First Time Brewer

[sgnt57]

I finally tried my hand at a batch of homebrew. Bought a Muntons Premium Bitter kit to which I added 1 pound of Dried Malt Extract and 1/3 ounce Burtons Water Salts. Boiled 45 minutes. Pitched yeast at 78 degrees. Starting S.G. was 1037. Had active fermentation first night and part of next day, then activity died down. Only occasional bubbles through fermentation lock. Tested S.G. on day 7 and it was 1017. Also 1017 on day 8. Sediment visible in bottom of carboy. Taste is close to what I had in mind. Would like to rack and bottle, but read one should not bottle above 1010 or risk exploding bottles. Any suggestions? Thanks!

 

[Icaruswing]

I finally tried my hand at a batch of homebrew. Bought a Muntons Premium Bitter kit to which I added 1 pound of Dried Malt Extract and 1/3 ounce Burtons Water Salts. Boiled 45 minutes. Pitched yeast at 78 degrees. Starting S.G. was 1037. Had active fermentation first night and part of next day, then activity died down. Only occasional bubbles through fermentation lock. Tested S.G. on day 7 and it was 1017. Also 1017 on day 8. Sediment visible in bottom of carboy. Taste is close to what I had in mind. Would like to rack and bottle, but read one should not bottle above 1010 or risk exploding bottles. Any suggestions? Thanks!

Do you have another Carboy? If you do I would port the beer off the old sediment and give it 5-7 more days in another vessel. Sometimes the fermentation can stall out, even close to the end of it's full cycle. Rather than bottling or letting the beer sit on the old sediment (it effects the taste after a couple of weeks). Put it in a new carboy - I find that the move often kicks starts the remaining fermentation, and the extra time in the second fermentation helps "age" the beer. I find that the longer that the beer has as a whole, the farther towards the recipies potential it will become. This goes forward all the way through bottling - the larger the bottle in my opinion the better the beer - even in a single batch. Ultimately I have moved to a kegging system, so that I just move my finished beer from a secondary fermenter in to a keg to carbonate naturally. That way I keep the whole batch together. I love my kegging system I worry much less about spoiling beer - exploding bottles etc... and I think it makes the best tasting beer. The only thing I don't like is that the carbonation on the last 1/4 of the keg isn't as fine as when I first tap it.

Anyway, there is more than you wanted...
I hope that helps.
-Bryce

 

[sgnt57]

Do you have another Carboy? If you do I would port the beer off the old sediment and give it 5-7 more days in another vessel. Sometimes the fermentation can stall out, even close to the end of it's full cycle. Rather than bottling or letting the beer sit on the old sediment (it effects the taste after a couple of weeks). Put it in a new carboy - I find that the move often kicks starts the remaining fermentation, and the extra time in the second fermentation helps "age" the beer. I find that the longer that the beer has as a whole, the farther towards the recipies potential it will become. This goes forward all the way through bottling - the larger the bottle in my opinion the better the beer - even in a single batch. Ultimately I have moved to a kegging system, so that I just move my finished beer from a secondary fermenter in to a keg to carbonate naturally. That way I keep the whole batch together. I love my kegging system I worry much less about spoiling beer - exploding bottles etc... and I think it makes the best tasting beer. The only thing I don't like is that the carbonation on the last 1/4 of the keg isn't as fine as when I first tap it.

Anyway, there is more than you wanted...
I hope that helps.
-Bryce

Thanks Bryce,
I was heading down that road. Racked the beer into 2nd Fermenter on day 10. S.G. at 1016 now. .......14 hours later, no signs of fermentation starting back up. Will give it more time. Question, if I don't get any further activity, can I add more yeast? If so, how do I go about it? Also, thanks for your thoughts on kegging, etc...
sgnt57