Literhoser
Member
Hello all! So I have just boiled my first home brew! It's now sitting in the primary, after an eventful, and very informative first boil!
I'm sure I'll have a ton of questions, and probably be annoying as hell -- but all in the name of delicious beer!
My first question, which I must admit is a little embarrassing, is regarding fermentation. The instructions I have, say to let the beer ferment for 2-3 days in the primary, and then rack to the secondary for 2-3 weeks. Now I am curious about this. Since it typically takes a week or so for beer to fully ferment, what is the purpose of this extended period of time in the secondary? Couldn't I essentially add the DME and bottle it after fermentation is complete?
My other question is in regards to cold crashing / gelatin clarification. I have read on this forum that cold crashing should be done about a week before bottling, and the gelatin should be added once the beer has been cooled completely -- is this correct?
Thankyou all for your help!
I'm sure I'll have a ton of questions, and probably be annoying as hell -- but all in the name of delicious beer!
My first question, which I must admit is a little embarrassing, is regarding fermentation. The instructions I have, say to let the beer ferment for 2-3 days in the primary, and then rack to the secondary for 2-3 weeks. Now I am curious about this. Since it typically takes a week or so for beer to fully ferment, what is the purpose of this extended period of time in the secondary? Couldn't I essentially add the DME and bottle it after fermentation is complete?
My other question is in regards to cold crashing / gelatin clarification. I have read on this forum that cold crashing should be done about a week before bottling, and the gelatin should be added once the beer has been cooled completely -- is this correct?
Thankyou all for your help!