I am having problems with my brews retaining a head. They are well
carbonated, taste good and are certainly not flat. They just won't hold a
head!

I primary ferment in a barrel, then bottle off for secondary ferment. I
don't have room or a second barrel to rack for bulk priming or cold
conditioning. I use PET bottles, as decent glass is unavailable here - I
used to break 1 in three bottles while capping.

So far I have tried Coopers Lager, draught, bitter and real ale (glass of
which is in front of me now) from the "Original" series. The Coopers site
suggests using their brew enhancer 1 or 2 - no difference. I have also tried
coopers dextrose instead of brewer's sugar. The current brew is Cooper's
real ale, Cooper's brew enhancer 1 (Dextrose & Maltodextrin) and light dry
malt. The flavour is just what I was after, but head free beer is not good
for presentation. Nor am I quite satisfied by it.

Other than the fact that every brew so far has been Coopers, the only common
factor is that I use carbonation drops for bottle priming. Is that a likely
cause? Next brew I intend to try a dark ale and use some corn syrup in the
primary blend. I will also try some safale yeast, as so far I have been
using the kit yeast sachets. Local kit availability is limited to Coopers or
Tooheys.

Any other suggestions? I have no interest in mashing or other
brew-from-scratch methods. It's a hobby, not a lifestyle!

Red

On Thu, 15 Apr 2004 01:51:31 -0400, "Altair"
<sylvain.dupuis@NoSpam@videotron.ca> wrote:

[color=blue][color=green]
>> OK, then, to each their own. I prefer no to very little foam that
>> dissapates extremely quickly. If you look in the glass, though, you
>> can see a stready stream of bubbles heading up for the surface, for a
>> pleasing visual.
>>[/color]
>A good head is important to a good beer ans there are lots of reasons for
>it. I read an article about it somewhere a while ago. I don't remember
>exactly what where the reasons but here are two that i think i remember,
>they may be wrong but they seems logical to me:[/color]
[color=blue]
>- As the bubles explode, they release CO2 but also lots of aroma so less
>head, less exploding bubbles and less aroma.[/color]

??
I can smell the aroma coming up out of my bottle when I pop the cap,
and there is no head of foam then. The CO2 bubbles popping carry no
discernable odor.
[color=blue]
>- The head give a layer of CO2 insulation to the beer, preventing oxydation
>and skunkiness (for skunkyness, the head is only good if the beer is in a
>dark/opaque glass)[/color]

You aren't going to get skunyness in the time it takes you to drink
your glass of beer - unless it takes you a couple of days.

Hi NM,

What you need is a big Belgian glass. It looks like a brandy snifter
but has thicker glass, stronger stem, etc. The inward curve at the top
kills the head and compresses it as it climbs. It concentrates the
"nose" - I enjoy Belgians and other beers about four times as much as I
used to since switching to the large Belgian glass.

As for the rest of you,

Dried albumin is a commercial product, but I think guar gum and seaweed
extract are the more common "conditioners" included in popular beer
kits. Taste a Samuel Smith IPA (of course they ain't what they used to
be) then taste a Stone IPA. The Stone is almost "greasy" - that's the
extracts and additives.

-JS

NobodyMan wrote:
[color=blue]
> On Wed, 14 Apr 2004 21:06:35 +0930, "RedMan" <nothanks@notlikely.net>
> wrote:
>
>[color=green]
>>I am having problems with my brews retaining a head. They are well
>>carbonated, taste good and are certainly not flat. They just won't hold a
>>head!
>>
>>I primary ferment in a barrel, then bottle off for secondary ferment. I
>>don't have room or a second barrel to rack for bulk priming or cold
>>conditioning. I use PET bottles, as decent glass is unavailable here - I
>>used to break 1 in three bottles while capping.
>>
>>So far I have tried Coopers Lager, draught, bitter and real ale (glass of
>>which is in front of me now) from the "Original" series. The Coopers site
>>suggests using their brew enhancer 1 or 2 - no difference. I have also tried
>>coopers dextrose instead of brewer's sugar. The current brew is Cooper's
>>real ale, Cooper's brew enhancer 1 (Dextrose & Maltodextrin) and light dry
>>malt. The flavour is just what I was after, but head free beer is not good
>>for presentation. Nor am I quite satisfied by it.
>>
>>Other than the fact that every brew so far has been Coopers, the only common
>>factor is that I use carbonation drops for bottle priming. Is that a likely
>>cause? Next brew I intend to try a dark ale and use some corn syrup in the
>>primary blend. I will also try some safale yeast, as so far I have been
>>using the kit yeast sachets. Local kit availability is limited to Coopers or
>>Tooheys.
>>
>>Any other suggestions? I have no interest in mashing or other
>>brew-from-scratch methods. It's a hobby, not a lifestyle!
>>
>>Red
>>
>>[/color]
>
>
> OK, I admit I'm fairly new here, but have been lurking for a while,
> but I really want to know - what's the fascination with keeping a head
> on the beer? I poor my beer out of the bottle and into the glass in a
> manner to minimize foarming. I HATE the head of foam. I want to
> drink the beer, not suck on foam.
>
> I'd love to hear insight into this.
>
> I'm not alone either. Nobody I work with is very fond of a big head
> of foam on their beer. Carbonation: YES. Foam: NO.
>[/color]

