first batch q (bottling)

AHS FatTireClone:
-boiled wort and pitched yeast two weeks ago today. re-hydrated yeast 18hrs prior to pitching, both wort (OG1.051) and yeast were about 74F when pitched. fermentation began within 8.5hrs. kept in dark room.. temp fairly constant at 70-73F, although one night it did drop to about 65F. week later i racked to secondary. gravity at this point (1.010) is what the recipe said the FG should be. has been in the secondary for 1 week now. i have not taken any further readings, but im still gettin an avg 1 bubble every 70sec. a friend that brews said that i could bottle and shouldnt have any probs...i dont wannna be the one cryin over spilled beer..suggestions?

leave it till it's done

I'm new here too, but I'll save the more "seasoned" people the trouble of telling you the same thing. I'd take the gravity again, and then take it again in a day or two. If it doesn't change, you should be good to go.

Also, do you have the recipe for your Fat Tire knockoff? I've heard so much about it, but can't find it anywhere. I'm dying to try it, and I'll possibly just try making it on my own. Did you make it from a kit from your homebrew supply store?

par383 said:

I'm new here too, but I'll save the more "seasoned" people the trouble of telling you the same thing. I'd take the gravity again, and then take it again in a day or two. If it doesn't change, you should be good to go.

Also, do you have the recipe for your Fat Tire knockoff? I've heard so much about it, but can't find it anywhere. I'm dying to try it, and I'll possibly just try making it on my own. Did you make it from a kit from your homebrew supply store?

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AHS Fat Tire

Well if your down to 1010 our pretty much done if you started off at 1051 - id say go ahead and bottle it if your done conditioning it. It will probley lose another point or 2 in secondary so whenever it is clear enough for your liking you will be fine.

par383 said:

I'd take the gravity again, and then take it again in a day or two. If it doesn't change, you should be good to go.

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if i hit my target grav a week ago..whats taking it again today and then again in a few days gonna do other than make my self more susceptible to contamination?
recipe states wort og should be around 1.050 mine was .051 and final should be around .010 which it was--dead on. and thats my issue..if some of the more "seasoned" would like to offer some insight id appreciate it. no offense the fact that i hit my goal a week ago (2wks after fermentation began) and its still bubbling as much as it is cause for alarm--and yes ive read most of john palmers book for troubleshooting help.

I typically check my gravity before pitching, once during racking to secondary and once before bottling. The trick here is patience. If you are in the primary for 5-7 days and then in the secondary for 7-10 days you are probably pretty good on the ferment being complete. the time during the secondary "conditioning" phase I tend to just concentrate on my next batch. I could be wrong, but for most beers the length of time spent in the secondary (over 7 days) is not critical. Leave it for a week or two and then bottle. And remember, the less you open that bucket/carboy the better off you are.

Good luck!

I'm no expert but a bubble every 70 seconds sounds pretty darn active. should we be concerned about a wild yeast eating up every last bit of sugar? Maybe the gravity should be checked right away. what if it's down to 1.001 or something like that at this point, is it to late to late to do something to bring things to a hault? I guess I'm really asking questions here and not answering anything

shafferpilot said:

leave it till it's done

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Ok, the airlock activity really means NOTHING. its all about the hydrometer readings. if you have 3 consistent hydrometer readings done on 3 different days, and the gravity you get is close to the recipe's estimate, its done.

airlocks will bubble after its done. airlocks sometimes never bubble even during active fermentation.

The frequency of bubbles depends on the type of airlock and amount of liquid inside.

The beer I bottled yesterday was still bubbling very slowly, but after 3 weeks fermenting a 1.048 OG beer, I figured I was ok.

FG was at 1.009. I'll let you know if I end up with any bombs.

Once the sg is stable (no longer changing), it's done. It may bubble occasionally because co2 will off gas but if the sg is the same three days in a row, it's done.

I typically check it when I pitch the yeast, when I move it to secondary and a couple of days before I plan on bottling If it's at fg a couple of days before bottling I check it right before bottling to make sure. If it's the same, I bottle. Don't worry about opening up the fermenter- just use a sanitized turkey baster or wine thief, take your sample and put the lid back/bung back on.

sweet..thanks. ill check grav in the morn. like i said the grav a week ago when i racked from prime to second was at the target fg. my concern had more to do w what shafferpilot said about a wild yeast, but what you said made me reconsider my initial concern (check grav in morn). to answer MTpilots reply..im using S-bubble airlock.

malkore said:

Ok, the airlock activity really means NOTHING. its all about the hydrometer readings. if you have 3 consistent hydrometer readings done on 3 different days, and the gravity you get is close to the recipe's estimate, its done.

airlocks will bubble after its done. airlocks sometimes never bubble even during active fermentation.

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