Sanitation Question

Hi Guys,

I am new to homebrewing and am getting ready to move my first brew (Chocolate Stout) for secondary fermentation with some chocolate.

I read to soak the chocolate nibs in vodka for a few days to bring out extra flavor, so I wanted to start the soak today for a sunday racking.

Here is my question. Since I have to wash and sanitize a container for the chocolate nibs to soak in, can I wash my carboy today at the same time, and just sanitize it before racking on Sunday?

It seems really silly to break out all my cleaning supplies for a mason jar.

Thanks!

 

I wouldn't worry about sanitization of the mason jar...the vodka will do that just fine. Just make sure it is clean.

 

Thanks

 

And yes, you can clean your container (carboy in this case) well ahead of when you'll use it. When you go to use it then, you can just give it a rinse and sanitize it.

 

Keep a gallon jug and full spray bottle of Starsan solution on hand for small jobs that come up.

 

Yes you can clean well ahead of time. I do all my cleaning immediately after use and then simply rinse / sanitize on the day I use the equip again.

The vodka will certainly sanitize the mason jar, just clean it first.

Also I think the vodkas primary purpose is to sanitize the nibs rather than extract flavor. But you may get a tincture from the nibs in vodka if you let them sit a while.

+1 on the spray bottle. It's a real time saver and it keeps a good long time.

 

I also clean everything right after use, thus cutting down on scrubbing later. The. All I have to do is rinse and spray star san and the ready to go.
+1 for spray bottle 1$ at Walmart

 

Thanks guys. That is good to know. I will probably just clean everything I have since I don't like to waste the water!

 

Also - buy two spray bottles - fill the 2nd with water. Spray when the hot break foam threatens to boil over. Works 10X better than stirring to knock it down.

 

I bought a bottle of FermCap for the hot break as I have a smallish brew pot. Works great!