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MasterWan

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So I was watching the new Brew Masters show on TV and they were talking about how long it takes to make a beer from start to finish. For regular strength beers, it takes them around 2 to 3 weeks. Higher gravity beers 4 to 5 weeks. Why does it take me so much longer?

For instance, I made an American Cream Ale the last week of August that I started drinking last week. So what, 10 weeks total that I let it sit. I did 2 weeks in the primary, 4 weeks in secondary and then kegged it in a brew keg, put some co2 on it and let it sit at around 70 degrees for another 4 weeks at least and then hooked it up in the kegerator and let it sit for 48 more hours to ensure proper carbonation. 5.9% ABV, good clarity, good flavor, but, it still seems somewhat green. SLight bananna smell and aftertaste.

I started waiting so long before i drink my brews to let them condition appropriately so I have a great beer. It never seems to fail, I always feel my beers turn out kinda green. After I saw brewmasters on TV and they talked about the time it takes to get a beer ready I was like WFT man!

What am I missing here?
 
MasterWan said:
5.9% ABV, good clarity, good flavor, but, it still seems somewhat green. SLight bananna smell and aftertaste.
Click to expand...

Sounds like fermentation issues to me, not green beer. What yeast, what temp, and how did you control temp?
 
They say "out the door" in two weeks but some breweries require their distributor to sit on the beer for a length of time before distributing.
 
many brewery owners start complaining if beer isnt on packaged and out the door or on tap @ 15-21 days
 
I know it's all personal preference but for a 5.9% beer I would only do 3 weeks primary and bottle it up. Then crack the first one after 3 more weeks. I think your 6 week total fermentation may be unnecessary for lower gravity beers.
 
pvh99 said:
Sounds like fermentation issues to me, not green beer. What yeast, what temp, and how did you control temp?
Click to expand...

So I guess this post was more about my results than about the show. That just what got me thinking about my issues.

So the American cream ale was a kit, however I used wyeast for American ale, and I ferment right at 68 to 70 degrees or room temp in my house. After reading some more on the boards I think what I may be doing wrong is fermenting at too high a temp as the beer is 8 to 10 degrees warmer in the bucket correct? I'm fermenting too hot and releasing fruity esters. Does that sound right?

What's the way to go here? I don't have a basement to get colder temps. Should I just brew lagers and stick them in the fridge during the warmer months?
 
yeah, you could easily be at 75-80 degrees in the fermenter, which will produce the flavors you described. look for threads on making a simple swamp cooler. that should work fine for your room temps.
 
MasterWan said:
So I guess this post was more about my results than about the show. That just what got me thinking about my issues.

So the American cream ale was a kit, however I used wyeast for American ale, and I ferment right at 68 to 70 degrees or room temp in my house. After reading some more on the boards I think what I may be doing wrong is fermenting at too high a temp as the beer is 8 to 10 degrees warmer in the bucket correct? I'm fermenting too hot and releasing fruity esters. Does that sound right?

What's the way to go here? I don't have a basement to get colder temps. Should I just brew lagers and stick them in the fridge during the warmer months?
Click to expand...

So some people say that fermentation can increase temperatures by 10 degrees but 3-5 is more realistic. A warmer fermentation will make your beer ferment faster, not slower. What I do for temp control is use a swamp cooler. Just a cube cooler large enough to hold a carboy filled with water. I, as do many others, just rotate frozen water bottles in and out to maintain proper temp. You can speed up fermentation by pitching plenty of yeast (make a starter or use dry yeast) and oxygenate. This will make fermentation start and finish faster. You can also cold crash and add gelatin when fermentation is finished to make the beer ready sooner. It's hard to tell where your off flavors are coming from, but yes, if you are fermenting around 75F, you will be getting more esters than are desired. I usually ferment my ales around 65F.
 
Mine go 2-4 weeks grain to glass. Lagers a week or two longer. Most my beers are under 1.070. There is a fermentation schedule in my popcorn cream ale recipe (in my pull down) that can serve brilliant bottled beer in about two weeks. It's patterned after a 10 day schedule form pro brewer but I can't filter.
 
