First Brew!

Hey gang, just wanted to say hello to community! Just did my first brew on Sunday.. I picked up a True Brew Basic starter equipment kit and a True Brew Red Ale ingredient kit from my LHBS this weekend and got it fired up on Sunday. good times! I've got a batch of Sam Adams bottles soaking to degunk and delabel them and hoping to be bottling the weekend after next(2 weeks primary) then I'll let them sit for 2 weeks before I break into them.

Anyways, just wanted to say hello and thanks for the great info on these boards! I've found answers to almost every questions I've had so far on these forums. What a great resource!

:rockin:

Welcome to the addiction!

Welcome and congrats on your first brew.

Welcome to the addiction and the best site for information on making your beer better. You've picked out a nice beer for your first and I'm sure you are anxious to taste it but to make the next one better here are a couple tips.

When you add your yeast, make sure that the wort is cooled enough. I like mine to be lower than 72 and the low 60's are preferred. Try to keep the fermenter near the cold end of the yeast's preferred temperature range. Most of my beers now ferment for a week at 62 to 66 degrees. That keeps the yeast from running away and making off flavors. Once the week is over I bring the temperature up to the low 70's for another week to 3 weeks depending on the OG and the darkness of the beer with the higher OG and darker color beers going the longest.

Second tip is don't be in too much of a hurry to drink them up. Home brewed beers take some time to mature and as they mature the flavor improves.

Third tip is to spend a little (little!!) cash and get another fermenter. I like the plastic buckets because they have handles, are shatterproof, and have a large opening to pour the wort into and to get my hands into to clean them out. By being careful with them they will be good for years. Having another fermeter will allow you to make beer more often and take away some of the desire to drink it before it matures. I have 3 fermenters and sometimes have them all full at once.

unionrdr said:

let the bottles sit in covered boxes or other dark place for 3-4 weeks on average at 70f+. Then at least a week fridge time to settle any chill haze,get co2 into solution,& compact the yeast trub on the bottom of the bottles for a cleaner,more complete pour.

Click to expand...

+1

Hey all, thanks for some great advice! Couple of questions that maybe you guys could give me your opinions on.

1)for my first brew (red ale), would I be ok to ferment for 2 weeks then condition for 2 weeks? My future brews I plan to ferment for min. 3 weeks and condition for min. 3 weeks(due to advice on this forum), but for my first brew I'm just a bit excited to get to it! I'll leave probably half of the batch to sit for 3+ weeks in bottles but I'm curious if 2/2 is to early to start cracking some of them them open. Guess I can try a few and find out!

2)I'd like to expand my setup (asking for items for Xmas), and would like to brew some 1 gallon batches so I can try out some beers I normally wouldn't want to brew a full batch of(and have several beers going at once). I'll do this while still making 5 gal batches. Should I get the 1 gal small batch growler kit on Northern Brewers website, or just get a couple 2 gal buckets with lids/airlocks? I'm kinda leaning towards the 2 gal buckets as they seem more versatile..

3)if I get the 2 gal buckets should I get a 3rd and use as a bottling bucket? Seems that would be easier for bottling smaller batches instead of siphoning or using the 6.5 gal bucket.

Thanks all!

When you try the beer after bottled for 2 weeks, I suggest you try just one. I have had a couple batches carbonate in that time but most take 3 weeks or longer. All of them tasted better after 3 weeks.

Is it possible to split bottling times? For instance can I siphon maybe 2 gallons out of the fermenter after 2 weeks (into the bottling bucket) and leave the remaining 3 gallons to ferment an additional week before bottling? I'm thinking of this as an experiment to see how the beer is at each stage. I'd love to see how the timing changes all aspects of the beer and keep records of it for future learning. I would have to be real careful to keep everything sanitized but it seems like it might work.

carlk47 said:

Is it possible to split bottling times? For instance can I siphon maybe 2 gallons out of the fermenter after 2 weeks (into the bottling bucket) and leave the remaining 3 gallons to ferment an additional week before bottling? I'm thinking of this as an experiment to see how the beer is at each stage. I'd love to see how the timing changes all aspects of the beer and keep records of it for future learning. I would have to be real careful to keep everything sanitized but it seems like it might work.

