Not the best brew day

[doornumber3]

So i decided today for the opening day for the sox i'd brew my first solo beer. I've done four batches with my buddy that i brew with but he's away so decided to go solo and try out my new burner.

1st -- didn't realize i didn't get 1 oz of summit hops until i was already steeping the grains - decided to go without it.

2nd -- couldn't use my wort chiller because of my sink set up so had to do ice bath......took awhile and then pitched at 70 but after i had it in the carboy for like 10 minutes the temp read 80 so was in a cool spot for the floating thermometer

3rd -- shattered my new thermometer all over the floor....bottom wasn't in the tube when i put it back..doh.

4th -- Missed gravity. Supposed to be 1.068 was 1.062

Still a better day than working but definitely got me questioning a move to all grain. We were going to do the switch from extract but now i'm questioning if i should.

 

[Mojzis]

A few suggestions on how to improve:

Plan ahead. Set up beforehand, know what you have. Plan what you are going to do beforehand. Be careful with hydros and thermos, always set on something soft. Get your volumes right. And lastly relax on brew day. Take it slow and don't stress.

 

[woozy]

Doesn't seem like your mistakes had anything to do with extracts so .... why not go to all grain?

 

[MonsterBrew]

Don't worry so much! It sounds like from what you said that the brew was still completed fairly successfully, with a couple road bumps.

We all make mistakes, especially in the beginning when we are still learning. I know when I transitioned to All Grain, I dumped 2 different batches because of mistakes I made. This is all a part of it though! Each time you have that experience, you learn from it, and are that much better next time you brew.

Things that will help for the future:
1. Be sure to plan out your day ahead of time. Your recipe, ingredients, schedules etc. It helps you relax on brew day.
2. Keep a log of your experiences so you can reference what went wrong or what went right.
3. Keep on brewing! The hobby is greatly rewarding and well worth the investment for great beer.
4. Remember to have fun with it!

 

[doornumber3]

this morning was so rushed, i definitely should have slowed down and pulled everything out. Was trying to get done and cleaned before the Red Sox game.

Woozy -- i think you have a great point. My steeping temp was 154 on the nose for the entire time....I guess the only big mistake was the temp but that's fixed when i'm back to my normal brewing set up with the wort chiller.....

 

[KingJim]

Sounds to me that you're going to end up with some perfectly drinkable beer. A success if ever I heard one

 

[DrSnake]

Nothing sounds too tragic. Go all grain, you won't look back.

 

[doornumber3]

Thanks everyone. This was the 2nd time i brewed it so definitely kinda lacked on the planning.

What about missing the gravity. Do you think its a big deal to hit 1.062 instead of 1.068.

 

[Desvio]

Besides the broken thermometer, and I did the exact same thing you did, I then bought two mostly unbreakable thermometers (one high range for steeping and one low range for pitching).

But bravo for your ability to improvise and move on.

 

[brewsme]

So i decided today for the opening day for the sox i'd brew my first solo beer. I've done four batches with my buddy that i brew with but he's away so decided to go solo and try out my new burner.

1st -- didn't realize i didn't get 1 oz of summit hops until i was already steeping the grains - decided to go without it.

2nd -- couldn't use my wort chiller because of my sink set up so had to do ice bath......took awhile and then pitched at 70 but after i had it in the carboy for like 10 minutes the temp read 80 so was in a cool spot for the floating thermometer

3rd -- shattered my new thermometer all over the floor....bottom wasn't in the tube when i put it back..doh.

4th -- Missed gravity. Supposed to be 1.068 was 1.062

Still a better day than working but definitely got me questioning a move to all grain. We were going to do the switch from extract but now i'm questioning if i should.

I assume there other hops in the recipe? What was your hop schedule?

 

[doornumber3]

I assume there other hops in the recipe? What was your hop schedule?

Yeah.

It was a 90 minute boil and i did 1 oz of cascade and 1/4 oz centenniel at 20 minutes,

1/4 cascade and 1/4 centinneiel at 15 minutes,

1/4 oz centenniel 5 minutes and then i'm going to dry hope with 2 ozs cascade.

 

[brewsme]

Definitely a very drinkable beer. Without bittering hops it may have little bitterness. I would have added the 1 of the 2oz cascade you have in the beginning for bittering. This is all part of the learning process though. I remember my days used to be so hectic and I always felt like I was forgetting something. Now I can sit back and relax. Once I accidentally added the flavoring hops at 45 minutes instead of 15 minutes so I added a pound of honey to offset the additional bitterness and it turned out fantastic.

It's funny when people learn that I homebrew beer and almost always start asking me about different craft/commercial beers. I always have to tell them I don't know...I just drink my beer which I think is better than most anything you can buy off the shelf. Yeah, it's become an obsession. Keep it up!

 

[doornumber3]

Here's a question, last time I did this beer I dry hopped with cascade - Since I forgot the Centennial should I try to dry hop with that instead?

 

[grem135]

Thanks everyone. This was the 2nd time i brewed it so definitely kinda lacked on the planning.

What about missing the gravity. Do you think its a big deal to hit 1.062 instead of 1.068.

As long as your volumes were right the OG was probably correct and the wort just wasn't completely mixed. That happens with extract. No problem.

 

[doornumber3]

Just an update on the beer.....it's only been in the bottles 1 week and had one last night....It was better than the original one i did.....Only 1 week and it almost tastes like full carbonation???....>Really like this one...probably one of my better ones.