Just got done with my first brew.

[spennd]

I used Brooklyn Brew's everyday IPA set up.
I felt I had a hard time keeping it at a steady mashing temp. Other then that I added a little bit more simcoe hops to it, as I like my beer extra hoppy. Hopefully it wasn't too much hops but I felt I did my research right. I'm at that beginners phase hoping I didn't do something wrong to ruin the whole batch but here's a picture of my finished product I also feel that I lost a lot of volume during my 60 minute boil, I had to add water. Any kind of helpful hints or anything I would much appreciate it! Hope everyone's having a good night and cheers!


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[Puddlethumper]

If that's a 5gal. carboy it looks about right. What temperature are you keeping?

 

[Hello]

If that's a 5gal. carboy it looks about right. What temperature are you keeping?

Pretty sure it's a gallon kit.

Keep temp around 68 and you're golden. Looks great and sounds like the hop addition will be just fine.

 

[spennd]

It is a 1 gallon. And awesome that's reassuring! