Magnificent David -Have just watched this for 4th time & each time picked up different pointers as my experience with brewfather increases. These videos are invaluable and now allow relatively new full grain brewers, like me, to present excellent beers to those partaking -tasting nights attendances are increasing with a recent , beer release calendar requested by the lads, for their diaries, so as not to miss out on a new fresh brew on tap !!! -a lot fun by all -Thank you
Each to his own, but for me David, this video is gold dust. Having increased batch size from 23 to 30 litres my numbers have been all over the place and I have become increasingly aware how essential balance is in my beer and this couldn’t have come at a better time for me. Once again, another hugely useful video to help me on my homebrew journey. Thanks again for everything you do David.
At my level of brewing, you hit it right ... there are stuff I already knew and that I did not know. I find the Brewfather logical, however complex at the same time, stuff that is hard to figure out, here you are helping out. I really enjoyed your video. I would not be disappointed if more of this type comes😊 Thanks for your enormous effort all the videos through all the time. It is highly appreciate it, more than you will ever know.🙏🙏🙏🙏
Great to hear Allan. I think for many its a jigsaw that needs certain pieces to complete. Glad to hear that this helped. I will continue with educational content as much as possible.
Wow David, this is very useful information. A lot of information but after seeing the video for the 2nd or 3rd time all things fall into place. Thanks for this one. Cheers!
Thanks David Although I use most of the functionality you mention here there were a couple of very useful features i was unaware of. A really excellent video many thanks. Rodger
David, I am hooked on your videos. For the past two weeks I have been watching as many videos as I can so I can decide on how to dive into this amazing hobby. I have never brewed before so this is all new to me. Of course I like to drink beer so that is a good start! I appreciate the attention to detail that you give to your videos and your humor as well (especially about how the wife factor fits in with systems and cash layout!). I am leaning towards the Brewzilla 35 over the G30 at the moment. Although I still want the GF conical fermenter and glycol chiller. I won't be able to get a system until mid September when I get home and clean the garage along with some of the items on my wife's list with me being gone this summer. Thanks again!
Hey Bill, many thanks for you kind words and feedback. I have both of the systems you mention and they are very similar in many ways. I did a comparison video of the two some time back. Since then the Brewzilla firmware has gone from strength to strength and the system has seen some upgrades including much better more modern heating elements. The G30 is still very capable but its heating is less modern making it not only slower but less protective. The BZ has low watt density elements which drastically reduces the chance of bottom plate burning and wort caramelization, meaning your beers can be lighter. I highly suspect that the G30 will be replaced in the not too distant future.
David, thanks for more great information. I'm trying to convert a recipe from 60 min to 30 min. It currently calls for a hop addition at 60 and another at 30 min. Should I just make both additions at 30 min and keep each hop at the original IBU impact in BF?
David Thanks for your previous advise. Since this video is about Brewfather I thought you may be able to help. I’m working on a recipe for a Hazy IPA and a “example” recipe that I was looking at had several hop additions at flame out and dry hopping. As I entered this “example” recipe into Brewfather, the flame out and dry hopping additions do not seem to change the IBU amount. I have far low IBUs than the “example” recipe states. Is there a setting that I’m missing or could it be that I’m still using the free version? Dale
Hi Dale, certainly the 0 minute additions change the IBU for me on Brewfather but not the dry hops. Dry hop bitterness is mostly viewed as “perceived bitterness” at the start that fades rather than “actual bitterness” which is constant. If you see no bitterness from flame out then that is not working as intended and I suggest reaching out to the developer for a solution.
Hi David, what a tremendously useful video, thanks so much. I’ve not been using Brewfather for long and this has been a huge help. I have tried to join the online Jim’s beer kit but I’m not getting any response to my email can you help please.
@@DavidHeathHomebrew ah, my apologies…got you confused with someone else then..sorry. On another note. ..I mainly brew with liquid extracts…I have limited time for brewing. But many recipes don’t use the full amount in a can so I had hoped Brewfather could scale according to the malt extract but it only did it with the water amount. So, I figured that if I could scale the water then I could scale the full recipe. So here’s how I did it.. Assuming I have put in all the ingredients and the water amount for the full brew. Let’s assume in this recipe the malt extract needs 3400g (more than 2 cans) and the water is a 23 litre batch. The scale factor to get from 23 to 3400 is 3400/23=147.82 Now if I divide my required extract 3000g (2 full cans) by 147.82 I get my required water=20.29 litres. I can now scale the whole recipe using the scale button . What do you think? Hopefully it’s a help to other extract brewers.
