Take a gravity sample from glass carboy w/o exposing your beer

I should probably add more picks for illustration but you guys will get the idea. The carboy cap has two connections; one for blowoff, and one for taking a sample. I attached a piece of tubing to the underside of the carboy cap on the sample tubing that extends to the center of the wort. The small glass container is used to collect the sample. It has three inlets/outlets on the cap. One is not used (clamped closed), one is for beer in, and one is used to apply suction that will transfer the wort into the sample bottle.

The tubing that transfers the sample has two clamps. When you take a sample only open and close those clamps with suction applied so you don’t have wort traveling back down into your beer.

The bucket serves two purposes. First, and foremost, it collects blowoff. Secondly, when a sample is taken air enters the system. Rather than going directly into your carboy it first has to enter the bucket. Be sure to use an “S” style air lock.

Using this method I have been able to take daily samples without having to sanitize equipment beforehand and I don’t risk exposing the beer to infection or oxidation.

Ok.....If it floats your boat.

It seems a little overcomplicated and Rube Goldberg-esque for something so simple and innocuous as sticking a sanitized turkey baster or wine theif in the carboy and drawing a sample out. But if it works for you, more power to you.

I agree with Revvy. If it works for you, go for it.

IMO taking a sample with a turkey baster is way easier. I also only take a couple of samples, sometimes just one before bottling. So the risk is minimal. Maybe even less than having all that equipment attached for extended periods of time. I also don't like the idea of introducing air to push the sample out.

I like your ingenuity and it works but I'm too old and lazy to set something like that up. Wine Thief/Turkey Baster a couple of times for me.

Subsailor said:

I like your ingenuity and it works but I'm too old and lazy to set something like that up. Wine Thief/Turkey Baster a couple of times for me.

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X2 on the wine thief. spray with starsan and good to go. Like your idea though, as its different

Well it wouldn't be the first time I've over complicated something in this hobby that I later simplify based on experience and good advice found in this forum. It's all part of the fun. The fridge I use for temp control is located in an environment similar to what you'd expect from an attic so I don't like to risk opening the fermenter. This method eases my mind and after setup takes no longer to grab a sample than using a wine thief. There’s no shortage of others on this site willing to overly complicate an otherwise simple process so I thought I’d share.

now that's some ingenuity there!

Just take a sample after you pitch your yeast and keep it in a beer bottle. Use it to take a gravity whenever you want and put the sample back in the beer bottle when done. It will ferment the same speed as long as it is the same temp but doesn't matter if it gets infected since you are not returning it to the main fermenter. Your main beer is protected against infection and oxygen.

I take a reading on brew day and another on bottling day. Do you really do daily tests?

william_shakes_beer said:

I take a reading on brew day and another on bottling day. Do you really do daily tests?

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No, not everyday. After about a week or so I'll take a sample to see where it's at and go from there. I'll take 3 or 4 samples during the entire time its in the primary.

I'm going to resurect this post and ask, what is the risk to oxidation of the beer in 2020? I have nothing high tech or clever...simple fermenter and airlock. I've been told so many times to NEVER open that carboy/bucket for fear of irreversible oxidation. So I've always just waited 3 weeks (which kills me) to be mostly certain we are all done on the fermentation. I'd love to think I could sample after 10 days and again 15 without a consequence. More so, I'd love to think I could be drinking great beer a week earlier than I do now!

kokonutz said:

I'm going to resurect this post and ask, what is the risk to oxidation of the beer in 2020? I have nothing high tech or clever...simple fermenter and airlock. I've been told so many times to NEVER open that carboy/bucket for fear of irreversible oxidation. So I've always just waited 3 weeks (which kills me) to be mostly certain we are all done on the fermentation. I'd love to think I could sample after 10 days and again 15 without a consequence. More so, I'd love to think I could be drinking great beer a week earlier than I do now!

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Sampling twice to be sure fermentation is finished is a very common procedure. If you don't splash the beer your risk is low. I usually take only one reading, sometimes at only 2 weeks. If it is very close to the predicted FG, that is all I take. No bottle bombs yet. Oh and when bottling I siphon to a bottling bucket then fill the bottles with a bottling wand. When kegging I also use the siphon. I have never had oxidation bad enough to be even noticeable to me. Could the beer be better with closed transfer etc? Probably, but so far it has not been on the radar as something to do.

I’m inspired. I’m going in with the thief this afternoon when I’m done with work. I really want some more data and I want to try this beer