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bigtuna101 said:
1. Based on no hydrometer I assume I should let the primary process run longer then a week. I was going to go for two weeks just to be sure. Does that sound right? The kegs are in a dark spot with perfect controlled temp.
Click to expand...

Yes, plan on two weeks for better results. You can go longer if you think there is an issue, but with a simple refill you should be golden at two.

bigtuna101 said:
2. I have read that if I want better beer I should not use white sugar in the secondary process, that it would be a better idea to use a little more HME in each bottle instead. Is this a good idea? And if so how much more HME should I use in each bottle? Or do I add more HME to the keg and then bottle adding more fermentable product prior to bottling?
Click to expand...

If you mean the bottling and conditioning phase, just use sugar. The trace amount used to carb your beer will not make a difference.

bigtuna101 said:
3. I already have the bug and have order hops pellets of various kinds and will be here prior to the completion of my primary fermentation cycle. Can I add hops in a sack to the brew prior to bottling to add some flavor? Or is it only worth adding during the initial heating of the HME prior to starting the primary cycle?
Click to expand...

Hops added at that point (dry hopping) will only add aroma, no flavor.

bigtuna101 said:
4. I plan on being very patient on the secondary cycle and waiting 3-4 weeks in that phase un-refrigerated from what I read. Is this to long for an IPA?
Click to expand...
Good plan.

bigtuna101 said:
5. I also assume that refrigerating for an additional two weeks would be a good idea as well. Do you agree?
Click to expand...

Try one after 48 hours and then keep sampling every day or two to decide for yourself if 2 weeks of cold conditioning helps. Some will swear by it, others just use a few days in the fridge.

bigtuna101 said:
6. Finally on my next batch I intend on using two cans of HME in the primary stage with hops etc and so liquid yeast (better quality I guess based on the price lol) and a booster pack. In that case I am assuming a richer beer with heavy mouth etc. but my question is baed on all that fermentable material do I still need to add more HME or sugar prior to bottling to create carbonation in the secondary stage? Or is the extra HME in the primary stage going to leave enough unprocessed fermentable material to forgo the addition sugar or HME prior to bottling to create carbonation.
Click to expand...

You will always need to add priming sugar regardless of how many fermentables you started with.

Cheers. And welcome!
 
Thanks so much for the quick reply!!!!!! Now if I could fast forward two moths that would be great lol cheers as well!
 
bigtuna101 said:
Hello I have a hand full of questions. I am sorry if the answers are in this 5000 page thread lol I did not it all.

To set up my questions here is what I have done so far.

Around Christmas I got a mr beer kit with the colors light flavor. Then wouldn't you know it I get a present from my dad and what are the chances it is another mr beer kit only the master version with 4 craft beers IPA etc. kind of strange coincidence as I have never thought of brewing before and neither gifting party knows the other lol. I make home made hot sauce, mustard etc and pickling etc. so I guess they both thought on the same year this was a good next step for me. Anyway I decided to make two batches by the book to start. Made sure I was a sanitation freak and all looks good. I started the fermentation process Friday last week. All looks good bubbles, foam etc. I do not have a hydro meter.

Here are my questions based on all the reading I have done here so far.

1. Based on no hydrometer I assume I should let the primary process run longer then a week. I was going to go for two weeks just to be sure. Does that sound right? The kegs are in a dark spot with perfect controlled temp.

2. I have read that if I want better beer I should not use white sugar in the secondary process, that it would be a better idea to use a little more HME in each bottle instead. Is this a good idea? And if so how much more HME should I use in each bottle? Or do I add more HME to the keg and then bottle adding more fermentable product prior to bottling?

3. I already have the bug and have order hops pellets of various kinds and will be here prior to the completion of my primary fermentation cycle. Can I add hops in a sack to the brew prior to bottling to add some flavor? Or is it only worth adding during the initial heating of the HME prior to starting the primary cycle?

