My first AG. A Belgian Wit - Success!

[Snotpoodle]

Here is what I made (Courtesy of two excellent threads on here around Blue Moon Clones). Not sure how many South African brewers have tried this one, we don't get any Belgian Whites down here except imported Hoegaarden.

Belgian Wit
Brew Type: All Grain Date: 21/02/2011
Style: Belgian White
Brewer: Jonathan
Batch Size: 25.00 L Assistant Brewer: Justin and Jacob
Boil Volume: 29.34 L
Boil Time: 75 min
Brewhouse Efficiency: 75.0 %
Actual Efficiency: 68.2 %


Ingredients Amount Item Type % or IBU

2.00 kg Pale Malt (2 Row) UK (5.0 SRM) Grain 46.5 %
2.00 kg Wheat, Flaked (1.6 SRM) Grain 46.5 %
0.30 kg Oats, Flaked (1.0 SRM) Grain 7.0 %
20.00 gm Hallertauer Mittelfrueh [6.40%] (60 min) Hops 13.7 IBU
0.50 oz Orange Peel, Sweet (Boil 5.0 min) Misc
1.00 oz Coriander Seed (Boil 5.0 min) Misc
1 Pkgs SA-33 (Fermentis #SA-33) Yeast-Wheat

Beer Profile Estimated Original Gravity: 1.038 SG (1.035-1.055 SG)
Measured Original Gravity: 1.036 SG
Estimated Final Gravity: 1.011 SG (1.008-1.015 SG)
Measured Final Gravity: 1.000 SG ( Not measured yet)
Estimated Color: 4.2 SRM (2.0-10.0 SRM) Color [Color]
Bitterness: 13.7 IBU (10.0-30.0 IBU) Alpha Acid Units: 0.7 AAU %)

Tasted the sample i used for the hydro reading, a beautiful blend of Orange, malt and a little bit of spice. Bear in mind I have never tasted a Blue Moon or a Shock top, so I am flying blind here!

Fermentation took off in 4 hours, keeping it at 20degC till fermentation is finished.

Any tips on how long I should leave this on the yeast, should i rack to secondary?

So after 2 kit brews (Coopers Draught (decent, but bland) & Mexican Cerveza (Infected in the worst possible way), 1 partial (Canadian Blonde with Cascade + Perle + Crystal Malt - bottled now), I decided enough was enough, and straight onto the AG.

It was one helluva ride, took me 2 hours to hand mill the malt

Will post a piccie once this bad boy is in the bottle and then in mah belly....yay!

 

[BigB]

Two hours! Sounds like one heck of a workout! At any rate, Belgian wits are supposed to be hazy so don't bother with the secondary. Just leave it in the primary for 3 weeks and bottle.

 

[Snotpoodle]

Thanks.

Just checked now, damn fermentation has stopped (its at 22C).

Gonna give it a good shake to try and get it going again

 

[jmccauli]

Thanks.

Just checked now, damn fermentation has stopped (its at 22C).

Gonna give it a good shake to try and get it going again

I'd try to take a gravity reading before shaking it. How long has it been in the fermentor?

 

[Snotpoodle]

Not even 24hours.

A good shake got it going again. I obviously didnt oxygenate it enough when i poured it in.

 

[BigB]

Be careful about "shaking" a beer after fermentation has started... that is a great way to oxidize it. If it gets oxidized, you will not be a happy camper. One other thing- Don't think that just because your airlock isn't regularly burping, that the beer is not fermenting. Always check with your hydrometer a few days in a row to be sure its not going down.

 

[Snotpoodle]

Fair enough, it was only a mild jostle to be fair

Is belgian yeast slower than the normal ale yeasties by nature?

 

[BigB]

Fair enough, it was only a mild jostle to be fair

Is belgian yeast slower than the normal ale yeasties by nature?

No, not at all. But Belgian yeast can be funny animals. I've seen them look like they are doing nothing at all, then the next day they literally blow the airlock right out of the carboy. I've also had them look like they are doing nothing and remain that way... However, they have always done the job. Also, it looks like your OG of 1.036 is on the low end, so I wouldn't be suprised at all for the yeast to chew through that in a very short period of time. Regardless, leave it alone for 3 weeks so the yeast can slowly go back and clean up after themselves.

