Did I just muff this all up?

[rocketsan]

Had to reach in to just poured primary bucket after pushing lid air lock rubber ring into my wort. Tried to get it with paddle without luck. Oxy-san'd my arm...

Feel like a moron as this is my first brew.

Oddly enough it's a milk stout after I discovered left hand milk stout.

Am I screwed?

 

[unionrdr]

likely not. Most of the time,a sanitized arm works out ok. Especially since the yeast are about to take over. Keep an eye on it just the same.

 

[rocketsan]

Thanks. As this is my first ever beer, how or when will I know I have screwed this batch?

 

[Math0]

You will know by the smell and you can get nice infection pictures if you do a google search. There is nothing you can do now. Wait and pray

 

[GrogNerd]

gotta name it Right Arm Milk Stout

it should be OK. you really gotta try to ruin your beer to actually ruin your beer and you probably didn't try hard enough

good luck with this and all future brewing and welcome to the obsession!

let us know how it turns out

 

[Jaybird]

Bahhhaaaaaa HAaaaaaa I did the same exact thing on my first batch 15 years ago! Batch was KILLER!!

Cheers
Jay

 

[rocketsan]

I was sure I wasn't the first just pissed after an hour and a half of being hyper vigilant about being sanitary...

 

[Jaybird]

I was sure I wasn't the first just pissed after an hour and a half of being hyper vigilant about being sanitary...

Ha HA HA I totally remember feeling the same damn way man. I almost didn't sleep that night I was so pissed and couldn't calm down. But the beer was killer and it was really what launched me into what I am doing now. So that said.... I see a "home brew store" and a 3 BBL brewhouse in your future..LOL

Cheers
Jay

 

[rocketsan]

Eight hours in and the airlock is bubbling something fierce. Here's hoping I'm good...

 

[GrogNerd]

Eight hours in and the airlock is bubbling something fierce. Here's hoping I'm good...

sniff the airlock

go ahead... you know you want to

 

[Thunder_Chicken]

it should be OK. you really gotta try to ruin your beer to actually ruin your beer and you probably didn't try hard enough

Yeah, check out the lambic and wild brew forum - it can be hard to get wild bugs and yeasts to take hold in a beer. Hops are very effective at suppressing any nasties, and you just pitched a pile of yeast that will muscle out everything in there.

I've done the same thing and kicked myself for doing it, but in the end these little slips aren't likely to screw things up. You just want to avoid it to maximize your odds of getting a good clean batch, odds that are already pretty high.

 

[mrphillips]

To quote other posters..."HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" The 4th beer I made was an APA, and I brewed it COMPLETELY sh!tfaced. Nothing to be proud of, but it's the truth. I tried to take the OG, and decided - if I recall? - to dunk an empty wine bottle in a bucket of StarSanz so I could fill it up with wart to take a reading.

Did I wait the necessary time for the sanitizer to do a thorough job? I think we all know the answer to that

Anyways, after I Shaq-slammed the wine bottle into the StarSanz, I immediately dunk it into my wort bucket to fill it up. Could I have used the siphon resting peacefully next to my operation? Sure. Did I consider using it? I think we all the answer to that

After it was all said and done, I woke up the next morning with more questions than answers, but everything seemed to be in it's place, so I crossed my fingers and waited a week to transfer to the secondary. Result? PERFECTION! The best beer I ever brewed. I'm heading to Richmond for a microbrew contest and taking the very same beer. It's been 2 months, and it has since become even more enjoyable.

Moral of the story? Enjoy your weekends, brew often, and get lucky when you can.

 

[Blu3Ridge]

You'll be fine. I touch beer equipment all the time that comes in contact with my chilled wort. I just keep a spray bottle of star san handy and always spray myself down before I touch it, and whatever I'm about to touch. A arm dripping with acid on it, shouldn't hurt it.

