Okay I get primary fermentation, it's where beer gets it's alcohol. 7days to 10 days. What if I want to do secondary fermentation not in the bottles but in another bucket, do I siphon it in a way that it's clear and there is no yeast. If I do bring the yeast along why do I have to move it to another bucket? I had a lot of laughs from the brewing community for starting to drink my beers after 7 days or so and pretty much drinking them all by day 14. Give me a break and please answer my question.
What is secondary fermentation?
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prrriiide
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First, a secondary really isn't necessary as long as you give it a good long (3 weeks+) primary. That said, there are some real benefits to doing a secondary, at least for me.
Bringing yeast along into the secondary is a good thing...it adds character and flavor. Even with highly-hopped IPAs, if you change the yeast strain, you change the whole character of the beer. You want it in there. Just not the whole yeast cake from the primary. And, it'll drop out of suspension as you drop the temp.
- It gives you the chance to cold crash if you have temp control
- It frees up your fermenter for other liquid goodness to start getting happy (I secondary in corny kegs, but a better bottle or ferm bucket will also do the trick)
- You are clearing your beer naturally, without filtering.
- It allows you to do things...wonderful things...to your beer: add flavors, drop in dry hops, all sorts of things limited only by your imagination
Bringing yeast along into the secondary is a good thing...it adds character and flavor. Even with highly-hopped IPAs, if you change the yeast strain, you change the whole character of the beer. You want it in there. Just not the whole yeast cake from the primary. And, it'll drop out of suspension as you drop the temp.
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7 days is pretty early to drink but I understand the temptation.
The term secondary is a little misleading because there is only really one fermentation. It's a secondary vessel and the main purpose is to get the beer off the settled out trub and yeast to prevent off flavors. So if you do this, leave as much of the old yeast and trub behind as possible, but don't worry if you pick some up... That said, a lot of us home brewers don't do a secondary anymore, we just leave the beer in primary until all the fermentation is done which is all dependent on the yeast and recipe but is typically 7-14 days with an Ale.
Not knowing anything about your equipment or processes, I would suggest leaving the beer in primary for 10-14 days to be sure its done. Take a gravity reading any time after day 7 and then again any time after day 10 and if it not changed then the fermentation is done. Myself: Then I cold crash it at 32 degrees for a week to drop the yeast out and then keg it. Since you're bottling, follow your bottling procedure.
I have never actually bottled a beer and that leads me to a question.... If you are bottling, how are you drinking your beer after 7 days? It takes a couple weeks to bottle condition beer, I thought.
David
The term secondary is a little misleading because there is only really one fermentation. It's a secondary vessel and the main purpose is to get the beer off the settled out trub and yeast to prevent off flavors. So if you do this, leave as much of the old yeast and trub behind as possible, but don't worry if you pick some up... That said, a lot of us home brewers don't do a secondary anymore, we just leave the beer in primary until all the fermentation is done which is all dependent on the yeast and recipe but is typically 7-14 days with an Ale.
Not knowing anything about your equipment or processes, I would suggest leaving the beer in primary for 10-14 days to be sure its done. Take a gravity reading any time after day 7 and then again any time after day 10 and if it not changed then the fermentation is done. Myself: Then I cold crash it at 32 degrees for a week to drop the yeast out and then keg it. Since you're bottling, follow your bottling procedure.
I have never actually bottled a beer and that leads me to a question.... If you are bottling, how are you drinking your beer after 7 days? It takes a couple weeks to bottle condition beer, I thought.
David
prrriiide
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Also...
Pro brewers do it too, they just do it in the same vessel as the primary. They just dump their yeast out the bottom of the conical after active fermentation completes instead of taking the beer off of the yeast. Either way, a separation between the beer and the yeast occurs. It's much more important for pro brewers to get their yeast out from under the beer than it is for homebrewers to rack their beer off of the yeast.
Pro brewers do it too, they just do it in the same vessel as the primary. They just dump their yeast out the bottom of the conical after active fermentation completes instead of taking the beer off of the yeast. Either way, a separation between the beer and the yeast occurs. It's much more important for pro brewers to get their yeast out from under the beer than it is for homebrewers to rack their beer off of the yeast.
Unless you are adding something like fruit or you only have one fermenter FORGET the secondary.
Primary for 3 weeks and if you can cold crash do it in the primary.
Your beer will be crystal clear w/o filtering or adding anything. The trick is good primary time and cold crashing. Of course it means careful racking to keep from bringing trub into the bottling bucket.
