First Irish Red Ale Extract Kit

hello all. took me awhile to put together my equipment because the last time I tried this with a coworker, high temp swings caused my stout to turn out not so tasty (summer, no temp ctrl). Made myself a Son of Fermentation Chiller and a CFC.

Anyway, I brewed an Irish Red Ale extract kit a little over 3 weeks ago and stuck it in chiller. Fermentation temp was around 62-64F and it's still bubbling about once every 3min now.

Irish Ale Yeast: WLP004
11/28/12 OG: 1.056
12/21/12 SG: 1.019
Approx: 4.5gal instead of 5gal

From what I've read, it seems like it's pretty much ready to be bottled. Should I wait a few more days and keep measuring the SG to make sure it doesn't change before I bottle? I'm not too sure because it's still bubbling.

Here's a snapshot of what it looks like. Even though it wasn't carbonated, it smelled and tasted pretty good compared to the stout.

I have a second kit, same type 1yr old, that I'm planning to pitch over the yeast cake of this one afterward. Grains and extract are old but I purchased new hops.

Gravity looks about right for most extract kits.If fg gravity is where the recipe says it should be you should be fine to bottle,or you can wait a couple days and checked again just to be sure,if it is the same then you are safe to bottle.

Thanks for the confirmation. I'll wait a couple more days just to make sure.

Just checked the gravity today and it dropped by 0.002 from 1.019 to 1.017. That means it's not complete yet right? Didn't think it would take 4 weeks to complete. The instructions don't say what the final gravity should be so I think I'll wait and check again next week since it's still bubbling and gravity is still dropping.

11/28/12 OG: 1.056
12/21/12 SG: 1.019
12/23/12 SG: 1.017

Give it another 2 or 3 days and take another SG reading. You want a couple readings in a row with no change. Also, don't be afraid to wait this one out. I recently did a NB Irish Red Ale extract kit and was disappointed in the taste after 6 weeks total primary/bottle conditioning. After another week it completely changed and has become my best brew so far. Patience is the key.

pellis007 said:

Give it another 2 or 3 days and take another SG reading. You want a couple readings in a row with no change. Also, don't be afraid to wait this one out. I recently did a NB Irish Red Ale extract kit and was disappointed in the taste after 6 weeks total primary/bottle conditioning. After another week it completely changed and has become my best brew so far. Patience is the key.

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Thanks for the advice pellis. Just want to get this right. You left yours in the primary for 7 weeks total?

EDIT: Nevermind, I see that you said total primary/bottle conditioning.

Yep, 7 weeks total. It was a huge difference between 6 weeks and 7 weeks, and it just continues to improve with age. I did 3 weeks in primary and the rest bottle conditioning.

tg123 said:

Just checked the gravity today and it dropped by 0.002 from 1.019 to 1.017. That means it's not complete yet right? Didn't think it would take 4 weeks to complete. The instructions don't say what the final gravity should be so I think I'll wait and check again next week since it's still bubbling and gravity is still dropping.

11/28/12 OG: 1.056
12/21/12 SG: 1.019
12/23/12 SG: 1.017

Click to expand...

If the gravity is still dropping you are giong to make bottle bombs!! The recipie is an approximation and can't possibly predict the exact numbers with all the variables involved. The most important thing you can learn in homebrewing is patience. Don't "give it a few days", wait until you get the same gravity reading at least 4 days appart. Whenever that happens, then give it a few more days.
By the way, you've already learned the second most important thing, temperature control!

Thx for the advice guys. I will practice patience and wait.
And yes, I learned temp control the hard way. Heh

11/28/12 OG: 1.056
12/21/12 SG: 1.019
12/23/12 SG: 1.017
12/31/12 FG: 1.017

So my first bottling experience was....messy.
Luckily most of the mess was contained in the dishwasher.
Couple of things I noticed:
- While transferring wort form carboy to bottling bucket, there was a little gap in the tube and air was getting into it. I noticed this about halfway through the transfer and was wondering why there were so many bubbles in the tube. I hope this doesn't cause too many issues.
- Get a longer tube. While starting the transfer, the tube came out of the bucket since the tube was too short. I had to raise the bucket up at first until the siphon started.
- Get a shorter tube for the bottling bucket so that the wand is suspended instead of having to rest it down when not using it.

