Couple of questions from a first timer...

[Letsgogators10]

Hey everybody, recently brewed my first batch (Belgian Dubbel) and am excited to try it!

Had a couple issues with brewing, including:
1. Boilover (what a mess!)
2. Sat around for four hours waiting for wort to chill without realizing that I could give it an ice bath...

Despite these issues, still optimistic on the bath! Couple of questions though...

I've had the batch in a carboy in my closet in a tub of ice water and with a fan on it since Friday night (live in Florida so hard to keep it cool!)...

1. There is very little activity in the air lock now. Is that normal after 3+ days?

2. I did not mix up my carboy after pouring the yeast on; I simply covered in with the bung. Now, it appears there are little/no bubbles. Do I need to mix it in the future? Am I okay for this batch?

3. Are the mesh bags that you steep the grain in meant to be used once and thrown away?

4. How tough is bottling going to be? Any suggestions?

And finally...
WHAT SHOULD I DO FOR THE NEXT BATCH!?

Thanks everybody for the help in advance!

 

[Barnzy02]

1. What temp is it sitting at, i see you have it in a ice water tub. I've had beers that didn't bubble the airlock for a few days. Also, no bubbles does not mean there is no fermentation happening. Is it in a bucket or carboy? If it's in a bucket, the lid could not be properly seated and the co2 could be escaping through there instead of up through the airlock.

2. You only want to aerate the wort BEFORE you pitch the yeast, not after.

3. There are grain bags that are reusable, i usually boil mine in some water before using it again. if it is the stretchy mesh kind of bag that comes with most beer kits, i would toss that.

4. Bottling isn't too bad. Just make sure you clean and sanitize the bottles well. Mix your priming sugar well and you should be fine.
One method people here use is to fill all the bottles and just sit the cap on top of the bottle, so that nothing can get it there. then go back and cap all the bottles after they're filled.

Also, brew anything you like! thats the wonder of homebrewing, brew what you like!

 

[FensterBos]

1. You'll see a big drop off in airlock activity after the first 72 to 96 hours. Do not be concerned about the lack of airlock activity after that period; the only time I am concerned about a lack of activity is within the first 24 to 36 hours. After the aggressive airlock activity has subsided, your yeast is still working on fermenting sugars and then eating by-products made during initial fermentation.
2. As a general rule it is best to shake up, stir, or mechanically aerate your wort prior to pitching the yeast. Yeast utilize oxygen to grow so it is an important try to aerate prior to pitching; after pitching you do not want to aerate the beer because it can cause oxidation and bad tastes. You'll be fine since it seems like fermentation had initiated.
3. I usually use the mesh bags once and then toss them. I do not think they are meant to be used more than once. From what it looks like they stretch pretty easily and will be unable to contain heavy amounts of wet grain for one a batch or two. If you want to save money in the long run you can buy a nylon bag.
4. Bottling isn't hard. As long as you siphon the beer carefully from the primary to your bottling you will reduce any risk of oxidation. Remember to boil your priming sugar in about a cup of water prior to adding it to the beer; if you do not boil it you risk infection and/or unbalanced carbonation.

Next batch: The Spring and Summer is coming around. Why don't you try a lighter beer like a pale ale? or American Amber?

 

[Becks]

Is the ice bath keeping the brew at the proper temp required for the yeast? If you're too cold the yeast wont wake up, wont eat the sugar and thus wont produce the CO2 you're looking for.
From my very novice experience the chilling of the wort prior to adding yeast is simply to bring the temp of the liquid down from the high boiling point so as to not kill the yeast.

After pouring the yeast I aerated (stirred) my wort per the instructions AHS sent me, not sure how critical that is but it was on their list.

 

[FensterBos]

Don't forget, the only safe and accurate way to ensure that fermenation is completed is by taking back-to-back hydrometer readings; most brewers will ensure that the readings are the same for two to three days in a row.

 

[GeoGirl]

4. Bottling isn't hard. As long as you siphon the beer carefully from the primary to your bottling you will reduce any risk of oxidation. Remember to boil your priming sugar in about a cup of water prior to adding it to the beer; if you do not boil it you risk infection and/or unbalanced carbonation.

When you boil up the priming sugar, do you then let that come down to the temp of the beer before adding it or do you put it into the bottling bucket right after it has boiled?

 

[Letsgogators10]

Thanks for all the responses! Feel a lot better about my batch now!

Some responses:

1. To clarify, the batch is in a carboy, which I have placed in a big bucket from Wal-Mart; the temperature of the water is 76 degrees. Any thoughts?
2. How am I supposed to get the liquid out of the carboy for a hydrometer testing? Take off the bung and pour it? Which reminds me...
3. When I put the wort in the carboy, I poured directly from my pot. Is that the way to do it? Seemed like I was doing something wrong.

FensterBos: definitely will take those suggestions into consideration for the next batch. Thanks all for the replies!

