Rookie - brewing for first time this evening

[jarrodaden]

I have all the equipment and ingredients in place for this recipe.

BB Hefeweizen

I am using the liquid yeast. I am NOT doing the all grain.

Feel free to make any suggestions or provide any pointers.

Thanks.

 

[dieselboy]

Watch for the boil over after you add the extract and hops. If heated up too quickly it will be all over the stove. (yes I did this)

 

[Krane]

Just relax and enjoy yourself. Know that you wont be perfect but will be just fine.

Also, dont drink too much until the end.

 

[chemicalcraig]

Make sure you pitch enough yeast. One White Labs vial or Wyeast smack pack is never enough to properly ferment a 5 gallon batch, unless your OG is around 1.025.

 

[timdsmith72]

Watch for the boil over after you add the extract and hops. If heated up too quickly it will be all over the stove. (yes I did this)

Hehe. Shoot, I didn't think you got to count it as your first batch until you've done this. :cross:

 

[TyTanium]

Fermentation Temp:
Try to keep your fermentation temp in the mid sixties if possible. May be difficult in Houston (search the forum for swamp cooler). For hefes, lower temps tend to bring out clove, higher temps bring out banana/bubble gum. But don't go above the range (75ish) or you risk off-flavors.

Fermentation Time:
Leave it and resist the urge to fiddle with it or take readings every day. Leave it and let the yeast work.

 

[Tim_Kreitz]

Sanitation, sanitation, sanitation. :rockin:

 

[jme147]

Make sure you pitch enough yeast. One White Labs vial or Wyeast smack pack is never enough to properly ferment a 5 gallon batch, unless your OG is around 1.025.

I only pitched one vial of white labs yeast in my batch recently and even without a starter it worked fine. The OG was 1.051 and FG was 1.012.
Definitely keep an eye on your kettle for boil over, because I did have boil over in most recent batch. I thought I lost a lot of hops, but it has tasted good so far. Letting it carb now.

 

[helibrewer]

If you can boil the entire 5 gallons instead of just 3 do so, you will get better hop utilization. If your extract is liquid, make sure it is well dissolved and nothing is stuck to the bottom of the kettle, you don't want any scorching.

I add liquid extract while the water is cool enough for me to stick my hand in the kettle and feel for any extract that is settled to the bottom of the kettle.

Have a spray bottle of cold water handy to attack any foam that gets close to boil over.

RDWHAHB......and don't forget to have fun!!!!

 

[chemicalcraig]

I only pitched one vial of white labs yeast in my batch recently and even without a starter it worked fine. The OG was 1.051 and FG was 1.012.
Definitely keep an eye on your kettle for boil over, because I did have boil over in most recent batch. I thought I lost a lot of hops, but it has tasted good so far. Letting it carb now.

Sure you'll get fermentation if you underpitch, but it won't be optimal and can lead to off flavors. For a gravity of 1.051 (~12.5 Plato) you need about 180 billion viable yeast cells. A fresh WL vial only has about 100 billion. In general you need one million cells per milliliter per degree Plato.

 

[scottland]

Sure you'll get fermentation if you underpitch, but it won't be optimal and can lead to off flavors. For a gravity of 1.051 (~12.5 Plato) you need about 180 billion viable yeast cells. A fresh WL vial only has about 100 billion. In general you need one million cells per milliliter per degree Plato.

Dude, he's making his first batch. I don't mean to undermine the OP's intelligence, but let's not complicate things by having him calculate yeast pitching rates. Homebrewing is supposed to be first and foremost fun. Worry about starters, pitch rates, stir plates, etc after you have a homebrew in your hand for the first time.

For a hefeweizen where esters from the yeast are desired, underpitching isn't as big of deal.

To the original poster, don't worry about making a yeast starter. Cool your wort down to around 68-70* if you can (under 80 minimum), and pitch your vial of yeast. You'll be fine.

Once feel like your head isn't spinning with information overload, do some searching on yeast starters because it will help you make better beer.