 

[GrogNerd]

you will soon realize that "relax, don't worry, have a homebrew" isn't just a slogan to us

it's a guiding principle

 

[cluckk]

I was sure I wasn't the first just pissed after an hour and a half of being hyper vigilant about being sanitary...

In time you will relax some because you start to realize that beer is pretty hard to screw up. It happens, so don't relax too much, but sanitation will be less of a headache when you see that hops, pH, yeast and the alcohol can make up for a lot of brewer errors.

I've had two unintentionally infected batches (since 2004), and they were still quite drinkable. After a while you'll probably even want to fiddle with adding some of these "spoiling" bugs intentionally, if for no other reason than to say you have done it.

Most of the things you are trying to avoid will only change the flavor anyways and not ruin the batch--and in some styles they are welcome flavors.

 

[MarcusKillion]

I have dropped hot pads in fermenter that I have had for decades and are greasy and fished them out and had no problems . but sometimes you just get an infection for no apparent reason . the germs on your hands are probably going to get in anyway since you have to touch everything you use . My advice is to try and stay away from the sink and floor . Probably the two nastiest things in your house when it comes to germs . Oh and do not let your air vents blow on your stuff .

 

[Cider123]

That yeast army will takeover anything that might have gotten into the wort. Now the best thing is to leave it covered and leave it alone for a week or two before checking the gravity. Don't keep peeking. Go buy some beer for now.

 

[buffalobrewer]

I'm sure the op figured it out, but for other new brewers out there: Airlock into lid, lid onto bucket......

 

[unionrdr]

And use a bucket that has an "O" ring seal in the lid. My BB Ale Pail doesn't & finaly got a lactobacylis infection. But to be fair,I'm not sure I cleaned the spigot & mounting hole before filling it either? Anyway,I do get blow out & suck back under that unsealed lid as well.

 

[rocketsan]

I'm sure the op figured it out, but for other new brewers out there: Airlock into lid, lid onto bucket......

Will not make this mistake again...

 

[rocketsan]

I'm sure the op figured it out, but for other new brewers out there: Airlock into lid, lid onto bucket......

Won't make this mistake again...oops sorry for double post

 

[rocketsan]

I'm not sure I cleaned the spigot & mounting hole before filling it either? .

Is it as simple as running oxy san through the spigot in my bottling bucket or is there more to it than that?

And what is a mounting hole? Does that relate to my wife?

 

[mrphillips]

Rude. Haha!

 

[unionrdr]

Well,check out my thread in here about infected,but tastes ok for my latest results on this topic. I soaked the fermenter clean with PBW,ran that through the spigot,Then dito with rinse water. Right before filling,I sanitized it with Starsan. but I didn't remove & clean the spigot & the hole in the fermenter where it mounts up. A lactobacylis infection was the result about a week ago when time to dry hop. so at that time,I skimed it off as palmer's book said to do with mold (I thought it was,with a couple lacto bubbles). Then dropped in the sack with a few ounces of hop pellets & sprayed Starsan on top,just as an additional experiment.
The infection came back,but with smaller bubbles. See my other thread for pics between last Fridays sample & this morning. It's good enough to be almost normal,so I'm gunna bottle it. Yor results may vary...
So anyway,you need to remove & clean the spigot,& clean & sanitize the mounting hole with a paper towel & some PBW. Then a rinse water soaked one,then with one soaked in Starsan. Soak the spigot in Starsan breifly,& re-assemble wet.

 

[rocketsan]

So in three weeks when I go to use my bottling bucket, I need to remove the plastic spigot and clean it beforehand? I thought just running sanitizer through it would suffice

 

[unionrdr]

No it isn't enough. This infected batch is proof of that. the cleaners & sanitizers can't get behind the seals & into the threaded parts at all. they need to be removed cleaned,rinsed & sanitized. Re-assembled wet with sanitizer. I also scrub them with a set of aquarium lift tube brushes to get'em really clean. A paper towel soaked in Starsan to clean & sanitize the spigot mounting hole.

