I'm a noob with general questions. Also, ready for a habanero beer!

[fendersrule]

Final gravity is 1.020.

 

[fendersrule]

I checked FG today at it's at 1.020. It's been nearly 3 weeks since it came in the fermentor.

I decided to forgo bottling since I've been reading that IPAs should be below 1.020. Something like 1.017 or 1.018 would be much better.

I "swirled" the carboys. I'm seeing some burping now every 30 seconds. I think there's still some fermentation left.

When can I plan on checking again? 3 days?

Do you guys think I should double pitch yeast at this point?

 

[FatDragon]

That bubbling is probably just CO2 that was dissolved in the beer. After 3 weeks you're almost certainly done. You have three options that I can see:

First and probably best: just bottle it.
Second: add some sugar. It will ferment out completely and drop the FG, but it will also increase the ABV and possibly throw off the balance of the beer.
Third: choose a high-attenuating yeast strain like WLP-099 and repitch yeast. It *may* ferment the beer a bit further (but not particularly likely).

I'd probably just bottle it as is and look into your process (especially the mash that you did with the grain) to diagnose why it finished high this time.

 

[fendersrule]

Is it possible it’s still fermenting? The caps are burping 30 seconds apart next day.

 

[FatDragon]

It could be, but three weeks is a long time to ferment actively, and slow bubbles are often the result of off-gassing CO2. It can't hurt to give them another day or two and then check the gravity again to be sure.

 

[fendersrule]

Cool.

I also moved the carboys near the vent and turned up the heat to 72. This will raise the carboys 4 degrees to see if that helps.

I tested my hyrodometer and it’s dead accurate. Good to be sure.

My recipe calls for 1.017. So I’m not terribly far off. But it would be nice to gain another point or so.

Beer seemed to taste pretty good without being too malty.

I’ll recheck on Monday or Tuesday.

Assuming that I shouldn’t alter the bottling sugar amount. Keep with 3/4 cup in 2 cups of water?

 

[FatDragon]

A temp bump might help, but it's more likely to help if you do it after a week or so in the fermenter, by three weeks it's more likely to be done regardless.

What kind of sugar are you priming with? If it's table sugar, 3/4 cup is about right, maybe a bit on the high side. If you have a kitchen scale, I'd aim for about 120-150 grams of table sugar, depending if you want it moderately carbed or highly carbed.

 

[rodwha]

Pepper beers! I’ve been making variations of cream ale and blondes with jalapeños. I was helped by a fellow on this forum many years ago and had just always followed his instructions. 1/2 roasted @ 350* for 30 mins, sliced, and saved until brew day and placed in the boil w/10 mins left. The other 1/2 sliced thin and placed in enough vodka to cover them well. This sits for several weeks and is poured into the fermenter a week before bottling leaving the peppers in there too.

Later I asked if anyone knew what each operation provided but found no answers. That meant I had to make 2 side by side test batches. In one just roasted peppers added to the boil and the other as I mentioned above.

What I found was that the roasted jalapeños didn’t add much heat at all but did have a nice flavor. The other was certainly spicy and still had a good flavor, though not quite as upfront as the other.

To make sure it was a fair comparison I split each jalapeño in half.

I had attempted a habanero strong ale years ago. Figuring the heat level being many times higher (Scoville scale) that I should cut the number down from 10-14 jalapeños in a 5.25 gal batch to 4. It was hardly spicy. I’m making the 2nd attempt soon and have decided to try 10 and to use all in an extract.

14 good jalapeños is great for me, but too hot for many others.

The way I “dry pepper” (and dry hop) is to use large tea baskets I found at World Market for $7/ea. I don’t see it on their site but Amazon has it:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004X4LGIO/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

 

[fendersrule]

A temp bump might help, but it's more likely to help if you do it after a week or so in the fermenter, by three weeks it's more likely to be done regardless.

What kind of sugar are you priming with? If it's table sugar, 3/4 cup is about right, maybe a bit on the high side. If you have a kitchen scale, I'd aim for about 120-150 grams of table sugar, depending if you want it moderately carbed or highly carbed.

I use the corn sugar that’s at the home brew store. I believe it’s still 3/4 cup?

 

[FatDragon]

I use the corn sugar that’s at the home brew store. I believe it’s still 3/4 cup?

In my experience, corn sugar is usually really powdery, like powdered sugar, right? In that case, you'll get less weight by volume than granulated sugar so you might need more, and the table sugar has a slightly higher potential gravity by weight anyway, so usually you use about 10% more corn sugar than you would table sugar. If you can't go by weight, I'd see if your LHBS owner can tell you how much the corn sugar weighs by cup and aim for 120-150 grams.

