside the mouth of the jug. Avoids (bad) and (really bad) situations.


70 posted on 12/05/2008 12:33:50 PM PST by castlebrew (Gun control means hitting where you intended to!)
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To: Red_Devil 232

~hic~

Need to start another batch of cider.


71 posted on 12/05/2008 12:39:44 PM PST by Overtaxed (Starve the Beast)
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To: Overtaxed

Always ensure that the Strategic Ethanol Reserve is fully stocked...


72 posted on 12/05/2008 1:00:44 PM PST by castlebrew (Gun control means hitting where you intended to!)
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To: djf
Save a few more and make yourself a beautiful Christmas tree..


73 posted on 12/05/2008 1:06:54 PM PST by Daffynition ("Beauty is in the sty of the beholder." ~ Joe 6-pack)
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To: Billthedrill; quantim; spinestein; 5Madman2; DTogo; Horatio Gates; Ribeye; decal; B Knotts; ...
Homebrewing is indeed cheaper.  The real bonus is in being able to drink the beer you like.

After all; you made it.

If you buy in bulk as I do, you can make 10 gallons for as little as 20 bucks.

I suggest reading the article in the first link to give you an idea what you are in for,

On or off the Homebrewers Ping List, let me know.


Cheers,

knewshound

Homebrewing 1A (Homebrewing for beginners)

Homebrewing 101 (for experianced Homebrewers)
74 posted on 12/05/2008 1:29:46 PM PST by knews_hound (Why am I here? And why do I have this handbasket?)
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To: djf

It is so eazy-peazey I can’t believe I was paying 7 & 8 bucks a sixpack for so long. Once you amortize the bottles (which you don’t even have to buy since you’ve been stockpiling them), even buying kits and paying shipping you’ll come out ahead. I’ve gotten several from www.williamsbrewing.com. The first one I made was the Weizenbeer. One thing - if you do end up buying more bottles, go right to the 22 oz. Capping 5 gallons in 12 oz bottles takes way too long.


75 posted on 12/05/2008 1:37:58 PM PST by nina0113 (Hugh Akston is my hero.)
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To: Daffynition

Cool!

My favorite beer!
Lot of folks think it’s too skunky, but I don’t like flat tasting beers. Gimme a stout or a strong ale anyday!


76 posted on 12/05/2008 1:42:26 PM PST by djf (...heard about a couple livin in the USA, he said they traded in their baby for a Chevrolet...)
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To: djf

I’m not a beer aficionado ... so if I had as many beer bottles as you, I’d think about making root beer. ;-D


77 posted on 12/05/2008 1:45:28 PM PST by Daffynition ("Beauty is in the sty of the beholder." ~ Joe 6-pack)
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To: knews_hound

Thanks!
Please add me to your ping list.

I read both your blogs, you are obviously very experienced. My feeling was that I wanted to start smaller, really kind of be in experiment mode.

So from what I understand:

You boil the grain to dissolve sugars and starches
You let it cool and then add the yeast
You let it ferment
You may/may not at that point “draw off” the fermented mix, also, you may then add more sugar and yeast for a secondary fermentation
You then bottle it

My curiosity is most about the final bottling phase. If it’s bottled and there are still some yeasts in there (and however much unfermented carbs), will putting in in the fridge basically shut that down? Or do you NOT want to shut it down to get some carbonation?

I read where you are using kegs and 20psi CO2 but I wanted to keep it as simple as possible to start.

Thanks again!


78 posted on 12/05/2008 1:50:13 PM PST by djf (...heard about a couple livin in the USA, he said they traded in their baby for a Chevrolet...)
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To: nina0113

The labels on the bottles I have say 15.2 Fl ozs

So, that’s 2 bottles/quart, 8/gallon, and I have 22 of them.
so that would be about 2.5 gallons worth which is part of the reason I want to start small.


79 posted on 12/05/2008 2:04:18 PM PST by djf (...heard about a couple livin in the USA, he said they traded in their baby for a Chevrolet...)
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To: Billthedrill

“Bottle too soon with secondary going on or overestimate the amount of bottling malt and you get a bottle full of foam or little popping sounds coming from yer basement...which is bad news because it tastes bad after you wring it out of a mop. Don’t ask me how I know that... ;-)”

Time for some family lore. My grandfather decided to take up bathtub brewing during Prohibition (probably more as a protest, than for the beer). He was a traveling salesman and had to leave town before the fermentation had completed, so he instructed my grandmother about bottling and left. She had a sweet tooth and decided the beer needed a bit more sugar before bottling up. The bottles were stashed in the closet at the end of the hall. A few nights later, they sat up in bed, startled by the muffled explosions coming from the closet. They were afraid to open the door and beer ran down the hall all night as the explosions continued. Grandma said they picked glass out of the closet walls for years. So ended the bathtub beer experiment.


80 posted on 12/05/2008 2:06:39 PM PST by TexasRepublic (Comrade, can you spare a crust of bread?)
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