another noob... this one's from Portland, OR

[daenja]

Howdy

I just registered today, but I've been poking around the site reading threads for a little while now. I started my first brew a Muntons Nut Brown malt extract kit this past Friday. I added some lightly hopped malt extract to give it a more full body.

We had temperatures over 100 for a few days in a row. Of course I don't have a/c and my brew got really hot during it's initial fermentation. I think I got about 18 hours of blow off and really active fermentation.

Now it's very mellow, very few small bubbles on the surface. I'm going to take a hydrometer reading this evening and again tomorrow. Hopefully it will be ready to bottle on Saturday. I did take a small sample to taste it today... it wasn't too bad, like a flat, a little dry, hint of hops, nutty, dark brown in color. There is a lot of sediment still, but I'm hopeful that it will clear up in the bottle. I was a little worried about it, but after tasting it. I'm not.

I also plan on doing small one gallon batches. My fiancee and I like to have a variety of different beer often. So I think this method would be advantageous. I'd also be able to do full all grain boils with the things I already have, I just need a couple carboys.

Anyway, I think I'm going to enjoy homebrewing and will prolly be poking around this site for info and advice. See you around.
Cheers.
Daniel

 

[android]

welcome daniel. there are many threads here dealing with keeping beer at a constant temperature while fermenting (swamp cooler, bucket cooler methods), which will make a substantial difference in the end product. small batches can be fun, good luck. i have a feeling that soon you will want more than 1 gallon of finished product! cheers.

 

[Dunerunner]

Daniel, Welcome to HBT! I used to put my fermenter in the bathtub and drape it with damp towels to keep it cool. Need less to say, I still am fighting having controllable fermentation temperatures, but the FV is just too large to be moved when full.