 

[jwplessner]

Priming sugar water volume is so small that it doesn't really get a chance to kill much of the yeast intended for priming before the temp drops during dilution. Still, since you're most likely adding it to a plastic bucket, not a bad idea to let it cool down first.

 

[Becks]

Thanks for all the responses! Feel a lot better about my batch now!


2. How am I supposed to get the liquid out of the carboy for a hydrometer testing? Take off the bung and pour it? Which reminds me...

You have to pull some out using a sanitized thief, which is essentially a fancy turkey baster that allows you draw directly from the carboy.

 

[FensterBos]

Clarification:
1. Do you remember what type of yeast you used? You can go online or look at the packet and see what temperatures the yeast is effective in. For instance, the recommended temperature for Wyeat's Belgium Abbey is 68 F to 78 F.
2. I forgot that you are using a carboy. You can use something like a turkey baster or a wine thief to extract a sample. I would recommend going to the super market and buying a new turkey baster; I think they are inexpensive and it will reduce the risk of infection. Just remember to sterilize equipment prior to using. Also, if you use a turkey baster, squeeze the bulb before you insert it into the beer so you won't cause bubbles and possible aeration. Aeration before pitching = Good. Aeration after pitching = Bad.
3. You can go directly from pot to carboy; the splashing from the pouring will probably help aerate the beer prior to pitching. Some people use a funnel. If the wort is cool enough you can siphon it too.

Next batch suggestions: Usually when I am trying to figure out what I want to brew next I try to think of beers I generally love drinking and/or beers I can't find in my area. For instance, I live in Boston and we do not get Fat Tire and Odell's 90 Shilling; so I found a clone recipe for both and made it myself.

 

[erikpete18]

1. To clarify, the batch is in a carboy, which I have placed in a big bucket from Wal-Mart; the temperature of the water is 76 degrees. Any thoughts?
2. How am I supposed to get the liquid out of the carboy for a hydrometer testing? Take off the bung and pour it? Which reminds me...
3. When I put the wort in the carboy, I poured directly from my pot. Is that the way to do it? Seemed like I was doing something wrong.

1. If the temp of the water is at 76 degrees, I'd definitely put a few frozen water bottles in to cool it down a little bit if you can. If not, just having it the water will keep temps around 76, but even that could be higher than optimal (if you can get down to 68-70, that would be better, could also go lower if capable).

2. Do you have an autosiphon? What I used to do was plug the end of the sanitized autosiphon where you attach the hose with my finger, then pull up and fill it with beer. It will drip a little, but you can get that into your measuring container pretty easy. If not, you can do the same thing with a long sanitized turkey baster/wine thief, or even just use a section of hose that you lay down into the beer and plug then end to pull up.

3. Nothing wrong with pouring directly into the carboy, as long as its cool (don't pour hot wort into the carboy, they can shatter from the heat). Some people like to filter out some of the hop trub and hot/cold break, but I'm pretty sure people have shown they don't have much if any affect on the flavor of the final beer.

When you pour, you want to make sure the beer gets shaken up really well. What I like to do is pour through a funnel without the strainer, the take the carboy, tilt it on its side, and really swirl everything around inside until its get 3-4 inches of foam. Boiling removes all the O2 from the wort, and the yeast need O2 to replicate up to good levels before converting that sugar to alcohol. If you forget you can definitely aerate after adding the yeast, but you've got to do it right away. Once fermentation starts is when you have to worry about oxidizing your beer.

 

[Letsgogators10]

Clarification:
1. Do you remember what type of yeast you used? You can go online or look at the packet and see what temperatures the yeast is effective in. For instance, the recommended temperature for Wyeat's Belgium Abbey is 68 F to 78 F

I used Safbrew T-58 Yeast. Here are the instructions:

http://www.fermentis.com/FO/pdf/HB/EN/Safbrew_T-58_HB.pdf

Since I did the second option (pitched dry yeast), what does it mean by "mix the wort e.g. using aeration"?

And thanks for the suggestions! Will make sure to buy a turkey baster next time I'm at the store.

 

[FensterBos]

Yeast temps: The T-58 is good between 59 to 75 F degrees; you currently have the wort at 76 F. The yeast will continue to ferment, but it will be doing it more actively due to the higher temperature, which will produce off-flavors. I highly recommend that you add some ice bottles to the larger bucket via erikpete's instructions.
I wouldn't be too concerned since it is only 1 F degree higher than the recommended temperature, but you should look to drop the temp. as soon as possible.

"Mix the Wort e.g. using aeration" - As mentioned before, oxygen is key to yeast growth (growth, not fermentation). So when the instructions say "mix the wort" it is recommending that you take a plastic or wooden spoon and stir it aggressively to introduce oxygen into the wort. In the past I've used a sanitized beater attachment and hooked it up to my cordless drill to stir and aerate the wort. Also, I hear of people using aquarium aerators (with clean -sterile tubing) to aerate the beer.

 

[Letsgogators10]

Okay, perfect; I'm adding ice bottles now.

Thanks again! Excited to see how my brew turns out in 3-5 more days!