Freakin' nervous. First brew is tomorrow!

I'm brewing for the first time, Belgian white extract kit, and I'm sure I'm going to screw something up. I've been planning this for months.

I've got my 8 gallon brewpot, 6.5 gallon carboy, solid stopper, drilled stopper, hydrometer, thermometer, star san, PBW, racking cane, siphon hose, test jar and air lock...

I've got everything to convert my keggerator over to full MFL/FFL fittings, 4 cornies, enough ball locks to gas and serve from two kegs plus have a transfer line. I've bought a second 5# C02 cylinder and filled my propane tank. I've built and tested my 50' pumped immersion chiller, and modified a carboy cap with a MFL fitting for pressure racking to secondary.

How do you crack coriander? I have a DME yeast starter kit, should I attempt doing a starter my first time around?

I plan on leaving the beer in the primary for about 2 weeks, then racking over to a corny for a two week secondary fermentation, then chilling, carbing and serving in that same corny. Can someone spot check that plan?

You say this:

Chenslee said:

I've got my 8 gallon brewpot, 6.5 gallon carboy, solid stopper, drilled stopper, hydrometer, thermometer, star san, PBW, racking cane, siphon hose, test jar and air lock...

I've got everything to convert my keggerator over to full MFL/FFL fittings, 4 cornies, enough ball locks to gas and serve from two kegs plus have a transfer line. I've bought a second 5# C02 cylinder and filled my propane tank. I've built and tested my 50' pumped immersion chiller, and modified a carboy cap with a MFL fitting for pressure racking to secondary.

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and then this:

Chenslee said:

How do you crack coriander?

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I had to laugh, sorry. Relax. You seem REALLY ready for some great homebrew and you have more equipment than many brewers who have been doing it for years.

Oh, and to crack coriander just use a pepper grinder, mortal pestle, or rolling pin.

You did not say if your carboy is glass or a better bottle. Be very careful pressurizing a glass carboy to transfer. I do it, but just mindful that it is basically a glass grenade in your hands if something goes wrong. I make sure there is a pressure relief, and that too much pressure does not build up in the carboy. I have a rubber stopper drilled for a racking cane and an extra hole that I put a barbed fitting in for co2.
I shut the regulator and open it slowly until the beer starts to move (about 2 psi). Don't rush it will take several minutes to transfer. My preference is to have the carboy in a position to gravity feed to the keg and just use the co2 to start the siphon.

As far as the plan... I think you have it covered. Remember, the point is to have a good time.

+1 on how to crack coriander.

Also, as stated...you sound like you're more than ready. Congrats on all the nice equipment for a new brewer.

As far as your fermentation goes... ignore the secondary with a belgian wit. It's a beer that should be drank as fresh as possible. Two weeks in primary is perfect as long as it's finished fermenting.

And, with most beers (unless you're adding something) secondary isn't really needed. I know the books say to use a secondary, but 3-4 weeks in primary and then a month in the bottles or a few weeks in the keg is just as good if not better. Plus...it saves time. I only use secondary if my OG is above 1.070ish or if I'm adding something to the beer (chocolate, coffee, fruit, bourbon, etc.).

Have fun, and relax. If you can cook, you can brew a beer.

Rdwhapbr

I crack my coriander in a mortis and pestle, takes a while but I can control the crush. I've thought about my coffee grinder a few times though!

If it is a glass carboy watch out adding hot liquid... you have a chiller so it Won't be an issue. (glass doesn't like rapid temp changes and could shatter)

I only do starters on big beers over 1.050 OG. and never with dry yeast, only liquids. if I'm using dry on a big big beer I double pitch.

Brewing is fun... nothing to be nervous about.

benharper13 said:

Rdwhapbr

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and soon it will be RDWHAHB :rockin::rockin:

Chenslee said:

I have a DME yeast starter kit, should I attempt doing a starter my first time around?

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If you're brewing tomorrow you're getting pretty close to out of time for the starter. It probably would be enough time if you did it ASAP. You don't really have to pitch yeast tomorrow if you brew tomorrow, but that's the ideal scenario... I've waited for my starter to finish before pitching it the next morning. Good luck! You sound ready.

don't take this the wrong way but you probably will screw something up BUT don't panic. unless your REALLY screw something up you're going to end up with beer.

have fun, even with our screwups we've had a great time and ended up with some tasty brews.

let's hear how it turns out.