4. I plan on being very patient on the secondary cycle and waiting 3-4 weeks in that phase un-refrigerated from what I read. Is this to long for an IPA?

5. I also assume that refrigerating for an additional two weeks would be a good idea as well. Do you agree?

6. Finally on my next batch I intend on using two cans of HME in the primary stage with hops etc and so liquid yeast (better quality I guess based on the price lol) and a booster pack. In that case I am assuming a richer beer with heavy mouth etc. but my question is baed on all that fermentable material do I still need to add more HME or sugar prior to bottling to create carbonation in the secondary stage? Or is the extra HME in the primary stage going to leave enough unprocessed fermentable material to forgo the addition sugar or HME prior to bottling to create carbonation.

Please forgive me if my questions sound noob as I am one, but I have been reading for several days straight to try and closet he gap as quick as possible.

Thanks in advance for any answers!!!!!!!!!!
Click to expand...

Hello Tuna and welcome to the Asylum!

1. 2 weeks should be your minimum. For complex recipes go longer. 3 or 4 weeks is not uncommon. Get a hydrometer ASAP, you will not regret it!

2. Table sugar is just fine. There is so little of it, there's almost no risk of off flavors being imparted.

3. Boil hops to add bitterness, dry hop to add aroma!

4. Like K said, try one after 2 weeks and see what you think!

5. if you have the patience and the fridge room, it will do nothing bad to your beer. Patience is your friend!

6. Primary fermentation should remove all fermentable sugars from your wort. Carbonation is adding a little more sugar and storing under pressure to carbonate your beer. You will need to add table sugar to accomplish this.

Don't worry about sounding like a noob. We were all one at some point ( I still consider myself one after 5 batches!) read the threads here and ask away!:mug:
 
DallasHomeBrew2 said:
Can the beer be harmed by leaving it in the keg too long after fermentation has stopped? The kit says to ferment for 7-14 days, and everyone here recommends at least 3, maybe 4 weeks. If the fermentation has appeared to have stopped after 16 days and I left it in the keg for a full 21 days, could the batch go south? Or is it better to be safe than sorry? Thanks.
Click to expand...

Unless I have a problem that caused a stuck fermentation (or if I'm busy, out of town, etc), I rarely go longer than two weeks. Primary fermentation is going to be finished within a week in most cases, but leaving it for another week or two gives the yeast time to do additional cleanup. And if you don't have a hydrometer, it's safer to ferment a little longer to ensure fermentation has truly completed.

I've had a few cases where I left a batch in the fermenter for a little more than 4 weeks.

There are some potential issues with leaving a batch too long. Odds are that you won't have a problem unless you leave it for months (and maybe not even then), but normally, you don't want to leave it in the fermenter longer than 3-4 weeks.

Some of the yeast in the trub is still alive, but some is dead. some of the dead yeast cells can rupture, causing something called autolysis. Due to the design of the Mr Beer fermenter (long bottom, so not as much pressure on the trub), this is less likely than with other designs, but over time, it can still happen.

Also, since primary fermentation has stopped and there is no more active CO2 production, with the "passive airlock" of the Mr Beer fermenter, there is some chance that you'll get some contact with the outside air, which can lead to faster staling and increased risk of infection.
 
Thanks again for the help. Another question.


In the mr beer instruction it said "sprinkle the yeast into the keg and seal" and nothing about stirring or agitating the yeast into wort. In some of the reading I have been doing some folks say " stir the yeast into the wort and agitate it"

I followed the instructions and just sprinkled it in a sealed.

What is the consensus on that?
 
Should I get new sugar for my beer and keep it sealed? I have sugar I use for baking, some in the paper wrapping it comes in, some in plastic containers for pouring, different stuff. Can stuff in sugar ruin my beer (I'm talking about when I add it during the bottling phase)?
 
bigtuna101 said:
Thanks again for the help. Another question.


