brewing-msg - 10/31/06
General brewing info and sources.
NOTE: See also the files: beverages-msg, mead-msg, beer-msg, wine-msg, cider-art, cider-msg, p-bottles-msg, small-beer-msg. Mead-Mkng-Tps-art, bev-distilled-msg, Ale-a-Beer-lnks.
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NOTICE -
This file is a collection of various messages having a common theme that I have collected from my reading of the various computer networks. Some messages date back to 1989, some may be as recent as yesterday.
This file is part of a collection of files called Stefan's Florilegium. These files are available on the Internet at: http://www.florilegium.org
I have done a limited amount of editing. Messages having to do with separate topics were sometimes split into different files and sometimes extraneous information was removed. For instance, the message IDs were removed to save space and remove clutter.
The comments made in these messages are not necessarily my viewpoints. I make no claims as to the accuracy of the information given by the individual authors.
Please respect the time and efforts of those who have written these messages. The copyright status of these messages is unclear at this time. If information is published from these messages, please give credit to the originator(s).
Thank you,
Mark S. Harris AKA: THLord Stefan li Rous
Stefan at florilegium.org
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From: jpullen at goodnet.com (James)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Liquid Libations.......
Date: Sat, 15 Jun 1996 19:07:16 GMT
For all of you who have been asking about making wines, meads, etc.,
here is the address of a catalog I just received in the mail. They
seem to have almost everything related to wine making and brewing...
E. C. Kraus
P. O. Box 7850
Independence, MO 64054
From: barat at ionet.net (S. Pursley)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Brewing Handbook
Date: 17 Jun 1996 23:51:44 GMT
Organization: Internet Oklahoma
adamoferin at aol.com (AdamofErin) wrote:
> Unto the Good Gentles of the known world, does Lord Adam send warm
> greetings.
>
> My shire is doing a brewer's handbook as a fund raiser for our Kingdom,
> and we are in desperate need of material. My Shire is Highland Foorde and
> the Kingdom is Atlantia. If you would care to donate any recipes to this
> venture it would be greatly appreciated. I will personally garuntee that
> you will get credit for that recipe. When you send it to me include your
> name (Mundane and SCA), your Kingdom and your shire. If you want to you
> can e-mail me direct at AdamofErin at aol.com.
My name is Lord Barat FitzWalter Reynolds (MKA, Stephen Pursley), I am a
Master Vintner of the Honorable Brotherhood of Brewers and Vintners.
You will find an extensive set of documents on the brewing of mead at:
www.oklahoma.net/~herron/barat/index.html
You may use any of the information you find there. There are several
paragraphs on basic brewing techniques, a section on equipment (mead, beer
and wine), and many mead recipies. If you need to contact me, you can
reach me at herron at okc.oklahoma.net. Or call me, my phone number is on my
resume that's slung off the web page.
Share the Knowledge
Barat
From: Richard Bainter <pug at interval.net>
To: bryn-gwlad at eden.com
Subject: Re: Brewers' Guild
Date: Thu, 17 Oct 1996 11:45:10 -0500 (CDT)
> I have a question about beer. Does anybody have a clue as to why my
> beers have had a citrusy taste?
Besides yeast, here's another reference:
----
G09. SUCROSE VS. CORN SUGAR
Both will ferment equally well in your wine, and usually may be used
interchangeably, though in different amounts.
For those of you with really distinguishing palates, sucrose (table
sugar) will give a beverage a fruity character; corn sugar, a malty
character.
3/4 unit of sucrose equals 1 unit of corn sugar; therefore if your
recipe calls for 1 unit of sugar, you should use 1 1/3 units corn sugar.
----
And check out http://alpha.rollanet.org/Library.html.
--
Phelim Uhtred Gervas | "I want to be called. COTTONTIPS. There is something
Barony of Bryn Gwlad | graceful about that lady. A young woman bursting with
House Flaming Dog | vigor. She blinked at the sudden light. She writes
pug at pug.net | beautiful poems. When ever shall we meet again?"