On Thu, 15 Apr 2004 09:07:34 +0000, KGB wrote:
[color=blue]
> It hadn't occurred to me before, but is this bad advice? Surely, it
> is inevitable that this grease is going to "contaminate" the brew and
> so destroy head retention. I am now wondering if this is the reason
> why my homebrews (although tasting fine) rarely have the head that
> commercial beers have.[/color]

If you don't smear the sealing ring with vaseline it might not seal
properly and your beer will be flat. If the vaseline or silicone grease
gets into the beer you must be using an awful lot of it or rolling the
Beersphere around (which is something I have done with a Beersphere to
try to get the beer to condition properly in the past - ie rousing the
yeast to get it going just enough to fizz up properly). Even then I didn't
get the grease into the beer.

--
Andy Davison
[email]andy@oiyou.force9.co.uk[/email]

"NobodyMan" <none@none.net> a écrit dans le message de
news:e48u70927i8ajtous9bqnpt1p1ft6sagjn@4ax.com...
<Snip>[color=blue][color=green]
> >- The head give a layer of CO2 insulation to the beer, preventing[/color][/color]
oxydation[color=blue][color=green]
> >and skunkiness (for skunkyness, the head is only good if the beer is in a
> >dark/opaque glass)[/color]
>
> You aren't going to get skunyness in the time it takes you to drink
> your glass of beer - unless it takes you a couple of days.
>[/color]
That is what i believed untill a few weeks ago. With 3 friends we went
visiting 3 brewpubs out of town. It was the fisrt day that could be called
spring and the second brewpub opened his terrasse so people can enjoy the
sun while drinking a good beer.

This brewpub has 2 beers that stands out, an IPA and a stout. I took a pint
of IPA and 2 friends took the stout. The only girl in our team took a pint
of stout and a glass of IPA. My IPA was verry good and had lots of hops, the
girl in the group started with the stout and left the IPA on the side for
about 15 minutes. After the stout she smelled the IPA and it was already
skunked. To compare she ordered a new glass and it was ass good as mine had
been.

The next monday she went to a restaurant that have a good selection of beers
and repeted the experience with the same result. Try it for yourself, it's
amasing how fast a beer get skunked in the sun.
--
Altair (:-o)>=®
"The History of every major Galactic Civilisation tends to pass through
three distinct and recognisable phases... characterised by the questions How
can we eat? Why do we eat? and Where shall we have lunch?"
Douglas Adams.

Altair wrote:
[color=blue]
> - The head give a layer of CO2 insulation to the beer, preventing oxydation
> and skunkiness (for skunkyness, the head is only good if the beer is in a
> dark/opaque glass)[/color]

Skunkiness doesn't come from O2...it comes from exposure to certain
wavelengths of light. The UV wavelengths convert the mercaptans in the
hops to sulfur compounds, producing the skunkiness. That's why its much
more pronounced in beers in clear or green bottle. Brown bottles shiled
against those wavelengths.

------->Denny
--
Life begins at 60 - 1.060, that is.

