Can I pour back the sample taken for hydrometer reading?
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beergolf
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I always just drink it to seehow the flavor is progressing.
Yes,I do it all the time. But def sanitize the spout on the spigot,& the hydrometer & test cylinder before pouring the sample. But I only return the OG sample,as I don't need to taste sweet wort as any kind of test. Properly cleaned & sanitized,with no wasted time,it's perfectly safe. I realize that others are uneasy about this,or go along with what some other negative commenters say. I know better from a couple years of doing it. But,as always,you must do what YOU think is right.
As for ongoing (read FG) tests,I drink those to see how the beer is coming along,any off flavors developing,how malt & hop flavors are coming,& that sort of thing.
As for ongoing (read FG) tests,I drink those to see how the beer is coming along,any off flavors developing,how malt & hop flavors are coming,& that sort of thing.
You can, but why chance it? Just take less hydrometer readings, or if you really want to save wort, get a refractometer. I usually just take an initial reading prefermentation, then when bottling if I have an odd amount left. The only other time I'll take one is maybe a week after fermentation starts.
Do you bottle straight from the fermenter spigot? Have you had any problems with bad tasting beers after they sit for awhile?
Do you bottle straight from the fermenter spigot? Have you had any problems with bad tasting beers after they sit for awhile?
Following proper proceedures,there's nothing to "chance". Keeping all your equipment clean & sanitary is all that's needed. Just sanitizing the hydrometer,cylinder,& spout on the spigot is plenty for the OG sample. Wate not,want not. Minimalizing the number of tests is something I practice as well.
I wait till 2 weeks...sometimes 3 weeks to do an FG test. wait till the 3rd day,& test again to see if it matches. When it settles out clear or slightly misty,I bottle it.
This sort of testing idealism has little to do with off flavors showing up in the bottle. That's conditioning & carbonation bring out some off flavors & smells. They're usually masked or mistaken for "green beer" early on. After some carbonation & conditioning,they come out. This can be from under/over pitching,high ferment temps,old malts,etc. Again,making sure anything that touches the beer was propwerly cleaned to begin with,& sanitized right before use will ensure that the bottled beers come out as they're expected to. I think this don't chance it thing with hydrometer samples is just another boogiman,all other things being properly cared for.
I wait till 2 weeks...sometimes 3 weeks to do an FG test. wait till the 3rd day,& test again to see if it matches. When it settles out clear or slightly misty,I bottle it.
This sort of testing idealism has little to do with off flavors showing up in the bottle. That's conditioning & carbonation bring out some off flavors & smells. They're usually masked or mistaken for "green beer" early on. After some carbonation & conditioning,they come out. This can be from under/over pitching,high ferment temps,old malts,etc. Again,making sure anything that touches the beer was propwerly cleaned to begin with,& sanitized right before use will ensure that the bottled beers come out as they're expected to. I think this don't chance it thing with hydrometer samples is just another boogiman,all other things being properly cared for.
+1. Don't chance it after the boil.
Like I said,do what you feel is right. but to peddle the fact that it's going to be ruined horribly more likely as not is just wrong. It's perfectly safe to return the OG sample if proper proceedures are followed. It's so simple to avoid an infection with a mere few ounces of wort that it's nearly inconsequential. Especially when the yeast is pitched & reproducing to visible fermentation. Any nasties will be starved out more often as not.
MindenMan
Well-Known Member
Based on this being your first post, we have no idea how long you have been brewing. I am with the group of "don't do it". The total volume of the hydrometer tube is less than 1/2 cup, and it's not worth ruining an entire batch of beer. When I was a new to brewing, I never had exactly the right amount to fill the last bottle to the top anyway. I would sometimes partial fill the last bottle, not to check carbonation, but to get a rough idea of where the flavor was at when I cracked it open.
True enough. Being new to all this can be mind boggling. but as I said,fllow proper proceedures & there's little to worry about. If it was that easy to get an infection,many of us would've given up already. I think the whole thing is overblown a bit. People fear the infection boogieman a little too much. It doesn't take an old wiseman to realize things have to be clean & sanitary right from the start. I did. But we canned stuff outta the garden & whatnot since I was a kid,so I know something of these things. Hence my remarks. No offense to anyones belief systems,but the facts stand for themselves.
Unionrdr is spot on in that if you follow the proper sanitary procedures, it should not be a concern to return the it back to the fermenter. I personally don't return it, instead I use the sample to taste the flavor characteristics and determine how the beer is maturing.
So do I. I only return the OG sample. Do it right the first time,& you won't have to do it again...
I completely agree with you, my questions are really for the brewer, cause it is their beer. I don't necessarily trust my beer, but I would throw back an OG sample to the fermenter. Part of the flavor thing I was mentioning I have noticed in my beers when I compare a 12oz bottled beer and and beer thrown into a grolsch. The beer overall tastes fine, but I get an infected grolsch, probably I'm thinking from a bad seal possibly.
Like you said, it's one of those things that any brewer's gotta feel comfortable with. The only time I really infected a batch is when I brewed at a friends house, and didn't have all my sanitary procedures mentally in place yet. I'm still mental though....
Keep calm and Brew on:rockin:
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