Am I done?

Hey all

On Saturday I made a Witbier batch from a Brewer's Best kit. It seemed to really be fermenting like mad because there were a ton of bubbles (like one right after the other). The next morning it did more of the same. However, I checked it on Monday and there was no bubbling or anything. I assumed this meant that I messed up somewhere (rookie attitude at its finest) so after being consulted by other, more experienced brewers, I was told to check the SG. I took a reading and it was about 1.010 (what the recipe says the FG should be).

Not knowing what to do, I transferred it to my secondary glass carboy and now I'm wondering whether I should proceed to bottling since it appears to be at FG or if I should just wait it out for a few more days to a week or two.

Wait on it for a while for clarity. Otherwise, if the FG has stabilized over 3 days, then bottle away.

As with many things in brewing, the choice is yours.

That is some really quick fermentation. I would have let it sit in my primary for at least a week. If it is a simple recipe, you dont even need to secondary longer than a few hours to let anything you may have sucked out of your primary settle before bottling. It wouldnt hurt to let it sit for at least a week though. This way, you are sure that fermentation is complete and dont have any exploding bottles down the road

How long should I wait for clarity? I feel like a Witbier is usually cloudy anyway (not that I'm saying you're wrong)

I think all beers should be in the primary for at least 2 weeks without exception. If you choose to do a secondary, don't transfer until you've reached FG. The secondary isn't necessary unless you're adding some fruit addition or extra flavoring.

witbier shouldnt be clear however, you dont want yeast and trud floating around. I agree with unibrow. I let my brews sit in the primary for at least 10 days for ales and 14 for lagers min. To be honest, I havent brewed any wheats yet but my biggest concern would be making sure your fermentation is complete

Unibrow said:

I think all beers should be in the primary for at least 2 weeks without exception.

Click to expand...

I dunno. I typically have done seven to nine days in the primary and at least that long in the secondary for clarity.

I guess if you do want to wait two weeks, that's pretty foolproof and can offer consistent results, but don't think it should be a hard and fast rule.

dmcg1230 said:

How long should I wait for clarity? I feel like a Witbier is usually cloudy anyway (not that I'm saying you're wrong)

Click to expand...

hazy, not crystal clear, but not cloudy.
A lot of people shortcut and bottle/keg yeasty muck because it has wheat in it.

amandabab said:

hazy, not crystal clear, but not cloudy.
A lot of people shortcut and bottle/keg yeasty muck because it has wheat in it.

Click to expand...

I agree. But I still use Irish moss and wait the time out to get as clear as possible. I got friends who have used my recipes and I typically come out clearer. I think racking to 2ndary and waiting a week or so is good enough!

jpabian said:

I think racking to 2ndary and waiting a week or so is good enough!

Click to expand...

Same here. I'm all for secondary as I did 2 same extract batches, one completely in ferment bucket and the other in secondary for the second half........ The secondary was WAAAY clearer and everyone that tasted the 2 said the same. I'm one for secondary. Hell, if anything, I'm for secondary just to free up my fermenters any more.