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Old 07-18-2006, 03:58 PM   #1
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Default How long is to long for Primary Fermentation?

I brewed this Northern Brewer kit on 7/8/06. The OG was 1.081. Now ten days later, I still have about 1/8"-1/4" Krausen on top of the beer and a bubble every three seconds in the airlock. Should I go ahead and rack it to secondary now to get it off the yeast cake or wait a day or two?

Double IPA Extract Kit

O.G: 1090 / Ready: 3 months

Kit Inventory

Specialty Grains: 0.75 lbs. Dingemans Caramel Pils
0.25 lbs. Briess Caramel 120

Fermentables: 12 lbs. Pale Malt Syrup

Boil Additions

* 1 oz. Yakima Magnum (60 min)
* 1 oz. Liberty (30 min)
* 1 oz. Yakima Magnum (10 min)
* 2 oz. Northern Brewer (Leaf) (0 min)

Special Ingredients: 1 oz. Cascade Hops (dry hop)

Yeast: Wyeast #1332 Northwest Ale Yeast. One of the classic ale strains from the Northwest U.S. Breweries. Produces a malty and mildly fruity ale with good depth and complexity. Flocculation: high. Apparent attenuation: 67-71%. Optimum temperature: 65-75.


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Old 07-18-2006, 04:23 PM   #2
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Personally I would wait for the krausen to drop on its own and then I would rack to the secondary.
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Old 07-18-2006, 04:27 PM   #3
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If it's stuill bubbling that frequently, leave it be. The only issue with leaving it on the cake too long is the potential for off flavors, but from all accounts that isn't an issue for at least three or four weeks. Let it keep working.
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Old 07-19-2006, 05:12 AM   #4
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They say no longer than 14 days. And it matters on the yeast. Most dry yeast you want to way for almost a week. Besides that a majority of yeast is only 3 to 4 days
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Old 07-19-2006, 02:21 PM   #5
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As long as the fermentation is active, you won't have a problem. A SG of 1.081 means a long ferment, as the yeast will slow with the rising ABV. Don't be surprised if it runs another week.
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Old 07-31-2006, 10:07 AM   #6
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I wouldn't rack until the krausen falls. Higher gravity beers, like Russian Imperial Stouts or Barleywines tend to need more time in the primary than your standard ales. If you rack while the krausen is still there, you risk mixing the krausen into your beer which would cause off flavours in your finished product.

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Old 08-03-2006, 07:29 AM   #7
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I have recently had a similar problem due to it being winter in Australia currently. My pilszner went 17 days in primary and then took another 20 days to carbonate but I think this would have to be the best brew I have done. Dont sweat it. It will be fine give it time.
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Old 08-10-2006, 11:21 PM   #8
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Speaking of a long time...I've been very busy lately...work is nuts and I'm in the process of moving. I've gone from a batch every other week to none in 2 months. The last batch I made is still in the primary. It's been 2 months in there. Think I'm going to wind up dumping it but I'll give it a taste before I do that. The funny thing is, i took off the stopper to give it a smell (I was expecting the signature rubber smell of autolysis) and it smelled good. How it tastes on another hand will be another story. BTW, it is a pale ale. Anyone have any experiences like this? Did you keep it or toss?
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Old 08-11-2006, 01:48 AM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bopper359
Speaking of a long time...I've been very busy lately...work is nuts and I'm in the process of moving. I've gone from a batch every other week to none in 2 months. The last batch I made is still in the primary. It's been 2 months in there. Think I'm going to wind up dumping it but I'll give it a taste before I do that. The funny thing is, i took off the stopper to give it a smell (I was expecting the signature rubber smell of autolysis) and it smelled good. How it tastes on another hand will be another story. BTW, it is a pale ale. Anyone have any experiences like this? Did you keep it or toss?
Bopper,
Unless it tastes super bad, I'd vote for bottling it... even if it doesn't taste the best as it sits, it is almost always worth the trouble to bottle... there are important flavors missing that will only come to life with carbonation... do yourself a favor and bottle, you'd be surprised at how many "so-so" beer will even age out to be better beers after a few months in bottles... even if it never turns out "good" at least you will know... make sure to add some more yeast in your bottling bucket so you'll be able to get it carbonated...

Let us know what you do,

later,
mikey
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Old 08-11-2006, 03:36 AM   #10
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Remember, a long fermentation is all a matter of reference. Like David said it really depends on a couple of factors. Gravity is certainly one and yours has a pretty high gravity. In short if its still fermenting, then it's fermenting. Although there is a lot of people who give the 1,2,3 standard for instance, brewing has no real hard and fast rule.


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