From: mshapiro at nando.net (mshapiro)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Brewing Handbook
Date: 21 Jun 1996 03:53:13 GMT
: adamoferin at aol.com (AdamofErin) wrote:
: > My shire is doing a brewer's handbook as a fund raiser for our Kingdom,
: > and we are in desperate need of material. My Shire is Highland Foorde and
: > the Kingdom is Atlantia. If you would care to donate any recipes to this
: > venture it would be greatly appreciated. I will personally garuntee that
: > you will get credit for that recipe. When you send it to me include your
: > name (Mundane and SCA), your Kingdom and your shire. If you want to you
: > can e-mail me direct at AdamofErin at aol.com.
I am Ld Alexander Mareschal, Royal Brewer, Atlantia. Please check out my
WEB page, listed below. It contains full text of two of my articles,
which were published in TI and my CA on alcoholic beverages. Feel free
to use any information from this page which you find useful. I only ask
that you credit myself and the original publication. Also, please
include the URL of my page. This will insure that as many people as
possible will get the most access possible to shared knowledge.
--
Marc Shapiro mshapiro at nando.net
See my WEB page: The Meadery at
http://www.webbuild.com/~mshapiro/index.html
THL Alexander Mareschal Canton of Kappelenburg
Barony of Windmasters Hill
Kingdom of Atlantia
From: Marc Shapiro <mn.shapiro1 at mindspring.com>
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Recipe for Cordials?
Date: Tue, 19 Nov 1996 22:02:18 -0500
> I read your cordial recipe and it sounds fairly easy. I am looking for
> documentation for cordials. I have never researched these.
Check out the Web page listed below (either one will reach the same set
of pages). In the section on Research Papers is a link to "Alcoholic
Drinks of the Middle Ages" which has a chapter on cordials. This
includes history, a little 'How to" and some period recipes, as well.
While your at it, check out the rest of the link, which has similar
information for wine, beer, mead, whisky, brandy and vinegar.
This link is the complete text of the CA #60 of same name.
The site also has links to other sites on the theme of brewing and
vinting with lots of information to be had. The Cider and Perry sites
have some nice info on traditional methods, as I recall.
--
Marc Shapiro
mn.shapiro1 at mindspring.com
THL Alexander Mareschal Canton of Kappelenburg Kingdom of
Atlantia
http://www.mindspring.com/~mn.shapiro1/index.html
http://www.geocities.com/Paris/1265/index.html
From: Brian Shafer <shafer at kingsnet.com>
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Wassail recipe
Date: Wed, 27 Nov 1996 14:34:50 -0800
On Tue Nov 26 1996, Holly Allan wrote:
>I've been following this thread for a bit and I'd love to try some
>of the recipies that have been posted. I do however have one question,
>and please excuse me if the answer is obvious; but could you please tell
>me what "Cyser" is?
Cyser is cider but it has extra adder sugar (usally honey) to produce a
higher alcohol content. Apple juice fermented by itself is cider just
as honey and water (plus a few brewing chemicals) is mead. When you add
fruits or spices it is technically something else. Mead with fruit is
called melomel and mead with spices is called metheglin. Also on the
same note grape wine made with honey is called pyment and pyment made
with herbs is called hippocras. Confusing isn't it?
If yoou really are interested in making mead and cider and such here are
a few books I suggest. Making Mead (Honey Wine) by Roger A. Morse
published by wicwas press, Making Mead by Bryan Acton and Peter Duncan
published by G.W. Kent, Inc. and Swet and Hard Cider Making it, using
it, and enjoying it by Annie Proulx and Lew Nichols published by Garden
Way Publishing. Enjoy!
Brian Shafer
Date: Tue, 03 Dec 1996 16:24:46 -0600
From: Damaris of Greenhill <damaris at geocities.com>
To: ansteorra at eden.com
Subject: Re: Mead Brewing?