Here is one...3 weeks in primary...1 week cold crashed in primary.....3 weeks in bottle at 70*
[url=https://www.homebrewtalk.com/photo/ohikilolo-fest-61150.html]
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Primary for 3 weeks and if you can cold crash do it in the primary.
Your beer will be crystal clear w/o filtering or adding anything. The trick is good primary time and cold crashing. Of course it means careful racking to keep from bringing trub into the bottling bucket.
Here is one...3 weeks in primary...1 week cold crashed in primary.....3 weeks in bottle at 70*
[url=https://www.homebrewtalk.com/photo/ohikilolo-fest-61150.html]
[/URL]
KangerBrew6
kangarooted60
Just because it appears clear, doesn't mean there's no yeast there. They're there, staring at you, waiting to take over the world. Fined crystal clear beer still carbonates wonderfully in bottles. I never rack my beer unless it's to fine it or to bulk prime. It's not really an Australian practice. We're known for being straight to the point and that includes beer production Cheers mate.
Secondary Fermentation should be renamed "Second Vessel Rest"
Puddlethumper
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There's another thread going on this same topic (there always seems to be one going):
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=540891
Cheers:
Gnomebrewer
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This^^^.......It's only truly a secondary fermentation if some new fermentables are added after primary fermentation has finished. eg. fruit or candy syrup.
You don't have to do a secondary ("secondary fermentation" isn't correct because no fermentation is happening) but you can if you want to.
The thing is, if you're going to do it, do not use a bucket. The wide headspace means too much risk for oxidation and infection. A bucket is fine for a fermenter, since during fermentation much co2 is produced and the headspace is needed. But once fermentation stops, the beer becomes vulnerable to oxidation and things like mold taking hold in an oxygen-rich environment. If you are going to do a secondary, use an appropriately sized carboy.
If you don't have an appropriately sized carboy, then don't age in a second vessel. Go ahead and bottle and age there.
The thing is, if you're going to do it, do not use a bucket. The wide headspace means too much risk for oxidation and infection. A bucket is fine for a fermenter, since during fermentation much co2 is produced and the headspace is needed. But once fermentation stops, the beer becomes vulnerable to oxidation and things like mold taking hold in an oxygen-rich environment. If you are going to do a secondary, use an appropriately sized carboy.
If you don't have an appropriately sized carboy, then don't age in a second vessel. Go ahead and bottle and age there.
Puddlethumper
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You have several questions in there. I'll take a crack at the cold crashing question and leave the rest to others.
Cold crashing the beer is done to promote clearer beer. The process causes suspended proteins to flocculate (no it's not a porn term) and drop to the bottom of the fermenter. You need to be able to control the temperature your fermented beer is at in order to do this.
When your beer is completely fermented and you figure its about ready to package drop the temperature of the beer to just above freezing (32F-38F) and leave it there for several days. (I typically go about 3 days but others have different opinions on this.) While it is really cold a lot of the suspended proteins will connect with each other, get heavy and drop to the bottom of the bucket.
After a few days you can siphon off the beer into your bottling bucket or keg leaving the proteins, yeast and other trub in the bottom of the fermenter. The result is clearer beer.
Cheers!
This is a rambling post with a lot of misunderstood items.
I will take a stab as answering what I think is the question etc.
Cold crashing: Take the fermenter after fermentation is done and put it in a refrigerator or somewhere as cold as possible but not so cold as to freeze the beer. Leave it for a few days then bottle the beer. It helps settle the suspended proteins etc. in the beer and make it more clear.
Why do you need to drink your beer before it gets contaminated? If it is not already contaminated it cannot get contaminated....
Beer takes a long time to spoil. The flavor will be off long before it will spoil. IPAs for instance will lose the hop flavor and aroma but will not spoil for long after that. Maybe as long as a few years.
Unless you really want to there is no reason to keg your beer.
How much you spend on homebrewing is up to you... You can use a $50 pot, a $2 paint strainer bag, some cleaning and sanitation supplies, $20 bottling bucket, $5 bottling wand, $20 capper, free bottles and $10 for bottle caps. Then all you need it to add is ingredients....... ~$100 then the ingredients. Most of the equipment will last for a long time. So that is not a frequent expense.
Or you can spend tens of thousands on a full blown Electric Brew room with all the gadgets.
Or anywhere in between.
If you just want cheap beer I suggest you just buy it!
Subdivisions
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