Stout question

Is 1.060 a pretty high rating for a stout beer.. this is the recipe I am using Dark Love Stout Recipe
thanks
Just seemed high. When i tried it right after i took my first hydrometer reading.. it tasted amazing. lots of choc overtones and not like the first batch i brewed. :cross:
cheers
Gary

depends what kind of stout you are trying to do, an imperial or american stout will tend to be higher alcohol, my american stout's OG was 1.072

The recipe, while a little busy, looks good

Yea the owner of the local brew shop here told me it is his favorite stout to brew and with the first taste i had the other night.. i can understand why.. I did a pale ale and when i took my SG there i spit it out.. with this one i was more than happy to drink what was left after the SG reading cant wait to put this sucker in 2nd fermentation in 3 more days and then bottle in 10 day!! woohoooo Stout on NYE!
cheers
Gary

yeah, busy for sure.... i don't quite understand the 1/2 lb pale malt? seems out of place to me

Don't move to secondary in 3 days PLEASE!!!!!

If you give the beer time to cleanup after fermentation you will be rewarded with a better beer. For a stout I would not secondary at all and just leave in primary for at least 2 weeks. Let the beer tell you when it's ready not the calendar

defenestrate said:

yeah, busy for sure.... i don't quite understand the 1/2 lb pale malt? seems out of place to me

Click to expand...

I've seen several places put pale malt in a steeping recipes and I don't understand it. The crystal malt doesn't have any starch to convert so there is no need for the pale malt

Yeah, for a stout of that gravity and complexity, you should be leaving it in the primary for a minimum of 3 weeks. For reasons of throughput, I've gotten into the habit of 3 weeks primary, 1 week secondary (ie: bulk aging), then 4-8 weeks in bottles (depending upon the brew) and 1 week in the fridge.

Regarding the original question, 1.060 is fine for a stout. An oatmeal stout I did up recently was right in that same range, no problems. I wouldn't worry and/or obsess about SG readings if I were you. Most times, an incomplete mix (and other factors) will give you an improper reading. Just go by the book, follow your recipe, do what you gotta do, and you'll be a-okay.

thoroughput,

niquejim said:

thoroughput,

Click to expand...

Throughput, my mistake.

I have so far had it in the primary for 4 days i was thinking on Wednesday the 7 day mark to switch it to secondary. Is that too soon or should i just watch my readings? I could do two weeks primary, 1 week secondary and then 3 weeks bottling.. but i am heading out of town so that is they only possibility besides the 1-2-3 method.. what do you guys think? Also if i leave in primary for 2 weeks am i looking for a Gravity of 1.008 or the 1.012 that it says?

garyhood said:

I have so far had it in the primary for 4 days i was thinking on Wednesday the 7 day mark to switch it to secondary. Is that too soon or should i just watch my readings? I could do two weeks primary, 1 week secondary and then 3 weeks bottling.. but i am heading out of town so that is they only possibility besides the 1-2-3 method.. what do you guys think? Also if i leave in primary for 2 weeks am i looking for a Gravity of 1.008 or the 1.012 that it says?

Click to expand...

My man, leave that brew in the primary for 3-6 weeks. Forget about SG readings. There's really nothing of value they can tell you at this point. If the beer is going to ferment out, it's going to ferment out, and there is absolutely nothing you can do to control that at this point. Taking SG readings at this stage in the game is good for one thing in my opinion: contamination. Take a starting gravity reading when adding to the primary, then take a finishing gravity reading at bottling; that's it. Do nothing in the 3-6 week time between brew day and bottle day.

What you can do is everything in your power to ensure the beer is as good as it can be. One part of this is leaving the brew in the primary, on the yeast cake, for 3 weeks minimum (and up to 6 weeks). So unless you're going out of town for a month, let that brew sit. As others have mentioned, a secondary isn't even necessary with a brew like this. I only use a secondary because I'm trying to push the maximum number of brews through my system as possible (ie: 3 weeks primary, 1 week secondary/conditioning time). Otherwise, I'd leave 'em all in the primary for 3-6 weeks.

or should i just go ahead and follow the directions provided to me.. a week in primary, 7-10 in secondary and put in the bottle?

I've had beers that went 3-4(or more) weeks in primary just because I didn't have the time to switch them. They all turn out fine. Your beer can't read a calendar so it will be done when it is, and not a day before.
The 1-2-3 is a rule of thumb ( which comes from old world brewers sticking their thumbs in the wort to see if it was cool enough to pitch the yeast ), it is not written in stone

garyhood said:

or should i just go ahead and follow the directions provided to me.. a week in primary, 7-10 in secondary and put in the bottle?

Click to expand...

Gary, with all due respect, you're asking us for advice based upon our experience as brewers, and then you're saying "okay, well I'll just go with these here instructions." If you want to follow our advice, that's fine. If you want to follow your instructions, that's fine too. Those instructions are designed and quoted for the fastest times possible, not the best beer possible. At best, I'd say those instructions should be flipped to 7-10 days in the primary, 7 days secondary, then bottle.

But as I said, there's not a single beer I brew that won't sit in the primary for 3 weeks minimum. I've done my own experiments, as have a number of others, and I've determined that there is a notable difference in taste and refinement between 2 weeks (ie: the end of primary fermentation) and 3 weeks. During this time, the yeast begin to consume the esters and other waste products from fermentation, leaving you with a cleaner brew.