 

[Butter]

I agree with scotland, don't worry about a starter. Get thru your first batch and then worry about everything under the sun. Gotta crawl before you walk. If anything, maybe get a notebook to jot your steps down as you do it. Just boil your wort, cool it down, pitch your yeast and let the yeast do the work. Relax, its easy.

 

[chemicalcraig]

Dude, he's making his first batch. I don't mean to undermine the OP's intelligence, but let's not complicate things by having him calculate yeast pitching rates. Homebrewing is supposed to be first and foremost fun. Worry about starters, pitch rates, stir plates, etc after you have a homebrew in your hand for the first time.

For a hefeweizen where esters from the yeast are desired, underpitching isn't as big of deal.

To the original poster, don't worry about making a yeast starter. Cool your wort down to around 68-70* if you can (under 80 minimum), and pitch your vial of yeast. You'll be fine.

Once feel like your head isn't spinning with information overload, do some searching on yeast starters because it will help you make better beer.

It was just a suggestion. I wish someone had told me that information before my first batch, I wouldn't have struggled with under attenuated beer for as long as I did. There's no reason you can't have a properly attenuated beer the first time.

 

[Waynep005]

My best advice is to have fun with it. This is a hobby, you can and many do get heavly involved in it , but it is still a hobby and as such should be fun above all else.

 

[jarrodaden]

Help!

First brew in progress. Nearly boiling

I mixed up some Starsan. That mix is really bubbly. Do I need to remove that bubbly residue from the primary fermenter after sanitizing??

 

[jmprdood]

nope - no rinse. Relax!

Welcome to the addiction!

 

[jarrodaden]

I am trying to relax. I am on my fifth beer.

 

[McLompoc]

I was going to bust out something along the lines of "In laymans terms @chemicalcraig, for those of us who failed algebra 2, please break it down for the nerdy"! But I see I was slow to respond.

Just teasing!

 

[jarrodaden]

Smells so good that I want to stick my head in there for a drink but it's running 212 degrees right now....

 

[BrewJay]

Don't fear the foam, Rack onto it. No worries. Research yeast starters for future brews. Sanitize, sanitize, sanitize. Be patient, don't rush to bottling because you're eager to drink the brew. And when in doubt, wait it out. If it has an off taste prior to primary or secondary fermentation, relax. It's not in your hands, the brew gods will take care of it.

Cheers, and welcome to the addiction.

 

[jarrodaden]

ok, I am in the primary. i am going to resist the temptation to do anything for 7 days.

 

[RM-MN]

ok, I am in the primary. i am going to resist the temptation to do anything for 7 days.

I read the instructions for the kit and they look good up to step 8. When you get to step 8, throw the instructions away. Once you put the yeast in, the ferment is up to them and they don't follow any clock. The ferment is over when the yeast decide its over, not you, not any clock. For sure it isn't over and ready to bottle on day 7 or day 8 and probably not on day 9 either. Give it a good 2 weeks in the fermenter and then take a hydrometer sample and close it back up. 3 days later take another sample and if the two readings match, then you can bottle.

Once you mix in the priming sugar and bottle the beer, the yeast again take over the schedule. I've had bottles carbonate in a couple of days but that isn't usual. Give then at least a couple weeks to properly carbonate, 3 if you can stand the wait and you will have decent beer to drink.

 

[jarrodaden]

Update

After roughly 8 hours in the fermenter, I realized that I did not take an original gravity reading. That said, my local brew shop said the original gravity should end up right because of the recipe they gave me and the fact that I am using malt extract. I know I should have measured original gravity, but I am not worried about it.

Also, I forgot to add the brew vigor (I think I have the name right). Tiny little ziploc of white powder. This I am a little more worried about. I assume this gives the yeast a wake up call.

The good news is that I skipped these steps because I was thinking sanitation, sanitation, sanitation. I am pretty sure I got the sanitation done correctly.

This morning the airlock appeared to be bubble less. The recipe said 5 - 15 hours for fermentation to start and it has only been 7 or 8.

Comments / suggestions?

