Homebrewing

not sure you guys can help me, but thought I would post this.

My hallertau plant developed this problem pretty freaking quickly and I'm not sure what it is. Luckily the hops had come to maturity before this really set in, but I am concerned for the plant. This stuff is showing up everywhere and I need to identify it properly before I can treat it. I don't think it is heat related as CO has been pretty mild (I don't think we have even hit 100F yet). But we have had a reasonable amount of rain in July so it could be mildew. WDYT?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sc5mu93/sets/72157627219511759/

Got a diagnosis from a PhD Horticulturist. Alternia alternata.

Is it an easy fix?

Best as I understand, I can use Daconil to treat. Alternia alternata apparently affects a lot of veggie plants as well so Daconil is supposed to be non-toxic. Horticulturist had the disclaimer of "follow the directions on the label" since they weren't that familiar with hops. I also can't find any information of the effects of Daconil on hops. Apparently hops are in the minority of home gardens. Luckily, the plant in question has already been harvested so I am not gonna lose any hops out of treating it.

There are other options for commercial growers, but are pretty much out of the reach of the homebrewer.

The problem probably arose because of the unsually wet july that CO had.

Just to necro this thread one more time:

HomebrewPoke, how did that sour turn out? Please don't tell me that you guys had to dump it....

Hasn't been dumped (yet)! We bought some mixed bugs (WLP655 and Wyeast 3278) a few weeks ago and pitched them then.

We pulled a sample a few weeks ago to taste. It's highly medicinal and phenolic. I guess we're hoping that this is common in the early stages of a sour and that it will be cleaned up over the next few months with the help of the new bacteria and wild yeast that we added.

I hope it clears out. I hate phenols (and fusels). I have found that both are pretty hard to get rid of once they appear. But then again, I have never done a sour, so I have no CLUE on what the behavior is. Keep us posted. I really hope it clears up as that is a LOT of beer to dump.

Thanks, yes, far too much time and money put in to give up yet!

I actually only dumped one of my kegs. The second I bottled just for grins.
After neglecting those 2 cases at garage-temps for a couple of months, I had moved those to the fridge. For even more grins, I gave a bottle a try over last weekend. VERY apparent what happened. Definitely an infection despite my previous indication. Not sure what kind, but the beer has definitely soured. But not in a bad way. Previously, it was much more subtle to where, my brain couldn't perceive it as a sour. It just was a weird "off-flavor." Now it is "BAM - I'm a SOUR." Definitely not what I was shooting for, but drinkable now.

Funny how age and neglect have improved the flavor of this beer but not the appearance. Usually not what happens...

Necro-ing again. Very interested in what happened.

Still waiting, still in the barrel. We haven't done a great job on checking it and taking samples (as in, we haven't). But we know we need to soon. Might have to wait until after the holidays.

Now at 7 months in the barrel. Taste has improved greatly...heavy oak, some funk. We added 20 lbs of sour cherries on Saturday.

Was this part of the original plan? Were they pasteurized first?

Cherries (and using fruit at all) wasn't a part of the original plan...we just thought it would complement / add some complexity to where it was going. They were canned cherries, so I believe they were pasteurized. We'll pull another sample in a few weeks.

Canned should be safe. Should be interesting when it is done.

It's almost April. How is the batch doing?

Wish I knew! One of the guys is supposed to pull a sample soon.

Something tells me he took the batch to mexico.

I was just coming over here to bring this thread back to life. I've recently began my exploits into home brewing. I got a kit a for Christmas but had absolutely no idea what I was doing. Luckily I had InHocPoke come over and show me the ropes a little bit, and also make me realize that all I had was a couple of buckets and random toys - definitely lacking some much needed equipment.

Anyway, I've since purchased a 7.5 gallon kettle, bought some extra toys and built a mash tun and dove right into all-grain. Right now I'm just focused on developing my skills at consistent mashing/brewing. Not trying to reinvent the wheel just yet.

So far I've brewed a Brown (w/ InHoc), a Cherry Stout (which turned out very interesting), Pale Ale (Dales clone) and this weekend I'll be trying a summer wheat with orange and lemon zest.

Anyway, here's some obligatory pics of my mash tun:

Sweet. BAMF, you are well on your way. That mashtun should last you quite a while (like forever as long as you clean it well) and looks great. I fully agree with going allgrain from the beginning, as long as you have someone knowledgable assisting you.

Just wondering, how are you fermenting? Do you have temperature control of some kind? In my experience, temperature control during the ferment can contribute to the biggest improvement of your brewing process. As you start figuring things out, and start looking for upgrades in equipment and process, I recommend looking first at temperature control.

BAMF, what is your local homebrew shop? When I lived in Dallas 4 years ago (and hopefully again in a few months), I frequented Homebrew HQ in Richardson. The owner, Kelly, was highly enthusiastic, willing to talk, never condescending, and worked hard to earn my business - as well as sometimes drunk. That shop carried Great Western Malt, which was my base malt of choice, and is sometimes a little difficult to find.