A little help on my first brew.

[ks_medic]

Hello all i'm new to the forum and brewing. i had a few questions maybe you all could help me out with.

For my first brew i bought a Brewer Best Oktoberfest kit.
6.6 plain light malt extract. 8 oz crushed crystal malt 60L, 4 oz crushed crystal malt 20 L. 1 oz willamette hops (bittering), 1 oz vanguard hops (finishing), priming sugar and nottingham dry brewing yeast.

will this beer still taste ok if brewed as an ale? I don't have the means to lager. I don't want to get discouraged after my first brew. Also i've heard so many great things about liquid yeast, should i order some for this brew? Or just buy a different kit?

Also did a test boil and had a hell of a time boiling 2 gallons of water on my glass top stove. could only get it to barely boil, no rolling.

gonna give this bad boy a try
Big Lots -- Masterbuilt Campin' Combo Dual Burner Camp Stove

 

[Hugh_Jass]

Hello all i'm new to the forum and brewing. i had a few questions maybe you all could help me out with.

For my first brew i bought a Brewer Best Oktoberfest kit.
6.6 plain light malt extract. 8 oz crushed crystal malt 60L, 4 oz crushed crystal malt 20 L. 1 oz willamette hops (bittering), 1 oz vanguard hops (finishing), priming sugar and nottingham dry brewing yeast.

will this beer still taste ok if brewed as an ale? I don't have the means to lager. I don't want to get discouraged after my first brew. Also i've heard so many great things about liquid yeast, should i order some for this brew? Or just buy a different kit?

Also did a test boil and had a hell of a time boiling 2 gallons of water on my glass top stove. could only get it to barely boil, no rolling.

gonna give this bad boy a try
Big Lots -- Masterbuilt Campin' Combo Dual Burner Camp Stove

Nottingham is an ale yeast. When fermented in the lower end of it's temp range, it yields a clean profile. should be fine. RDWHAHB

 

[BrothersBrewing]

when you ferment yeast thats meant for lower temps, at higher temps. the yeast gives off esters( sometimes bad tasting stuff)

try to keep the beer at the lowest temp you can...

you could try another kit...

i would suggest a single burner outside turkey fryer of some sort. a lot of guys use them.

 

[TheMan]

I made that exact kit for my second brew. I didn't realize it was a lager and fermented at like 80 degrees! It turned out to be one of my favorites so far. Brew, give it time, and you will like it.

 

[BrothersBrewing]

yah...that to, Gnome is right...,wow i didnt even see that.

 

[Hugh_Jass]

Another note to the OP:
Before you purchase that burner, have a peek at this blog written by another member. It may save you some money in the long run

 

[ks_medic]

thanks for the help. guess i'll just use the dry yeast that came in the kit. if it came out good for you then it should be fine for me. I just heard bad things about dry yeast thats why i was thinking about getting a liquid yeast.

when you say give time how much do you mean. instructions say about 3- 7 days fermentation or until F.G is 1.012-1.015. then 21 days in the bottle at 65-75 degrees. I bought this kit:
Deluxe Beer Brewing Equipment Kit - Making Beer at Home - eBay (item 360182305531 end time Aug-29-09 10:00:00 PDT) and was thinking about after the 7 days of primary then switch it to the carboy for another 2 weeks. then the 21 days in the bottle. then refrigerate the bottles. 7 days before bottling just sounds short, when i hear about people fermenting for months.

Thanks for the help.

 

[ks_medic]

i just read the post and i have most of the things on there. I'll need to order a few things. but it didn't say how he boiled his wort. my glasstop stove sucks. couldn't even boil 2 gal of water.

 

[Hugh_Jass]

Many on here, including me, go three weeks in primary and straight to bottle/keg. I'm assuming you're bottling, so three weeks minimum in the bottle to properly carb. Six weeks total from brew to drink. and the F.G. should be in the range of the directions.

Remember fermentation is exothermic The fermentation temp. will be above ambient temp. To keep ferm. temp down search "swamp cooler". I try to keep notty between 59 and 63 deg. fermenting temp. That should yield a clean profile with few esters.

If you plan to do 5 gallon batches, a standard turkey fryer like this one will work well.
Good luck.
Any other questions, just ask.

 

[ks_medic]

so if i leave it longer to ferment say about 3 weeks. how much will that change my final gravity? If i obtain the final gravity on the instructions of 1.012 - 1.015 in 7 or so days. how does it effect it leaving it in there another 2 weeks? can i obtain too low of a gravity?

 

[Hugh_Jass]

The FG will remain the same after active fermentation is complete whether it's one week or three. The reason you should leave the beer sit on the yeast cake is yeast, when fermenting sugars, give off by products. After the available sugar is fermented, the kind of "clean up their mess"

The reason the kit wants you to move quickly from brew to drink is to sell you more kits. By slowing down and being patient, you'll have a better beer. If you drink the beer using the kit instructions, you'll have beer. If you leave it in primary longer, and allow it to properly carb, you'll have better beer.

 

[ks_medic]

you guyz RULE. :rockin: thank you for all the help.

i was going to ask about secondary but did a search and seems like i would open up a can of worms. i notice people for and against it. i have a 5 gallon carboy and was thinking of using it as secondary. but i'll cross that road when i get to it.

i did a quick search on dry yeast and some people are doing yeast starters. my instructions say just pour package into bucket and stir. will i get better beer if i do starter? and should i store my yeast in the fridge, i'll be brewing in a few weeks so didn't know if it really mattered.

Sorry for all the questions, i'm a noob-a-sourus and a worry wort, afraid that my beer brewing will end in less than desirable outcome.

 

[Hugh_Jass]

Not a starter per-se, but re-hydrating dry yeast. boil a cup or two of water, cool to pitch temp., and add yeast 15-30 min before you pitch into the beer.

Have a look at Bobby_M's video

 

[ks_medic]

that is good stuff

 

[TheMan]

ks_medic: You are correct, when I said give it time I was referring to fermentation. I followed exactly what the instructions said, but after that and many more brews I would let it sit in the primary for about 3 weeks. I'm one of those "primary only" brewers you probably read about lol.

I didn't find that the yeast fermenting at a higher temp made a bad beer. I still have a few left and they taste pretty good. I am considering doing the recipe again with the same procedure, just fermenting longer. I liked how it turned out.

 

[BrothersBrewing]

once all the available sugar is fermented you've reached your final gravity. by leaving it in the longer it lets the yeast settle and makes the beer clearer. secondary does the same thing just another step...some do this and some dont.