 

[timdsmith72]

Comments / suggestions?

Relax. It'll be fine. I've seen it take two or three days before any activity is seen.

 

[Conan]

How'd it end up going? Kyle

 

[jarrodaden]

How'd it end up going? Kyle

I wanted to sneak a taste before I closed up the fermenter, but I was really paranoid about sanitation and contamination. It smelled really nice.

I am sure it all came out just fine. Positive attitude.

 

[scottland]

With brand new equipment, and the extreme caution most first-time brewers have, it's extremely rare to see a first batch infected. You'll be perfectly fine. Patience is your only enemy right now =)

 

[Piratwolf]

For me, the hard part was the patience. In fact, I've brewed just under 130 gallons since late January, have built up a "pipeline" of about 8-9 different beers, and I still have a hard time resisting popping a bottle too soon.

Don't worry about OG with extract kit. It's almost impossible not to hit very close b/c it's all pre-measured.

Just set your sights on 10-14 days in the fermenter, then (if the hydrometer agrees!) prime, bottle & wait another 7-10 days.

Good luck & welcome to the game!! :rockin:

 

[jarrodaden]

Update

Also, I forgot to add the brew vigor (I think I have the name right). Tiny little ziploc of white powder. This I am a little more worried about. I assume this gives the yeast a wake up call.

Anyone want to weigh in on this?

 

[Matteo57]

If you use 3068 becareful! It is a monster when fermenting and LOADS of Krausen!
Have fun!

 

[Conan]

I'm assuming BrewVigor is yeast fuel, which won't do much but make your yeast a little happier to start. Probably give you a greater quantity of yeast in a shorter time, but really not crucial to the beer. I don't use anything of the sort. Kyle

 

[Piratwolf]

Yup. Never used yeast nutrients. May never use them.

After a few brews and you get an starting feel for your process, start reading about starters. I ignored them for months, but rinsing yeast & making starters has been the 2nd most important improvement to my beers (after ferm temp control).

For now, though, take notes on your process, compare records, and figure out for sure what's going on so you know where to go from here

Oh... And RDWHAHB

"All your home brew are belong to us!"

 

[chemicalcraig]

I was going to bust out something along the lines of "In laymans terms @chemicalcraig, for those of us who failed algebra 2, please break it down for the nerdy"! But I see I was slow to respond.

Just teasing!

Ironically enough I actually did fail algebra 2 in high school (was more interested in drinking beer, etc), but now I'm a theoretical chemical physicist, go figure. If have no interest in crunching the numbers yourself you can do what a lot of people do and use the online yeast cell calculator that Jamil Z. has written. If you have an android device, the Brewzor calculator has a yeast calculator in it. Or for the really nerdy you can do what I've done and simply write your own program. Either way I think it's always a good idea to get a quantitative idea of how much yeast you are going to need to pitch for a proper fermentation. I think it's pretty slimy of wyeast and white labs to sell a product that won't properly ferment 5 gallons of beer, requiring you to either buy 2 or make a starter.

 

[jarrodaden]

Airlock was bubbling nicely when I got home. Temperature in Houston has dropped, so I am having an easy time so far keeping the fermenter nice and cool.

 

[Matteo57]

Airlock was bubbling nicely when I got home. Temperature in Houston has dropped, so I am having an easy time so far keeping the fermenter nice and cool.

Nice! I have a hef that I'm cold crashing now to bottle tomorrow! Stoked! I bet yours will turn out great! About 2 weeks ago I actually just finished drinking the first batch I brewed! Irish Red, yum! Will have to brew it again sometime!

Enjoy the hobby! Let us know how the beer tastes when it's done!

 

[jarrodaden]

Took my first FG reading on day 8. 1.02. Recipe calls for 1.012. I will check again in 3 days.

Took a taste. Very clean, refreshing, overtones of fruit and clove. Should turn out real nice.

 

[jarrodaden]

I got stuck at 1.024. Visited my LBS and got some advice. Gave it another shot of yeast. Hoping that will finish it off. I would like to bottle late this week.