In the mr beer instruction it said "sprinkle the yeast into the keg and seal" and nothing about stirring or agitating the yeast into wort. In some of the reading I have been doing some folks say " stir the yeast into the wort and agitate it"

I followed the instructions and just sprinkled it in a sealed.

What is the consensus on that?
Click to expand...

The reason behind stirring the wort isn't to mix the yeast in, but to aerate the wort.

At the start, the yeast need to reproduce until there are enough yeast cells to begin converting the sugars into alcohol and CO2. The existing yeast cells need unsaturated fatty acids and sterols to create new cell walls during this phase. They can synthesize these using oxygen, so we usually aerate the wort so that the yeast cells can reproduce in a healthy manner.

If the yeast manufacturer saturates the yeast with unsaturated fatty acids and sterols, the yeast will have enough available and will not need oxygen to synthesize them.

If the package says you don't need to aerate (or stir) the wort, it is because the yeast have sufficient nutrients packaged with them and do not need to synthesize them. It wouldn't hurt to introduce oxygen at this step, but if the instructions don't say it's needed, you can skip that step.
 
bzwyatt said:
Should I get new sugar for my beer and keep it sealed? I have sugar I use for baking, some in the paper wrapping it comes in, some in plastic containers for pouring, different stuff. Can stuff in sugar ruin my beer (I'm talking about when I add it during the bottling phase)?
Click to expand...

What kind of stuff do you have in your sugar?

Sugar is sort of a natural preservative because it is too dry to support bacterial growth. But if you're storing the sugar in a way that it's getting a bunch of junk in it, once you add the sugar to the beer, it won't be dry any more. But if you're keeping it clean, you should be okay.

If you want to be really safe, you can switch to batch priming. When you batch prime, you add all the sugar for the batch to a small amount of water, bring it to a boil, then add the sugar water and wort to a priming container and bottle from that.
 
Nothing specific and it isn't 'dirty', just might have crumbs, maybe from a measuring cup with a bit of flour in it, or has been left open on the counter while I'm baking. Since I sanitize the keg and everything that touches the wort, seems logical I should have 'sanitized' sugar too... but at that stage maybe it isn't as critical?
 
Replacement batch just got started. :rockin:

Here's hoping I get a better outcome this time. :D

Appreciate all the advice guys.

Ken
 
bzwyatt said:
Nothing specific and it isn't 'dirty', just might have crumbs, maybe from a measuring cup with a bit of flour in it, or has been left open on the counter while I'm baking. Since I sanitize the keg and everything that touches the wort, seems logical I should have 'sanitized' sugar too... but at that stage maybe it isn't as critical?
Click to expand...

I would just create a separate container for your 'beer sugar'. Trace amounts likely won't hurt anything but I don't want crumbs, flour or anything else getting into my bottles.
 
Kealia said:
I would just create a separate container for your 'beer sugar'. Trace amounts likely won't hurt anything but I don't want crumbs, flour or anything else getting into my bottles.
Click to expand...

+1

I usually keg these days, and when I bottle, I generally batch prime. But when I bottle prime, the sugar is clean, with no crumbs, flour, etc. If you think your sugar could have stuff other than sugar in it, I'd keep a separate container just for beer.
 
bigtuna101 said:
Thanks again for the help. Another question.


In the mr beer instruction it said "sprinkle the yeast into the keg and seal" and nothing about stirring or agitating the yeast into wort. In some of the reading I have been doing some folks say " stir the yeast into the wort and agitate it"

I followed the instructions and just sprinkled it in a sealed.

What is the consensus on that?
Click to expand...

I've brewed two Mr. Beer batches so far (got a kit for Christmas and another unwanted one given to me last week). One is nine days along and the second is at three days.

For both batches, I rehydrated my package of Mr. Beer dry yeast before pitching it. It's really easy to do (steps with photos can be found at http://www.mrbeerfans.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/229126/Yeast_Hydrating_Pictorial.html#Post229126 and, based on what I've read here and on the mrbeerfans.com forum, it helps the yeast cells' membranes to allow water to pass through. That allows more cells to survive and begin their work. It also disperses the yeast cells into the wort better than just sprinkling dry.