Don't worry, even if you screw something up it will probably be irrelevant in the final taste. One time I had a leaking bottling bucket while bottling so stuck MY ENTIRE ARM into the beer to tighten the valve.

Beer came out great.

benharper13 said:

Rdwhapbr

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Never seen that before. Good one.

Thanks guys.

I'm an equipment whore. Planning, specing and collecting stuff for a project is my favorite part. I've already started collecting crap for AG. UGH.

I chose the Belgian White partially because I knew it would be ready quickly, but I figured that since I was going to keg it anyway, I might as well get it off the yeast.

I also understand that I will likely inadvertently sample this beer to a early grave. Beer has a way of disappearing in my house, even the ones I don't like. I "sampled" a 5 gallon keg of NBB 1554 black ale in a week. Oops.

My Carboy is marked 1976 on the bottom. I'm pretty sure it was my grandmothers. Is the date stamped on the bottom of 6.5 acid's? Anyway, I treat it like an antique, and will certainly not pour any hot liquids in it or put any more pressure than required to get siphoning started.

RDWHAHB indeed, I think a friend is bringing over some Dogfish Head Midas Touch clone.

Chenslee said:

I'm an equipment whore.

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heh. welcome to the club.

Chenslee said:

I chose the Belgian White partially because I knew it would be ready quickly, but I figured that since I was going to keg it anyway, I might as well get it off the yeast.

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You actually WANT that yeast in a wheat beer. I'm not saying suck up a ton of yeast from your fermentor when you transfer, but there's no reason to try and make it crystal clear. Believe me...two weeks is perfect for a Wit.

benharper13 said:

Rdwhapbr

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I get scoffed at occasionally and I say "It won a blue ribbon for a f***ing reason!"

I agree with Suthrn. I have not done Belg white yet but so far every batch I have done has been much better after leaving in primary for one month. Then rack to keg and serve once carb'd.

You sound like you have plenty of know how!

HOW DID IT GO??!

BWAAAA HHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. I knew there would be a screw up, I didn't expect it to be someone elses!

All my friends kept saying that's a little dark for a white. Someone shipped me 7 lbs of amber extract rather than the wheat extract the recipe calls for.

Cascade at 30 and 50 minutes, coriander and orange peel at 45 minutes. 7 lbs of amber LME. White labs belgian wit. WTF did I just make?

It'll be tasty, just not any style. Seriously, it'll be a fine beer. Often times messing up like this can lead to great things, most of which we can't recreate.

I brewed my first batch on my birthday with my FIL. Figured since we were makin good beer oughta be DRINKIN good beer, so I bought about $75 worth of craft beer...Imperial Stouts, Imperial IPAs, Belgians, Browns...THE MORE THE MERRIER

Needless to say, FIL & I got WASTED, did just about everything wrong, had no way to cool the wort so we drank and waited till the temp dropped (leaving the lid off the whole time!), had a blast, trashed the kitchen, FIL (think 6'3", 300 lbs.) dropped the bucket (but did NOT spill it!!!) carrying back to his place next door and went head first over the top of it (but did NOT spill it!!!) and guess what?

WE MADE BEER, BWAH HAH HAAAHHH!!!!!

RDWHAHB

call it a dunkelweizen

bovineblitz said:

call it a dunkelweizen

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He forgot the weizen. So that doesn't work.

Did you sanitize properly? if you did, ship me a pint when you get it done. Remember what mistake was made, and if its really good, make it again. I boiled my first brew half an hour too long (AHS BM Clone) and it is the best BM Clone one of my co-workers has ever tasted. I'm almost halfway through a corny (drinking most myself) in a little under half a month. U'll have amazing beer, and learned one of the ways good beer gets invented, you mess up

jmo88 said:

He forgot the weizen. So that doesn't work.

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hefedunkel?

Well, about half way through the boil I sent swmbo to the store to pick up a 12 of PBR. There was much rejoicing.

