1st brew, Caribou Slobber concerns!

[FreshSafari]

We'll I'd like to say hi and I've been a lurker for quite some time and now I'm gonna be posting.

Got a 1 gallon kit from NB and chose CB as my first brew everything went swell until fermentation (I think) I pitched my after my wort cooled to about 69-73 degrees and used a blow off tube instead of the 3 piece airlock (Smart move) and left it alone I didn't notice any activity until 3 hours in I had bubbles shooting out of the tube and into my jar filled with sanitizer! Fermentation took off by midnight (pitched yeast @ 9) and woke up at four to a overfilled jar!
I switched the water in the jar and went to bed! Got up the next day and fermentation was still going nuts.
Temp all night was "ambient 65-68" and in the morning it was @ 66-68!
Got back from work to find that the krauzen was gone and no bubbles in the jar! Now I know the blow off is no way to judge fermentation. So I checked temp in my room and I was at 70! So I turned the fan on ASAP and left it alone!
Fast forward to today 4th day.
And noticed a white layer at the bottom!
Should I be worried about fusel alcohol and what can I do to maybe steer this brew in the right direction!

Thanks for reading this long rant and hope to brew many more and be a active member of this forum!!

 

[JPrather]

Don't worry about it at all. It's unlikely that your beer was ever hot enough to throw significant fusels, and any other off-flavors will likely be cleaned up in the coming week or so.

There's nothing for you to do at this point. Leave it for the "full" 2 weeks as per the instructions, bottle it, wait a couple of weeks, and enjoy. You're likely to love the outcome. Welcome to the hobby!

 

[twistr25]

Sounds like everything will be fine. Like JP said, you weren't really hot enough to produce alot of fusels anyway. The white stuff on bottom is just yeast and sediment settling out. Be patient, let it ride it's full ferment and you will be rewarded.

 

[sumbrewindude]

Congrats, you made beer!

70 might seem high, but you'll be fine. Windsor is actually pretty forgiving, and most English low attenuation yeasts get some fun esters at the higher end of temps anyway.

Let it sit, cold crash it at the end of the specified time, and bottle it!

 

[FreshSafari]

Thanks guys. Sounds like I stressed out for nothing, I actually have one more question!

I have a blow off tube set up on the Carboy so should I stay with the blow off tube or change to the 3 piece airlock!!

 

[jekeane]

I generally switch to the 3 piece to save some room in me fermentation chamber. But remember any time you fool with that opening your granting an opportunity for infections. If you want to switch sanitize a pice of tinfoil and plop in on top of your opening while you sanitize and get your 3 piece ready.

 

[Irish1225]

Just leave it! You'll be bottling in 10 days or so anyway and your sanitizer will still be effective until then.

RDWHAHB

Welcome to the obsession dude! You will get more comfortable over time but for now just tell yourself to relax! It sounds like you had a great environment for those yeasties and you'll have a delicious beer in no time!

 

[FreshSafari]

Thanks guys I'm gonna leave as is..
Why fix something that isn't broken ill probably switch the sani-water in the blow off jar in a few days and relax. Sat there and watch my blow off jar for 10 minutes and got four bubbles! So fermentation is still ok. I also noticed bubbles of yeast shooting to the surface and slowly falling back down! I think my fermentation area is ideal in the day time it's a good 66-68 and at night I'm at around 64-66 just got my ferm o meter in and my temp inside there reads 66. I'm really starting to enjoy this hobby. Already planned my next brew! Man this is fun! Thanks guys!

 

[FreshSafari]

Bump for me trying to find out what it means when little bubbles of yeast shoot up and slowly back down?

 

[hehawbrew]

Bump for me trying to find out what it means when little bubbles of yeast shoot up and slowly back down?

Everything is normal.

I always like to let things sit a minimum of 21 days before bottleing. Helps ensure fermentation is done, helps clear, etc. I've always done AG, but maybe extract finishes sooner?

Order another kit or two. Enjoy your new obsession!


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[sumbrewindude]

Bump for me trying to find out what it means when little bubbles of yeast shoot up and slowly back down?

Yeasties poop CO2, so if you get a bunch of them hanging out together a group fart happens, the whole mess go for a ride.

It's normal, and fun to watch.

 

[dkevinb]

Bump for me trying to find out what it means when little bubbles of yeast shoot up and slowly back down?

I highly recommend John Palmer's "How To Brew". He has a great description of the whole fermentation process. Basically it goes through 3 phases. In the adaptive phase the yeast acclimates and multiplies, and you don't see much happening. This takes a few hours to about a day. In the primary (attenuative) phase the yeast turns the simple sugars into alcohol. This is when you see all the vigorous bubbling, krausen formation, etc. This lasts for maybe a week. During the secondary (conditioning) phase the yeast goes back and cleans up after itself, consuming the more complex sugars as well as some of the byproducts it produced during the primary phase. This can last for a couple of weeks or as long as you let it. There is much less noticeable bubbling during this time, the krausen disappears, and a lot of the old yeast and sediment start settling to the bottom of the fermenter. It sounds like your brew is in the last phase, so all is well.

 

[FreshSafari]

Quick update, discovered a few specks of mold in my Blow off Jar (Filled with sanitizer)
So I decided to switch to a airlock, filled with new sanitized water and slapped that bad boy on!

Good Thinking on my part or did I freak over something that didn't matter ?

 

[brewkinger]

Are you sure it was mold?

I have left sanitizer in a blowoff jar for months and not seen mold.
Either:
1) you are mistaken and it is most likely small chunks of fermentation debris that made its way into the jar.
2) your sanitizer is not mixed according to directions and therefore not preventing the mold growth.


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[FreshSafari]

It could have been fermentation junk but it look a bit like mold!

Edit..
My sanitizer that came with the kit is Easy Clean by LD Carson, I did some reading a few minutes ago and say that it wasn't a actual sanitizer but more of a oxy-clean type cleaner!
We'll looks like in gonna have to go buy some Star-San pretty soon.

 

[brewkinger]

It could have been fermentation junk but it look a bit like mold!

Edit..
My sanitizer that came with the kit is Easy Clean by LD Carson, I did some reading a few minutes ago and say that it wasn't a actual sanitizer but more of a oxy-clean type cleaner!
We'll looks like in gonna have to go buy some Star-San pretty soon.

Problem solved.


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[FreshSafari]

Quick update / question..
This has been going for 16 days in primary and I plan on bottling on April 1st, would letting it sit in there for the 21 days be a bad thing or is it a good idea! Kit called for a week or two but I'm shooting for 3 due to not having a hydrometer and my temp control in the first 3 days.
Would the yeast clean up by 3 weeks or should I wait longer or bottle ASAP? Sorry for the noob questions.

 

[placated]

3 weeks is a solid duration if you aren't measuring gravity. You are really flying blind but by 3 weeks that yeast has probably done everything it's going to do.


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[Hitz87]

I actually did the same kit for my first brew I am working on my 4 batch of all grain, hammering out a Munich Dunkel. My fermentation did the exact same as your for the slobber kit. I just finished that last one off this week and it was pretty tasty.