Cheers Neil, certainly looks good. Extract brewing is not very popular outside of the US, So I wonder if such a thing would have much demand. You could suggest it to the developer.
@@DavidHeathHomebrew Hi David, wow I didn’t know that. That’s a good idea though I will send them an email. I managed to join the JBK board, they had been having email problems. Tek care mate and enjoy the weekend. Chinook ipa brew this afternoon for me! 🍻🍻🍻🍻
Hi David, another newbie question.. When a recipe is written & an efficiency guideline is given, does this refer to The Brewhouse efficiency or the mash efficiency? My confusion comes from the Brewfather app seems to favour the former, where’s the Grainfather app for my G30 only offers mash efficiency. Dan
Great video thank you. I have used Bru n in the past to build my water profile but wanted to give Brewfather a try since I really like the features that the software offers. I have noticed that when I duplicate a recipe into Brewfather the mash pH and mineral additions are vastly different. Any thoughts on why this would be .
@@DavidHeathHomebrew thanks very much for the reply, most likely user error on my part!!!!! The content you make available to the homebrewer is so valued , thank you for all the work you put into these videos.
Thanks David, learned some helpful shortcuts I wasn’t aware of! When you auto-scaled the OG to raise the ABV, the EBC also changed from 10.2 to 12.8. I’ve noticed the same behavior when using that feature. The actual percentage ratios of the grain bill remain at 95/5 but the colour darkens. Would a change of 2.6 EBC be enough to warrant manually adjusting the colour contribution after using the OG feature or would this also affect the balance of flavor contributions from the darker malts?
Great to hear. Yes, I mentioned this. Quite often its not something to worry about but you will see the visual colour change in Brewfather too, which can be helpful 10 to 13 EBC will be suitable for many styles. The flavour difference with low EBC malts will seldom be noticeable but the will be in much darker grains usually.
Hi David. I'm looking at this app but there is vastly different water additions between this and the GF app. Which one would you recommend to use? Thank you :)
Hi David. I'm thinking of dabbling in yeast starters. Have you done any videos giving instructions on how to use the yeast calculator in brew father? I also get confused with the number of packets it quotes which has prompted me to consider using yeast starters to manage the costs? As I am still learning the craft i prefer to use dry yeast which is another reason i find myself juggling around looking for a suitable substitutes. Any advice would be welcomed. Thanks
Sorry I must have missed this. The yeast calculator is well covered in the documentation. Its all set by standard on a very over generous pitch rate. I suggest that you lower this. You probably will not need to think about starters then unless you are brewing large batches. I hope this fixes this for you 🍻🍻🍻
Thanks for the video David. I've been wondering, while adjusting your APA recipe to my equipment and settings how to manage hops. What I've been doing is using both amarillo and centennial with different IBUs, so I kept the same amount of each (ratio of grams equal to 1) and considering the sum of both IBUs to get as close as the original recipe. Would that be the correct form. I think that lowering one that has higher IBUs, would get less aroma from it and being overriden by the other hop.
David, what about the auto ibu correction for the whole recipe on the main screen. You just enter the desired ibu and it scales the whole ibu recipe in one click?
@@DavidHeathHomebrew Hi David, I’m very new to all grain brewing & I’ve only done all grain kits so far. I’ve just ordered the ingredients for your Merry Christmas Ale, the Magnum hops I’ve ordered state an Alpha Acid of 13-15% how would I convert the ibu when it’s not a fixed number? Regards Dan
Hi Dan, I would personally go in the middle at 14, its never going to be precise, check this out:- th-cam.com/video/etGkS8Y23R0/w-d-xo.htmlsi=WOvTiFQRU8eb_Od-
In recipe writing it is all about BU:GU, which is bitterness vs alcohol. This is the balance equation. Naturally other factors come in that cannot be measured but an experienced recipe writer will know they will be there and can account for them.
