Davik Brewing

To create your own smoked beer (aka Rauchbier) you can use a cauldron-style charcoal grill with a shallow, screen-basket to smoke the malt.
The malt rests in a screen-basket, which you can make from a wood frame with screening stapled to it. Build a small fire with a handful of charcoal briquettes off to the side [...]

Filed under: Brewing 101 on August 24th, 2009 | No Comments »

This is the ingredients for the yeast starter.
I use the remaining wort from the mash tun after the desired volume is collected.
I kick up the gravity to around 1.040 with organic sugar from Trader Joe’s.
You can aslo add malt extract or candi sugar.
Boil the ingredients in the microwave for ease and simplicity. It should take [...]

Filed under: Brewing 101 on August 1st, 2009 | No Comments »

This is a typical 1 quart yeast starter.
A #7 rubber bung fits perfectly in this food grade juice container.
This starter method can either be used for ales or lagers, the only difference is the temperature at which you let the yeast work.
When working with yeast, sanitation is a concern, as with all brewing tasks.
You can [...]

Filed under: Brewing 101 on August 1st, 2009 | No Comments »

When summer comes around, many brewers take time off from brewing. Unless you have an outside brewing setup, you can really heat up the house when brew day comes around. I’ve actually used my BBQ to boil my wort when the summer day temperatures approach 100F. It’s not a very efficient way to brew, but [...]

Filed under: Brewing 101 on August 1st, 2009 | No Comments »

The majority of brewers (perhaps 70%) brew with malt extract recipes, though most serious enthusiasts have made the switch to all-grain. Yet it is the small percentage of expert brewers who write all of the brewing books and publish a large portion of recipes online. This can leave many extract brewers out in the cold.
The [...]

Filed under: Brewing 101 on July 19th, 2009 | No Comments »

This short video shows primary fermentation under way after a short 6 hours of pitching the yeast. The yeast starter was already going when I pitched, and I had fed the yeast twice prior to brew day.

For more information on yeast starters, you can view this post…
http://www.davikbrewing.com/blog/brewing_101/yeast-starter-for-lager-fermentation
Starters for ale beers can be done the same [...]

Filed under: Brewing 101 on July 12th, 2009 | No Comments »

Copper & Brass
Copper
The best choice for cleaning copper are cleaners like PBW. For heavily oxidized conditions, acetic acid (white distilled vinegar)is very effective, especially when hot.
The oxides of copper are more easily dissolved by the mildly acidic wort than the copper itself. By cleaning copper tubing with acetic acid once before the first use and [...]

Filed under: Brewing 101, Microbrewing on July 3rd, 2009 | Comments Off

This is the time of year to brew those favorite lager beers that will sit in cold storage for months, aging and mellowing and creating the complex flavors we all love in a good lager. Since lagers ferment at lower temperatures, a yeast starter is highly recommended. The yeast must become comfortable at the lower [...]

Filed under: Brewing 101 on June 30th, 2009 | 2 Comments »

As an all grain brewer you want to extract as much sugars from your grains as possible. This is called mash efficiency, and it’s an important role for home brewers who are looking to improve their techniques.
Careful notes should be taken during the brewing process, as should be done with all aspects of brewing. If [...]

Filed under: Brewing 101 on June 24th, 2009 | No Comments »

If you’re a homebrewer that’s still stuck in the expensive routine of using brewing kits or liquid malt extract, this just might be what you need to know.
You can easily brew better tasting, higher quality and cheaper brews by switching to all grain brewing. Don’t be intimidated, it’s actually alot easier than you might think.
Sure, [...]

Filed under: Brewing 101 on June 24th, 2009 | 3 Comments »