Larkin O'Kane wrote:
> Can anyone tell me how to stop the fermentation process when the mead
> reaches the desired alcohol/sweetness point? I relise that keeping it
> in the refrigerator will do the trick but it only holds so much.
> Someone suggested heating the bottles of mead but I don't know what
> temperature is sufficient and how long to keep the bottles at that
> temperature.
One thing you can do, is to keep adding sugar syrup. Eventually the
alcohol content will get high enough to kill any yeast. That's not too
good if you have achieved the level of alcohol/sweetness that you want.
Brewing supply stores sell "yeast stabilizer" which kills the yeast
supposedly. I haven't had much luck with it unless I use it in
conjunction with camden tablets. If sulfites don't bother you then you
can use camden alone about 1-2 tablets per gallon.
Subject: Re: Mead Brewing?
To: ansteorra at eden.com
Date: Tue, 3 Dec 1996 12:12:52 -0600 (CST)
From: "Pug Bainter" <pug at pug.net>
> Can anyone tell me how to stop the fermentation process when the mead
> reaches the desired alcohol/sweetness point? I relise that keeping it
> in the refrigerator will do the trick but it only holds so much.
> Someone suggested heating the bottles of mead but I don't know what
> temperature is sufficient and how long to keep the bottles at that
> temperature.
There are lots of ways of doing this, some work, some don't very
well.
Refridgeration only makes the yeast go dorment. They will start up
again if they can get above a certain temperature. Matter of fact, some
yeasts want to ferment at colder temps. They take much longer though.
I believe in once refridgerated, always refridgerated.
Adding a stabalizing agent. I've not had much luck this way. Some info
from the wine.faq is:
Sorbate: Potassium sorbate. A substance that is noxious to yeasts
and as such is used as a stabilizer. It should be noted that sorbate's
effectiveness depends on low yeast counts in the wine; if it's high, it
will be inneffective. Clear your wine properly, and ferment out to sg
1.000 or less.
Sulphite (or sulphate): Referring to sodium metabisulphite or potassium
metabisulphite. A substance that is noxious to many spoilage
microorganisms and wild yeasts and as such is used as a microbiological
and oxidative inhibitor and stabilizer. It should be noted that
sulphite's effectiveness depends on low organism counts in the wine; if
it's high, it will be inneffective. Clear your wine properly and
ferment out to sg 1.000 or less.
Pasteurization is done by steeping in a water bath at 60 C (140 F),
and hold this temperature for 20 mins. Cool to 18 C (74 F). I've never
tried this. I've heard lots of people have bottles explode doing this.
I believe in either using a yeast that will stop at the desired
sweetness, usually ale yeasts work well and the one I use stops at
about 10% alcohol, or starting with a higher opening SG. Champagne
and wine yeasts go from 8 to 18% depending on the strain. Letting
fermentation go to it's full extent will also leave a clearer wine in
the end. (Less dregs at the bottom.)
Btw, although clearing agents help some, a single yeast cell can start
it all off again.
Phelim Uhtred Gervas | "I want to be called. COTTONTIPS. There is something
Barony of Bryn Gwlad | graceful about that lady. A young woman bursting with
House Flaming Dog | vigor. She blinked at the sudden light. She writes
pug at pug.net | beautiful poems. When ever shall we meet again?"
Subject: Re: Mead Brewing?
To: ansteorra at eden.com
Date: Mon, 9 Dec 1996 14:01:23 -0600 (CST)
From: "Pug Bainter" <pug at pug.net>
>> In those cases had the yeast gotten to alcohol tolerence or simply
>> ran out of food/sugar? Since most wine references I seen suggest to
>> get the SG down as close to 1.000 as possible, I would think that
>> they simply didn't have any more sugar to convert.
> I've never made such measurements in the mead I've made. Are you saying
> that as the sugar is used up the S. G. approaches 1.0?
