Newest Threads

Rick500 · 08-25-2008, 10:19 PM

All you guys are great to help me with these answers. I appreciate every response. I forgot to ask a couple questions and the responses have generated another.

(1) I get it that I don't want to get in a hurry but where is the point where the liquid has been too long in the fermenter? Is a three week ferment safe for any beer (mine is a gluten free beer made w/ sorghum malt extract)?
Three weeks is not too long. I don't know specifically about sorghum malt, however, but I'd think it's fine.

(2) I have gotten the impression that I am not suppose to open the fermentor because of air/contamination yet I also get the impression I am suppose to measure the liquid with a hydrometer. How am I suppose to keep it closed air tight and open it to get out liquid for testing w/ the hydrometer?
You can open it. Just make sure that anything that's going to touch the beer has been sanitized. It's better to use a thief to grab a sample rather than float the hydrometer in the fermenter. Less time with the lid off. There's a protective layer of CO2 in your fermenter by the time you'll be taking readings, and presumably a pretty good alcohol content, so don't worry too much.

(3) If the glass carboy is not a good choice for carbonating because it will explode then will I be making a mistake to bottle my beer in mason jars? They are much thinner than my carboy glass. Also one recipe/method I found said I could use plastic 2 liter bottles so that is why I thought mason jars would be okay. But I don't want ANYTHING exploding.
If you're going to bottle, I'd use beer bottles or wine bottles. You can reuse most commercial beer bottles (non-twist-off type).

HELP!!!

schneemann · 08-25-2008, 11:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kontreren

No doubt all have been asked and answered but please indulge me. Please answer some or all. All opinions on which is better are welcome:

(1) Some recipes say ferment 1 week, bottle w/ sugar 1 week, then some say ferment two weeks, then bottle for two weeks, now someone here suggested I ferment at least 3 weeks. What is best for a consistently good brew?

As others have said, ferment until the hydrometer says it is done.
Or, do it the lazy way and ferment for 3 weeks. It certainly won't hurt anything.

Revvy advocates a 3-2-1 method (3 weeks primary, 2 secondary, 1 bottle).

Personally I do 2-2-3 with the caveat that there's at least a week in the primary where there is no visible activity of any kind in the carboy. Sometimes that means a 4 week primary.

Quote:

Originally Posted by kontreren

(2) carb tablets or hard sugar pieces?

Neither. Too much hassle, IMO. Priming sugar if you're bottling. Or, you can keg.

Quote:

Originally Posted by kontreren

(3) Carbinate in a secondary carboy or in the bottle?

You can't carbonate in a secondary.
The entire purpose for using a secondary is to allow the beer to clear. The beer will clear up a little bit in the primary - all the "stuff" will sink to the bottom of the primary.
If you're really concerned about having more clear beer, you can rack the beer to a secondary fermenter to allow even more stuff to sink to the bottom. Personally, I'm super anal about it, so I love to secondary. But there's no reason to do this as far as taste of the beer is concerned.

Quote:

Originally Posted by kontreren

(4) Using a secondary after fermenting or going straight to the bottle?

See the above two answers

Quote:

Originally Posted by kontreren

(5) After much reading of varying and some conflicting information (not on this forum I just joined today) I find myself formulating this opinion and wonder if I will find agreement, disagreement, other. I am beginning to think that my best approach is to ferment in the primary fermentor for two weeks, then transfer / semi-filter to the secondary carboy, adding priming sugar or carb tabs, along with Ventor's Antioxident (to make it last longer in the bottle). Then let it sit in the secondary carboy for 2 more weeks.

No. This is entirely the wrong time for priming sugar. Priming sugar is essentially a quick burst of sugar for the leftover yeast to feast on to create carbonation in the bottle. If you put the priming sugar in the secondary, you'll just end up boosting the alcohol in the beer and having no carbonation.

Grinder12000 · 08-25-2008, 11:12 PM

I can't stop smiling about a Mason Jar brew. That is wrong on so many levels it's funny!

bearkluttz · 08-25-2008, 11:22 PM

yeah... steer clear of the mason jars. either get bottles from your LHBS, order them online or truly recycle and raid the local recycling center.

Kauai_Kahuna · 08-26-2008, 08:00 AM

Hey, Mason jars ROCK. OK, I keg but mason jars are great for short term storage, along with 16oz and 2 liter PET soda bottles.
Second, before REVVY comes in and slams someone, there is no way he would say one week in the bottle, I would have to have a signed confession from him to believe that. THREE weeks minimum to carbonate and condition in the bottle.
Third, I think the Original Poster is still not certain what a secondary is, it is not really secondary fermentation, it is a conditioning vessel. IE, your giving the yeast time to settle down, clean up after themselves and settle to the bottom. It can still happen in the primary also, and even a little quicker. The key is allow primary fermentation to take place, then allow two or more weeks to pass to let your workers clean up, then bottle / keg. Let it carbonate, flavors blend and mellow to the magical drink we call "good beer".
Toast.