Gravity came out to 1.051, a bit heavier than the original wheat recipe. Carboy showed 5 gallons dead on. Sanitized AND boiled the immersion chiller.

I pretty much worked out of 4 gallon vat of Star San. Anything that could fit in there, even stuff that I wasn't going to touch wort, was in there.

I kept having to explain what the foam in the carboy was! "IT'S STAR SAN. DON'T FEAR THE FOAM" I kept saying.

I jammed a solid stopper in the carboy and shook the crap out of it. Then used a hex wrench and a tank of oxygen to purge the head space and shook it some more.

Since USPS has their head up their asses along with my airlocks, I've got a 1/2" ID hose jammed on a carboy cap for a blowoff.

I used a funnel with a filter and dumped the pot in, but there is still a LOT of trub. I think it's hop dust.

If it comes out good, I'll bottle some up.

Congratulations on your first batch

Welcome to your new obsession

Seriously though, you did put the other end of the blow off tube into a jar of star san right?

Blow off tube in a jar? What? The carboy cap has two connections, I just attached the hose to both of them. Is that wrong?

Chenslee said:

Blow off tube in a jar? What? The carboy cap has two connections, I just attached the hose to both of them. Is that wrong?

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The fermentation will produce co2 which will build up pressure.
The airlock / blow off tube is a means to relieve the pressure while not exposing the wort to contaminants.
If you connected the "outputs" of the carboy cap, there is nowhere for the pressure to go.

The idea is to put a tube from one of the openings, into a jar/bucket/container of liquid (preferably sanitized liquid) so as pressure build up it just makes bubbles. You will want to plug the other opening in the carboy cap.

TANSTAAFB good share lol!

So the top of the carboy kind of has this look to it?

n The "n" being the hose?

Yeah, I think that will be blowing off pretty soon...

Hefedunkel lap dance from last night:

Wow, I thought my brewing quarters were a bit cramped. I don't know how you...wait. Is that a sock hanging out of your carboy?

DarkUncle said:

Wow, I thought my brewing quarters were a bit cramped. I don't know how you...wait. Is that a sock hanging out of your carboy?

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Yea, it's a sock. How else am I supposed to keep the tube of yeast in the carboy? Oh wait. you are suppose to DUMP the yeast in, not put the whole tube in!! Just kidding, I think it's an extension cord in the background.

Yeah, the back side of the garage is a wreck. Well, actually the front side is too but it's not as bad as the closet where the fermenter is going.

But did you fix your blowoff?

Or did the cap blow off? Whole point of airlock is to release CO2 whilst blocking your precious beer from nasty beasties that CAN (not will) contaminate your brew. Even an airlock should be filled with cheap vodka or star san (or whatever sanitary liquid you prefer) I like star san b/c I don't worry about the drips from the airlock as the pressure evens out.

I use a blowoff into a growler of star san for every brew, just in case it decides to take off like crazy (pitch on a yeast cake w/o one... I dare ya ). Sometimes I needed it with krausen pumping out of my fermenter. Sometimes it justs thumps like a Poe tale. Sometimes I put my head in my broke fridge ferment chamber and listen VERY carefully for not much at all. Every scenario results in beer :rockin:

Just have fun and welcome to the club! Your first beer will probably be "the best beer you ever tasted" so no worries.

Steelers77 said:

Just have fun and welcome to the club! Your first beer will probably be "the best beer you ever tasted" so no worries.

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+1 on this!!!


if you run 2 hoses out just put both in jars of water to "seal the system" I cap one and keep one submerged.

at this point you should have a layer of CO2 from the yeasties... Belgian monks ferment open and this layer plus the Krausen keeps all the bad things out. After a certain point alcohol in "beer" will help to. your carboys alcohol level will be higher near the top... That's why it smells more alcoholy when you first pop the top when it's done.

Don't worry guys, tube was always in starsan and it has a proper airlock that is bubbling like mad now.

SWEEEEET! You Will Have a good brew! CONGRATS!

Chenslee said:

Don't worry guys, tube was always in starsan and it has a proper airlock that is bubbling like mad now.

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Ahhh.. I get it. The joke was on everyone that was trying to help you.
Yep, that's some funny stuff?