Click to expand...

The main problem with this is whether the beer is at FG or not. Don't want bottle bombs after priming. Not to mention,the beer may well be cloudy yet,& not had time to clean up & settle out clear or slightly misty before priming & bottling. They say that time is the fire in which we burn. Same for beer.

I started brewing extract beers in March of this year and then I've poured all kinds of time and money into this hobby. Get yourself ready for a wild ride.

If I think back to some of my first posts here they were all about being in a hurry to drink my beer. I've learned, sometimes the hard way, to be more patient.

Before you bottle, check your gravity to make sure you are at FG. Or if you are lazy like me, just leave it for another week or so. YOu don't want to bottle too soon. Exploding bottles in the basement are unnerving. Brew On.

I've been fortunate to be able to sample in less time than some have been mentioning. I'd suggest for this batch you leave it in the fermenter for 3 weeks and sample your first bottle in a week. It may not be carbed up properly but mine have always had carbonatlon that quickly.

When you do bottle this, try to use a plastic water bottle for one of them. When this gets hard you have carbonation. Still you should give it some more time for the CO2 to dissolve into the beer and the beer a little time for maturation but this will give you a hint on the speed that your beers will carbonate.

Be sure to save some for a comparison later as the beer will get better.

carlk47 said:

Is it possible to split bottling times? For instance can I siphon maybe 2 gallons out of the fermenter after 2 weeks (into the bottling bucket) and leave the remaining 3 gallons to ferment an additional week before bottling? I'm thinking of this as an experiment to see how the beer is at each stage. I'd love to see how the timing changes all aspects of the beer and keep records of it for future learning. I would have to be real careful to keep everything sanitized but it seems like it might work.

Click to expand...

I have done that for my first brew, bottled one half and dry hopped the rest for an extra week before bottling. Maybe it's just the dry hopping, but to me, the 2nd half tastes much better.

Pic of my red ale brew 6 days in.. How does it look? The ring looks normal and I'm guessing that's hops on top? Smells like 5 gallons of Killians

Checked the fg tonight.. Looks like 1.020. The recipe says it should be around 1.012-1.014.. I'll have to check it again on Friday to see if there is any change. If not I plan to bottle Friday night with a buddy of mine.

Bottled last night with the help of my good buddy. Seemed to go well and took about 2 hours. Going to do a few of the mods to my setup that I saw in the bottling forums for the next batch.

carlk47 said:

Pic of my red ale brew 6 days in.. How does it look? The ring looks normal and I'm guessing that's hops on top? Smells like 5 gallons of Killians

Click to expand...

Looks great!

As for the time to let the beer condition, try letting it sit a month in the primary fermentor (your bucket) and then bottle it for 2 or 3 weeks.

I love your idea for the 2 gallon buckets for small batch brewing. It is a great way to get some repetitions in without have to commit to 2 1/2 cases of beer.

As some have already mentioned, the hobby is addictive - join a local brew club and learn from the other members, it will be fun.

Again, great looking beer - but it would be best to just let it sit and forget about it for 2 or 3 more weeks...hard I know.


-John

Call me crazy but I love checking to see how my brews are doing.. 4 days in the bottle and the "cloudy" beer is already starting to clear up! The beer in the neck is clear but the bottom still has a slight cloud to it. Couple more weeks and they'll be ready!

Well like most impatient new home brewers, I had to take a few samples to my christmas party on Saturday night! VERY good response from everyone before I even had the chance to tell them that it's not even really done conditioning yet. It was definitely slightly under carbed but still very drinkable. Ill let the rest of the batch sit for another week until tossing some in the fridge.





I am hooked...