Brewer's Best Pumpkin Porter Question

[deanktenor]

Hi all,

I'm still pretty new to home brew, done about 5 or 6 of these kits and a few from-scratches. I'm working on the BB Pumpkin Porter. Here's my dilemma. It's been in primary for 8 days. I'm still getting a bubble about every 10 seconds, but my abv is only up to 2.2 percent. Here's my dilemma, these kits say to go to secondary after 5-7 days. I will be out of town from day 9 through day 11. Should I go to secondary now or let it sit until I return? My concern is just the yeast dying off.

Thanks,

Dean

 

[Fordzilla]

Do yourself a favor and throw the kit instructions away. Pick up a copy of How to Brew by John Palmer. It has much better information and explains the reasoning behind each step. Instructions that tell you to measure your fermentation by time are just plain wrong.

The airlock bubbling does not necessarily indicate active fermentation. You should be measuring your beer's gravity with a hydrometer. Take a hydrometer reading today, then take a hydrometer reading 3 days later, and if they are the same value, fermentation is complete.

As for secondary, most homebrewers don't do a secondary. I would suggest you just leave it in primary. The yeast will be just fine.

 

[deanktenor]

Thanks for your input. I did pitch the directions, which was a good call. Oddly, I am still getting bubbles but, unless I took numbers wrong, I am still at 2.2% after another week, 47% attenuation based on my hydrometer reading. I'm thinking give it another week in the carboy (3 weeks total)? To be honest, I don't want to waste the bottles on 1.85% beer.

 

[Fordzilla]

What were your hydrometer readings?

 

[CADETS3]

Jesus, why is your ABV so ****ty?!?