I bottled a kit beer at 1.020 after 2 weeks. Should I take cover?

[GrainWhisperer]

Hi all. Great community.

Facts:
First beer. Porter. 5 gallons. 6 lbs. DME and steeping grains.
S-04 Dry Yeast in a glass carboy for primary.
Ferm kicked in within a few hours. Apx. 12 - 20 hours later (while i was at work) it got rowdy and carpeted the headspace on my glass carboy with yeasty gunge. It also cleared the airlock of any fluid, but didn't blow the cap off.
Room temp was 69-70, and ferm temp was 74-75 on my sticky Fermometer on the side of the carboy.
I realized this was too high (thanks HBT!), so i cleaned up the airlock and moved it to my basment (61 degrees ambient) and told it calm down and think about what it had done.
Let it mellow there for a week.
Then pulled it back upstairs for another week.

Eager to get the pipeline started and my first bottling under my belt, i took a gravity sample. it was...between 1.019 and 1.020.
So I bottled.
The whole primary fermentation looked completely done. The beer was calm and fairly cleared out (S-04 really dropped nicely).

I was given a treasure trove of about 80 Grolsch swingtops by an ex-brewer. I bought new seals. They sure are purdy. I would hate to have any of them blow up.
One advantage: I can EASILY vent these. More than once if needed.

I just wanna know how worried I should be. I bottled Sunday, and flipped the top off one yesterday at 6:30 p.m. It gave a very gentle hiss and just a hint of bubbles.
I'm really more worried about the bottles than preserving this first batch of beer (already got a 3 gallon carboy filled with mini-batch #2....)

I've heard here about kits getting "stuck" at 1.020. What then?

And yes, I'll be sure to take hydro readings on many consectutive days from now on. And no, i can't relax and have a homebrew. I'm at work...
Thanks!

 

[ajm163]

What was the OG??? From reading your post It looks like It was in the ferm for 2 weeks is that correct. I think you are fine 1.019 is a descent final gravity for a porter. Sense this is a kit the instructions should have anticipated FG. How far off are you??? I really wouldn't worry at all those bottles can handle more pressure than you think... I have never had a bottle blow in 5 years

 

[MotorcycleMatt]

Was it a stable gravity reading over a couple of days? 1.019 is in the spectrum of a typical porter but every beer is going to be different

 

[GrainWhisperer]

I forgot to measure the OG.
Doh!!

I don't even think the kit instructions suggested a target. It was the rather generic "ferment 2 weeks, bottle, and enjoy!!!" instructions.

 

[PIGMAN]

There's always the risk of a bottle bomb, that's part of the deal, especially if you're not sure if it was finished. I always store my beers in a Rubbermaid to be safe. I use 1L Grolsch swingtops. I had the bottom fall out of one while conditioning, so you never know. Also, I've had plenty of extract brews finish well below 20, the only two that finished high were both my fault. Good luck with your beer. 80 swingtops is a great score!

 

[vincanis]

Oddly enough I was about to ask a similar question about a porter as well. Although my question was going to be more along the lines of "Is my yeast dead? Should I bother bottling?" but I guess it't about on point for the FG.

I got the truebrew porter kit and didn't have a hydrometer test jar at the time. It says the target FG is ~1.014, however I think my OG might have been high because they suggest a 1.5g or so boil and mine was a full 5g boil.

My major visible fermentation was done in about 48-72 hours but it's been sitting away for two weeks. I checked the FG a few days ago and today and it's still at ~1.020. Glad to stumble upon this and find out that a porter should be around there.

I suppose I'll ask a stupid question, because I'm almost sure the answer is yes: If you have a smaller boil volume, compared to a full boil, should the gravity be higher?

It seems a bit common sense because 1g of water couldn't hold the same amount of fermentables as a 5g batch of water, and then after you pour the 1g in, you then dilute it with 4 more gallons.

 

[GrainWhisperer]

Thanks for the responses.