 

[Snotpoodle]

Yep, took a reading now, its sitting at 1.016 - 1.0.18 at the moment. Nice and hazy, orange taste has mellowed, not really spotting the wheat straight up, and a slight bitterness.

Going to leave it alone, and test it again in 6 days.

 

[CoolHandLuke]

Be careful about "shaking" a beer after fermentation has started... that is a great way to oxidize it. If it gets oxidized, you will not be a happy camper. One other thing- Don't think that just because your airlock isn't regularly burping, that the beer is not fermenting. Always check with your hydrometer a few days in a row to be sure its not going down.

How do you oxidize a beer if it's in a closed fermenter with a blanket of C02 above it?

 

[BigB]

How do you oxidize a beer if it's in a closed fermenter with a blanket of C02 above it?

Easy, when you shake it, you disturb that nice little layer of CO2 and introduce atmospheric air. A gentle "jostle" or gentle stirring will be fine though.

 

[CoolHandLuke]

Easy, when you shake it, you disturb that nice little layer of CO2 and introduce atmospheric air. A gentle "jostle" or gentle stirring will be fine though.

How does atmospheric air get into a shaken fermenting vessel sealed with an airlock? Doesn't shaking a fermenting vessel release even more C02 from suspension, ensuring more C02 release through the airlock? Doesn't this additional release of C02 prevent suction through the air lock?

I just don't see it...

In particular, it's likely the airlock activity he saw following the shaking was not fermentation, but release of C02 already in suspension.

 

[BigB]

Shake away then. If you are that confident, shake to your hearts content. I personally I have never seen an ale pale or a carboy bung give a perfect seal. So I would never shake a fermenting beer. Especially since there is no need to assuming you properly aerated your wort, pitched the proper amount of yeast, and maintain temperature control. Further, under your theory, shaking wouldn't accomplish aerating the wort anyways. So if your whole purpose is to rouse the yeast, wouldn't that be equally accomplished by a gentle stir? So where is the benefit to shaking your wort?

I do however agree with you that the airlock activity he did see would have been CO2 that was being released out of suspension.

 

[CoolHandLuke]

I'm a DWHAHB type. After I dump the yeast starter and cooled aerated wort in my sanke, I carboy cap, airlock, and move it to it's temporary location. It sits for at least two weeks before I consider sampling and hydrometer. I don't get fixated by airlock activity or lack thereof. I'd like to see anyone try to shake a 15.5 gallon sanke filled with 12 gallons of fermenting heaven.

That said, I do like to help fellow brewers with the craft. In particular, I try to help promote less paranoia and more of a DWHAHB attitude. Therefore, worrying about oxidation from shaking/swirling/transporting a fermenting, airlocked container doesn't seem logical.

Although I have been guilty of looking at my fermenters with inebriated eyes, I don't worry about oxidation, stuck fermentation, or aliens stealing the contents...

 

[BigB]

I agree with everything you just said. I too am of the RDWHAHB clan. However, when people say "shaking" I picture them grabbing the fermenter like a paint can and going to town like they are turning Japanese. (No offense meant to our Japanese members... it is a reference to a song from the 1980's). That is why I stated a gentle jostle or gentle stir would be fine. And since there is never a need to purposely "shake" your fermenter, it is worthy advice to give.

 

[Snotpoodle]

update :

The "gentle jostling" worked out just fine, the FG was 1010 (OG was 1036), and all the flavours mellowed out rather nicely, concerning I had a citrus BOMB when i popped the lid on the fermenter after the boil.

I'll pop a pic up when i get home, but this was such a great brew, that my Brew club have entered it into a compo on my behalf, and are demanding another brew this weekend.

So thats exactly what I will be doing!

Changes to the recipe include 3x Coriander vs Orange, and some Chamomile Flowers, other than that, exactly the same.

Yay for my Belgian Halfwit!

 

[BigB]

Congrats, I'm glad it worked out for you.