 

[Henbrew]

I've used habenaro and scotch bonnet peppers in my beers. Every time I've done it I just freeze the peppers in a vacuum seal bag and then add them straight to the bottle or keg. I've added as much as a quarter of a scotch bonnet to a 12oz bottle and really enjoyed it. I've added 4 scotch bonnets to a 2.5 gallon batch of saison recently and it was plenty. It will be an individual preference of course as most people think it's too hot.

 

[ncbrewer]

I use the corn sugar that’s at the home brew store. I believe it’s still 3/4 cup?

There are several on-line calculators. This one includes measurements in cups: https://www.northernbrewer.com/pages/priming-sugar-calculator
Using weight is recommended, since bulk density can vary.

Edit: Use the volume going to the bottling bucket - not what was in the fermenter. It will have to be an estimate. I generally use 0.2 gallons for trub. Figure in the additional volume from the priming sugar syrup, and reduce by the samples taken.

 

[fendersrule]

Great! Estimating I'd have about 4.5 gallons coming out of the bottling bucket to the bottles per each carboy. That's about a 1/2 cup of sugar, or 3.67 Oz according to the calculator.

Do you guys find it good to boil the sugar first? Is there a ratio to how much water to use for boiling based on the sugar amount (in this case, 1/2 cup). I'm thinking about 2 cups of water should be plentiful, or even 1 3/4 cup.

Last time I didn't boil the sugar and just tossed/mixed it in. It's really powdery and seemed to mix instantly when I did it that way. That seemed to work out OK, but I know you're supposed to boil now for consistency and sanitary reasons.

 

[501irishred]

The less you have to stir, the better as it adds oxygen to your beer. Boiling your sugar in a small amount of water will help keep bugs down, and makes the solution ready to mix with the beer using as little agitation as possible. Add it to your bottleing bucket before racking, and it will mix during the transfer.

 

[fendersrule]

Thanks! Yep, Add that first.

I also learned that I didn't degas my sample for hydrometer testing. I will do that tonight and report back. It probably was reading falsely a little high.

 

[501irishred]

I've added as much as a quarter of a scotch bonnet to a 12oz bottle and really enjoyed it

That sounds awesome! Like finding the worm in a bottle of mezcal! I wonder if there’s a way to get a whole pepper in a beer bottle (think 7th grade science class pulling a boiled egg into a coke bottle)?

 

[501irishred]

Thanks! Yep, Add that first.

I also learned that I didn't degas my sample for hydrometer testing. I will do that tonight and report back. It probably was reading falsely a little high.

You won’t need to degas the entire sample, just give the hydrometer a good spin to release any bubbles that are current stuck on.

 

[fendersrule]

Well, degassing did NOT change the gravity. My IPA finished at 1.020. Guys at the brew store said for partial extract brewing that's not necessarily a bad thing.

The beer tastes good. Mosaic floral notes are definitely there. Bottled last night.

On to the next thing now! I'm thinking a hard cider in one carboy, and a simple porter in another. Anyone have a simple porter partial mash recipe that's circa ~6%? I'd like to give partial extract a few more tries before going to full grain. I've already wished for an outdoor propane stove for Christmas, so this opens me up to doing all-grain or using DME. I'd like to gain experience in all ways to brew.

At my local brew store, there was a "brew day" going on. Some guy outside was doing all grain using the "brew in a bag" technique and it looked dead simple and easy. That's probably what I'd eventually like to do, but it's definitely an outside thing, especially when you are doing a double batch!

 

[ncbrewer]

Do you guys find it good to boil the sugar first? Is there a ratio to how much water to use for boiling based on the sugar amount (in this case, 1/2 cup). I'm thinking about 2 cups of water should be plentiful, or even 1 3/4 cup.

Two cups of water is pretty much a standard for a 5 gallon batch. Sugar can be dissolved in much less, but why tamper with what works?

 

[fendersrule]

I used one cup based on the directions that were printed on the sugar bag in the link.

 

[Henbrew]

That sounds awesome! Like finding the worm in a bottle of mezcal! I wonder if there’s a way to get a whole pepper in a beer bottle (think 7th grade science class pulling a boiled egg into a coke bottle)?

Tough part would be getting it out afterwards!

 

[fendersrule]

Well, I've been a beer making machine in past 30 days.

The IPA turned out great. Even though the FG (1.020) wasn't where I wanted it, it still packed a punch (6.6%). I brought it to my Thanksgiving party and poured quite a bit of it. Even people that didn't drink beer had two glasses. They loved it! This was my first beer that I could get drunk off of, which is awesome. Also my first beer that I was proud to share.

The habanero batch was not as spicy as I would like. I was too conservative with the tincture. With that said, the mild habanero taste that it had complemented it wonderfully.