Every time I`ve tried to make 2 week beer the results have been less than spectacular. Usually I keep them in the primary for 3 weeks at fermentation temperature, then move the primary into the fridge and crash cool for 1 week then keg. I usually let the keg carb up for 2 weeks or longer so 6 to 8 weeks from mash to glass. This procedure produces great beer for me consistently.I`m also real careful to pitch the right amount of healthy yeast and control my fermentation temperature.
 
I toured the Great Lakes Brewery last week and I asked them how long they let their beer age.....1 week in the primary for all ales, 2 weeks for lagers. Then they use a centrifuge to clarify. The said it sits in the bottle at there warehouse for no more than 5 days. But they did also tell me that they ferment under pressure.
 
I don't make many beers that are better aged. I make mostly American ambers, APAs, and IPAs. They're all really good in 2-3 weeks, generally.

At this moment, I'm drinking an IPA that was made on 10/21 and the keg is nearly gone. Bob is drinking an oatmeal stout that was made on 11/4. As long as the OG is fairly low, and flavors not too "big", young beer is usually good beer!

Some beers, like barleywines or RIS, need more time to mellow. Or an oaked beer- it sometimes takes a couple of months for the oak to meld into the beer flavor and beer drinkable.

Overall, I'm drinking most of my beers in three weeks after a two week time in the primary.

I do take much more time for lagers, as I like to lager them for a week for every 8-10 points of OG. So, for a lager, I might make it and start lagering it when it's 2 weeks old, then lager it for 6-10 weeks.

Keep in mind that one of the keys for good tasting young beer is to minimize any off-flavors in the first place! One, pitch enough yeast. One smackpack is rarely (if ever) enough. Two, control temperatures strictly. "About 72" is not good enough. Three, remember that some ingredients will take much more time. Honey, spices, oak, tons of roasted barley, etc will take more time to age well.
 
Yooper said:
I don't make many beers that are better aged. I make mostly American ambers, APAs, and IPAs. They're all really good in 2-3 weeks, generally.

.
Click to expand...

Right there with ya Yoop. I dont do lagers or big beers so its grain to my belly in ASAP
 
My goal is to get my beers on tap as soon as possible, with the caveat that they are also ready. I won't rush it if I detect it needs more time, but if the beer has finished fermenting and has cleaned up its byproducts, it is ready for kegging for me. I use 1968 for most of my ales, and because it ferments and clears so quickly, I usually have all of my sub 1.060 beers on tap within 6-10 days. Yeah, I said 6.

That's not to say that I don't notice my beers getting better after a couple weeks on tap. I just like to taste that evolution.

Beer is liquid bread in more ways than one... you don't eat old bread, don't drink old beer.
 
Yooper said:
I don't make many beers that are better aged. I make mostly American ambers, APAs, and IPAs. They're all really good in 2-3 weeks, generally.

At this moment, I'm drinking an IPA that was made on 10/21 and the keg is nearly gone. Bob is drinking an oatmeal stout that was made on 11/4. As long as the OG is fairly low, and flavors not too "big", young beer is usually good beer!

Some beers, like barleywines or RIS, need more time to mellow. Or an oaked beer- it sometimes takes a couple of months for the oak to meld into the beer flavor and beer drinkable.

Overall, I'm drinking most of my beers in three weeks after a two week time in the primary.

I do take much more time for lagers, as I like to lager them for a week for every 8-10 points of OG. So, for a lager, I might make it and start lagering it when it's 2 weeks old, then lager it for 6-10 weeks.

Keep in mind that one of the keys for good tasting young beer is to minimize any off-flavors in the first place! One, pitch enough yeast. One smackpack is rarely (if ever) enough. Two, control temperatures strictly. "About 72" is not good enough. Three, remember that some ingredients will take much more time. Honey, spices, oak, tons of roasted barley, etc will take more time to age well.
Click to expand...

Great advice everyone! Im going try the swamp cooler next time to regulate temperature rather than hoping its at the right temp.
Cheers and happy TG!

Wan
 
strange. though i had posted in this thread.

sounds like a normal brewing schedule for me. Most of my normal beers get a 2 week cycle. 1 week in the primary, 1 week in the secondary. then it gets kegged and force carbed for a day or 2 before being hooked up and consumed.

Notable exceptions to this schedule would be any imperials or barley wines. they usually get a longer secondary
 

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