That's what I'm saying. 1.000 is the SG (density) of standard water at
70F (?). If I remember right, alcohol has a lower SG than water. I don't
know much about the actual chemistry though and should pick up a book
on it. (*grumbles for thinking he didn't have to have chemistry in school*)
> Is this reading
> affected only by the sugar content? Or do other things that have been
> added affect it also?
It's mostly the sugar (fermentable and non-fermentable) content. Other
things do affect it, but usually only minorly in my experience. (ie.
spices and other flavorings, actual pulp will skew it though)
> If 1.0 means no sugar then that would be a very dry mead.
Yes it is and would. I know a lot of people who like it this way though.
> What kind of numbers should one expect to see:
> a) at the first, when you start brewing?
We start at about 1.130 to 1.150 with our stuff. This can ferment out to
18-20% given the right yeasts. Some people suggest to stay below 1.100
which is about 14% if fermented out.
> b) at the end for a sweet mead?
I would guess around 1.020 to 1.040 for a sweet mead. The one we entered
was at 1.052 and might have been a little too sweet for some folks.
Btw, we took third in the mead category despite being entered improperly
as a traditional mead when it's a metheglin mead. (*grumbles at entry
people*) We don't know if we would have placed any higher if entered in
the correct catagory since we still had good marks. One of the meads
that beat us took 1st runner up overall. (Of course it was a young mead
that hadn't aged anywhere near long enough. Next time we'll do it right
by planning in advance instead of entering at the last moment with what
we were currently bottling.)
> c) at the end for a dry mead?
Since most of the sugar in honey is fermentable it will come close to or
below 1.000.
Take a look at http://alpha.rollanet.org/~tamhc/hall/mead_judging.txt
for some real good guidelines for judging. Some of the relevant
information is:
Varietal modifier: The variety of honey that a mead is made from will often
have a large effect on the flavor of the mead. The brewer should specify
the varietal honey (for example, clover or orange blossom). The mead should
have some character from the varietal honey, especially if it is a
traditional mead.
Strength (Hydromel / Standard / Sack) modifier: The strength of a mead is
primarily based on the original gravity. Hydromels (watered mead) will have
specific gravities roughly less than 1.080. Standard strength meads will be
in the original gravity range from 1.080 to 1.120. Sack meads will
generally be greater than 1.120. This modifier was designed so that
well-made delicate hydromels will not be overlooked in favor of the more
emphatic sack meads. Make sure to judge each strength of mead according to
its own merits.
Sweetness (Dry / Medium / Sweet) modifier: The perceived sweetness is largely
a function of the final specific gravity, but other variables such as the
acidity will also have an effect. Roughly, a dry mead will have a final
gravity less than 1.010, a medium mead will fall in the range from 1.010 to
1.025, and a sweet mead will be greater than 1.025.
Carbonation Level (Still / Sparkling) modifier: Still meads should have
little or no carbonation. Some slight carbonation is acceptable. Sparkling
meads should have a definite effervescence and tingly mouthfeel. Tiny
bubbles are preferable to large bubbles.
> d) are the numbers similar for wines?
And ciders as well. Beers are a completely different ballgame due to the
materials used and the alcohol contents desired.
From a humor file I got today:
In Kentucky it is by law that anyone who has been drinking is "sober"
until he or she "cannot hold onto the ground."
Phelim Uhtred Gervas | "I want to be called. COTTONTIPS. There is something
Barony of Bryn Gwlad | graceful about that lady. A young woman bursting with
House Flaming Dog | vigor. She blinked at the sudden light. She writes
pug at pug.net | beautiful poems. When ever shall we meet again?"
From: Philip & Susan Troy <troy at asan.com>
Date: Tue, 13 May 1997 18:35:27 -0400
Subject: Re: SC - kvas
Mark Harris wrote:
> >A primary fermenter, such as is used with English ales, is helpful here,
> >or you'll almost certainly clog the airlock and explode!
