First batch is bubbling away

I brewed my first batch on Saturday. It was the Northern Brewer Irish Red. I think everything went pretty well. I had a few hiccups but nothing major....as far as I could tell. I definitely need to have everything organized a little better. I found myself running around a little more than I had liked.

The only problems I had were not having enough top off water boiled. I think I lost a little more than expected in the boil. I topped off with a bottle of distilled. I also did not boil the top off water early enough. It was still pretty warm when I topped off. Other than that it went pretty well for the first run.

There was quite a bit of activity about 5 hours after pitching and a very thick krausen 12-24 hours in. That has since dissipated and it is bubbling right along.

OG was 1.046 (supposed to be 1.040) but I think that was due to the temperature when I took the reading.

One question I have for anyone who has brewed this kit....It never really had a "red" color like I expected. The steeping grains made it very dark. Will this change as it settles out?

Cant wait to taste in about 6 weeks! The sample tasted great already.

Thanks for all of the great info here because it really makes a difference.

Killian

Congrats on your first brew.

Killian_77 said:

One question I have for anyone who has brewed this kit....It never really had a "red" color like I expected. The steeping grains made it very dark. Will this change as it settles out?

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Extract kits tend to be a little darker than all grain. Also the beer looks much darker in the fermenter/carboy than it will in a glass.