@@DavidHeathHomebrew I think the perceived bitterness is more of a factor of the FG and not the OG. I have just made a Tripel, inspired by you. >30 IBUs and FG 1.012. It has a low bitterness. The Westmalle Tripel has probably smth like FG 1.008 and IBU 30: very high perceived bitterness.
Perceived bitterness is pretty much on its own, I would say, with the individual. It is also a topic that has people divided but we all taste things differently so that is to be expected :) My taste buds detect perceived bitterness from dry hops for example but I also notice this declining too. Others will say its forever present. Different taste buds lead to different conclusions :)
I don’t have the money to upgrade to all grain at the moment but have been doing part grain kits. Is it possible to do your own part grain recipes on brew farther
Hi David another great tutorial I have a question for you I have brewed your very popular Verdant IPA recipe a couple of times and I am very pleased with the result 👍🏼❤️ However my version comes out at 5.5% ABV I note that the FG on your recipe is ‘FIXED’ @ 1.007 can you please explain ? My FG has been as predicted by Brewfather @ 1.012 🥴 hence the 5.5% Keep them coming M
Thanks Mitch. Great to hear that you are enjoying the content and beer. Yes, I fixed that FG because it has been the most common result that I have seen. This yeast does go slow at the end and this can be seen as the finish too early but variation is also possible. I think at 5.5% this will still work very well though :)
@@DavidHeathHomebrew Hi David yes I am however the last brew was 5 days @ 19°c and then a 3 day ramp but for some reason I let it go for 4 days and left it @ 23°c The SG stayed at 1.012 as with my previous attempt. I then cold crashed and it is currently bottle conditioning. Do you think the 23°c for the final couple of days could have been the problem ? M
Holy Smokes!!!! We're brewing beer, it ain't rocket science. 🙄 Experimentation is key. You won't know how your taste buds will react until it's drunk. 😆 We had fellas in our beer club with $5,000 systems & engineer jobs who's beer sucked. Knowing how grain tastes & hops react was a huge step. Add yeast to the mix & I'm scratching my head. But I guess you're going to shorten the learning curve with all these tools.
another good one my dude! I don't use beer software anymore, but when i did... brewfather was my jam!
Cheers CH. I couldn’t operate without something for calcs!!
Great tutorial David there sure to be many that we’re unaware of some of these features 🍻
Thanks Bradley. I think there are many misconceptions on the entire topic, I hope this help with that situation.
Magnificent David -Have just watched this for 4th time & each time picked up different pointers as my experience with brewfather increases. These videos are invaluable and now allow relatively new full grain brewers, like me, to present excellent beers to those partaking -tasting nights attendances are increasing with a recent , beer release calendar requested by the lads, for their diaries, so as not to miss out on a new fresh brew on tap !!! -a lot fun by all -Thank you
That is awesome to hear Tim. A lot went into making this video but it was well worth it for sure :)
Each to his own, but for me David, this video is gold dust. Having increased batch size from 23 to 30 litres my numbers have been all over the place and I have become increasingly aware how essential balance is in my beer and this couldn’t have come at a better time for me. Once again, another hugely useful video to help me on my homebrew journey. Thanks again for everything you do David.
Great to hear Phil, balance is certainly key.
Cool video. I have done some brews but never stepped outside the realm of kit instructions to use a calculator such as this.
Thank you, certainly it is very useful.
Perfect description, very helpful. Thank you.
I am very glad to hear that, cheers 🍻🍻🍻
thanks David, yet another very useful vid
Great to hear Dan, much appreciated :)
Thanks for the tips David. I didn't know half of those features! Cheers! 🍻
Great to hear that you found it helpful :)
At my level of brewing, you hit it right ... there are stuff I already knew and that I did not know.
I find the Brewfather logical, however complex at the same time, stuff that is hard to figure out, here you are helping out.
I really enjoyed your video.
I would not be disappointed if more of this type comes😊
Thanks for your enormous effort all the videos through all the time.
It is highly appreciate it, more than you will ever know.🙏🙏🙏🙏
Great to hear Allan. I think for many its a jigsaw that needs certain pieces to complete. Glad to hear that this helped. I will continue with educational content as much as possible.
