I’d like to get started..

[Big_D]

Yo\u'll need to join in on the Meat Smoking, Curing & Sausage Making | Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum subforum.

Now that sounds like my kinda crowd!

I‘ve got a pair of twin Timberline 850’s that I love puttin to the test!

 

[Beermeister32]

I’d get that equipment off the rugs and put that mason jar in a bucket in case of spillover. Nice gear!

 

[Big_D]

Well, it’s been 8 1/2 days now so figured I should add an update. With it being the week of Christmas, we‘ve been so busy I‘ve really done nothing with the ferminting wort other than check the temp on the controller a couple times a day and change out the ice block in the cooler every other day. Probably not much else I could have done but take some readings and get tired of waiting.

From what I can tell, the gassing off has stopped. After realizing that, I figured I should pull a small sample and take some readings. Here’s what I’m getting for converted readings using the Northern Brewers site.

 

[Big_D]

The recipe for the kit I used says FG should be around 1.015. I’m assuming it’s about time to crash cool it, dump the yeast, and then carbonate it. This part worries me much more than the brewing phase.. I know this is where I can really screw it up.

 

[Big_D]

Oh, and I was wrong about the gassing off. I sat there and watched it for a bit because I thought it was odd that it had just stopped... it’s still gassing off, just at a much slower rate.

 

[grampamark]

You’re 8 days in. Despite what your gravity readings are, it ain’t done yet. Patience is the cheapest ingredient in brewing, but it can be surprisingly scarce. Don’t get in a hurry. Check the SG again in a couple of days and again in a couple more. Even if the gravity isn’t dropping, the yeast are still doing yeasty things which will improve the flavor and clarity of the finished product.

It’s possible to go grain to glass in a week, or so, and get drinkable beer. Adding some time to the recipe, however, is the difference between drinkable and “Holy siht! You made this?!

 

[Big_D]

You’re 8 days in. Despite what your gravity readings are, it ain’t done yet. Patience is the cheapest ingredient in brewing, but it can be surprisingly scarce. Don’t get in a hurry. Check the SG again in a couple of days and again in a couple more. Even if the gravity isn’t dropping, the yeast are still doing yeasty things which will improve the flavor and clarity of the finished product.

It’s possible to go grain to glass in a week, or so, and get drinkable beer. Adding some time to the recipe, however, is the difference between drinkable and “Holy siht! You made this?!

Appreciate the reply! I have no problems with waiting, I was just worried something might go crazy if I wait too long.. sounds like that’s not the case. The sample I pulled was pretty cloudy, I assumed it would be though. It smelled amazing though!

According to the weather forecast, it‘s supposed to get down to 27F this time next week.. should make it a lot easier to crash it. I’ll change my focus to getting that porter going this week!

 

[Big_D]

Oh, I got a couple new toys for Christmas.. looking forward to trying them out!

 

[Big_D]

It’s been 27 days, and there hasn’t been much action at all from this one for the last week or so. Figured it was time to CRASH!!

 

[Big_D]

Chiller is set to -6C, the controller on the Brewtech is down to 36.5F now. I’m going to let it run like this for another 24 hours or so, then carb it with the carb stone. I did pressurize the unitank to around 8psi to offset the negative pressure.. I’ll keep an eye on it to make sure it’s enough.

 

[Big_D]

Sorry for the repeat info.. just wanted to close this one out on a high note!

So, it’s been 30 days. After the cold crash for 48hrs, I hooked the co2 up to the carb stone, set it to 10psi (the target for this type beer/temp per the charts) and walked away. It definitely took longer than I thought it would, about 30hrs, but it finally got up to 10psi in the unitank. I pulled the co2 off, bumped the temp up to 39F, and headed to work. When I got home from work in the wee hours of the morning, I poured my first home brewed pint ever… awesome!

Tastes great too!

 

[Big_D]

For those looking for info on using a unitank type fermenter and what to do when your beer is ready to be cold crashed, trub dumped, carb stoned and transferred.. these guys have so great videos with good info!

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-B3ksPZytqtB2lA8nfPK7A/videos