Started my first Brew Yesterday!!

I just started my first brew yesterday. It a kit beer from brewers best.

It's their German Oktoberfest, brewing day went well, it was easier than I expected.

I took many notes on time and temperature, hopefully it will provide useful information in the future.

OG reading was 1.055

I have it in my primary bucket right now, its been bubbling for a solid 24 hours so far.
It will be moving over to a secondary 5G carboy next.

Thanks for all the information on this forum, it certainly made my first brewing experience very easy so far.

Now I just have to finish off a few cases of Sam Adams so I have some bottles for bottling day

Hey congrats on the first brew and welcome to the hobby that just keeps getting bigger and badder!

One question- are those Sam Adams bottles twist-offs? If so, I'm not sure I would use them for your brew. They could break.

Thanks

Thoses Sammys are pop tops so they should be alright.

I'm looking forward to getting it to the secondary so I can get my first look at color, but I have to wait a while. Waiting seems like the hardest step

Got that right! I think the winner has to be the guy that started drinking his ale out of the fermenter. And complaining about the taste.

The only long-term solution is to brew enough so you always have some ready. Doesn't help on the first batch.

Well after 51 hours in the primary, the airlock action slowed way down to 3 bubbles per minute. Its an ale yeast, I had it ferementing at 68 degrees.

I took a gravity reading, 1.021 which is about where i expected it to be after primary (about 80% to the FG goal)

Now I have it in the secondary for the next two weeks till its time to bottle


This is fun

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Just an observation. Your brew looks a fews points high to me for secondary racking. I think that can be attributed to the coolish ale fermenting temperature you are using.

Fermenting cooler if fine of course, it usually just slows down the process a bit. Also, you might want to think about getting that carboy off that cement slab. If your air temperature in the basement is 68 degrees, then I guarantee your slab is a few degrees cooler, putting you at the bottom range for ales; possibly stopping your fermentation altogether.


Hope this helps!

Normally you want to leave it in the primary for about a week maybe more if you are over 1.045... I usually try to wait till the bubles are down to like 1 every few minutes. The one time I racked it after only 4 days I got a stuck fermentation and had to toss it. It's the one and only time I've ever had a bad batch... For your next batches use the 1-2-3 method.
1 week primary 2 weeks secondary and 3 weeks bottled

Thanks for the feedback!

I got the carboy off the ground right after I took that picture.

I will try the 1-2-3 method next time, thanks for the advice!

~Andy

Welcome aboard! I'm pretty much still a n00b myself, but gaining confidence and more curiosity with each successful batch. After getting a whiff of the freshly boiled wort of my first batch (and about a dozen other missteps, including a broken hydrometer), I was convinced I was headed to a complete disaster. Of course, it came out fantastic and I still have people asking me months later when I'm going to brew another batch of that stuff. Well put: this is fun!