BarleyWater

Recipes 

No I didn't, a conditioning tank/secondary does not carbonate the beer. Krausening would be done at bottling/kegging time.

And diacetyl can only be reduced by keeping the beer on the yeast, not by moving it off. The yeast will uptake the diacetyl (along with acetalaldehyde and other intermediary compounds) when the other food source (maltose) has been depleted. It isn't necessary to add yeast back into the beer to reduce diacetyl, if you never take it off the yeast to begin with.

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Fermenting: Nada
On Tap:Cran Wit, Dr Pepper Dubbel, Cascadian Pale Ale, Dark Chocolate Stout, Imperial Stout, Brown Mild, Schwarzbier
On Board: IIPA

www.franconiabrewing.com

boo boo

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According to Aston Lewis krausening helps remove diacetyl if the beer was prematurely removed from the fermenting yeast.

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How do you BBQ an elephant....first you get your elephant....

goplayoutside

Recipes 

Just another guy chiming in to say that I don't bother with secondary and I like my beer. I am an extract brewer and I have found great improvements to my brew by switching to DME, doing a bigger boil, and keeping my fermentation temps in the primary stable. I am thinking of taking half of a batch out of the primary once it's done being active and putting it into a secondary for a side-by side, but honestly am probably too lazy.

Boring, I know.

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"Beer, if drank with moderation, softens the temper, cheers the spirit, and promotes good health" -Thomas Jefferson

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Primary: gaping pipeline hole
Bottled, waiting: gaping pipeline hole
Ready to Drink: Mystery Beer (Mis-Mashed Belgian White)
Coming up: Something one of these days...

BarleyWater

Recipes 

Of course it does, because it re-introduces YEAST...

...but it isn't a neccesary step, only needs to be done if you did something wrong to begin with.

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Fermenting: Nada
On Tap:Cran Wit, Dr Pepper Dubbel, Cascadian Pale Ale, Dark Chocolate Stout, Imperial Stout, Brown Mild, Schwarzbier
On Board: IIPA

www.franconiabrewing.com

The Pol

Recipes 

I just rack carefully to an empty keg and let it condition there at about 70F, then when it is ready to tap, into the kegerator it goes. The ONLY time I send a beer to a secondary carboy is if I am #1 dry hopping or #2 adding spices, oak, etc... that I do NOT want in my kegged beer. In the summer the beers I brew are all session (1.045 or less) beers and they go from the primary (cold crashed) to a keg and to my belly.

TeleTwanger

Recipes 

"Kraeusen is the German word used to describe the infusion of a strongly fermenting young beer into a larger volume of wort or beer that is past the stage of strong fermentation"

"Employing kruesen beer to top up the secondary (lager) fermenter induces a strong temporary fementation and reduces diacetyl and the risk of oxidation and contamination at racking"

Again, Noonan is referring to Lager yeast which go through a longer and more needed secondary fermention to rid diacetyl and also stabilize the beer and mellow the flavor. But I think that Ales also benefit from a secondary fermentation. Does one have to secondary Ales? No.

I think a lot of this goes back to the early days of (illegal) homebrewing when people were using suspect yeast, non-existing asceptic techniques, and there wasn't any available info other than professional brewery text books that didn't translate to small scale brewing. They ended up with nasty beer. I hear a lot of people tell me how thier Grandfather made beer and it tasted wicked bad, and often when I tell people I brew the first thing they say is, "Does it taste good?"

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Primary: empty
Secondary: DogFish 60 Clone
Up next: The Bestist Bitter
Bottled: Blackout IPA

"Ooo Pretzels and Bier!"-Heidi Klum

homebrewer_99

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This process allows the brewer to stay within the guidelines of the Reinheitsgebot.

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HB Bill

KillerGX

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Hey guys,
Ok so, this is my first post, and im am a noob.

I hate to bring up an old thread, but this thread seemed the most relevant to my problem.

I just cooked up my first brew last night, a Honey Wheat Ale kit I bought from austinbrew(dot)com..... I used the White Labs Hefeweizen Ale yeast, and I got a lag time of 13 hours.

I have been getting different opinions from both veteran homebrewers, as well as the people working at my local homebrew shop, on the issue of racking to a secondary fermentation vessel...
The person at the homebrew shop suggested I dont use the secondary, since wheat beers tend to be hazy...
But, my brother who brews beer, suggested that I do use secondary, because I will have less sediment in my bottles... (i am bottling, not kegging)

So I understand that there are a lot of different opinions on this issue..
my question is, under my circumstances, and the equipment I am using.... what would be my best option for attaining a good quality, and clearer bottle for drinking...

I understand there are plenty of variables, so any help would be helpful... I have my first batch in the primary bucket right now... and I would like to know how long I should wait before I rack to secondary...or if I even should, for my particular style of beer.

I just really want to have a quality, and successful first batch... Any input would be appreciated.

Should I go by the 1-2-3 rule.... even for a Honey wheat ale?
I heard I should rack when my bubbles get down to 1 per 30seconds to a minute.

I also heard I should check my hydrometer readings, (which im more comfortable doing).....but in my beer has a OG of 1.046, and my target FG is 1.011....what gravity should I check for before I rack to a secondary........ this is something I couldn't find in any tread, or even the John Palmer book.

here is my recipe kit.

Honey Wheat Ale:

5 lbs. LME (wheat extract)
1 lbs Honey

8oz 2-Row Malt
4oz Crystal 20L Malt
8oz White Wheat
8oz Honey Malt

bittering hops: 3/4 oz. Cascade 60 minutes boil
aroma hops: 1.4oz. Cascade 5mins left in boil

Yeast: White Labs : American Hefewezen Ale 320

Thanks guys, and take it easy on the n00b.............
Im not here to bug people.... I just wanna make a good first homebrew is all...Thanks again.

HomerJR

Recipes 

This can sometimes be a hot topic to discuss here, with very strong opinions on both sides. And when there are strong opinions on both sides...... both sides probably work. Which is better? Whichever one works best for you!

That being said, I'd be wary of the 1-2-3 rule. Don't let the calendar be your guide, let your hydrometer be your guide! After AT LEAST a week, take a gravity sample. When you have the same gravity for 3 consecutive days, your fermentation is done, and you can rack to a secondary (if that's your choice). If you're skipping the secondary, then leave it in the primary at least another week, then bottle or keg.

Personally, I'm in the primary-only camp. I'm a busy guy and have lots of things to do. If I can skip racking to a secondary, it's one less thing to do, and still makes great beer.

KillerGX

Recipes 

Thank you......

I will check the hydrometer on day 5 then on day 7... to check if fermentation is done...