Boil question

[Dave T]

Just finished my 4th brew, first three from a kit with detailed instructions, 4th is from a recipe I found here. All three using extracts

The kits all had me start the boil with 2.5gal then add extracts and hops, so I did that with the 4th. Long boil (for me), and at the end I had just under 2 gal, so similar to my prefious brews, I just added 3.5gal of water.

Is that the right method, or should I have started with 6 gal of water for the boil?

Either way, I have beer, bubbling away with a thick (Krausen?) - just found some class carboys and it’s definitely more satisfying than looking at a big bucket...

Thanks

 

[RM-MN]

Yes....or maybe no. If you have the kettle size so you can use full volume you can use the 6 gallons (usually a bit more) for your boil. The plus side of that is that you get a lighter color beer as the concentrated boil will darken the beer. The bad side is that it takes an 8 gallon or bigger kettle to handle the larger volume without boiling over. Many brewers do an extract batch on the kitchen stove and utilizing that big kettle is more challenging and often the kitchen stove cannot bring that large volume to boil in a reasonable time if at all.

 

[Dave T]

Thank you. I have the capacity, just bought a new pot. Was kinda annoying seeing under 2 gal in a huge pot - not to mention being outside in NY winter the steam made it hard to see if it was actually rolling.

6-8 gal boils for me!

 

[IslandLizard]

When you do partial boils, say boiling half the wort (now at double strength) then add water to the fermenter to bring it to it's intended gravity, you stand to get some extra wort darkening and caramelization among a few other things that can be improved upon.

If you don't have the capacity to brew full volume, it's better to use only half of your extract during the boil, then add the remainder directly after flameout, stir to dissolve, chill, and transfer to your fermenter. Then add top up water to the recipe's volume.

If you boiled off too much, you may be boiling too hard. A simmer (slight rippling on the surface) is plenty!

 

[ApolloSimcoe]

Just to build on what RM-MN stated. You also need to consider a way to cool the full batch of beer. With the partial boil cold water is added at the end of the boil, topping up to the 5 gallon mark. This cold water drops you to pitching temps or fairly close.

 

[IslandLizard]

Thank you. I have the capacity, just bought a new pot. Was kinda annoying seeing under 2 gal in a huge pot - not to mention being outside in NY winter the steam made it hard to see if it was actually rolling.

6-8 gal boils for me!

Most kit instructions are generic, but typically you can adapt them as you see fit, depending on your equipment and methods. Do you have a chiller?

Be very careful with glass carboys, they are fragile. Don't put hot liquids in them, and handle them with utter respect. If they break the (large) shards can cause serious injuries. They can also become unexpectedly very slippery, like when using cleansers, sanitizers, or condensation settles on them.

 

[Dave T]

Thanks, great info. I do have a chiller, just made it (no leaks yay), didn’t have to use it on this batch - when I topped to 5.5gal it was at 71f (cold NY water). I have 2 pots that can handle over 6 gal, so I don’t have to put any wort in a carboy until I’m ready to pitch.

And yes, very slippery - got 3 this weekend from a guy who hasn’t brewed in 3 years...cleaned up nice, but wow, like a short fat eel. Looking for some plastic bottoms / holders for them, definitely don’t want them to break. Lots of glass...everywhere.

 

[IslandLizard]

Thanks, great info. I do have a chiller, just made it (no leaks yay), didn’t have to use it on this batch - when I topped to 5.5gal it was at 71f (cold NY water). I have 2 pots that can handle over 6 gal, so I don’t have to put any wort in a carboy until I’m ready to pitch.

And yes, very slippery - got 3 this weekend from a guy who hasn’t brewed in 3 years...cleaned up nice, but wow, like a short fat eel. Looking for some plastic bottoms / holders for them, definitely don’t want them to break. Lots of glass...everywhere.

Yup, CL is a wonderful resource for used brewing equipment!

"BrewHaulers" are a good way to transport full ones, but the webbing needs to remain around the carboy, which will rot the stitchings if kept in a water bath or from sheer condensation in a ferm chamber. Many keep carboys in a plastic crates for transport. You don't need the horrendously overpriced foam bumpers on the bottom, just place carboys on a twice folded over towel, and never directly on a concrete or tile floor. I switched to buckets a few years ago. Easy to clean, unbreakable, and they come with a built-in handle! I only use carboys now for long term aging sours, but kegs are a viable option for those too. Once you've seen a few fermentations, the fascinating liquid storm behind glass, using more pragmatic vessels (buckets) becomes common sense.

A few pointers to new (kit) brewers:

• If using tap water for your brewing water, treat with 1/4 Campden tablet or a good pinch of K-Meta per 5 gallons, to eliminate the chlorine or chloramines your water company routinely adds for sanitation. The chlorophenols they would otherwise produce cause havoc with your beer flavor.
• Use some form of temp control during fermentation, at least during the first few days until things slow down drastically.
• Omit secondaries, leave in "primary" until ready to package. There are only very few exceptions where a secondary could benefit or should be used.
• Take the fermentation schedules with a large pinch of salt, it doesn't take 6 weeks before packaging your beer, 2-3 weeks is usually plenty, as long as you verify the gravity.

 

[ncbrewer]

Take the fermentation schedules with a large pinch of salt, it doesn't take 6 weeks before packaging your beer, 2-3 weeks is usually plenty, as long as you verify the gravity.

+1 to all the comments. I'll add to this one (above), assuming you're bottling: To be sure fermentation is complete, check FG twice, 2 - 3 days apart to be sure gravity is stable. Reaching predicted FG doesn't necessarily mean it's finished. Predicted FG is only an estimate. If you bottle before fermentation is complete, it could over carbonate, causing gushers or bottle bombs.

And if you're boiling the wort at a lower concentration than the kit instructions call for (e.g. by doing a full boil or holding some extract back to add at flameout), hop utilization will be higher. Bitterness will be higher than intended. If you would like to deep bitterness as intended, use a little less hops in the boil. You can get the adjusted utilization from several sources. Here is one: http://realbeer.com/hops/research.html