>
> What is a ³primary fermenter²? I¹ve made mead but not beer or ale.
A primary fermenter is usually a sort of bucket with a snap-on top. Some
modern English recipes call for doing the first fermentation, which
produces a lot of gunky foam which generally dries to the consistency of
concrete, in such a fermenter, often topped with some kind of plastic
wrap, before going to the standard secondary fermenter, which is usually
a glass carboy with a water-filled airlock fitted to it. If you don't
watch it carefully, and do a primary fermentation in a carboy, there's a
chance the airlock will get clogged with dried foam, and some sort of
explosion might result. For our batch of kvass we used a wide-mouthed
glass demijohn, formerly used for making wine. It has a snap-on top with
a pinhole punched in it, to relieve excess gas pressure. Had there been
any problems with clogging, the top just lifts off, and you can go in
with something like a stainless-steel spoon to remove the crud.
Adamantius
Date: Sat, 07 Jun 1997 00:06:36 -0400 (EDT)
From: ALBAN at delphi.com
To: sca-arts at raven.cc.ukans.edu
Subject: Re: pre-1600 documentation on Mead
(I knew I had an answer to this, but it took me a while to
remember it.)
Check out "Elinor Fettiplace's Receipt Book", by Hilary Spurling.
(New York, Viking/Penguin, 1986, and the ISBN's downstairs.
I can get it for you if you want it.)
Spurling was rummaging through her attic one afternoon, according
to her foreward, and she came across a manuscript inherited by her
husband, from one of his distant ancestors, the aforementioned
Lady Elinor Fettiplace. The recipe book was dated roughly 1604....
Spurling took it, read it, tested out some of the recipes in both
the original and redacted versions, did some historical research
(her profession is historian), and *poof* wrote a book on it.
Good stuff: not only recipes, but also _when_ they'd be likely to
serve what. The chapters are the months; every chapter/month
has recipes and such in it appropriate to that month.
(Fettiplace's household went through something like 20 barrels of
ale/beer for the Twelfth Night festivities.....)
It's unfortunately out of print, I believe, so check Amazon, or
my personal favorite bookstore, Powell's in Portland Oregon,
where I stumbled across both of my copies.
Alban
Subject: Re: Great Books for the SCA Tradition
To: ansteorra at eden.com
Date: Thu, 12 Jun 1997 07:29:36 -0500 (CDT)
From: "Pug Bainter" <pug at pug.net>
> The New Complete Joy of Homebrewing
I must disagree. *grin*
I think that Homebrewing should be passed on from person to person. (Or
learned in my favorite method, trial and error.)
If you want some "period" recipes, try Cindy Renfro's "A Sip Through Time".
It does nothing for teaching how to brew, but is a nice place to find a
lot of period and close to period recipes. (Some of them blantently not
though.) It has a few flaws, but I overlook those. (They are mostly in
the recipe ingredients and the "time to completion". She tried to be
correct, but missed here and there.)
Phelim "Pug" Gervase | "If you want my views of history,
Barony of Bryn Gwlad | there is something you should know.
House Flaming Dog | The three men I admire the most are
pug at pug.net | Curly, Larry and Moe." --Meatloaf
From: Hugh Niewoehner <hughn at ssd.fsi.com>
Date: Fri, 13 Jun 1997 12:58:41 -0500
To: ansteorra at eden.com
Subject: Subject: Brewing books/methods...
>> Anyway there is one called Making Mead. The
>> authors name escapes me right now.
Acton - Duncan
From my wine makers handout:
"The Amateur Winemaker" in England publishes a book called Making Mead.
The authors, Bryan Acton and Peter Duncan, have compiled a bit of the
history behind mead, including the origin of the term "honeymoon" as well
as a good beginners guide to amateur wine making. It's well worth the
couple of dollars that it costs.
One of the best though has got to be: