Forgot the OG

[rdann87]

Hey guys,
Hoping you can help a novice with another bunch of dumb questions.

As the title states, we got so excited about pitching the yeast.. that we flat out forgot to take the OG.
We are making a kit beer, the Brewers best Falconers Flight IPA, and so far it appears to be going pretty well. We have a nice layer of Krizen starting to form on on the beer after only about 30 hours or so.

We are assuming that we can use the OG listed on the paperwork as a rough estimate for the OG that our beer was. Just wondering if there are any precautions i should take to ensure that fermentation is complete? Or if there are any telltale signs (i was always told that gravity readings are the only way to be 100% sure).

Also, we assume that as long as the final gravity seems reasonable, we didnt mess the batch up... Is that train of thought pretty sound?

And should we try to take it when we switch from primary to secondary fermentor? And if so, is there any way to guestimate what the OG was from that reading.

Thanks :rockin:

 

[BrewDocND]

If it's a kit you should be pretty close to your OG if you followed the instructions, ended up with the right volume of water, etc. I wouldn't fret over it. The FG is the important thing for knowing when your beer is done. Make sure it's stable for 3 straight days.

Once fermentation starts, you can't know your OG (hence, 'original'). I don't know when people move to secondary, because I never have.

 

[Bernie Brewer]

The gravity on an extract brew is very predictable. I would just go with whatever the paperwork says. And yes you can take readings when you transfer, and when you bottle, but that won't really tell you the OG. So the only thing you have to go on is the paperwork. No worries though.

 

[samorg42]

No problem on forgetting the original gravity. Beer was brewed for hundreds of years before the hydrometer was invented.
I don't rack to secondary very often unless the beer is just not clarifying. You can tell if fermentation is complete when the bubbles stop for a few days and the top is clear. If my beer is not clarifying and I know that the ferment is done, moving the carboy(s) into the garage, which is about the temp of a refrigerator settles it out in about a day. When I carry a heavy carboy the yeast gets riled up so I set in on a table and don't move it until I rack to a bottling bucket, bottle directly, or keg it. The clarity has been great doing it this way.
I know people like fermentation buckets but I really like to see what is going on so I use glass carboys. I have been doing all grain for about a year and watching the yeast work teaches me a lot.

 

[zeg]

Yeah, as long as the FG is reasonable and stable for a few days, it's done. If you have doubts, swirl the fermentor gently to rouse some of the yeast and give it another few days or a week. You only need the OG if you want to have a sure estimate of the alcohol content (or for certain relatively uncommon cases where you want to do something at a particular point in the fermentation).