When to bottle

[Jeff48]

OK this is my fourth batch of beer so I am not a complete noob but I am really confused by this one.
On June 3 we made a batch of Black Cherry Ale with an OG of 1.073.
On June 12 we transferred to the secondary and read a gravity of 1.023.
Tonite we thought we would bottle but when I opened the secondary there were still tons of small bubbles across the surface of the beer. I didn't take a gravity but with the amount of action I was almost certain that I didn't want to take a chance on glass grenades.
Is there a good rule of thumb as to when it is safe to bottle even if there are bubbles on the surface.

Thanks
Jeff

 

[Beerrific]

I would suggest to check the gravity over next few days if it is still at 1.023 it is OK to bottle. But, it wouldn't hurt to leave it in the secondary another week regardless. Most people recommend the 1-2-3 method: 1 week primary...2 weeks secondary...3 weeks in bottles. But, you are right that you want to make sure that you are finished fermenting before you move to bottles. Really you would like to see the FG before moving it out of the primary, off of the yeast cake.

Right now you are at about 68% apparent attenuation which, depending on your yeast, may be the best you are going to get. Wat type of yeast did you use?

 

[Jeff48]

This beer got 2 -5gram pkgs of Munton's dry yeast.

 

[Beerrific]

This one? http://www.muntons.com/homebeer/other-products/misc_premium_yeast.asp

I think you may not have reached you FG yet: "yeast has the ability to drop out of suspension very rapidly." I would suggest that you check the gravity, see if you can rouse some of the floculated yeast, and see if the gravity is changing.

 

[Jeff48]

Nope--- this one
http://www.muntons.com/homebeer/other-products/misc_standard_yeast.asp

FYI the recipe was 6 1/2 lbs Plaint Light DME
a 2.5 gallon boil
1 oz hallertau
1/2 oz cascade
3 qts of black cherry juice added at end of boil (the juice is unsweetened and no preservatives).

 

[Jeff48]

Gravity as of this AM 1.022 + 1 point for 70 degree temp. = 1.023

 

[Beerrific]

This might be the best you can get with this yeast:
"If all malt brewing is undertaken we would recommend that you use our Premium Gold Yeast as our Standard Yeast will struggle to ferment some of the more complex sugars which are more prevalent in all malt recipes."

Still, I would see if you can rouse the yeast and then let it stay in the secondary for about another week. Check the gravity and if it still at 1.023 then bottle.

 

[mot]

I would let this beer sit for atleast 4 weeks in the secondary with that high of a gravity give it time

 

[Jeff48]

Beerific

Thanks for the continuing help. I am just starting to understand the yeast thing and I would not use this yeast in my next batch of this beer.

What do you mean by "rousing" the yeast. I have gently "swished" the bucket left to right and then right to left a few times on two occasions.

Mot

4 weeks ----hmmm, that's a long time for a newbie , but I do understand that this is more like a barleywine in its OG and probably should be left alone longer. I was planning on lagering some of the batch for at least 3 weeks.... Mighty long time just to see if I hate it.... Just kidding

 

[Inglebrew]

I would suggest to check the gravity over next few days if it is still at 1.023 it is OK to bottle. But, it wouldn't hurt to leave it in the secondary another week regardless. Most people recommend the 1-2-3 method: 1 week primary...2 weeks secondary...3 weeks in bottles. But, you are right that you want to make sure that you are finished fermenting before you move to bottles. Really you would like to see the FG before moving it out of the primary, off of the yeast cake.

Right now you are at about 68% apparent attenuation which, depending on your yeast, may be the best you are going to get. Wat type of yeast did you use?

hiya beerific ,

some really great info . im a complete noobie:fro: ! just started a youngs harvest mild kit , been in the fermentation bin a week:rockin: . would the 123 methiod work here to get a better finish ? does stage 2 mean in the keg then 3 in bottles. sorry explain. ps all the best wiv yer brews peeps .

 

[FlyGuy]

I am not a fan of that Munton's yeast, either. I had poor luck with it, and you are not the first person to say that they had lower than expected attenuation.

Something that many new brewers could benefit from is learning to ignore is visual cues (such as bubbles) in their fermenter. They can occur for numerous reasons and can often be misleading. I strongly suggest that you get a good hydrometer and put your faith in it. You can only be sure that a beer is ready to bottle if you have hit your FG. In this case, it sounds like you may have with that Munton's yeast.

And for Inglebrew, the 1-2-3 rule means that you let your beer ferment in your primary fermenter (often a plastic bucket) for at least 1 week, in the secondary fermenter (often a glass carboy) for at least 2 weeks, and then condition it in bottles for at least 3 weeks before drinking. Note that these are MINIMUM times, and you can exceed them somewhat at any step. Does that help?

 

[Inglebrew]

Hiya Fly Guy , sorry for not responding sooner (just discovered the my topics bit to locate active threads which are of relevance to me at this stage as a newbie !).

Yes that does help. However i have been given two pressure kegs ! So can i take the mild from the fermenting vessel put in the kegs (how much brewing sugar for the whole kit at this secondary stage ? and do i stir it in ?) and after this i will draw the beer of into bottles or jugs then bottles ?

ps. your help is very much appreciated mate.

 

[FlyGuy]

Hey Inglebrew,

Do you have a CO2 system, as well, to deliver the beer from the kegs? If not, the kegs aren't going to be much use to you.

If you do have a CO2 system, then you don't need to prime the kegs at all (although you could, if you really wanted to). Just chill the kegs, set the CO2 regulator to serving pressure, and wait a week. It will all be done.