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**MikeBergan** · 09-22-2012, 01:52 AM

Well, I WAS going to be posting tonight about how the brew for this batch went... but I just discovered a problem which will delay the brew for several days.

Somehow, the inner nut for the spigot on my LBK has walked off... I don't know for sure if I didn't get it from the rack when I cleaned everything the other day... or if my two year old got into the box I had the unit stored in ( he tends to get into anything that is in reach ... and this was on the floor in my office closet)

Either way, the brew is now on hold until the arrival of the replacement, or discovery of the missing piece.

Guess I will have to suffer, and just sit here and drink a couple of the bottles from that first batch

**MikeBergan** · 09-28-2012, 02:01 AM

I started the batch today.
This is what I used

1 Can Mr. Beer Whispering Wheat HME
1 Bag Mr. Beer Booster
1 lb Briess Bavarian Wheat DME
Safbrew WB-06 dry yeast packet
1/2 tab Whirlfloc

I followed the basic plan outlined in here in the thread and everything went pretty smooth.

Initial gravity was 1.052 (temp adjusted at 77 degrees per the hydrometer instructions table)

I know the expected ABV should be 'somewhere' around 5%; but I am not sure what the DME would add. The Mr. Beer ingredients list out at 3.7 and I would assume the DME to be between 1.2 - 1.4??

Can anyone verify the DME number?
and what should I be looking for as a FG?

This batch smelled really good and looked great going into the LBK... I can't wait to see how it turns out.

BrewinHooligan · 09-28-2012, 03:35 AM

Should be real good! Plug the fugures into hopville.coms beercalculus and it will give you the og and estimated fg. Since it's a hefe, this one should still be a bit cloudy from the yeast.

GilSwillBasementBrews · 09-28-2012, 06:18 AM

Should finish out around 1.012FG depending on how fermentable the extract is I had one batch finish 1.018

Kealia · 09-28-2012, 06:15 PM

Just a quick note:

Whirfloc typically gets added with 10-15 left in the boil so just adding it at flameout likely didn't gain you anything. Likewise it is used to clarify beer which you typically don't want to do in a wheat beer. Just FYI in case you didn't know.

**MikeBergan** · 09-30-2012, 01:32 AM

Kealia - I drifted slightly off of the normal Mr. Beer procedure and actually did a 30 minute boil of all ingredients... minus the whirlfloc, which went in at the halfway point.

I know that usually you wouldn't worry about clarifying a wheat beer, but I had a fairly cloudy first batch and didn't care for the way it worked out, so decided to drop a 1/2 tab in.

Gil - I think I'll be happy if it gets anywhere around 1.018 or lower

OClairBrew - Thanks for the weblink... I have that bookmarked now for future use.

**MikeBergan** · 10-03-2012, 09:15 PM

The beer has been in ferment for 7 days, now; smells like it should and seems to be chugging along nicely.

At what point should I start doing daily gravity readings?

I didn't have the hydrometer to take initial gravities on the first batch I did; which I racked over to bottles at 8 days. (blame impatience there, but it seems to have been fine)

I would like to make sure it has plenty of time to ferment, but don't want to have it sit unnecessarily.
It will be at least another 2 to 3 days before I bottle it anyhow, since I am planning on using regular 12oz size bottles and am waiting on the capper and caps to arrive yet.

BrewinHooligan · 10-03-2012, 09:39 PM

I personally start checking gravity around the 7 day mark to see how things are coming along. I take 2 more readings throughout the week and bottle on day 14 if things are stable. Many people suggest letting it sit longer, but if you are controlling the fermenting temps and pitching enough healthy yeast it can be ready to package in a short timeframe for low gravity beers.

**MikeBergan** · 10-05-2012, 01:05 AM

Eight days into ferment; gravity reading is 1.014. I will check it again either tomorrow night or Saturday.
If it is stable AND my bottle capper and caps gets here in the mail, I may be bottling on Saturday or Sunday.

It is still a bit clouded looking, but you guys say to expect that with a wheat, so I am thinking it may be near ready. There was not much for anything on the surfacewhen I checked it and did the gravity read.

**MikeBergan** · 10-08-2012, 01:14 AM

All bottled up.
I did it yesterday, so 10 days in the LBK total.
I split this batch between the what was supposed to be six regular size beer bottles and the rest into 1 liter Mr. Beer bottles. There are only 5 twelve oz bottles now though; due to a slight mishap during the capping attempt on bottle number one.
The bottle shifted on the counter and I wasn't able to stop pressing fast enough so it slid out and tipped

I will let these sit now for bottle conditioning. This is the tough part... seeing the bottles all sitting there just waiting to be chilled and enjoyed.