Would it be possible to sacrifice one of the beers and test it's current gravity? If it's down from 1.019, then I should vent the bottles? If it's the same, then I shouldn't worry?

Does that even make sense?

 

[PIGMAN]

Thanks for the responses.

Would it be possible to sacrifice one of the beers and test it's current gravity? If it's down from 1.019, then I should vent the bottles? If it's the same, then I shouldn't worry?

Does that even make sense?

1.019 doesn't sound that high, so I'd let it ride. If you start venting the bottles, you're probably risking other issues. I would put them in some sort of container however, even if it is a plastic garbage bag. If you see bottle bombs, refrigeration will halt the carb process. Don't lose any sleep over the possibility of bottle bombs, it probably won't happen, just take precautions.

 

[ajm163]

to be honest I wouldn't even worry about it. If you still are put them in a rubbermade tub as suggested just in case. Don't vent the bottles you are better off with one or two breaking than having a whole batch of way under carbed beer.... just let it ride and enjoy your brew in 2 weeks.... I don't think i have taken a gravity reading in 3 years and unusually bottle after 2 weeks and have never had a broken bottle. so i think the chances of one blowing on you is fairly slim

 

[brystmar]

I forgot to measure the OG.
Doh!!

I don't even think the kit instructions suggested a target. It was the rather generic "ferment 2 weeks, bottle, and enjoy!!!" instructions.

Bottled my first-ever batch on Saturday from a 100% extract milk stout kit, and the recipe's instructions were equally vague. And I, too, forgot to take an OG reading. Took one just before bottling (before accidentally allowing some sanitizer from the S-lock to drip in, oops!), noted that it was at 1.034, and proceeded to bottle away. Recipe claims an OG of 1.055, but who knows.

Talking to my buddy (an experienced homebrewer with solid fundamentals) today, I realized the err of my ways. Had no idea 34 was absurdly high for bottling. Should I invest in a fortified bunker for my brews?

 

[PIGMAN]

Bottled my first-ever batch on Saturday from a 100% extract milk stout kit, and the recipe's instructions were equally vague. And I, too, forgot to take an OG reading. Took one just before bottling (before accidentally allowing some sanitizer from the S-lock to drip in, oops!), noted that it was at 1.034, and proceeded to bottle away. Recipe claims an OG of 1.055, but who knows.

Talking to my buddy (an experienced homebrewer with solid fundamentals) today, I realized the err of my ways. Had no idea 34 was absurdly high for bottling. Should I invest in a fortified bunker for my brews?

That is high. How long did it ferment?

 

[GrainWhisperer]

Took one just before bottling (before accidentally allowing some sanitizer from the S-lock to drip in, oops!), noted that it was at 1.034, and proceeded to bottle away.

OK, yeah, um, from everything I've read you should be army-crawling across the floor and pulling those beers slowly out of the closet and putting them in the fridge. Then pulling the caps off delicately. While wearing safety goggles. But I'll let someone with more experience weigh in. I think some really light beers start that high.

They really should give some better instructions in a kit. They have a template style instruction sheet that is clearly not adequate for different styles. I read up on the subject quite a bit before my first batch and there were still several things I didn't realize until I got through it. Oh well. Live and learn.

 

[ajm163]

As for a milk stout depending on the amount of lactose i would expect the final gravity to be a bit higher than usual because lactose in not fermentable. that said 1.034 is pretty high. how long was it in the frem??? did the fermentation seem stopped ie very few bubbles in the airlock.... 1.055 to 1.034 would only give you 2.76 ABV so ether your starting gravity was higher than 1.055 or it was not done..... if it was fermenting for around the 2 week mark i would expect your OG was higher than 1.055

 

[ajm163]

Also it is also possible that your hydrometer is messed up. I had one that the paper scale on the inside came loose and would move around. test it in some water it should read pretty darn close to 1.000. I assume this is a 5 gallon batch??? If your water is is off for example you only had 4.5 gallons in your ferm it would make your OG higher than 1.055. how many full bottles and size of the bottles did you end up with???

