1st batch in progress as I type

[GreenDragon]

My very 1st run at this. My apologies in advance if this is in the wrong forum.

This is a work in progress. I'll update this as I go.

NutCastle Brown Ale

My kit included the following items:
3.3lbs of Coopers light malt extract
4lbs of Alexander's sun country pale malt extract
2oz Carafa I chocolate malt
2oz British Crystal 30-37L
1oz Black Malt
Willamette Hop Pellets 4 HBU, 16 IBU
Kent Goldings Hop Pellets 2.2 HBU, 3 IBU
1tsp Irish Moss
1/2tsp Gelatin Finings
1 Wyeast 1335 yeast (the smack activate kind)
1sp Ascorbic Acid
3/4cup Priming Sugar

6 gallons of Ozarka water because I don't like the taste of the local tap water.
2 big bags of ice for the wort ice bath.

I'm combining the instructions that came with the kit with those found on howtobrew.com and tips I found in the forums here.

.5) I activated the yeast to get it started. It's been about 25 mins now and its still not swelling. I'm a bit worried. I've kept it in the fridge like it said to.
1) I sanitized EVERYTHING in a big 33 gallon plastic bin. I used some sanitizer I got at the local brew shop.
2) I'm bringing 2 gallons of water to a boil. I will then put the boiled water in the fermentor and leave it to cool like the instructions on howtobrew.com state. I really wish I had a gas stove. Just 2 gallons of normal water is taking forever to come to a boil.
3) Put 3 gallons of water and my grain bag into my boil pot. It says to heat it to 150F slowly, taking 40-50 minutes. That shouldn't be an issue with my slow heating stove.
4) Heated the water to 155F and removed the grain bag. Now heating to a rolling boil.
5) Removed from heat and added both cans of malt extract. I'm now stirring it occasionally and watching for boil overs.
6) Boiled for 5 mins and added the 1st set of hops let it boil an additional 30 mins
7) Added the 2nd set of hops let it boil an additional 5 mins
8) Added the irish moss, now a 20 min boil and it's yeast fun time.
9) Cooled the wort in a ice bath until the thermometer said 85F
10) I added the yeast to the 2 gallons already in the frementor, added the cooled wort, and checked the temp again. Somehow its at 110F! I think the thermometer was too close to the sides of the pan or something. I hope I didn't kill my yeast!
11) Put the airlock and the air release on the fermentor. All I can do now is hope the yeast lived.

 

[Hokie_Brewer]

Be careful adding the boiling water to your fermenter if its a glass carboy. You could crack it

 

[vitrael]

Are you just boiling the 2G of water as top-off for 3G of wort?

If you have a glass carboy for your primary fermenter you should not pour boiling water into it unless there is cold water in it already.

 

[BIGREDIOWAN]

Good luck! Just did my first batch today as well. Good times.

 

[BendBrewer]

.5. I activated the yeast to get it started. It's been about 25 mins now and its still not swelling. I'm a bit worried. I've kept it in the fridge like it said to.

Take it out of the fridge. Don't worry about it, just take it out and let it swell.

 

[GreenDragon]

I put the 2 gallons of boiling water in the plastic fermenter.

I have the yeast out of the fridge. I meant I had been storing it in the fridge until today. Right now it's on the counter around 75F. I think its swelling a bit.

 

[BendBrewer]

I put the 2 gallons of boiling water in the plastic fermenter.

I have the yeast out of the fridge. I meant I had been storing it in the fridge until today. Right now it's on the counter around 75F. I think its swelling a bit.

I remember them taking 3 hours or so to really swell when I used them. I got into the habit of activating it the night before or making a starter the day before.

Don't be afraid to try some dry yeast next time. Open it up and sprinkle it on. That's it.

And I understand why you boiled the top off water but unless your tap water makes you sick or is full of chlorine there really isn't a need to.

 

[GreenDragon]

Yeah I'll prolly go dry yeast next time.

 

[BIGREDIOWAN]

Overall how'd it go?

 

[GreenDragon]

Well if I didn't kill my yeast I think I'll be fine. It said 85F while in the ice bath and then 110F after adding the yeast.. I think maybe the thermometer was maybe touching the metal while in the ice bath or something.

 

[Laouboy]

It does take a little while for the swelling to come in the package since the nutrients are waking up the yeast, I just brew and at the end it is usually swelled ready to go..

 

[Boleslaus]

If you just added the first 2 gal of water that you boiled straight into the fermenter without checking its temp I wouldn't doubt that your wort could be 110F when you checked it. Water takes an incredibly long time to cool down. If it was around 212F and you took about an hour to brew, it was probably still hot when you mixed the two. Most of the time I make sure that the water in my fermenter is as cold as possible so that I don't have to cool my wort as much. That way when they mix they end up around 75F. Not the worst of problems to happen on your first attempt though! Congratulations!

However, not sure about the status of your yeast. If they are dead you can always add more.

 

[Laouboy]

wait did you say 110 after adding the yeast? That is horrible for the yuppies, I usually pitch at 75 or 80

 

[GreenDragon]

Exactly.. I thought it was 85 and by the time I added it to the existing water it would be 80ish, perfect for pitching. Somehow the thermometer in the ice bath was off by 20 degrees.

 

[GreenDragon]

If it doesn't start bubling in a few days do you think it would be safe to add yeast or just toss the batch and start again?

 

[Clann]

If you have no signs of an active ferment after 72 hours, I would repitch.

We try to never dump a batch

 

[ETCS]

.5) I activated the yeast to get it started. It's been about 25 mins now and its still not swelling. I'm a bit worried. I've kept it in the fridge like it said to.

I've seen those Slap Packs take up to 3 days to swell up. Here is a quote from the Wyeast Web site:

"5. How long should it take for a package to swell?

If a package is fresh (within 2 months of the manufacture date) the package should show signs of swelling within 5 hours and typically much faster than that. When the yeast is stored for long periods of time, they slowly consume their energy reserves (glycogen). When the energy reserves get low, the yeast are slow to produce CO2 and therefore are slow to cause swelling in the package. Improper storage at warm temperatures also has the same effect as long storage times. "

 

[vitrael]

Well if I didn't kill my yeast I think I'll be fine. It said 85F while in the ice bath and then 110F after adding the yeast.. I think maybe the thermometer was maybe touching the metal while in the ice bath or something.

Your yeast is probably fine. If it's not, you'll know soon enough. You can try calibrating your thermometer in boiling water and a crushed ice bath to make sure that it's not significantly misreading.

As someone said before, if they aren't rocketing away in a couple of days you can just repitch. No need dump all that malty goodness.

 

[GreenDragon]

The yeast packet was pretty swollen by the time I pitched so I know the yeast was good.

So far zero signs of activity but it's still early. If it doesn't start doing something by time the Chiefs game is over on Sunday I'll re-pitch. Think I'll use dry yeast this time.

 

[Laouboy]

sometimes the wyeast packets take a little longer to start fermentation, at least for me that how it usually works

 

[GreenDragon]

Well it has been 3 full days now.. absolutely no signs of life. I'm gonna have to re-pitch.