Homebrew Beer Howto

oconn

sounds dodgy...but ive never had much smell except for a beer smell....but i wouldnt overly panic as it may fade as the yeast eats whatever is in there...I think leave it to the gods of time.....dont hit panic button unless you look in and see stringy stuff ...you could also have a little sniffter of a taste and if it taste anyway like beer then off you go...

oblivious

Bill-e wrote: »

Guys, my larger is bubbling away in the fermenter(phew!). It is giving off a somewhat potent sulferie kind of smell. Is that ok?

Sulphur is grand its give of by a lot of lager yeast, cider and some ale yeast, Burton yeast especially. I should dispate in time

Bill-e

Twas smelling a good bit better today. Much more like beer then the last few days.

Me Ma probably can't wait till I move out with all the things I get up to around the house.

mazza

BeerNut wrote: »

I'd say it's as carbonated as it's going to get, unfortunately. I can't think how that would have happened, though.

Hmmm, that's a pity, but I'm happy with the result for a first time brew overall. Thanks for the steer on this, BeerNut. The few outside possibilities which may have affected conditioning are:

- bottles not consistently warm enough tho would have been above 17 degrees (below which I think the yeast becomes dormant) for most of the first few days, give or take a few hours when heating was off.

- sugar was not properly mixed though I had heated it with water to dissolve and then siphoned beer into bucket on top of it, so there should have been plenty of swirling to mix. Also, none of the bottles exploded as might have happened if they got proportionally more sugar than the bottles I have opened so far.

- (a long shot I think) there was a date stamped on the packet of the glucose - it was one month prior to when I bought it. I took this to be the date of manufacture rather than best before date. Sugar doesn't go off does it?

Anyway, I'm going to start drinking this brew and planning my next.

Anybody got suggestions on which I should go for next or should I just do another the same as my first one? (Great Eastern Golden Ale http://thehomebrewcompany.ie/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1_13&products_id=20)

Personally I enjoy lager, pilsners, wheat beer more than ale, but don't want anything TOO challenging just yet!

Many thanks as usual for the great help and advice.

oblivious

mazza wrote: »

Personally I enjoy lager, pilsners, wheat beer more than ale, but don't want anything TOO challenging just yet!.

The brewferm wheat would be a good choice then

http://thehomebrewcompany.ie/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1_10&products_id=7

Bill-e

Hi guys, my beer is going well I think.

I was talking to a fella the other day and he said that a good/cheap method of heating my beer would be to:
-Get a small fridge.
-Put the fermenter into said fridge.
-Install a light bulb inside the fridge to keep the beer warm.
-To vary the temp use different watt bulbs.

Is this a good idea? I assume I'd have to cover the fermenter as they say light is bad for the process. But this is artificial light... is there a difference?

I like the idea cause I could use the fridge to cool the keg when it's ready to drink.

kenmc

you generally don't need to heat the beer really, especially if its not winter time, and even then just wrapping it in an old duvet or sleeping bag is generally sufficient. The yeast generates some heat itself as it works away, and if you leave it inside in a reasonably warm room it'll be fine.
For what it's worth, I put mine in an insulated box and leave it near enough the radiator. Temps stay around 18-19 in it

guildofevil

I actually have a fridge with an external thermostat controlling it, so I can keep the beer at precisely the temperature I want. There is also a heating belt attached to the fermentor in case the beer needs to be heated up. I don't think that the heating side has ever actually been needed. Keeping the beer down to 18C or 19C has required the fridge to do some work on occasion, though.

kenmc

Yeah it would be more likely to require cooling than heating if it was in a fridge, to keep it at the right temp; fridges are very well insulated, so the heat generated by the yeast would be contained and driving the temp up.

My box is not so well insulated, and has a vent on the top anyway, so it's fine.

arse..biscuits

I take it that you mean to use the fridge as an insulated box and not plug it in?

I transfered my brew to secondary yesterday, quite a bit of gunk in the bottom of the fermenter. Is that fairly normal? It smells like beer anyway

BeerNut

arse..biscuits wrote: »

quite a bit of gunk in the bottom of the fermenter. Is that fairly normal?

Totally.

arse..biscuits wrote: »

It smells like beer anyway

Success! Did you taste it?

arse..biscuits

BeerNut wrote: »

Totally.

Success! Did you taste it?

No, I presume it would be a bit rough still? Might try a drop later:)

Is the danger of bacteria infection less at this point? I still steralised everything just wondering.

BeerNut

arse..biscuits wrote: »

No, I presume it would be a bit rough still? Might try a drop later:)

It's an important part of the quality control system to drink a sample at every point in the process For one thing, if something does go wrong you can pinpoint where it happened. It'll be sweet and flat, rather than rough, I'd say.

arse..biscuits wrote: »

Is the danger of bacteria infection less at this point?

Yes, since there's now alcohol in there. You still need to sanitise everything that touches the beer at every point, though.

kenmc

arse..biscuits wrote: »

quite a bit of gunk in the bottom of the fermenter. Is that fairly normal?

Thats yeast, probably some hops, some break material. Totally normal. In fact the reason you move it to secondary is to get it off of this crud, as it can produce some off flavours. There will still have been some yeast in suspension of the wort that you transferred, enough to keep the fermentation going in the secondary.

Bill-e

guildofevil wrote: »

I actually have a fridge with an external thermostat controlling it,

Oh this sounds cool, how did you do this? I know it's not hugely important but I like to gadget-it-up where ever possible.

Also, another question:

My fermenter has a tap at the bottom. I plan to attach some tubing to this and pouring the beer into my keg with it.
Is this ok or will the tap, being so low down allow much of the sediment out?

