Batch #1 - Update w/ hydrometer readings

[sappnasty]

Fellas,

I made my very first batch on Jan 3rd (William's Triple Hopped Ale Kit #K35). 17 days later and only 4 more days to go, I decided to take a hydrometer reading. The beer was very clear of sediment when I used the wine thief to remove a bit out of the carboy. It was a beautiful amber color and smelled of fantastic hops. My original gravity reading was 1.055 and as of today was 1.012. I plugged the numbers into the ABV calculator and got a possible alcohol content of 5.64% by volume (based off of a 5 gallon batch). And of course the best part was tasting! I have to say that I am super happy as it tastes a lot like Sierra Nevada Torpedo. I will say I was surprised that it did not taste totally flat...it almost seemed as though it already had a bit of carbonation in it? At least I thought so.

So I guess I will take another reading on the 21st and then on the 23rd, which will be the day I plan to bottle. Because this is my first batch, I am inexperienced in moving my brew from a glass carboy to priming bucket. I have a nice hand siphon and I guess is what I'll be using to move it over. Of course I will sanitize, but are there any tips or hints for the move and or priming advice?

-Sapp

 

[unionrdr]

Is it an auto siphon or racking cane? regardless,make sure everything that touches the beer is cleaned & sanitized before use. Including the bottling bucket. The priming calculators go by weight rather than volume,so you'll need a small scale to weigh the priming sugar. Here's a calculator I use; http://www.tastybrew.com/calculators/priming.html Also,a bottling wand will help prevent oxygenating the beer while bottling.

 

[sappnasty]

Union,

Its a 3/8" auto siphon. I also have several 1/2" bottling wands for bottling. I have a 55 gallon Rubbermade container where I sanitize all of my stuff when I brew and bottle. I also finally got some StarSan, so goodbye One-Step! As far as the priming sugar goes, it was a Williams kit, so it came with 3oz of priming sugar.

-Sapp

 

[flars]

Add your priming solution to the bucket then begin racking. I use two cups of water to boil the priming sugar in so it is less syrupy. If you want more volumes of CO2 you can also use additional table sugar.
Have the end of the siphon in the bottling bucket flat to the bottom. This will pevent splashing and cause a swirl in the bucket as you siphon to mix the priming solution into your beer.
Start with the siphon high in your beer to avoid picking up the trub. Lower the siphon as the level goes down.
Don't forget to sanitize your hands, the mouth of the carboy or rim of the bucket before you open it up.

The carbonation you perceived in your sample was CO2 produced by the yeast. Calculators ask for temperature of the beer at bottling time because this is used to estimate how much residual CO2 is in the beer.

 

[VisaliaIPA]

Awesome...mines been in the fermenter for 21 days. Gonna bottle today or tomorrow.

 

[sappnasty]

Temp today was 64F...but has been very stable between 66-68F. I plan to bottle next Thursday. Visalia, what's in your primary?

-Sapp