StillSmart

[quote="Easydrinker"}
Gives me something to crack on with when I get back.

Robert.[/quote]

Ok,6 hours later and the little yeastlings are responding to parental care,and starting to produce a second "crust",translate to Germanic if it makes it seem more scientific.
How this one will finalise taste wise,I have no clue,but it seems that all is not lost,and that is good enough for me.
For now.

Robert.

I really must pay more attention to decimal point placing!
I didn't really mean,in a post above 1.100,I meant 1.010.
Anyway,this wash is now knocking at 0.098,and is ready to rack this evening.
Happy Days.

Robert.

hampk wrote: ..... this time I forgot what I was doing and boiled the lentils for about 5 minutes, instead of soaking them.....

Down to 0.996 so won't be long..

Waiting to hear your result after boiling the lentils. I'd imagine the only difference should be slightly more messy cleanup but otherwise the wash should be fine. I recently found a new brand of Lentils in Tesco that need a good washing and rinsing before being used. I've no idea why but they slow the wash seriously unless washed and rinsed really well.

Your wash must be well finished by now as I've never seen a Lentil wash drop below 0.986

Let us know how the wash turned out

AM

aidanmac wrote:

hampk wrote: ..... this time I forgot what I was doing and boiled the lentils for about 5 minutes, instead of soaking them.....

Down to 0.996 so won't be long..

Waiting to hear your result after boiling the lentils. I'd imagine the only difference should be slightly more messy cleanup but otherwise the wash should be fine. I recently found a new brand of Lentils in Tesco that need a good washing and rinsing before being used. I've no idea why but they slow the wash seriously unless washed and rinsed really well.

Your wash must be well finished by now as I've never seen a Lentil wash drop below 0.986

Let us know how the wash turned out

AM

I'm just stripping it now - it stopped at 0.992. It's been slightly reluctant to clear, but other than that, it doesn't seem to have suffered any harm. Smells pretty good as well.

I've got another wash just starting (bought a second fermenter today!) and I've soaked them and then brought them up to the boil for a couple of minutes by way of an experiment!

Which are the lentils you're having to rinse?

hampk wrote:
Which are the lentils you're having to rinse?

The Brand name is Indus by AIB Foods of Wolverhampton and they're sold in 3Kg bags. They work just fine after a good wash and rinse.

AM

I might try those when I've finished the kg bag of Tesco own-label I've got then first of the stripping runs done now and the boiling doesn't seem to have done any harm. Whether it improved things is another matter - more research required I think!

Conclusion : boiling the lentils really didn't affect the results at all - in fact now I've completed the first spirit run I can report it's produced the nicest neutral I've got out of my Airstill yet

boiling the lentils will destroy some of the nutrients. They need a warm soak.

Not much above 60 - a well gone off, boiled kettle.

If it made no difference it is because the yeast 'coped' - yeast is an enormously complex and adaptable organism.

All I could find were green lentils, does it make a difference what color they are?

@ mashy,some nutrients are destroyed by boiling or cooking,but it does make other nutrients available. AFAIR even the old winemakers trick of using Grape Nuts for yeast food involved boiling them,and there people were mostly after the six B vits that they contained.
@edwatters,seemingly colour is not important,several people have claimed good results with various colours of lentil even various different pulses.
My own pulse of choice is Yellow Split Peas,I tried them once,and am stuck in a pleasing rut!

Robert.

The green ones still have a hull which contains most of the Phytates (IIRC). In theory that could impact the fermentation.
http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/QAA400758/A ... -Good.html.

I've used both and could not detect a difference. Soften them up, toss them in, ferment away!

Chuck

Grape nuts. Do you mean the manufactured cerial brand?

I do indeed.
In the wine circles that I used to move in they were reputed to be a source of dead yeast hulls and B complex vitamins.
When I earlier mentioned cooking them,the advised method was to put them in water and micro wave for a few minutes.
I don't recall seeing them for years,and of course having been reminded I fancy trying them again.
The consistency and taste of chewable gravel.
Nom nom!

Robert.

just reporting back...

Lentil wash & ACE wash run all the way, side-by-side. The clear winner for me is the ACE. the only variation I should mention is that I used whole wheat (chicken variety) not malted.

Much more neutral. Less smell, less flavour. good yield. Cuts via refractometer & a mk.1 index finger.

I will be running this again.

Thanks.

ACE wash? Not come across this one. Can you post a link for me? Thanks.

AM