Now for the next part of the waiting game.

Congrats on getting it into the bottles. Give it 3 weeks at around 70F. Then pop a couple in the fridge for a few says before you try it. The cold will force the CO2 in the headspace into the beer and carb it up nicely. As I mentioned above...there was a huge difference between 3 and 4 week bottle conditioning for me. This beer keeps getting better with age.

pellis007 said:

Congrats on getting it into the bottles. Give it 3 weeks at around 70F. Then pop a couple in the fridge for a few says before you try it. The cold will force the CO2 in the headspace into the beer and carb it up nicely. As I mentioned above...there was a huge difference between 3 and 4 week bottle conditioning for me. This beer keeps getting better with age.

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Thanks for the suggestions. I think it's currently around 64C in the room right now. I'll bump up the heater.

Thanks again and happy new year!

1) You can solve that little gap in your line by getting a small, circular metal clamp (tightenable with a screwdriver) to hold the hose on the racking cane/auto siphon. They cost practically nothing, and help keep a siphon going better. That being said, those small bubbles probably didn't affect anything.

2) Longer tube helps. Ideally, when the tube is at rest after starting the siphon, it sits at the bottom of the bottling bucket.

3) don't go TOO short on the tube for the bottling wand. you want flexibility. I just get a glass or container, and fill it with some sanitizer, and place the wand in this when I want to let it rest. MUCH better, IMO, that being restricted to holding the bottle in only one spot.

pellis007 said:

Yep, 7 weeks total. It was a huge difference between 6 weeks and 7 weeks, and it just continues to improve with age. I did 3 weeks in primary and the rest bottle conditioning.

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Pelli007, just out of curiosity, what did you use to prime your bottles with? I did the same kit about 8 weeks ago, 4 in primary and 4 and counting in bottles using the NB fizz drops they sent me and it is well over carbonated, almost soda like. Not happy with the results and want to know if I did something wrong or are the fizz drops not the way to go. Thanks!

Sorry about the hijack, just wanted a little info.

Look back at my notes, the Northern Brewers priming sugar calculator recommended 3.46oz of corn sugar. Recommended carb volume for Irish Red Ale was 2.2vol. My notes tell me I bumped that up to just over 4oz of corn sugar. I prefer a slightly higher carbonation in beers of that type. It's definitely not over-carbed. In fact I think the carbonation is perfect for my taste. I think I might have been a little disappointed had I primed with less corn sugar. I poured my priming solution into the bottling bucket and racked on top of it. I then stirred gently before bottling to ensure a good even mixture. I've never used fizz drops so I can't compare results.

masterfool101 said:

1) You can solve that little gap in your line by getting a small, circular metal clamp (tightenable with a screwdriver) to hold the hose on the racking cane/auto siphon. They cost practically nothing, and help keep a siphon going better. That being said, those small bubbles probably didn't affect anything.

2) Longer tube helps. Ideally, when the tube is at rest after starting the siphon, it sits at the bottom of the bottling bucket.

3) don't go TOO short on the tube for the bottling wand. you want flexibility. I just get a glass or container, and fill it with some sanitizer, and place the wand in this when I want to let it rest. MUCH better, IMO, that being restricted to holding the bottle in only one spot.

Click to expand...

Thanks! I will give those tips a try next time I bottle.

Just taste tested my Irish Red from NB. It was awesome had a great caramel taste to it. Sampled with Killians IR to see the difference. I know this is not a clone of Killians, but needed something to base it on. Had in primary for 2 weeks, no secondary, bottled and carbonated within a week, but let sit another before taste test. It will be insane here in another couple of weeks.