I aerated the cooled wort with a sanitized plastic whisk before pitching the yeast. Both were at the same temp (about 70F) before going to a steady 68F (in a temp-controlled chest freezer). I'll likely pitch at 64 degrees next batch and ferment at 66F, 60 degrees if I use Nottingham yeast since it reportedly ferments cleaner around 62F.

I put together a bottling bucket ($4 food grade bucket from Lowe's plus a $3 Italian spigot), plan to batch prime with corn sugar, and attach a bottling wand to the spigot.
 
stevehardt said:
this is almost certainly completely normal, but if you could post a picture it would help us be sure. Just dont leave the lid off the fermenter any longer than necessary
Click to expand...
AE86CE77-D50F-40B0-83D7-644AB6389407-6986-00000798F24829BE.jpg

The small clumps of stuff floating is my concern. After looking at some other pictures this almost seems normal, but what do I know, its my first brew.
 
EHV said:
View attachment 93068

The small clumps of stuff floating is my concern. After looking at some other pictures this almost seems normal, but what do I know, its my first brew.
Click to expand...

Though the picture isn't very clear (and it's honestly somewhat difficult to get a really good picture of stuff suspended in a dark liquid inside a dark plastic container...), those really just look like yeast rafts to me- which is just colonies of your healthy yeast doing their thing. Completely normal!
There may also be some "break" material in there from the malt, which is any of a number of coagulated proteins, hops (probably not in a Mr Beer kit, but others brews would have that), and such. After a suitably long period of fermentation, nearly all of that will settle to the bottom to form your "trub" layer of sediment, along with some of the yeast. Wait a little longer, and much of the rest of the yeast will go dormant and make a much thinner layer on top of that.
Again, entirely normal.

If you see signs of a solid layer/sheet of oily stuff, or large stringy structures on the top, then you *might* have an infection, but even that doesn't necessarily mean spoiled beer. Many "infections" are hardly noticeable, and occasionally even make the beer good in interesting ways ;)

Essentially, nothing that can grow in your beer can ever hurt you, so enjoy the view, but don't worry. :D
 
I appreciate the informative response. I have a decent layer of sediment on the bottom, and this is officially 2 weeks of fermentation. i will go the full 3 weeks as suggested. When brewing with fruit, does the fruit become more pronounced in flavor as time progresses, or diminish? I've sampled this twice and really get little to no hints of raspberry.
 
Would anyone be kind enough to give me a quick legging 101 crash course :)


How difficult is it, pros cons etc etc

Thanks in advance!!
 
bigtuna101 said:
Would anyone be kind enough to give me a quick kegging 101 crash course :)


How difficult is it, pros cons etc etc

Thanks in advance!!
Click to expand...

There are several ways to do it. I have a kegerator and force carbonate. I siphon the beer into the keg, pot the lid on, hit it with 20-30 psi to set the lid. Then I check for leaks, vent it and set it to about 10 psi and leave it for a week to carbonate.

Some people set it higher and roll it around to speed up the carbonation. Some people add priming sugar and wait a few weeks for it no naturally carbonate.
 
twiztid said:
I had some problems making my own beer from the forum alone and found a cheap book online that really helped me out. Walked me step by step and now i can actually ENJOY my home made beer rather than force it down lol

But Seriously check it out it will work wonders lol
http://547d07q-phognl30fa-zujlz9o.hop.clickbank.net/
Click to expand...


^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Wow!!!!!!!!!

Spam-a-licious!?!?!?!?

Must be dimmer than a candle in a Guinness bottle if you couldn't make a reasonably good beer from the wealth of info on HBT:fro:
 
stevehardt said:
My advice would be to make the fist couple kits as directed, other than giving it 3 weeks in the fermenter and 3 weeks in the bottle before drinking it.

