First Brew Day

[JediJoel]

Today was my first brew day. I brewed a Hef (like everyone else these days) and feel pretty good about it. No boil overs, most things went according to plan. My OG was 1.043 while my target was 1.050 which I can accept, not as much alcohol content but whatever, it was my first brew. No bubble in the airlock yet but its only been 4 hours.

I wanted to thank Homebrewtalk for the confidence I have. Because of these threads I know that I can't F up my beer that bad and if all else fails hopefully I will have learned something. And patience. Even though my airlock is not bubbling yet I know that I need to let those yeasties do their job. Just rooting for and waiting on those yeasites now.

I had so much fun brewing, I can't even imagine that I get to drink the beer I brewed today. How much MORE fun with that be! Thanks again Homebrewtalk. I'm hooked.

 

[FuelshopMcgee]

I was in the same boat a few weeks ago...just to give you some advice that I've been given dont trust that damn airlock for signs of fermentation those guys are in there working its just not always visible from the outside! As far as your OG my question is what temp did you take the reading at? My mistake was to take the reading while the wort was 80-85 degrees and your hydrometer is cal'd in at 60 deg so your reading will be lower then expected by a few points. But either way welcome to the addicting world of home brewing i've been learning a lot on these boards!

Oh and lets see the recipe for that hef!

 

[boo boo]

It's easy to make good homebrew these days with the great info from sites like HBT and others. Lots of fresh ingredients also make the job easier

Good luck and welcome to the craft.

 

[kyleobie]

Agree, welcome. I made my first batch about 6-7 weeks ago now. I couldn't sleep that night. Wait until you drink your beer and you realize that - not only did you MAKE beer, you made GOOD beer.

I say ignore the airlock. I got no airlock bubbling on my first batch and I think it's because my ale pail isn't well sealed. Oh well.

 

[JediJoel]

Oh and lets see the recipe for that hef!

Picked it up from a HBT forum as well.

Blood Orange Hefeweizen

I could only find a few small Blood oranges so I substituted with a couple California Navels. Thinking about calling a Bloody Navel Hef!

And not that I was that worried but there was some activity in the airlok today.

 

[jigidyjim]

My OG was 1.043 while my target was 1.050 which I can accept, not as much alcohol content but whatever, it was my first brew.

Was this an extract recipe, and did you partial boil?

If so, then getting an accurate OG measurement is usually really hard. When you top off to 5 gal with water, you can get pretty different measurements depending on where you pull your sample from (unless you've thoroughly mixed it together, which is tough). My first 4 brews all measured light on the OG, but the FG always ended up as the kit described. But because they were kits, I'm assuming it was just a bad measurement.

If it's all grain or full boil, well I can't help you since I've never tried those...

 

[JediJoel]

Was this an extract recipe, and did you partial boil?

It was an extract with a partial boil. I FOUND a dented pot behind Bed, Bath, and Beyond the other day. Worked out the dent and its a great 4 gal. pot. I did a 3.5 gal. partial topped off to 5 (ended up adding about 2 gals).

depending on where you pull your sample from (unless you've thoroughly mixed it together, which is tough).

Once the wort (topped up) was in the carboy I swirled it for a minute or two to aerate it and got the swirl down to the bottom of the carboy. Does this sound like a good mix? I thought it was but being my first time I wouldn't really know. Then I pulled the sample with a turkey baster from off the top.

 

[QueenCityALER]

Welcome to your final obsession. This will bring you great beer and happiness the rest of your days. This forum is also your Daddy. Remember this. Much to be learned here. Just ask. That's all. Happy for you, and the first brew!

 

[jigidyjim]

Once the wort (topped up) was in the carboy I swirled it for a minute or two to aerate it and got the swirl down to the bottom of the carboy. Does this sound like a good mix? I thought it was but being my first time I wouldn't really know. Then I pulled the sample with a turkey baster from off the top.

Hmmm... you know, I just finished reading the chapter on steeping grains in How To Brew, and now I'm wondering if all this time I wasn't hitting OG because I just didn't steep properly. The one part I didn't pick up from the chapter was calculating how steeping affects your OG...

So were there any steeping grains in your recipe? Maybe that's where the issue is... maybe someone with more experience can help us out?

 

[JediJoel]

So were there any steeping grains in your recipe?

Nope. All extract.

I'm kind of leaning toward my sample technique...

 

[DeuceK]

It says, "In about 10 days, your beer should be ready to package." on the recipe. Is this beer really ready for consumption after 10 days in the primary? Or does this mean 10 days in the primary, then bottle/keg conditioning for 2-4 weeks?

 

[beerkrump]

Hijack!!!!

10 days is a minimum in the fermenter, check your gravity. If it is the same for three consecutive days, then bottle and condition (leave 'em in the closet) those for 2-3 weeks. Enjoy.