Learned a lot from this video David.
I use brewfather but was unaware of some of these features.
Cheers mate this will help me 👍👍👍
Great to hear. Yes there is much to this software, that is for sure :)
That was very useful indeed. Thank you!
Great to hear, thank you :)
Wow David, this is very useful information. A lot of information but after seeing the video for the 2nd or 3rd time all things fall into place. Thanks for this one. Cheers!
Yes, there is a lot in this one for sure. Its not really in my style to waffle it though.
Excellent video David, l use most of those techniques but as always learnt some new tricks! Cheers
Great to hear Ken :) Cheers 🍻🍻🍻
Thanks David
Although I use most of the functionality you mention here there were a couple of very useful features i was unaware of. A really excellent video many thanks.
Rodger
Great to hear Roger :)
David, I am hooked on your videos. For the past two weeks I have been watching as many videos as I can so I can decide on how to dive into this amazing hobby. I have never brewed before so this is all new to me. Of course I like to drink beer so that is a good start! I appreciate the attention to detail that you give to your videos and your humor as well (especially about how the wife factor fits in with systems and cash layout!). I am leaning towards the Brewzilla 35 over the G30 at the moment. Although I still want the GF conical fermenter and glycol chiller. I won't be able to get a system until mid September when I get home and clean the garage along with some of the items on my wife's list with me being gone this summer.
Thanks again!
Hey Bill, many thanks for you kind words and feedback. I have both of the systems you mention and they are very similar in many ways. I did a comparison video of the two some time back. Since then the Brewzilla firmware has gone from strength to strength and the system has seen some upgrades including much better more modern heating elements. The G30 is still very capable but its heating is less modern making it not only slower but less protective. The BZ has low watt density elements which drastically reduces the chance of bottom plate burning and wort caramelization, meaning your beers can be lighter. I highly suspect that the G30 will be replaced in the not too distant future.
Thanks for another helpful video!
Cheers, glad you found it useful :)
Very useful!! Thank you.
Great to hear Jan.
Great video as always, thanks David!
Cheers Thomas, much appreciated :)
Excellent video- very helpful.
I am very glad to hear that, cheers 🍻🍻🍻
Thank you David
Cheers 🍻🍻🍻
David, thanks for more great information. I'm trying to convert a recipe from 60 min to 30 min. It currently calls for a hop addition at 60 and another at 30 min. Should I just make both additions at 30 min and keep each hop at the original IBU impact in BF?
Thanks. Yes, thats the way forward there 🍻🍻🍻
Great Video, I was wondering about water addictions. Are the addictions expressed as g/gallon or is the g total grams to add??
Thank you. They are already calculated on your volume, so the number you see is the total 🍻🍻🍻
David
Thanks for your previous advise. Since this video is about Brewfather I thought you may be able to help. I’m working on a recipe for a Hazy IPA and a “example” recipe that I was looking at had several hop additions at flame out and dry hopping. As I entered this “example” recipe into Brewfather, the flame out and dry hopping additions do not seem to change the IBU amount. I have far low IBUs than the “example” recipe states. Is there a setting that I’m missing or could it be that I’m still using the free version?
Dale
Hi Dale, certainly the 0 minute additions change the IBU for me on Brewfather but not the dry hops. Dry hop bitterness is mostly viewed as “perceived bitterness” at the start that fades rather than “actual bitterness” which is constant.
If you see no bitterness from flame out then that is not working as intended and I suggest reaching out to the developer for a solution.
Obrigado professor Portugal
Cheers 🍻🍻🍻
Hi David,
what a tremendously useful video, thanks so much. I’ve not been using Brewfather for long and this has been a huge help.
I have tried to join the online Jim’s beer kit but I’m not getting any response to my email can you help please.
Hi Neil, great to hear 🍻🍻🍻
Im not connected to Jims beer kit, so I am unable to help sadly.
@@DavidHeathHomebrew ah, my apologies…got you confused with someone else then..sorry.
On another note. ..I mainly brew with liquid extracts…I have limited time for brewing.
But many recipes don’t use the full amount in a can so I had hoped Brewfather could scale according to the malt extract but it only did it with the water amount.