Making the kits as directed for the first couple of batches helps you get your process down.
Click to expand...

Alright my first batch has been in the LBK for 3 days now (Mr. Beer's Punkin Lager). I put the LBK in a cooler to keep the temps steady (as my house drops down to about 60 at night). Checked on it a little while ago and could notice a very pleasant beer aroma, so there is obviously some venting. Everything looks good. Temperature inside the cooler holding steady around 69 degrees.

Anyways, my question has to do with bottling (for when I eventually get there). I don't really want to use the large plastic bottles that come with the kit, as I rather bottle using 12 oz. brown glass and cap, or at least do part of the batch that way. Other than adjusting the amount of sugar to add based on the size, is there anything else I need to be aware of?
 
Ogri said:
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Wow!!!!!!!!!

Spam-a-licious!?!?!?!?

Must be dimmer than a candle in a Guinness bottle if you couldn't make a reasonably good beer from the wealth of info on HBT:fro:
Click to expand...

Well he did throw in a couple of lol's, so it has to be genuine. That URL looks totally legit to!
 
LetsGoCeltics said:
Well he did throw in a couple of lol's, so it has to be genuine. That URL looks totally legit to!
Click to expand...

you reckon??

Sincerely hope that is sarcasm I'm not detecting;):fro:

"hop.clickbank.net" and a bunch of random numbers before that seems a bit dodgy to me.
 
LetsGoCeltics said:
Alright my first batch has been in the LBK for 3 days now (Mr. Beer's Punkin Lager). I put the LBK in a cooler to keep the temps steady (as my house drops down to about 60 at night). Checked on it a little while ago and could notice a very pleasant beer aroma, so there is obviously some venting. Everything looks good. Temperature inside the cooler holding steady around 69 degrees.

Anyways, my question has to do with bottling (for when I eventually get there). I don't really want to use the large plastic bottles that come with the kit, as I rather bottle using 12 oz. brown glass and cap, or at least do part of the batch that way. Other than adjusting the amount of sugar to add based on the size, is there anything else I need to be aware of?
Click to expand...

Sounds like you've got it. However, if possible, I'd rack onto a batch priming solution in a bottling bucket as it makes things easier than priming each bottle individually. I think it also enabled me to get slightly more crystal, clear, beer out of the LBK before swirling up some of the sediment, due to positioning the keg so that beer would still flow through the spigot when bottling straight from the LBK.
 
I don't have a thermometer on my keg, don't know for sure, but I think it might have gotten a bit cold overnight. Instructions say too cold, yeast can go dormant, too warm and they can produce off flavors.

If it got cold enough for yeast to go dormant, will they wake back up if they get warm again?
 
Yes, they will wake back up,,,but you might want to warm it into the lower 70's to get them hopping again. How cold did it get? The mass of 2 gal. of beer will keep the temp somewhat stable, this is why it's always best to have a fermometer to know the actual temp of your lbk.
 
I figured that, thanks for the response. LBK is in a cooler, and I have my thermostat at 70, but overnight somebody turned the heat off, not sure how cold it got. But it is a decent amount of liquid, like you said, and I figure the cooler keeps it pretty stable too, so maybe it didn't cool down much at all. Hopefully the free, stick-on fermometer from MrBeer is good enough for their LBK? Should be coming soon...
 
bzwyatt said:
I figured that, thanks for the response. LBK is in a cooler, and I have my thermostat at 70, but overnight somebody turned the heat off, not sure how cold it got. But it is a decent amount of liquid, like you said, and I figure the cooler keeps it pretty stable too, so maybe it didn't cool down much at all. Hopefully the free, stick-on fermometer from MrBeer is good enough for their LBK? Should be coming soon...
Click to expand...

You're likely fine. As long as it didn't drop below 60 the yeast likely didn't go dormant.