 

[MarcusKillion]

I have never done anything but wash out my buckets and sanitize . I have spouts in my fermenting buckets and bottling buckets . I rinse then use a wash rag and Ivory soap , good for cleaning and does not scratch , then rinse good and let dry . when I need to use them I rinse and sanitize . Never have taken apart a spigot .

 

[rocketsan]

Yeah, that surprised me especially because nothing is in the bottling bucket for too long or long enough to get too funky.

Anyone else NOT taking spigot apart?

 

[unionrdr]

Well,the problem being that wort or beer gets into these tight spaces between & around the seals & threads over time. Even properly tightened so as not to leak,as I do. But I still find wort/beer colored smears on the threads & seals. Inside the spigots too. So I clean'em everytime.

 

[rocketsan]

Still bubbling away like mad. Smells okay...like the hops I added. So, I should just keep the lid on for three weeks when I'm ready to bottle? No other time it'll be okay to peek?

Anxious to see if all is okay...

 

[unionrdr]

My rule of thumb is,if it's at a stable FG,& it's settled out clear or slightly misty,it's ready to bottle. however long that takes. It's not so much a certain amount of time as when IT'S ready.

 

[MarcusKillion]

Still bubbling away like mad. Smells okay...like the hops I added. So, I should just keep the lid on for three weeks when I'm ready to bottle? No other time it'll be okay to peek?

Anxious to see if all is okay...

No point in peeking and risking an infection for no reason . As long as it is doing as it should then you are most likely fine and looking at it is not going to tell you much unless you have some kind of moldy infection and then there is really nothing you can do so might as well let it go till it is ready then check it .
I forgot how long you had this going . It should not be bubbling away like crazy for more than a couple days and then slow down . It can and most likely will keep on letting out a bubble here and there for the next week or maybe even several even though you may not be around watching to see it . I have had several batches take 2 1/2 weeks to ferment but they started slow .

 

[GrogNerd]

can never have too many ferment vessels and plastic buckets are a great, economical choice

but you gotta get yourself at least one glass carboy, so you can watch what's going on without risking the batch

fermentation is a hideous process, but it's fascinating to watch and the end result... well, you don't need me to explain that part

 

[Thunder_Chicken]

We should really brew in aquarium tanks.

 

[MarcusKillion]

We should really brew in aquarium tanks.

Yum yum Fancy Guppy ale .

 

[rocketsan]

Update: so I cracked open the pail for the first time since I sealed it two weeks ago. This is what I saw:




This is while it was siphoning to bottling bucket. Does it look okay? Tasted pretty good. Next time I'll skip the vanilla and cocoa nibs and just do the kit straight up.

Do those floaters look okay? Need to get a better strainer maybe? Lots of hop residue...

 

[rocketsan]

So a week into bottles I have great carbonation it just tastes really hoppy. Did notice a lot of hop residue on sides of primary bucket. How can I improve on next batch or will this mellow out in time in the bottle?

Smells great just tastes hoppy after three weeks.

 

[Thunder_Chicken]

Everything looks good. Hops will fade with age. 1 week is super young. The carbonation will settle in better in a few weeks (just because it is bubbly doesn't mean it is carbonated, it might go flat quickly). Stouts mellow nicely with age. I'd leave them alone for a few more weeks, then put 1 in the fridge each week and let it chill for a few days, then sample. You'll see how the flavors develop and meld with time.

 

[hellawaits77]

It looks perfectly fine. And like thunder_chicken said, stouts will mellow with age. Never brewed a stout myself, but the general consensus is they take a while to reach their peak. A month usually, and most of the time, longer. It's great (suprising too, as most beers don't taste good nor are they carbonated after 1 week) that it's in the shape it is after 1 week. Should get much better, too.

 

[mrphillips]

Good looking brew. If you're too impatient to keep the lid on...like me...then you're probably too impatient to let your stout age...like me...