Checking Quality from Primary to Secondary/Bottling?

Perhaps a dumb question, but I haven't found anything directly answering it. Is there any way to check the quality of your beer when moving from the primary to secondary/bottling bucket? I'm all good on the final gravity, not sure if you can tell anything from tasting it? I took a small taste of mine and it was a bit bitter. This is my first brew - its a Brewers Best IPA.

Thanks for your thoughts!

Justin

jdclark01 said:

Perhaps a dumb question, but I haven't found anything directly answering it. Is there any way to check the quality of your beer when moving from the primary to secondary/bottling bucket? I'm all good on the final gravity, not sure if you can tell anything from tasting it? I took a small taste of mine and it was a bit bitter. This is my first brew - its a Brewers Best IPA.

Thanks for your thoughts!

Justin

Click to expand...

I always taste, and usually I'm right on the mark. That doesn't mean its very good out of the primary- it usually means I can say, "Ohhh, this is gonna be good!". Out of the primary, it should taste like decent young flat beer. Not very good, but with a promise of being very good. It may be bitter, a little harsh, maybe even a wee bit sour, but those will all correct with some aging and some carbonation.

Other than checking the gravity, looking at the sample for clarity and color, tasting it, and smelling it, I can't think of any way to really test it. However, with experience, you can taste the beer every step of the way from wort to glass and know that it's progressing and what the result will be. I can now taste just cooled wort, and even though it's not really a good flavor, I can understand what it will taste like when it's finished. So, that's my advice- keep tasting every step of the way and make notes. Then you can see how fermentation affects the wort, and how aging affects the beer.

I always have the final swigs with bottling and as with Yooper I can tell if it will be good or not. I know it will taste different, sometimes stronger but you can get a good idea of overall quality

I like to smell and taste it every time I open the fermenter.

Thanks everyone! I'll let you know how it turns out!

+1 on what Yoop said. Taste it, then you can also gain the experience to get an idea of how it will turn out. It's different, but usually not bad tasting.