So, I figured that if I could scale the water then I could scale the full recipe. So here’s how I did it..
Assuming I have put in all the ingredients and the water amount for the full brew.
Let’s assume in this recipe the malt extract needs 3400g (more than 2 cans) and the water is a 23 litre batch. The scale factor to get from 23 to 3400 is 3400/23=147.82
Now if I divide my required extract 3000g (2 full cans) by 147.82 I get my required water=20.29 litres. I can now scale the whole recipe using the scale button .
What do you think? Hopefully it’s a help to other extract brewers.
Cheers Neil, certainly looks good. Extract brewing is not very popular outside of the US, So I wonder if such a thing would have much demand. You could suggest it to the developer.
@@DavidHeathHomebrew Hi David, wow I didn’t know that. That’s a good idea though I will send them an email. I managed to join the JBK board, they had been having email problems.
Tek care mate and enjoy the weekend. Chinook ipa brew this afternoon for me! 🍻🍻🍻🍻
Cheers 🍻🍻🍻
Hi David, another newbie question.. When a recipe is written & an efficiency guideline is given, does this refer to The Brewhouse efficiency or the mash efficiency? My confusion comes from the Brewfather app seems to favour the former, where’s the Grainfather app for my G30 only offers mash efficiency. Dan
Sorry for the late reply. Unless mentioned then this will be brewhouse efficiency usually. 🍻🍻🍻
Great video thank you. I have used Bru n in the past to build my water profile but wanted to give Brewfather a try since I really like the features that the software offers. I have noticed that when I duplicate a recipe into Brewfather the mash pH and mineral additions are vastly different. Any thoughts on why this would be .
Hey Greg, all brewing software varies in calculations. There are few agreed areas. Like many though I have much faith and respect for Brewfather.
@@DavidHeathHomebrew thanks very much for the reply, most likely user error on my part!!!!! The content you make available to the homebrewer is so valued , thank you for all the work you put into these videos.
Cheers Greg 🍻🍻🍻
Thanks David, learned some helpful shortcuts I wasn’t aware of!
When you auto-scaled the OG to raise the ABV, the EBC also changed from 10.2 to 12.8. I’ve noticed the same behavior when using that feature. The actual percentage ratios of the grain bill remain at 95/5 but the colour darkens. Would a change of 2.6 EBC be enough to warrant manually adjusting the colour contribution after using the OG feature or would this also affect the balance of flavor contributions from the darker malts?
Great to hear. Yes, I mentioned this. Quite often its not something to worry about but you will see the visual colour change in Brewfather too, which can be helpful 10 to 13 EBC will be suitable for many styles. The flavour difference with low EBC
malts will seldom be noticeable but the will be in much darker grains usually.
Hi David. I'm looking at this app but there is vastly different water additions between this and the GF app. Which one would you recommend to use? Thank you :)
I personally suggest Brewfather.
Hi David. I'm thinking of dabbling in yeast starters. Have you done any videos giving instructions on how to use the yeast calculator in brew father? I also get confused with the number of packets it quotes which has prompted me to consider using yeast starters to manage the costs? As I am still learning the craft i prefer to use dry yeast which is another reason i find myself juggling around looking for a suitable substitutes. Any advice would be welcomed. Thanks
Sorry I must have missed this. The yeast calculator is well covered in the documentation. Its all set by standard on a very over generous pitch rate. I suggest that you lower this. You probably will not need to think about starters then unless you are brewing large batches. I hope this fixes this for you 🍻🍻🍻
@@DavidHeathHomebrewhi, in the file section in your group? Had a look, can't find any reference?
The documentation for Brewfather on its website. It has instructions for each feature.
Thanks for the video David. I've been wondering, while adjusting your APA recipe to my equipment and settings how to manage hops. What I've been doing is using both amarillo and centennial with different IBUs, so I kept the same amount of each (ratio of grams equal to 1) and considering the sum of both IBUs to get as close as the original recipe. Would that be the correct form. I think that lowering one that has higher IBUs, would get less aroma from it and being overriden by the other hop.
Thanks. Its really important to match the IBU level of each hop separately. This way you are correct to the design.
