How often do you guys check up on your brewing progress?

I'm beginning to think I have a problem. I'm down to the cold cellar in the morning, after I come home from work, and then before I go to bed. Each time I'm checking in on my beers progress. I'm not sure what changes I expect to see, but a sane part of me thinks I'm going overboard. Is this a noob thing? Do you senior guys forget about it for 3 weeks? If so, how? Or are you guys checking in 3 times a day like me?

I think maybe I'm anxious because I killed a batch years ago and only now have I returned to the hobby. I need to pace myself, so I don't get too disappointed...

When I have quality beer time, it's usually because I need to do something like add fruit to a lambic, or secondary a wine, or punch down a wine, or bottle/keg something, or clean the kegerator, or brew another batch, or clean the "brew house", or malt some barley, or take some readings, etc. I think you need to improve your pipeline is all.

yeah. I look at my fermenters on days one and two to make sure nothing is blowing off all crazy like. The rest of the time, they sit. I know they'll be ok.

I check on it way too much, too. Not sure exactly why.

I just get all giddy every time I brew.

You eventually realize that it pretty much looks the same every time. Once you have your process down, you will relax a lot more about it. It also helps when you've got 7 beers on tap.:rockin:

I have to monitor my fermentation temps around 2-3 times each day, because I use a cooler + ice bottles to control them. If I had a keezer or similar automated setup, I would only be checking on stuff if I ran out of other beer to drink. I have a batch of mead that's been sitting in my pantry for probably a month or two without me even looking at it.

Even my very first batch, I pretty much just threw it in the panty and forgot about it for a month or two.

I've been brewing for 2 years now and have about 65 batches under my belt. I ferment in a stand up freezer with temp control and have no reason to check on it once it starts fermenting. But I still do. When its actively fermenting I check on it twice daily. For no reason other then to look at it.

After 40 batches I check at least twice a day during the first 3 or 4 days of a batch. And since I brew 3 out of every 4 weeks (on average) I'm in the basement a lot.

I just wish brewing smelled as good as wine making! I love that yeast smell.

I pass by my fermenter every morning before work and afternoon upon return from work. I'll say, "HI BEER!" because, well, why not? I'm friendly like that.

It all depends... I fermented my last batch in a carboy (in a converted fridge for temp control) I dont know which I found more fascinating... Being able to actually watch the ferming going on, or the fact that it was temp controlled. I will admit, I was a little sad when the sweet smell went away when I opened the door... I doubt this will pass.
-Me

I pitch my yeast then come back in a month to bottle. The yeast have been making beer for over 4,000 years so they know what the heck they need to do, and if you trust them they rarely let you down. They don't really need us to hover over them like a nervous parent.

If you are talking about hydrometer readings, which is the only way to check your beer's preogress. I take an original grav reading at yeast pitch , and a final grav reading a month later on bottling day, unless I suspect there might be a problem. Then I will take it usually after 72 hours or a week, unless I am racking (which is rare) to secondary, then I will check the grav around two weeks...

But otherwise, realistically, only nervous noobs hover over their beers. Once you realize that the yeasties are in charge, you just need to back off and let them do their jobs. They RARELY let you down.

And I betcha you only THOUGHT you killed a batch..I bet if you had left it alone, it would have been fine.....If a beer can be brewed with 45 million year old yeast that was encased in amber and exposed to all manner of conditions.....http://www.examiner.com/x-241-Beer-Examiner~y2009m8d4-45-million-year-old-yeast-ferments-amber-ale

More than likely if you had rdwhahb, your beer more than likely would have been fine.

My first two or three brews I had a sleeping bag next to them stayed there for two weeks strait. Had to take an anti-biotic during the second the catheter gave me a UTI.

Now I don't obsess so much. though I do travel for my job my wife is understanding and keep an eye on thing. But thus far it's been rather uneventful.

I think that some of us over appreciate the yeast and like to admire it for the truly fascinating job it does and the byproduct of that (which can be not so pleasurable from time to time...)
*Sigh* Im not an alcoholic... Im a beer junkie...
-Me

I check it like every ten minutes. I'll be at work and call my girlfriend and ask her to check it if she's home - she hates me. She does get free beer in the end though so it works out. I've just come to the conclusion that I am just a little bit insane. Thats fine with me though.

The beer is a living breathing guest in my house. It would be rude to ignore it. I check its temp a couple times a day. I can tell the beer is getting suspicious though. There is an uncomfortable tension growing between us...I think it knows I mean to drink it.

I'm with the majority here -- until fermentation slows, I check about twice a day. Once it slows, I'll look weekly or so, and even then mostly because I like to look at my beer being born.