The "fermometer" is more of a dummy light and less a thermometer. It shows Too Cold, Just Right, and Too Hot, as defined for the generic (Fromunda IIRC) yeast that come in the MB kits. That's about it. If you're just brewing MB kits, it's adequate.
 
Been fermenting for two weeks this Friday, sampled it last Friday and it tasted like flat beer. Will if be fine to go ahead and bottle this week or should I let it sit another week?
 
IronEagle said:
Been fermenting for two weeks this Friday, sampled it last Friday and it tasted like flat beer. Will if be fine to go ahead and bottle this week or should I let it sit another week?
Click to expand...

IronEagle...do you have a hydrometer? Its the best way to tell if your ready to bottle. Once you get the same hydrometer reading 3 days in a row you can be sure.

That being said, after 2 weeks you're probably OK. IMHO, you'll get better beer if you wait a third week before you bottle.

BTW, congrats..you made beer
 
stevehardt said:
IronEagle...do you have a hydrometer? Its the best way to tell if your ready to bottle. Once you get the same hydrometer reading 3 days in a row you can be sure.

That being said, after 2 weeks you're probably OK. IMHO, you'll get better beer if you wait a third week before you bottle.

BTW, congrats..you made beer
Click to expand...

No I don't have one. I noticed earlier that there is still a little bubbling action going on. Lots of sediment at the bottom and some bubbles and such at the top.
 
IronEagle said:
Been fermenting for two weeks this Friday, sampled it last Friday and it tasted like flat beer. Will if be fine to go ahead and bottle this week or should I let it sit another week?
Click to expand...
I think one of the reasons that the Mr. Beer instructions suggest you primary for three weeks in the LBK is because they assume that most beginners don't have a hydrometer and, generally, three weeks "should" see fermentation reach its conclusion, so giving it another week can only help your cause.

LetsGoCeltics said:
To put you at ease, yes it was sarcasm.
Click to expand...

No!!! Really????:D;)
 
I pitched (still working on all vernacular but I think this means put yeast in) Friday last week on my first attempt at brewing and followed the mr beer directions to the tee.

I was a freak about sanitation. Being a self proclaimed incredible chef I am already very aware of sanitation and cross contamination, the adjustment to this next level of sanitation was not a huge leap for me.

I used no "extras" in my brew just one can of HME, mr. Beer devil IPA.

Well I realize it has only been about 5 days of fermentation but the process looks complete.

The morning after I pitched I inspected and saw that the yeast had colonized quickly and the tell tale signs of happy yeast where present. Lots of bubbling etc.

By the second night the yeast was dominating the environment.

Over the next three days the bubbling slowly stopped and the brew began to clear some. Sediments are gently laying on the bottom and only a hand full of yeast mats remain floating at the top.

At this point it looks like it is ran through the process so tonight I decided to have a taste as i have no hydrometer (yet :).

Well I don't what happened, I knew it all seemed to easy, but some how some way it came out fantastic lol

Flat of course and not a very heavy IPA etc. but great flavor and like I had hoped! It's beer!!

Of course I will wait another week or so prior to the secondary phase, not out of the woods yet one more round of freakish sanitation to go but I am feeling confident now.

So confident in fact and having so much fun my poor credit card just took a beating today as I bought all kinds of stuff off the mr. Beer website.

After all the reading and information on this forum I was shopping like a pro lol.

I spent some time reading various mr. Beer recipes requiring double the HME in many cases and ended buying several recipes worth of refills, hydro meter, 24 more bottles, booster, several hops pellets, several strains of yeast, 3 more 2.5 gallon tanks, various boosters and rise free sanitation.

$200 later I guess u can say I went a little crazy lol.

Anyway I wanted thank those who took the time to answer my many questions, thanks so much!

Cheers!!!!!
 
stevehardt said:
IronEagle...do you have a hydrometer? Its the best way to tell if your ready to bottle. Once you get the same hydrometer reading 3 days in a row you can be sure.
Click to expand...