Reply to denny_dot_g_dot_conn_at_ci_dot_eugene_dot_or_dot_us

How would you feel when you go to see a doctor for a physical and Doctor
tells you that he found traces of albumin in your specimen?
I woun't use that crap in my Beer.. (Huh)
Grease contain protein's and fats. They are good for you. It will not kill
head retension. I go to a hardware shop in Rochester, Mn. They sell a
product Called " Bar_tenders_friend". It is just like Ajax bleach. Next time
use more grains. Head retension wont be a problem. I will be more sensitive
to dangerous bacteria coming from dirty glasses or equipments. Sanitising is
more important for your health. Any professional can tell you that.. Enough
said..
Regards/
Sarge
"Joe Schmoe" <jschmoe@aol.net> wrote in message
news:407dcf41_5@newsfeed.slurp.net...[color=blue]
> Hi NM,
>
> What you need is a big Belgian glass. It looks like a brandy snifter
> but has thicker glass, stronger stem, etc. The inward curve at the top
> kills the head and compresses it as it climbs. It concentrates the
> "nose" - I enjoy Belgians and other beers about four times as much as I
> used to since switching to the large Belgian glass.
>
> As for the rest of you,
>
> Dried albumin is a commercial product, but I think guar gum and seaweed
> extract are the more common "conditioners" included in popular beer
> kits. Taste a Samuel Smith IPA (of course they ain't what they used to
> be) then taste a Stone IPA. The Stone is almost "greasy" - that's the
> extracts and additives.
>
> -JS
>
> NobodyMan wrote:
>[color=green]
> > On Wed, 14 Apr 2004 21:06:35 +0930, "RedMan" <nothanks@notlikely.net>
> > wrote:
> >
> >[color=darkred]
> >>I am having problems with my brews retaining a head. They are well
> >>carbonated, taste good and are certainly not flat. They just won't hold[/color][/color][/color]
a[color=blue][color=green][color=darkred]
> >>head!
> >>
> >>I primary ferment in a barrel, then bottle off for secondary ferment. I
> >>don't have room or a second barrel to rack for bulk priming or cold
> >>conditioning. I use PET bottles, as decent glass is unavailable here - I
> >>used to break 1 in three bottles while capping.
> >>
> >>So far I have tried Coopers Lager, draught, bitter and real ale (glass[/color][/color][/color]
of[color=blue][color=green][color=darkred]
> >>which is in front of me now) from the "Original" series. The Coopers[/color][/color][/color]
site[color=blue][color=green][color=darkred]
> >>suggests using their brew enhancer 1 or 2 - no difference. I have also[/color][/color][/color]
tried[color=blue][color=green][color=darkred]
> >>coopers dextrose instead of brewer's sugar. The current brew is Cooper's
> >>real ale, Cooper's brew enhancer 1 (Dextrose & Maltodextrin) and light[/color][/color][/color]
dry[color=blue][color=green][color=darkred]
> >>malt. The flavour is just what I was after, but head free beer is not[/color][/color][/color]
good[color=blue][color=green][color=darkred]
> >>for presentation. Nor am I quite satisfied by it.
> >>
> >>Other than the fact that every brew so far has been Coopers, the only[/color][/color][/color]
common[color=blue][color=green][color=darkred]
> >>factor is that I use carbonation drops for bottle priming. Is that a[/color][/color][/color]
likely[color=blue][color=green][color=darkred]
> >>cause? Next brew I intend to try a dark ale and use some corn syrup in[/color][/color][/color]
the[color=blue][color=green][color=darkred]
> >>primary blend. I will also try some safale yeast, as so far I have been
> >>using the kit yeast sachets. Local kit availability is limited to[/color][/color][/color]
Coopers or[color=blue][color=green][color=darkred]
> >>Tooheys.
> >>
> >>Any other suggestions? I have no interest in mashing or other
> >>brew-from-scratch methods. It's a hobby, not a lifestyle!
> >>
> >>Red
> >>
> >>[/color]
> >
> >
> > OK, I admit I'm fairly new here, but have been lurking for a while,
> > but I really want to know - what's the fascination with keeping a head
> > on the beer? I poor my beer out of the bottle and into the glass in a
> > manner to minimize foarming. I HATE the head of foam. I want to
> > drink the beer, not suck on foam.
> >
> > I'd love to hear insight into this.
> >
> > I'm not alone either. Nobody I work with is very fond of a big head
> > of foam on their beer. Carbonation: YES. Foam: NO.
> >[/color][/color]

Joe Schmoe wrote:
[color=blue]
> As for the rest of you,
>
> Dried albumin is a commercial product, but I think guar gum and seaweed
> extract are the more common "conditioners" included in popular beer
> kits. Taste a Samuel Smith IPA (of course they ain't what they used to
> be) then taste a Stone IPA. The Stone is almost "greasy" - that's the
> extracts and additives.[/color]

Can you provide any citations of this? It doesn't sound like anything
I'm familiar with.

------->Denny
--
Life begins at 60 - 1.060, that is.

Reply to denny_dot_g_dot_conn_at_ci_dot_eugene_dot_or_dot_us

You can add 250gm corn syrup (either powder or liquid) to your brew, this is
a unfermentable sugar, and creates a bit more body in the beer, and aids the
head retention.

Also carbonation drops are good, they provide a smaller bubble, that sits on
top of the brew, and creates a good belgium lace.

Daz


---
Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free.
Checked by AVG anti-virus system ([url]http://www.grisoft.com[/url]).
Version: 6.0.676 / Virus Database: 438 - Release Date: 3/05/2004

> You can add 250gm corn syrup (either powder or liquid) to your brew, this is[color=blue]
> a unfermentable sugar, and creates a bit more body in the beer, and aids the
> head retention.[/color]

I see you are probably in Australia and things may be called differently
over there. In the US, "corn syrup" is 100% fermentable - it is just
dextrose, just like "corn sugar" that most of us use for priming,
usually with some vanilla and salt added.

In some places "maltodextrin" seems to be called "corn" this or that...
so perhaps that is what yours is. Maltodextrin is unfermentable and
adds body/mouthfeel or something like that.

So.... in the US, "corn sugar/syrup" is 100% fermentable. Maltodextrin is
usually labeled as such here and is not fermentable. Here, it is almost
always in white powder form.

So... everyone check your label! :)