Does a Barley wine need a secondary?

[edb23]

I'm planning on making a barley wine soon that will be ready in time for a friend of mine's 21st birthday (about a week from now next year). A lot of the procedures I've read on how to brew barley wine say to let it sit in primary for six weeks or so, transfer to secondary and pitch a second type of yeast (most say champagne yeast, anybody know of anything different/ better?), let it sit another six to eight weeks and then bottle and age for a long time. My question is, do I need to rack it over to a secondary? can I just pitch the second amount of yeast straight into the primary, or will the three and a half months on top of the yeast cake give me some off flavors? do I even have to worry about off flavors since it will be in bottles for 8+ months?

 

[McGarnigle]

I think we're all terrified to recommend a secondary, but I would say yes, this is a good time to do so. That's a long time and a second yeast. I'm assuming you know how to rack properly.

 

[CTownBrewer]

What yeast are you using for your barley wine? I pitched mine on top of a yeast cake from an IPA I made previously (Wyeast 1056). It took off within a couple hours & after about 2 weeks I hit my FG without needing to pitch more yeast...1.123 down to 1.030. I'm sure I over-pitched a little, but the most recent sample I had when taking a gravity reading has me looking forward to next winter already when this beast will be done.

I'm leaving mine in the primary for 4 weeks, then transferring to secondary for at least 6 months bulk aging. When bottling, I'll add more fresh yeast with the priming sugar, since your original yeast will most likely be dormant. On a separate thread, someone suggested adding about 1/4 to 1/2 vial of yeast for a 5 gallon batch.

I'm a fan of keeping the beer in the primary for a few weeks past the conclusion of fermentation, but 3.5 months may be a bit much. Hopefully, someone else can chime in if they know what the results would be of leaving a beer on the yeast for that long.

 

[Chipman]

I think leaving the beer in the primary for over a month is a potentially bad idea. Getting of that original yeast cake within say, a month, is a good call, I usually wait a week after active ferm. is done to let the yeasties do some cleaning up. Getting the beer off that original yeast cake helps avoid autolysis which can cause some funky flavors. The amount of yeast that will be present in each bottle will be negligible compared to the amount in the bottom of the primary.

When I made a barleywine I left it in the primary for a week after active ferm was done, then transferred to a 2ndary for bulk aging for several months, then added some fresh yeasties of the same kind at bottling. Let it cellar in the bottle for a few months too. Worked out pretty well. Lost some hop aroma that's for sure but wow the complex maltiness was awesome.

I'm not sure champagne yeast is necessary unless your ABV is super high. If that's what you have then by all means use it.

 

[SKMO]

Not many reasons to use a secondary, but this might be a legit one in my opinion. 12-14 weeks in the primary might be iffy.

Unlike McGarnigle I'm not terrified to say it might be a good option in this case. Sure, a lot of people have have left beer in the primary for 3-4 months, myself included! But it is also an option to rack it into a secondary. It's going to have a decent ABV at transfer which will help a lot with avoiding germs and such.

If, and when, you pitch your "new" yeast you need to do some background research as to how to make that work for you. Just like the bad critters are going to have a tough time getting established in a fermented high ABV, so are your new fresh yeast friends you are introducing.

I avoid using a secondary as much as possible, but I've done it many times for a variety of reasons, with no ill effects.

JMHO

 

[edb23]

I think we're all terrified to recommend a secondary, but I would say yes, this is a good time to do so. That's a long time and a second yeast. I'm assuming you know how to rack properly.

Well I'm pretty new to all this, and haven't had to yet, but I guess I gotta learn sometime.

also, is it neccasary to bulk age for six to seven months? can I bottle from secondary at 8 weeks and just let it bottle condition? and how would one go about adding yeast right before bottling? just pitch it on top?

 

[ChandlerBang]

Bump and subscribed as I am planning a BW. I am going to do a stout (haven't decided what exactly) then wash the yeasties and do a BW.

 

[bigbeergeek]

I left my first (noob) barleywine on the yeast cake for about 2 months. I got autolysis like a mutha. Burnt plastic flavors. Down the drain it went. Secondary is a good thing here, minimize head space and get yer buddy's beer of the trub and dead yeast.