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Inkbird

Skelmersdale

I meant home brewers rather than commercial breweries.

Any news on the cheddar? It should be ready soon shouldn't it?

If there are any brewers near you, maybe you could join them for a brew day. It's fun brewing with someone in the same way it's fun cooking with them. Maybe ask on a brewing forum?

Has anyone used a grill top pizza oven? Are they any good? Any recommendations? Thanks

We can have a beer swap, I'll also bring something stronger. Shhhh

I use a 40 lt Buffalo boiler from Nisbetts to initially mash in and then boil, once the grain bag has been removed. After the boil I use an immersion cooler in the boiler. When it has cooled I transfer into a plastic fermenting bucket and add the yeast. After fermentation is complete I keg my beer but bottles, whilst taking longer, take up less space. As long as you can get your ventilation sorted out during the boil stage (there is a lot of steam and condensation) this set up can easily fit into even the most compact of kitchens. The actual amount of surface area need for mashing and boiling is the footprint of the boiler, around 18" square. You will need somewhere warm for the fermenter in order for the yeast to work its magic, temperature at this stage can make a huge difference to the quality of your beer. My set up is very basic and not at all automated, but if you are looking for more bells and whistles look at systems like the Grainfather and Braumeister. Check out youtube for a more visual explanation of these systems, there are a lot of different set ups, pick one that appeals most.

I usually do a 90 minute mash and a 90 minute boil. From start to finish the day takes around 5 hours.

I've been brewing for 6 or 7 years, using the BIAB method. It was the smallest financial outlay move up from kit brewing. The results have been good enough for me not to move on to 3 vessel brewing. Have you done any beer brewing before? If not it is worth trying a few kits to get the basics under your belt before moving on. If you have, what are you looking to do? Let me know if I can offer any advice or assistance, I know others on here also have some experience and would be willing to help. There is nothing better than a couple of home brewed beers whilst pretending to be busy keeping an eye on the bbq or smoker!

Skelmersdale

That's fantastic! It appears to have a beautiful texture, unlike the crumbly stuff we had at Christmas. I bet you can't wait to try the cheddar either.

It's probably cosmetic, but does anyone know why this happens, and if it can be prevented? Is it uneven application of the cure at the start?

It's quite tight, but if you ease them on it works. Too much force and your thumb pops through the latex. You could always order bigger latex gloves, I don't know why I didn't think of that before.

I got some of these gloves after watching the Buffalo slicer video on Youtube, and knowing how clumsy I can be. I always use them when using the slicer. I usually put some latex gloves over the top to keep them clean and dry, especially when washing the blade. Just wearing them seems to remind me to be careful. It's hard to forget when you have blue latex hands...

This is from the facebook page... "OK, had to make a decision, and gone with the majority. 2nd Northern Tailgate & BBQ Weekend, will be 27th - 29th September 2019" Hope this helps

We're expecting "The Icefever Cheese Stall" at Woodsmoke 19. 😄

You've certainly hit the ground running with the cheese making. You should have quite a stock soon. How long do you need to store stilton for before you can eat it?

They look really good, I didn't think of vac packing, obvious really. If you can get unpasteurised milk I've heard it makes a difference with stilton.

I guess the airing at room temperature is now complete and you're preparing for the maturing stage. Are you waxing the cheese or cloth wrapping it as per one of the videos? How did the lasagne turn out? Pictures?

That wheel of cheese looks fantastic! Great job. Are you going mild or mature with it? The first I guess will be the hardest to resist for long enough to really mature. Your own smoked cheddar, what could be better?

You'll soon know the weight of everything handy in the kitchen! Good luck... ?

Isn't it strange how it's left to us to "blaze a trail" and only after tasting the results do our obsessions become tolerated. Eventually you may find you are getting requests about what to make next. ?

Nice press, looks to be just the job. I assume you are using water filled bottles as weights, I was worried about them sliding off but your press looks like it will be very stable. Is today "cheese day"? Hope it all goes according to plan.

Marine ply arrives tomorrow, that's all I'm waiting on. Should get finished in the coming week. hopefully....