RickyBobby
New Member
I'll begin this post (being my first) stating that yes, I'm possibly a n00b (I guess no 'possibly' in that last statement though...) and know how to rtfm, but some questions still elude me.
As a precursor to this, I've brewed probably 7 or 8 extracts since the beginning of summer, some which came out 'ok', nothing came out 'really good' or something I said 'damn, that's good!' On the plus side, only one really came out undrinkable, which was my very first brew.
1. Fermentation Times - I've had anywhere from 2 days to 5-6 days fermentation in my primary. As much as I've tried to read up on this, I guess I haven't found a great answer for this, so I figured I would ask here. How long is a 'normal' fermentation time? I know it depends on the beer, but when I make two IPA's using generally the same ingredients (maybe some different hops) one fermented for two days, one for 5 days. I've kept the temperature around 68 degrees on both of them.
2. Partial boil vs. Full Boil - I currently have a 5 gallon pot that I use on my stove (which puts out a good amount of heat). Some recipes (and books) I've read said to use 1 1/2 - 2 gallons of water for the boil, other's say 3 for a partial. I'm figuring the more the merrier and hope I am answering my question here by stating that doing 3 gallons would be best. As a side note, since this is still extract brewing, I've also read that if doing a 3 gallon boil, only half of the malt extract should be put for the boil, then the rest after the boil to let it temper, suggestions?
3. How much Water - This goes with my last question. I would boil 3 gallons, add two and a half afterwards to get close to 5 gallons. I checked my carboy's (6.5 gallon) and know where the 5 gallon mark is, which I'm almost always spot on. Should I be adding more water post-boil to make up for the loss after transferring to a secondary or bottling?
4. When to bottle - So, now I've checked my beer now every day for three days and there is no change in gravity. I made this batch last week, so it's been 10 days. What are the pluses/minuses to bottling now, leaving it in the primary for x days (if so how long), or moving to a secondary (again for how long). I know this can vary differently between different types of beers, right now I have two Pale ale's fermenting.
Sorry for the long post, I'm sure I have other questions which will pop up from time to time. In time hopefully I'll be the one aiding in the answering!
If I'm going to do something I want to do it right, and there is nothing more saddening than having to throw away beer!
Cheers!
As a precursor to this, I've brewed probably 7 or 8 extracts since the beginning of summer, some which came out 'ok', nothing came out 'really good' or something I said 'damn, that's good!' On the plus side, only one really came out undrinkable, which was my very first brew.
1. Fermentation Times - I've had anywhere from 2 days to 5-6 days fermentation in my primary. As much as I've tried to read up on this, I guess I haven't found a great answer for this, so I figured I would ask here. How long is a 'normal' fermentation time? I know it depends on the beer, but when I make two IPA's using generally the same ingredients (maybe some different hops) one fermented for two days, one for 5 days. I've kept the temperature around 68 degrees on both of them.
2. Partial boil vs. Full Boil - I currently have a 5 gallon pot that I use on my stove (which puts out a good amount of heat). Some recipes (and books) I've read said to use 1 1/2 - 2 gallons of water for the boil, other's say 3 for a partial. I'm figuring the more the merrier and hope I am answering my question here by stating that doing 3 gallons would be best. As a side note, since this is still extract brewing, I've also read that if doing a 3 gallon boil, only half of the malt extract should be put for the boil, then the rest after the boil to let it temper, suggestions?
3. How much Water - This goes with my last question. I would boil 3 gallons, add two and a half afterwards to get close to 5 gallons. I checked my carboy's (6.5 gallon) and know where the 5 gallon mark is, which I'm almost always spot on. Should I be adding more water post-boil to make up for the loss after transferring to a secondary or bottling?
4. When to bottle - So, now I've checked my beer now every day for three days and there is no change in gravity. I made this batch last week, so it's been 10 days. What are the pluses/minuses to bottling now, leaving it in the primary for x days (if so how long), or moving to a secondary (again for how long). I know this can vary differently between different types of beers, right now I have two Pale ale's fermenting.
Sorry for the long post, I'm sure I have other questions which will pop up from time to time. In time hopefully I'll be the one aiding in the answering!
If I'm going to do something I want to do it right, and there is nothing more saddening than having to throw away beer!
Cheers!
