Strange Difference

I brewed this beer over the weekend. http://homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=14323

I made 10 gallons and after I cooled it I put 5 gallons in one carboy, and 5 in the other. They got the same yeast, and have been sitting right next to each other. They both started very actively fermenting after about 10 hours. They are still going now, but one is a lot darker then the other, and it is very clear. The other one is very light colored, and kind of cloudy. There is also about 7 degrees difference between them according the sticker thermometers on them. Anyone have any idea what is going on here. I'm sure they will both be fine, but it is just wierd.

One came from the top of the kettle, one from the bottom. The amount of hop residue, protein, etc. will be different. The cloudiness makes one look lighter.

I agree with david about the color difference... the fact that they are 7 degrees different makes me think that one of them is fermenting stronger than the other, as yeast activity builds some heat...

How did you pitch the yeast? If one got a larger dose of yeast, more 02, etc. then it is possible that it is fermenting faster and is farther along now...

Also, it has been noted by many brewers that a split batch will often make two slightly different flavored beers as 02 content, yeast growth and slight differences in SG, etc. can leave different easter and phenol levels in each batch... just an FYI

let us know how they turn out!!

later,

mikey

the bottom of your kettle may also have had more sugars present than the top, providing more yeast food for that batch. Do you know which carboy was filled first?

MattD said:

the bottom of your kettle may also have had more sugars present than the top, providing more yeast food for that batch. Do you know which carboy was filled first?

Click to expand...

That is probably part of what happened, the hot dark one was filled first.

Maybe next time i fill have to fill one half way, and then switch back and forth a few times to get them more even.

Actually the first fill should have been from the top layer, and so it would be lighter in color and less active... so who knows?

If David's keggle has a drain tap, then the first carboy came off the bottom. more or less. More sugar? more trub?

I just did a batch-and-a-half, cause my kettle holds 9 gal. I split it alternatively into 2 carboys for primary. Both seemed paralell fermentations. Then they both fit into one 6 1/2 carboy for secondary, filled to the neck. Now I'm thinking of adding water to the bottling bucket(s) to get back to 7 1/2 gallons, it's usually 6.5%, don't need stronger... maybe 8 gallons?