@@DavidHeathHomebrew Even though the original recipe was 50% of each (in grams) and now let's say 65% and 35%?
The weight is not as relevant as the IBU levels.
David, what about the auto ibu correction for the whole recipe on the main screen. You just enter the desired ibu and it scales the whole ibu recipe in one click?
Yes, you can use that. Personally I prefer adjusting per addition, rather than on mass.
@@DavidHeathHomebrew thanks. Love your videos. So helpful 👌
Cheers Liam, great to hear :)
@@DavidHeathHomebrew Hi David, I’m very new to all grain brewing & I’ve only done all grain kits so far. I’ve just ordered the ingredients for your Merry Christmas Ale, the Magnum hops I’ve ordered state an Alpha Acid of 13-15% how would I convert the ibu when it’s not a fixed number? Regards Dan
Hi Dan, I would personally go in the middle at 14, its never going to be precise, check this out:- th-cam.com/video/etGkS8Y23R0/w-d-xo.htmlsi=WOvTiFQRU8eb_Od-
I think it's a balance between the malt sweetness or the residual sugars, the dextrins and the bitterness. Not the alcohol. The alcohol is just hot.
In recipe writing it is all about BU:GU, which is bitterness vs alcohol. This is the balance equation. Naturally other factors come in that cannot be measured but an experienced recipe writer will know they will be there and can account for them.
@@DavidHeathHomebrew I think the perceived bitterness is more of a factor of the FG and not the OG. I have just made a Tripel, inspired by you. >30 IBUs and FG 1.012. It has a low bitterness. The Westmalle Tripel has probably smth like FG 1.008 and IBU 30: very high perceived bitterness.
Perceived bitterness is pretty much on its own, I would say, with the individual. It is also a topic that has people divided but we all taste things differently so that is to be expected :) My taste buds detect perceived bitterness from dry hops for example but I also notice this declining too. Others will say its forever present. Different taste buds lead to different conclusions :)
@@DavidHeathHomebrew the Tripel turned out very well also, so thank you for your guidelines!
Great to hear :)
I don’t have the money to upgrade to all grain at the moment but have been doing part grain kits. Is it possible to do your own part grain recipes on brew farther
Yes, you sure can
@@DavidHeathHomebrew brilliant thank you
🍻🍻🍻
Hi David another great tutorial I have a question for you I have brewed your very popular Verdant IPA recipe a couple of times and I am very pleased with the result 👍🏼❤️ However my version comes out at 5.5% ABV I note that the FG on your recipe is ‘FIXED’ @ 1.007 can you please explain ? My FG has been as predicted by Brewfather @ 1.012 🥴 hence the 5.5%
Keep them coming M
Thanks Mitch. Great to hear that you are enjoying the content and beer. Yes, I fixed that FG because it has been the most common result that I have seen. This yeast does go slow at the end and this can be seen as the finish too early but variation is also possible. I think at 5.5% this will still work very well though :)
@@DavidHeathHomebrew
Looks like I need to leave it longer next time and see if if the FG drops lower❤️👍🏼
Are you raising the temps in the final days?
@@DavidHeathHomebrew
Hi David yes I am however the last brew was 5 days @ 19°c and then a 3 day ramp but for some reason I let it go for 4 days and left it @ 23°c
The SG stayed at 1.012 as with my previous attempt. I then cold crashed and it is currently bottle conditioning. Do you think the 23°c for the final couple of days could have been the problem ? M
I like to see a consistent FG for a minimum of 3 days.
Holy Smokes!!!! We're brewing beer, it ain't rocket science. 🙄 Experimentation is key. You won't know how your taste buds will react until it's drunk. 😆 We had fellas in our beer club with $5,000 systems & engineer jobs who's beer sucked. Knowing how grain tastes & hops react was a huge step. Add yeast to the mix & I'm scratching my head. But I guess you're going to shorten the learning curve with all these tools.
Experimentation and knowledge are two vital areas for sure. Big money on gear simply offers convenience and quality.
The 1 addition that made the biggest improvement in the taste of my beer was temperature control. Craigslist scored with a chest freezer for $0! 🍺🍻
Yes, fermentation temp control is the first thing I recommend to new brewers