I look at it every once in a while. If the airlock is bubbling I'm happy. If not, I don't worry too much, but, since it's in a plastic bucket it's easy to just forget it and let it do its thing. I take a hydro at about 2 1/2 weeks and again at 3 weeks. If they're the same, I bottle.

I pitch and check for Krausen after 24 hours. Then, I'll check in about 5-7 days to see if the krauesen has fallen. I might let it condition another 3 or 4 days or, I might go ahead and crash it. Either way, I usually wait a week and a half minimum before I keg it.

I have gotten so used to brewing and hitting my numbers I am to a point where sometimes I just taste the wort in the MLT to see how the sugars content feels. If it seems off, I'll test it with the refractometer.

It's taken 3 years to get comfy brewing by taste and I rarely miss on instinct. Not never, but rarely.

I usually pitch in the afternoon, that night, before going to bed I go to the beer and say "good night" and give her a kiss, next morning I go tell her "good morning" and give her another kiss. After that I won't see her in a month till bottling day.

I've heard if you talk to your beer it comes out smoother. Singing is even better depending on the yeast.

Revvy said:

And I betcha you only THOUGHT you killed a batch..I bet if you had left it alone, it would have been fine.....If a beer can be brewed with 45 million year old yeast that was encased in amber and exposed to all manner of conditions.....http://www.examiner.com/x-241-Beer-Examiner~y2009m8d4-45-million-year-old-yeast-ferments-amber-ale

More than likely if you had rdwhahb, your beer more than likely would have been fine.

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Thanks Revvy. What happened for me the first go round was I had a boil over. The yeast did its thing, but it was working with about 50% of the wort it really needed. I did bottle it all up, and did drink some of it. A friend of mine drank a LOT of it. He claims it caused his diabetes. It was pretty nasty. This time, I've been very careful and I have no reason to believe anything at all is wrong...which is why I think I'm doing the hovering parent thing too much...definitely RDWHAHB will apply next time (don't have any HB yet).

Now that it's cooled down again a bit, I've moved primary fermentation into the basement, and once the yeast is proven to be going, I don't come back for a week or so (whenever it's convenient). Then I move it up to the stairway closet, where it's a small bit warmer and agitate a tiny bit to rouse the yeast and degass it a bit (it smells pretty good now.)

There is sits until I have a chance to keg or bottle. Usually another 2 weeks or so, depending on the style.

I'm still excited about making beer, but there are other things I do to keep my addiction in check, like yeast harvesting, bottle cleaning, recipe planning, whatever. (lately, it's just been the kids and their school life and after school stuff).

During the summer, when it was above 80, I kept the fermenter upstairs in a swamp cooler. It's just too much trouble to go downstairs to add ice to the water bath.

Grinder12000 said:

I've heard if you talk to your beer it comes out smoother. Singing is even better depending on the yeast.

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I have a recording of Mozart playing for my yeast - they like it. And I can check on the carboy whenever/wherever I like via webcam.

Im a nOOb so i check mine alot in the beginning, once i go to secondary i check every other day or so just because i can actually see it....oh so pretty! and i like the smell.

Seems to me there's something new to see everyday. I'm a bit of a science nerd so I tend to look at it and record my observations.

You are all Preverts, deviated preverts I tell you.



This will be you all someday (It's not me, just one of our members who was trusting/stoopid enough to post a pic of him in a compromising position with his carboy....Remember it is a "boy" you know ).



If your carboys end up pregnant I don't want to hear about it.

Revvy said:

You are all Preverts, deviated preverts I tell you

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Revvy, I have dark and unnatural feelings towards my fermenter.

I check the first day, and 4 weeks later.

Pappers said:

Revvy, I have dark and unnatural feelings towards my fermenter.

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Uh huh...you and this guy as well....

Almost two years into this addiction, and I still check in the fermentation chamber regularly. Have my first true lager going now, so the modded 38DD Mother of Ferm Chamber needs ice replenishment daily to keep in the 55-57 degree range.

Who am I kidding, I'd still be looking at least every couple of days. It's Freaking BEER those yeast are producing in that cozy environment I provided for them. I mean, come on, I'm producing good beer. Of course I want to look at it. :rockin:

Gotta go. Didn't look in on yeasts progress this morning. Now I have to leave work and go home to check on them.

carnevoodoo said:

yeah. I look at my fermenters on days one and two to make sure nothing is blowing off all crazy like. The rest of the time, they sit. I know they'll be ok.

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That's how I am. I'll check for blowoffs, but that's about it. Otherwise, it always looks the same.