The porter that I'm making was bottled on 12/1. It finished at 1.022 and will be 7.7%. Do porters/stouts need to be aged longer? I typically have been giving my ales 3 weeks in the bottles, and 2-3 weeks in the primary.

I made an amber ale last weekend. mini mash like everything else I do. I used DME this time around. I was really worried given all the horror stories of "boil-overs" but it was very uneventful. That one came in at 1.058. Hoping it finishes to where I can get 6.1% out of it. I decided per advice on here to not use heated splarge water.

btw, I've also made 7 small batches of cider as well.

Starting in spring, I will start brewing outside. Will be doing BIAB techniques. Also will finally get a wort chiller since my counterflow one broke. An immersion chiller makes the most sense when brewing outside because I'll have tons of space!

What I really want to know is how to really get a dry IPA...most IPAs are dry. What I mean by dry is very low malt taste, if any. My guess to obtain that, is that you have to have a low FG. Do LME and DME inhibit from low finishing?

 

[FatDragon]

Do LME and DME inhibit from low finishing?

Generally, yes. You could dry out the beer by using sugar in place of some of the extract. I think subbing out a pound of DME (or a bit more than a pound of LME) for a pound of sugar in a five gallon batch is a pretty standard place to start. The more simple sugar as a percentage of your grain bill, the drier the beer will finish.

 

[TechFanMD]

I agree with @FatDragon You could also do a partial mash with a small grain bag and mash low, replacing some of the DME/LME with wort made from all grain. The low mash temp will make a higher percentage of fermentables which will allow for a drier beer. The beer may also come out with a 'cleaner' taste

 

[ncbrewer]

I've read that as a general rule, it's best not to use simple sugars for over 15% of the fermentables. Not a hard and fast rule - just a guideline for "typical" beers. I haven't tried going over 15%, so I have no experience with it. I think 15% would accomplish what you're going for.

 

[fendersrule]

The porter turned out excellent. I just sampled my red Amber (5.5%) and I was shocked how much it tastes like Mac and Jacks.

At this point, I may be leaving "noob" territory. My beers keep improving, and I feel like they are improved to the point of being in the realm of craft brewery. Most importantly, I know what improves, and "how" to improve.

Rating my beers with an objective eye from first to current:

Basic ***** Amber. Extract. I was just an assistant and my instructor was teaching me. Didn't Mash. Didn't pay attention to wort temp before pitching yeast. It was drinkable, but ABV was super low (never measured, but going by taste) and it lacked body. I would never hand this out for someone to try. 1.5/5.

Mosiac IPA. Partial Mash. My first beer by myself. The mash temp was too high as there is some unfermentable/malt/body taste so it wasn't as clean-tasting as it could have been. Habanero extract was too conservative, although still improved the finish and gives it something unique. This is really where I realized that mashing temps is probably the most important part of making beer. I'd give this beer a 3/5 based on feedback, but as I was getting down to the last few beers of a double batch I was getting tired of drinking it.

Brown Sugar Porter. Partial Mash. This brew day was a nightmare because I was 1.5 gallons too short when it reached the carboy. My wort chiller blew up so I had to wait a long time before pitching. The gravity was a little low so I had to quickly innovate and boil brown sugar to compensate. The beer came out surprisingly good. It was on the drier side, and the chocolate malts came through perfectly. The head was perfect, as well as the color. I'd give this beer a strong 3.5/5 and would have no problem bringing this to a tasting show. I consider this my first "great" beer.

Red Amber Ale. Partial Mash. Uneventful brew day, brewed without wort chiller (single batch). Dry hopped. During bottling, I "thought" I was tasting some slight skunkiness because I didn't cover my glass carboys. I popped this open last night and was amazed how close it tasted to mac and jacks. Very clean flavor and very enjoyable to drink. Almost to the point of dangerous. I'd be inclined to rate this a 3.5-3.75. Definitely a "great" beer.

Orange Coriander Pale ale. We will see!

 

[501irishred]

Sounds like you have certainly gotten sucked down the brewing rabbit hole. Your friends are now destined to think youre off your rocker, daydreams will be filled with possible new adjuncts for a recipe you thought about the night before, and other hobbies will take a backseat position. Welcome to the fold! It’s a hell of a lotta fun, and the beer only gets better (or at least more interesting)!

 

[fendersrule]

The Orange Coriander Pale Ale started at 1.055 gravity. I checked it tonight after 9 days in the the fermenter. It's 1.009 now.

I did some tasting it was quite possibly my magnum opus. please check out the recipe on here.......it's amazing. I LOVE low finishing IPAs and Pales. I did mix some table sugar in there to bump the gravity because I prefer beer around the 6% mark, and it's amazing. I love US-04 for this beer.

I would seriously drink this beer right from the fermenter...it's that good.