First batch question. Urgent!

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Tim27

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Apr 5, 2009
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Location
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Hello all this is my intro post. Sorry if it is a bit brief. I have a can of Brewcrafters Irish Stout that I just started. My question is the can says 23 Liters but a 5 gallon batch is just shy of 19 liters. What do i go by? 23 liters or five gallons.
 
thats up to you. I would tweak it to the 5 gallon mark and go with the slightly higher OG.
 
That canned kit makes 6 gallons. If it were me, I would just go with the 5 or 5.5 gallons of slightly stronger brew. How big is your fermenter?
 
Thanks for the quick reply. This is my very first batch of home brew. It is a little bit daunting. If I go with 5 gallons will I get the 1.008 SG that the recipe calls for? If I don't at which point do I bottle?
 
Stated gravity before bottling is supposed to be 1.008. I got 20 liters right now as we speak. Waiting for the fermenter to cool before I add the yeast.
 
One more thing and it's important......Relax, this is fun. No matter where the gravites start and end, it will be beer that you made.

You have a couple weeks before you have to bottle.
 
I am just so damn excited. Just waitin for things to cool. I really appreciate the words of confidence. Thank you Nurmey and Snick.
 
I use the same kits, they say its for 23L but I usually use 18-19l of water, you need to leave some room in your bucket for the big foamy krausen when it ferments.

I save about 200-300 grams of extract in a separate container and refridgerate.

You can always use the whole can and your beer will be abit "stronger tasting". If you have a hydrometer just measure the SG of the solution and calculate how much sugar you need to add to get the SG in range of where you want it. About 700g sugar dissolved with your malt extract can should bring your 5 gallon brew to a 5%ish level of alcohol. Remember use the hydrometer for exacts!
 
Well the brew shop guy told me to use 1 kg of dextrose. So that is what I did.I guess i will just have to wait and see. I just don't know the finer details like what SG I need. Heck I am having problems just understanding what Specfic gravity is all about. So as it is right now 20 liters with 1 kilo of dextrose. I will attempt a specific gravity reading tomorrow.
 
Dextrose is actually better than granulated sugar, I just used it because it was the only thing I had! If 1kg of dextrose is the same as 1kg of sugar your going to have an alcohol level higher than 5.5% for sure.

Specific gravity is just a measure of how much sugar is in your beer, it helps us get a potential alcohol level.

You will need a HYDROMETER to test sg, its only 10$! I still made my beers to strong and I have a meter lol I always forget that before you bottle your adding more sugar which puts another .5% alc in the beer!

Dont worry about a thing, just let that ferment and in a week it should be done...be sure to test SG so you know exactly when to bottle, 1.008 sounds about right, but I would wait until its just below 1.006 to ensure you dont get a GASSSY beer that will ruin every bottle.
 
For one thing, adding priming sugar will not boost your ABV by a 0.5%. It is more like less than 0.05%. Also, he is not going to know exactly how much his beer is going to attenuate. Saying wait until it gets below 1.006 is not the right thing to to. It may not get the low. The correct thing to do is take readings a couple days apart. If they are the same, you are safe to bottle.
 
For one thing, adding priming sugar will not boost your ABV by a 0.5%. It is more like less than 0.05%.

The former number is closer than the latter, but it's not that hard to do the actual calculation:

Adding 5 oz of dextrose to a 5 gallon batch will boost the ABV by 0.3%.
 
For one thing, adding priming sugar will not boost your ABV by a 0.5%. It is more like less than 0.05%. Also, he is not going to know exactly how much his beer is going to attenuate. Saying wait until it gets below 1.006 is not the right thing to to. It may not get the low. The correct thing to do is take readings a couple days apart. If they are the same, you are safe to bottle.

+1. Man, it would be crazy if priming sugar added .5%, and 1.006...I'm thinking that is a bit lower than he'll actually see, but hey, anything can happen in this game.
 
Thanks to all for your replies. For my first go(which this is) I am just trying not to screw up. Alcohol content is irrelevent to me at this point. I just want some drinkable brew that might be ok to share with a few friends. I guess I am just waiting to see what happens. Now I must have patience.
 
Thanks to all for your replies. For my first go(which this is) I am just trying not to screw up. Alcohol content is irrelevent to me at this point. I just want some drinkable brew that might be ok to share with a few friends. I guess I am just waiting to see what happens. Now I must have patience.

Wow! Talk about the right attitude towards your new hobby!!! Have you been spying on us!? ;)

I counted five virtues in the bold part alone....Is that some kind of record?
 
You should brew again as soon as you can. As soon as you crack your first one, you will say, 'Man, I wish I had some more about to be ready soon'. Get your pipeline going.
 
The former number is closer than the latter, but it's not that hard to do the actual calculation:

Adding 5 oz of dextrose to a 5 gallon batch will boost the ABV by 0.3%.

You're right. I moved a decimel place to many in my calculation. I just knew 0.5% didn't sound right.
 
Thanks to all for your replies. For my first go(which this is) I am just trying not to screw up. Alcohol content is irrelevent to me at this point. I just want some drinkable brew that might be ok to share with a few friends. I guess I am just waiting to see what happens. Now I must have patience.

I knew I like you right away! The good news is you will have beer that you made yourself. Better news is that it gets easier and your beer get better with each batch. :tank:
 
I guess the yeast I am using is Muntons. It looks to be about 78 degrees in my fermenter. Should I try to get the temp a little lower. Or just go with it. I already have fermentation indicated by a 2 inch thick krausen and a heavenly odor. :) Thank you all again, with your help I know I will become a more confident home brewer.
 
Ya this is a great hobby. Most new brewers worry too much.. Wich we all were at one point. I've been brewing about 14 years and probably will never stop.. If you're even half careful it's hard to screw up a batch. Just sanitze and keep everything clean.If you bottle, rinse your bottles after you pour your beer, and it will be way easier next time to clean.When I started I was always anxious to try my beer. So go ahead and try it after it's bottled and you will see how it gets better in time. get the pipeline going and you'll always have brew ready to drink..
 
I don't think I can cool it down anymore than it is. My apartment has terrible insulation and it is gettin a little warm down here in Texas. Just costs too much to run the A/C all day.
 
Tim you must have dedication with your brew! If you can put it in the bath tube with a wet t shirt over it, and start taking showers outside with a garden hose! I would make sure to have shorts on while your outside.:)
 
I don't think I can cool it down anymore than it is. My apartment has terrible insulation and it is gettin a little warm down here in Texas. Just costs too much to run the A/C all day.

Do a search for "swamp chiller".
 
Well I got the temp down to 72 degrees. It is in the bedroom where it is always 4 degrees cooler than the living room. Now just got to remember not to trip over it. :drunk:
 

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