Brooklyn brewshop honey grapefruit ale. Help please

So I got one f those Brooklyn brewshop honey grapefruit ale kits for fathers day. I cooked the grains and made the wert about two weeks ago and have had it sitting in my fermenter on the closet floor since then. Within the first 24 hours it was bubbling hard and settles down within about 48-60 hrs. By the way I live in southwest Florida, obviously I keep my home air conditioned but not quite as cool as suggested (68-72). In stead my temps are probably closer to 76 in the closet. Hopefully that does ruin the beer.

Anyway, The instructions say to leave it in the fermenter for about two weeks before bottling. How do I know if it's ready to bottle? Tomorrow will be two weeks, but I actually can't bottle it until at least Wednesday because I'm currently away from home.

I didn't have a hydrometer when I started but I did pick one up though I'm not real sure what to do with it . Also at three day mark when I switched from the tube into sanitizer to the airlock I did taste the wert for the first time. I don't know how it should taste at that point but it seemed bitter or somewhat strange. Does that sound okay?

Any advice or comments would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

It would be wise to give it another week or two. I say taste it after one more week and see how it's doing.

You need to make sure that the hydrometer measurements are consistent over three readings (say, every other day). Once the FG has been reached, you can bottle or keg. Beer fresh out of the primary, or before aging will taste "funny." Aging makes most things better (well, beer and wine anyway). Some of us here have had beer in the primary for upwards of six weeks. My general rule of thumb is three weeks primary and three weeks in the bottle. Higher fermentation temps can lead to off tastes. You could also make a "swamp cooler" to bring your fermentation temps down, without breaking the bank, or turning your home into a meat locker. Pete

Thanks guys. I'll leave it until next weekend then and give it a taste at that point. Maybe go ahead and bottle then too. I assume there's no harm in leaving the beer in the fermenter for too long then?

If I use the hydrometer a couple of times as suggested. Do I just syphon beer out of the fermenter each time to test with? Can I cool the sample in the fridge to get the right temp for the hydrometer? I'm looking for consistent reading over each time I test right? Lastly, after testing do I dump the sample down the drain?

You can cool the sample down in the fridge if you like, but I don't think it's necessary. As long as you get consistent readings at the same temp. Siphon it out with a sanitized tube or turkey baster/thief and don't dump it back in.

Atonk is correct. The temps should be the same. Drink what you take out (quality assurance!). If the temps are different, most hydros come with a temp correction factor. Usually it's in order of .001/°F (or so). I didn't take hydro readings when I was making Mr. Beer kits, because I thought it was too much beer to lose prior to bottling. That's 2.25 times what you're making now. I think if you don't measure the gravity and wait three weeks primary and three weeks in the bottle you'll be fine. Keep us informed. Pete

gatorsactions, what ever happened?

update? how'd it turn out?

Update: I racked the beer about 2.5 weeks ago and it has been carbonating in the bottles since. I sure hope it comes out alright I will probably try the first bottle sometime after labor day and let you all know how it came out.