Updates

Here is a picture of the stir plate in action. Interestingly, the 5V power source was not strong enough because of the increased liquid/viscosity of the starter compared to the ~1 L of water I was testing it on earlier this week. I had also added 2 small "button" magnets to the fan and put the hard drive magnets on top to make a stronger electromagnetic field. The stronger field and more resistance has now allowed me to switch back to the 9V power source and I'm happy to report that the stir plate is working well.

An update on the BW: some people have commented on seeing longer lag times on oxygenated brews compared to batches in which they were aerated by other methods. I have definitely seen this as I pitched the yeast at ~12 noon on Tuesday, and finally this AM I did see some activity inside the fermenter. Normally, since the yeast was fresh from the cake of the IPA bottled on 1/2, I would expect fermentation to begin within 12 hours of so, but I guess the extra oxygen has promoted a lot of yeast growth instead of fermetnation up until now. Yesterday morning I also gave the BW an extra shot of oxygen as bigger beers greatly benefit from a second dose of oxygen 12-24 hours after pitching.

Although I havent mentioned anything about it, when we made our Brown Ale we experimented with ~2 gallons of wort by using Brett Brux and an oak spiral. I finally got around to bottling it about 1 week ago and it has been infected. It smells and tastes like vinegar and we will subsequently be dumping the rest of the bottles. I think that it sat too long and that is likely how it got infected since it sat in the garage for about 2 months with me opening it up a few times to see how things were progressing. Next time, if there is a next time, I think I will add the oak after primary fermentation has been completed as I think some of the oaky flavors (if there were any) got lost during that time. Also, Brett doesnt like hops, and our brown was hopped pretty significantly, which could have also provided an opportunity for other, unintentional, bugs to get into the beer.

Black IPA on Saturday, cant wait to try that one.