Also, I only have the keg and the fermenter. So was thinking of moving the beer from the fermenter into the keg(Clean out Fermenter), then put the beer back in the fermenter for another 2 weeks. Then back into the keg for the secondary. Will that be ok?

oblivious

Bill-e wrote: »

Also, I only have the keg and the fermenter. So was thinking of moving the beer from the fermenter into the keg(Clean out Fermenter), then put the beer back in the fermenter for another 2 weeks. Then back into the keg for the secondary. Will that be ok?

You could just give it 2-3 week in the primary and transfer to the keg, easier to do and same result

guildofevil

Bill-e wrote: »

Oh this sounds cool, how did you do this? I know it's not hugely important but I like to gadget-it-up where ever possible.

I got one of these:
Along with a thermowell, so that the probe is reading the temperature of the beer rather than the air inside the fridge.



Of you are getting the same kind of setup, make sure to the the metal probe. The plastic one won't fit into the thermowell and even the metal one needed to have some plastic pared off it to get it down the hole.

Bill-e

Nice kit. I really got to clear out my shed and get this kind of set up ready out there.

airliebeach

hey folks
started my first homebrew two days ago....
has started fermenting, everything is going fine....
except, when i was putting the malt into the fermenting tank i forgot to rinse out the steriliser from the tank...ha
i presume this beer will therefore be very undrinkable...anybody ever do this and if so how'd it turnout, that is if proceeded to brew that beer...
i'm going to go ahead with it anyways, just as a learning experience...

Blisterman

Depends how much steriliser was left.
If it's just the residue, after pouring it out, it should be fine.

More than a few hundred ml, i'd throw out.

airliebeach

thanks...
i have a second tank.....how long would i leave it in the second tank before bottling?
is it really bad if i leave it in the fermenting tank longer than fermentation time (i.e. over 1 week)
wont be able to get botlles or bottler thanks to easter....

sunnyjim

Hey lads.

Tasted my first brew there the other day, I was using Ambiorix -



It tasted like absolute cack!

I had bottled it in 36 swingtops, and let me tell you, there was a microbial infection in the 5 we tried, and a horrible smell from the rest. Eww...

I had used 22L Tipperary water coolers as my primary fermenter and for adding my second dose of sugar. I went and got a Youngs 5 Gallon Fermenter with tap from thehomebrewcompany.ie along with a wheat beer, spray malt and a bottling stick. This should minimise any exposure, last time was no great example of sterile manufacturing procedures!

airliebeach

just realised another stupid mistake i made....
sprinkled the yeast on the brew but never stirred it in
i was following the instructions word for word and they said nothin about stirring it in but now i see some here that say to stir it in......
fermenting six days now...can i mix it in now or will i leave it???

mayto

fellow all grain brewers like myself also just sprinkle yeast on top without stirring in, ferments fine for them. i personally rehydrate the dried yeast in lukewarm water. fermentation should be nearly finished at this stage anyway i would think.

airliebeach

mayto wrote: »

fellow all grain brewers like myself also just sprinkle yeast on top without stirring in, ferments fine for them. i personally rehydrate the dried yeast in lukewarm water. fermentation should be nearly finished at this stage anyway i would think.

thanks Mayto i'll leave it so, think it has stopped fermenting alright

airliebeach

my brew has stopped fermenting but the hydrometer reading gives 1.02
the label with the hydrometer says never bottle if more than 1.006 or bottles will blow
instructions with kit say bottle when 1.009
i tried stirring in the yeast to reactivate the whole thing but getting very little effect....
what'll i do...bottle anyway....will i still add the same amount of glucose as per kit instructions......
i'd love some advice from anybody
thanks

BeerNut

airliebeach wrote: »

my brew has stopped fermenting but the hydrometer reading gives 1.02

How long have you been getting that reading for?

airliebeach wrote: »

the label with the hydrometer says never bottle if more than 1.006 or bottles will blow

Check that again. If it's what it actually says, it's a typo.

airliebeach wrote: »

instructions with kit say bottle when 1.009

Optimistic instructions, I'd say.

airliebeach wrote: »

what'll i do...bottle anyway....

If you're sure that fermentation has stopped -- ie that the gravity reading doesn't change from day to day --then bottle away.

airliebeach wrote: »

will i still add the same amount of glucose as per kit instructions

Yes.

guildofevil

How long has it been fermenting and how have you determined that it has stopped?

Fermentation can slow down towards the end and it can look as if it is finished, but time can result in that apparently quiescent beer attenuating further.

airliebeach

@Beernut
getting 1.02 for 3 days now
it says DO NOT BOTTLE UNTIL HY.. SINKS BELOW 1.006 OR BOTTLES WILL BURST
what figure should it be roughly in your op..
whys 1.009 optimistic??

@guildofevil
tried to reactivate twice got a tiny amount of fermenting goin on, then it stopped, so i'm sure its finished, and i dont think its gonna get any better for me

thanks lads, i think i'll bottle away, maybe leave a liitle extra space in bottle (would that help)......def be storing them outside...dont want any fatalities

oblivious

airliebeach wrote: »

getting 1.02 for 3 days now
it says DO NOT BOTTLE UNTIL HY.. SINKS BELOW 1.006 OR BOTTLES WILL BURST
what figure should it be roughly in your op..
whys 1.009 optimistic??

Three days is nothing, give it another 4 day's and gently stir up the sediment/yeast. This will rouse the yeast and get the going and you can leave the beer on the yeast of 2-3 week to complete fermentation