**kontreren** · 08-26-2008, 01:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Grinder12000

I can't stop smiling about a Mason Jar brew. That is wrong on so many levels it's funny!

Okay so I'm funny but don't start crushing my buckwheat just yet. I am a newbie and know nothing. I thought I could save some money w/ mason jars. This new found hobbie of mine is getting very expensive w/ the startup cost growing everytime I learn something new. Guess it is off the the store for more purchase yet again.

***Yooper*** · 08-26-2008, 01:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kontreren

Okay so I'm funny but don't start crushing my buckwheat just yet. I am a newbie and know nothing. I thought I could save some money w/ mason jars. This new found hobbie of mine is getting very expensive w/ the startup cost growing everytime I learn something new. Guess it is off the the store for more purchase yet again.

Well, it's kind of neat to drink out of mason jars, but they don't hold carbonation. When you can with them, they are designed so that the air pressure can go out and they seal via a vacuum. If you carbonate, you won't have a vacuum and either the lids will pop up (unseal) or the jars will explode. Maybe both.

Bottles are cheap- you can buy a case of Sam Adams, drink the beer, and use the bottles for homebrew. Or go dumpster diving, or ask friends to collect beer bottles (not the screw top variety). Otherwise, soda bottles work well, too. Just make sure you screw the top on tightly.

**mmb** · 08-26-2008, 03:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kontreren

Okay so I'm funny but don't start crushing my buckwheat just yet. I am a newbie and know nothing. I thought I could save some money w/ mason jars. This new found hobbie of mine is getting very expensive w/ the startup cost growing everytime I learn something new. Guess it is off the the store for more purchase yet again.

Go to a local recycling center and see if you can dig in the glass bottle bins.

In MI we have a deposit on bottles, so I end up buying bottles back at the a specialty beer store when I need to for the 10 cent deposit. Makes a case of bottles $2.40 instead of the 15 bucks the LHBS wants. And that's 12s or 22s.

schneemann · 08-26-2008, 04:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kontreren

Okay so I'm funny but don't start crushing my buckwheat just yet. I am a newbie and know nothing. I thought I could save some money w/ mason jars. This new found hobbie of mine is getting very expensive w/ the startup cost growing everytime I learn something new. Guess it is off the the store for more purchase yet again.

Save bottles from the beer you drink.
Also, see if your LHBS sells used bottles. Most of the bottles I have these days are ones I've saved, but whenever I need more, I get bottles from my LHBS who sells used ones for $4 a case.

Lurpinator · 08-26-2008, 11:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kontreren

No doubt all have been asked and answered but please indulge me. Please answer some or all. All opinions on which is better are welcome:

(1) Some recipes say ferment 1 week, bottle w/ sugar 1 week, then some say ferment two weeks, then bottle for two weeks, now someone here suggested I ferment at least 3 weeks. What is best for a consistently good brew?

(2) carb tablets or hard sugar pieces?

(3) Carbinate in a secondary carboy or in the bottle?

(4) Using a secondary after fermenting or going straight to the bottle?

(5) After much reading of varying and some conflicting information (not on this forum I just joined today) I find myself formulating this opinion and wonder if I will find agreement, disagreement, other. I am beginning to think that my best approach is to ferment in the primary fermentor for two weeks, then transfer / semi-filter to the secondary carboy, adding priming sugar or carb tabs, along with Ventor's Antioxident (to make it last longer in the bottle). Then let it sit in the secondary carboy for 2 more weeks. Then filter/bottle it and put it in the fridge ready to drink. Most of the homebrew stuff I've read says that yeast will settle in bottle bottoms and not to drink last little bit there. I'm thinking there has got to be a way to filter similar to store bought. I don't have to waste the last sip on those beers. Again ALL comments welcome.

I am a newly diagnosed celiac, thus I have to brew GF beer. My first one was from sorghum syrup and it took forever to ferment out completely. My second one is from tapioca syrup, and same thing is happening with it. If you want to join my gluten free brewers group (link in sig) these are the things we talk about in there. My solution for my next brew is to make a starter, and try to get a strain going that will eat the sorghum quicker, because the brewers yeasts out there are formulated to eat sugars from barley, and need different enzymes then the sorghum can provide. Also in the group, there are more experienced GF brewers than me that can answer more of your questions.