Need to remove my gravity sample?

[pingwin77]

I am making my second home brew from a kit. The directions say to take a gravity reading and once I get the same reading 3 days in a row I am ready to bottle. Do I have to take the sample out and measure it separately or can I just drop a sanitized hydrometer into my whole batch?

I'm asking because I would be using a lot of beer to test until it is ready.

If not, can I pour the sample back into my fermentation bucket if both have been well sanitized?

 

[AnonyBrew]

I just use a wine thief, drop the sanitized hydrometer inside the sanitized thief, dunk the thief into the carboy, pull it up just high enough to take the reading, and then let the beer spill back into the fermenter from the valve at the bottom of the thief.

 

[Revvy]

You don't have to take constant readings. If you are doing what many of us are and leaving your beer in primary for a month, then bottling, then you really only need two readings, and that is really if you want to know if you hit your target gravity, and what your alcohol by volume is, and you do that one at bottling time.

If you choose to secondary, which less and less folks are doing, again if you give it sufficient time, and I recommend 14 days after yeast pitch, you could take on to see how close to your target gravity is. Or you could just rack it over.

The only time you really need to take a bunch of readings, is if you are worried about whether or not fermentation is happening. You don't go by airlock readings, anyway...but if you don't trust the yeast then that's when we recommend taking readings....Because that is your ONLY REAL diagnostic tool.

But if you come to realize that unless you pitched your yeast into boiling hot wort, that fermentation is going to happen, and that yeast RARELY doesn't work. In other words if you trust the process. Then you don't really need to take a lot.

Now if you decide that you you just have to secondary and THINK you NEED to do it immediately, then that's when you need to think about multiple readings....that's where the 2 readings over 3 consecutive days idea comes into play.

Now having said that, If using basic sanitization, taking a hydrometer reading is no risk at all. Like others have said there is a layer of co2 that protects your beer, and even taking multiple readings is nothing to worry about.

This is what I use, and it works with both buckets and carboys

And

Here's what I do....

1) With a spray bottle filled with starsan I spray the lid of my bucket, or the mouth of the carboy, including the bung. Then I spray my turkey baster inside and out with sanitize (or dunking it in a container of sanitizer).

2) Open fermenter.

3) Draw Sample

4) fill sample jar (usualy 2-3 turky baster draws

5)Spray bung or lid with sanitizer again

6) Close lid or bung

6) take reading

It is less than 30 seconds from the time the lid is removed until it is closed again.

Probably less if you have help.

And unless a bird swoops down and poops in your fermenter, you wont have any trouble.

And no, you don't dump you hydro samples back in, you drink them. It will give you an idea of how the beer is progressing. But don't sweat how it tastes, it won't taste like the finish product.

 

[pingwin77]

So instead of transferring from the fermentation bucket to a glass carboy after about a week people are just leaving the beer in the bucket for about a month?

What are the benefits of that?

 

[Yooper]

So instead of transferring from the fermentation bucket to a glass carboy after about a week people are just leaving the beer in the bucket for about a month?

What are the benefits of that?

The benefits are about the same as if you racked to a glass carboy. But there is less chance of oxidation and no less risk of exposing the beer to possible infection. Don't get me wrong- the risk is very small with a transfer, too, as long as proper sanitition and proper techniques are followed.

The theory used to be to get ales off of the yeast cake ASAP, but it's been changing over the last several years. Now, even John Palmer (How to Brew) recommends leaving the beer in the primary fermenter for 2-3 weeks for new brewers. I now leave all of my beers in the primary for 2-3 weeks, and only use a carboy if I'm dryhopping or oaking; or for lagers.

 

[Revvy]

So instead of transferring from the fermentation bucket to a glass carboy after about a week people are just leaving the beer in the bucket for about a month?

What are the benefits of that?

There's been a big shift in brewing consciousness in the last few years where many of us believe that yeast is a good thing, and besides just fermenting the beer, that they are fastidious creatures who go back and clean up any by products created by themselves during fermentation, which may lead to off flavors.

Rather than the yeast being the cause of off flavors, it is now looked at by many of us, that they will if left alone actually remove those off flavors, and make for clearer and cleaner tasting beers.

You'll find that a great many folks, maybe even the majority on here these days, leave their beers in primary for 3-4 weeks, skipping secondary. Many of us even dry hop in primary, and only rack to secondary if we are adding oak or fruit, or had fruit in the boil or primary and left lots of trub behind.

Even John Palmer talks about this in How To Bew;

Leaving an ale beer in the primary fermentor for a total of 2-3 weeks (instead of just the one week most canned kits recommend), will provide time for the conditioning reactions and improve the beer. This extra time will also let more sediment settle out before bottling, resulting in a clearer beer and easier pouring. And, three weeks in the primary fermentor is usually not enough time for off-flavors to occur.

.

I've been doing it for 3 years and my beers have improved immensly, as has my contest scores. Leaving it in primary for a month with allow the yeast to clean up after itself, and it will compress the yeast cake, which will make for extremely clear and crisp tasting beer.

I have had the term "Jewell-like appearance and clarity" applied to some of my beers from BJCP judges in contests.

 

[pingwin77]

Since I just capped my Irish Red Saturday, I will leave it in the Primary for a month then bottle and see what happens. That will actually work well since I want to brew my first lager this coming weekend. My Carboy will already be clean and ready to go when I need it.

Thanks for all the advice. I am rather new to brewing and these forums and can't wait to dig around and learn as much as possible.

 

[flananuts]

Hey Revvy, I've taken a step towards removing the secondary on a porter that had an OG of 1.069. I've seen a lot of folks talking about the post fermentation yeast party cleaning up their by products. Is there any scientific data or write up to support this. My Brewbuddy who's splitting the 10 gal of porter started twitching when I said that we're not going to do a secondary.

Any reports to back this up?

 

[david_42]

Any reports to back this up?

Not really, but hundreds of batches worth of experience.

Also, many commercial breweries force the fermented beer though columns of yeast for exactly this purpose. No doubt they have the data.

OP - I like to set the OG sample next to the fermenter. Once the gravity stops dropping, it's time to draw a new sample.

 

[AnonyBrew]

OP - I like to set the OG sample next to the fermenter. Once the gravity stops dropping, it's time to draw a new sample.

That's a neat trick. So the sample is left to ferment on its own? I'm assuming it gets tossed or drank after you're done with it.

 

[Bush_84]

Can't you just toss the hydrometer in with the sample and keep it there? Assuming you are using a glass or plastic fermenter, couldn't this work? I should state that I am a nub and am brewing my first batch this week, so I am also reading to figure things out.

 

[Droot]

You can leave the sanitized hydrometer in there, but I found it gets all gunked up and hard to read. Not really worth it.

I mostly go by time and temp. If its at the right temp, the beer will ferment. The beer is usually done (for ales) in a week or a little more. Leaving it sit for another week or two lets it clear and clean up.

Last batch was open fermented in a converted keg. It sat for 2 weeks and is some of the best beer I have ever made. The batch fermenting now is in a 6.5 gal conical. I drew off some yeast today. It can sit for 3 weeks or so, then into the keg it goes.

I check the gravity when I am racking and never put the beer back. I taste it.

David