Just a couple of newbie questions

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escobar090

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Hello to everyone, glad i found out about this site, its just great.

I got a couple of questions i hope you guys can help me with, prior to my first batch I'm hoping to brew in a week or so, they're all random, and have nothing to do with each other but anyways:

1) If i were to brew a beer which it only has one type of hops, do i only add it to the boil kettle the minute it starts boiling and that's it? Or do i add 3 times for aroma, bitterness and flavour, at 60, 15, and 1 minutes as usual? as if i would do it with 2 o 3 types of hops.

2) Do i bottle the beer directly from the fermenter or is there a step I'm missing?, getting the beer clearer for instance?

3) Lets say my final gravity reading should be of 1,015 and only a couple of day have passed, 3 or 4, and the gravity is in fact near 1,015, lets say 1,017, does that mean that the fermentation process is almost over? or does it actually needs to ferment for about 2 to 3 weeks?, why is that?

4) I dont know much about pouring sugar to the wort before bottling, how's that?, I watched a video when a guy poured a teaspoon of some kind of sugar before bottling, is that the same as pouring X teaspoons of sugar (equal to the numbers of bottles you want) to the fermented beer?

5) Different types of sugar have any effect on the flavor or only to the fermentation process? For instance, if i want want a honey flavoured beer, when in the process do i need to add it?

6) How about the volume of water in each stage of the brewing process, mash, wort, sparge, and boiling, if i want a final result of 5 gallons of beer, whats the volume of water needed in those previous processes?


Well, that's it, hope you guys can help me,


Thanks in advance
 
1) Depends on the recipe.

2) You put it in a bottling bucket first, leaves behind junk in the fermenter and makes life easier (See the sticky here: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f35/bottling-tips-homebrewer-94812/ )

3) The speed of the yeast can vary. Leave it 3 weeks, or if you want to get technical, until readings 2-3 days apart are the same.

4) Boil the recommended amount of sugar in some water, and add that to the bottling bucket.

5) Depends, I'm not sure. I do know it's one of the reasons to rack to a secondary.
 
There are loads of threads on here regarding your various questions, but in the meantime...

1) If i were to brew a beer which it only has one type of hops, do i only add it to the boil kettle the minute it starts boiling and that's it? Or do i add 3 times for aroma, bitterness and flavour, at 60, 15, and 1 minutes as usual? as if i would do it with 2 o 3 types of hops.

Depends on what you want the hops to do / what style you are making.

2) Do i bottle the beer directly from the fermenter or is there a step I'm missing?, getting the beer clearer for instance?

There is a particularly long thread about secondary fermentation and if it is necessary for the homebrewer. Aka hornets nest.

3) Lets say my final gravity reading should be of 1,015 and only a couple of day have passed, 3 or 4, and the gravity is in fact near 1,015, lets say 1,017, does that mean that the fermentation process is almost over? or does it actually needs to ferment for about 2 to 3 weeks?, why is that?

It depends on when the SG is stable. It may be finished at 1.017 if it stays there for a few days. Time will depend on yeast variety, SG, and temperature.

4) I dont know much about pouring sugar to the wort before bottling, how's that?, I watched a video when a guy poured a teaspoon of some kind of sugar before bottling, is that the same as pouring X teaspoons of sugar (equal to the numbers of bottles you want) to the fermented beer?

You must first boil the required amount of sugar in a cup or so of water for 10 minutes before adding it to your beer. There are many "carbonation calculators " on the interweb to assist you with this. Carb level depends on the style and you add boiled sugar water to reach that level.

5) Different types of sugar have any effect on the flavor or only to the fermentation process? For instance, if i want want a honey flavoured beer, when in the process do i need to add it?

Honey is normally added during the boil but can also be used for carbing. The different types of sugar certainly affect the flavor and vary based on their color and fermentability.

Sorry if my answers were vague and for not posting links, I just thought I'd give you a poke in the right direction.
 
1. depends on the recipe, you can add a single type of hops at different times, for example, I am planning a pale ale with 2 hops additions, both are cascade, 1st at start of boil and 2nd at 5 minutes left in the boil.
2. Most leave it in the primary then move to a bottling bucket to mix with priming sugar and bottle from. You can move it to a secondary to add finings if you wish.
3. leaving the beer for at least a week AFTER the fermentation is done lets the yeast go back and clean up some of the byproducts it left behind. makes a better beer in most cases.
4. Boil the proper amount of priming sugar based on type of beer, type of sugar and size of batch. Google priming sugar calculator.
5. it depends on the type of sugar and the recipe, it can be added in the boil, after the boil or even in a secondary fermenter as in the case of fruits or berries.
6. Google mash calculator.
 
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