 

[brystmar]

Fermented for exactly two weeks. Think I'm gonna find a safer location for my bottles for the time being.

They really should give some better instructions in a kit. They have a template style instruction sheet that is clearly not adequate for different styles. I read up on the subject quite a bit before my first batch and there were still several things I didn't realize until I got through it. Oh well. Live and learn.

Agreed. I did some reading on here and in The Joy of Home Brewing before I started, plus I watched the instructional DVD from Northern Brewing that came with my equipment. There was just so much going on, plus my gf (who brews 1gal batches but -- as I learned -- has very bad fundamentals) was helping me and passing along her bad habits.

Here's hoping we survive the impending apocalypse!

 

[brystmar]

Also it is also possible that your hydrometer is messed up. I had one that the paper scale on the inside came loose and would move around. test it in some water it should read pretty darn close to 1.000. I assume this is a 5 gallon batch??? If your water is is off for example you only had 4.5 gallons in your ferm it would make your OG higher than 1.055. how many full bottles and size of the bottles did you end up with???

I'll test the hydrometer in water tonight. And yes, one of my (many) mistakes was not adding an extra gallon of water to the 4 gallons of wort I boiled. Might as well share the other one too since it's pretty funny:

The gf helped me attach a blowoff tube to the cap and assured me the tube inside the carboy was supposed to be ~1-2" below the surface of the wort. I questioned her about that *specifically*. "Trust me," she said, reassuringly. She's an awesome girl, but I found out the next morning that she was dead wrong about that. Long story short, I went from a 4-gallon batch (that should've been 5 gallons) to a ~2.3-gallon batch.

And yes, I made damn sure to use slightly less than half of the priming sugar packet.

 

[ajm163]

After fermenting for 2 weeks I would guess one of 4 things

1. your hydrometer is not correct (test with water)
2. your yeast died (fermented at too high temp)
3. your yeast went dormant (fermented at to Low temp)
4. you only made a 4g batch (count the number of bottles multiply by the size of the bottles and convert to gallons) this would make your OG much higher and therefor your FG much higher

of the 4 only number 3 would create a possible blow up. if you fermented at 50 degrees then bottled and stored the bottles at 68 degrees the yeast would wake up start working and make the bottles go boom.

If none of these things check out put the bottles in a rubbermade tub and fill the tub up to the top of the bottles with water. this should help prevent one explosion from causing a chain reaction of explosions. if you find one has gone boom add a bog of ice to the water. The water will also act to not thermally shock the bottles causing more to blow. once cold they should be safe colder temps stop yeast and reduce the pressure in the bottle

 

[GrainWhisperer]

The gf helped me attach a blowoff tube to the cap and assured me the tube inside the carboy was supposed to be ~1-2" below the surface of the wort. I questioned her about that *specifically*. "Trust me," she said, reassuringly.

Doh!!!

Post a follow up in a couple of weeks and let us know how carbed they were or if there was any glass broken. Good luck.

 

[ajm163]

i think the fact you forgot to add 1g of water explains it.... your OG would be allot higher than the listed 1.055.... you are going to have some pretty thick and high ABV beer but i wouldn't worry about them blowing

 

[brystmar]

of the 4 only number 3 would create a possible blow up. if you fermented at 50 degrees then bottled and stored the bottles at 68 degrees the yeast would wake up start working and make the bottles go boom.

Thanks for the tips! They fermented in a corner of my living room, which fluctuates from 64-68 degrees. Currently resting in a box downstairs under the stairwell, 66-68 degrees. Is either location too cold? We keep it cool inside during the winter, saves us a ton on bills.

 

[ajm163]

that is a good temp basically anything between 60-70 for ale yeas is good. the fact that you were 1g low on the water is prob the reason for your FG reading. I would bet that your OG was somewhere north of 1.100 considering that you put the amount of malt designed for 5g of water into 4g.... it will make the beer thick and on the sweet side with a high ABV (prob around 10%) which are not bad things for a stout..... you may have accidentally made a better beer than if you followed the instructions.....