Big Beer - When to Rack?

[Emian]

I’m not sure when to rack this beer. I’ve recently started brewing big beers, and I’m finding things go a little differently.

Currently have a Belgian been fermenting for 10 days now – it’s still fermenting but now down to 1 bubble per 12 seconds. It should come out to over 9% so I was expecting it to go a while – but should I wait longer before racking?

With smaller beers – usually signs of fermentation were gone after 5-6 days. How long should a big beer like this take? Last one I made was an IPA and when I racked it – it stopped fermenting and the final SG was a bit higher than I expected – but it came out pretty good.

Ian

 

[wild]

Sounds like a Belgian Strong. I have several bottles left that I brewed in Dec-03. Check your gravity but I wouldn't let it go past 12 days before racking to secondary. All of my Stong Belgian recipes say to primary for 7 days or until fermentation slows.

Good luck,
Wild

 

[Janx]

Go ahead and rack it now. A big beer like that could take weeks or months to finish up and mellow to a nice flavor. Usually with big beers, the longer the better.

Cheers