If you rush it to secondary, your finished product is not going to be as good as if it were left in the primary for an appropriate amount of time. That's a period, end of sentence type of thing.

niquejim said:

I've had beers that went 3-4(or more)
The 1-2-3 is a rule of thumb ( which comes from old world brewers sticking their thumbs in the wort to see if it was cool enough to pitch the yeast ), it is not written in stone

Click to expand...

In my experience (and that of many of the other brewers around these parts) the 1-2-3 rule is antiquated, and an inappropriate generalization when the goal is best brew possible.

I wouldn't say that the 1-2-3 rule is antiquated, in fact it is a pretty safe schedule for new brewers to follow, even if they don't have a hydrometer. As we gain some experience (and patience) we have realized that longer time in the primary will yield a better tasting brew.

Most kit instructions really rush the time frame regarding fermentation. Especially with a complex or higher gravity beer, it will benefit greatly from a longer primary and longer aging in secondary and once it's bottled. A good compromise for the OP would be 2 weeks in primary, then 2-3 weeks in secondary if desired (and the gravity has reached the final target).

ifishsum said:

I wouldn't say that the 1-2-3 rule is antiquated, in fact it is a pretty safe schedule for new brewers to follow, even if they don't have a hydrometer.

Click to expand...

Quite the contrary. I'd say if someone doesn't have a hydrometer, the safest schedule to follow would be something along the lines of 3 weeks in the primary, 1 week secondary, then 3-4 weeks in bottles. Most primary ferments are just finishing up at one week. Some slower strains, like 1214, can still be at high krausen after a week in.

Hell, I just had a high grav stout I did with my old dependable Whitbread, and it was still giving me activity at nearly 2 weeks. All in all, bad move transferring any brew before 2 weeks in my opinion. Bad move transferring them before 3, but I digress.

A good compromise for the OP would be 2 weeks in primary, then 2-3 weeks in secondary if desired (and the gravity has reached the final target).

Click to expand...

Again, the OP should leave his brew in the primary for 3-6 weeks, and skip the secondary all together if need be. A longer primary will give you far more benefits when compared to any length of secondary time with a brew like this.

I recently taught someone to brew and the first thing I told them was that the instructions provided with the kit were woefully inadequate, and he decided to let his 1st brew sit in primary for 3+ weeks and was rewarded with a crystal clear hoppy pale ale. He's now hooked and looking forward to #2.

Pelikan. As you said with all due respect. I was just merely asking for advice since i am new to this.. and i never with the hickish overtone said "okay, well I'll just go with these here instructions." The reason i wrote was to ask people like you and others to help up and get the best advice.. and try to learn more about this addicting craft. That was all. I do appreciate the information provided by you and niquejim. But don't appreciate the comment. I am just trying to get an average of suggestions. The owner of this store who made this recipe told me to do the 1-2-3 deal. He is old school and i am starting to see that this method goes along with his methods. I just wanted to see what everyone else felt about this method. I am leaning more towards the methods of niquejim. I am leaning more towards leaving it in primary for 3 weeks and then bottling it before i leave. Since i will be gone for a time that would leave the beer in the bucket for 8 weeks or so.
thank you again everyone for your suggestions
Gary

garyhood said:

Pelikan. As you said with all due respect. I was just merely asking for advice since i am new to this.. and i never with the hickish overtone said "okay, well I'll just go with these here instructions." The reason i wrote was to ask people like you and others to help up and get the best advice.. and try to learn more about this addicting craft. That was all. I do appreciate the information provided by you and niquejim. But don't appreciate the comment. I am just trying to get an average of suggestions. The owner of this store who made this recipe told me to do the 1-2-3 deal. He is old school and i am starting to see that this method goes along with his methods. I just wanted to see what everyone else felt about this method. I am leaning more towards the methods of niquejim. I am leaning more towards leaving it in primary for 3 weeks and then bottling it before i leave. Since i will be gone for a time that would leave the beer in the bucket for 8 weeks or so.
thank you again everyone for your suggestions
Gary

Click to expand...

Gary, I wasn't trying to be a jerk at all -- sorry if you took it that way. Like you said, all we're trying to do is help you out and steer you in the right direction. But bear in mind when you ask a group of people for their opinions, then say "or should i just go ahead and follow the directions provided to me" in a semi-sarcastic way, that's going to tend to rub some folks the wrong way.

I'd keep it in there for those 3 weeks, bottle it, then leave the bottles there while you're gone so you aren't tempted to drink any. This will more or less give them the proper bottle conditioning time for a stout of that complexity. So when you get back, all you have to do is pop them in the fridge for a week, and you're golden.

Hey, I wasn't being sarcastic at all.. actually what happened was i posted that.. maybe 5 seconds after the post i made right before it... just to be a 2nd part.. but what happened was that you posted within that 5 seconds.. I wasn't trying to be sarcastic at all and it was just a case of mis-communicating on the internet... I am a northeastern sarcastic *******.. but in this case.. i was not trying to be at all and my intention is just to learn as much as possible on here. that is my only intention.. so if it came off as anything else I am sorry.

Thanks again. I think that is exactly what I will do.. Sorry again if we got off on the wrong foot.. I do appreciate everyone's comments and help!!!!
cheers and have a good night!!
Gary
p.s. pelikan sorry again