As I have previously written, summer can be a difficult time for brewers but with a little effort, good results are achievable The fruit flavours and excessive foaming that come from high temperature fermentations can be avoided with a couple of easy changes to your regular procedure.

1. Ensure the yeast is the most suitable for hot weather. 514 Ale Yeast is recommended.
2. Once the ferment has started, move the fermenter into an air-conditioned room if available, or the coolest place you can find over 20 deg. C.
3. Use a big cooler or even a cardboard box to insulate your fermenter from the heat. You can lower the temperate inside the box by using 2 litre frozen drink bottles. This method involves changing the bottles in the morning so the temperature is reduced by the time mid-day rolls around. Be careful as you don’t want it too cold. This procedure is also helpful for distillers who may find yields reducing as their yeasts struggle with the summer heat. Beer brewers wishing to use liquid ale yeasts would also need good temperature control and I know the box has done the job for ale brewers in the past.

Some of you may recall the recipe “Boston’s Calling”. Originally I had made this American Premium like most other recipes for Boston Lager and used 50 g of choc grain. I have made this beer with 20 g of choc and found it much closer to the mark. The next time I may even drop that to 15 g. as I believe I may still be a little dark compared to the Boston Lager I was trying to copy.

My point is that sometimes when we follow recipes from overseas we have to tweak them slightly, as their ingredients may differ from ours. This is especially true with crystal grain where America has many colour grades and we have only just been able to get a 50 and a 230 to add to the regular 120.

Remember you are not bound to your nearest brew outlet. If you are not happy with a sub-standard result, go mail order or order online from our website…
www.homebrewerswarehouse.com.au
Cheers… Younga!