I've started brewing recently with the Mr. Beer I got for Christmas (the one with bottles and two cans of HME) plus another unused basic one that I picked up from a co-worker whose husband thought it would be too much work. So, I've got two LBKs in primary right now. I took OG readings on both. Temp is set at 67.5F.

Steve's advice is 100% correct if you want to be sure fermentation is complete. The problem that arises with taking 3 samples to check for FG out of a LBK is that you end up making a serious dent in your 2-gallon beer volume. My hydrometer test jar is a pretty decent size and I'd rather be putting more beer in the bottles to carb/condition than running multiple samples.

The best thing I can figure to do is let it spend about 15-20 days in primary (regardless of diminished visible surface activity), take a sample for FG and compare it to the OG to confirm that you reached close to your expected ABV and didn't have a stuck fermentation. Taste it to see if it tastes like flat beer. If it's all good, transfer to the bottling bucket, batch it, go for the next stage and get ready to brew another recipe.:rockin:
 
BigFloyd said:

Steve's advice is 100% correct if you want to be sure fermentation is complete. The problem that arises with taking 3 samples to check for FG out of a LBK is that you end up making a serious dent in your 2-gallon beer volume. My hydrometer test jar is a pretty decent size and I'd rather be putting more beer in the bottles to carb/condition than running multiple samples.
Click to expand...

If you sanitize your hydrometer, container and sample taker before pulling the sample, you can add the sample back to your wort without any worry.
 
BigFloyd said:
I've started brewing recently with the Mr. Beer I got for Christmas (the one with bottles and two cans of HME) plus another unused basic one that I picked up from a co-worker whose husband thought it would be too much work. So, I've got two LBKs in primary right now. I took OG readings on both. Temp is set at 67.5F.

Steve's advice is 100% correct if you want to be sure fermentation is complete. The problem that arises with taking 3 samples to check for FG out of a LBK is that you end up making a serious dent in your 2-gallon beer volume. My hydrometer test jar is a pretty decent size and I'd rather be putting more beer in the bottles to carb/condition than running multiple samples.

The best thing I can figure to do is let it spend about 15-20 days in primary (regardless of diminished visible surface activity), take a sample for FG and compare it to the OG to confirm that you reached close to your expected ABV and didn't have a stuck fermentation. Taste it to see if it tastes like flat beer. If it's all good, transfer to the bottling bucket, batch it, go for the next stage and get ready to brew another recipe.:rockin:
Click to expand...

I used to hydro the h*ll out of my MB recipes, but I realized unless I added a lot of adjuncts or stuff to the basic recipe that by three weeks it is done. Now I take a hydro sample atht he beginning, wait til at least two weeks has past, take another to determine what my final ABV is going to be and if it didn't look right, maybe a third at three weeks just to be sure (don't want any bottle bombs going off in the closet. 3- weeks fermenter, min. 4 weeks bottling/conditioning seems to work fine. Some of the heavier ABV beers, I condition longer.
 
BigFloyd said:
Steve's advice is 100% correct if you want to be sure fermentation is complete. The problem that arises with taking 3 samples to check for FG out of a LBK is that you end up making a serious dent in your 2-gallon beer volume. My hydrometer test jar is a pretty decent size and I'd rather be putting more beer in the bottles to carb/condition than running multiple samples.
Click to expand...

I'm a noob. What about using a "wine thief"? That way you can put the sample right back into 2 gal fermenter.
 
This coming Monday is my two week mark from pitching the yeast in my Mr. Beer kit that I got for Christmas. It also is the two week mark for my Northern Brewer 1 gal kit. Both are my first attempts at homebrewing. I'm thinking about bottling the Mr. Beer this Monday and waiting one more week on the NB. The Mr. Beer is the American Light LME. The NB is the Irish Red Ale. Suggestions? Thanks. This place is awesome!
 

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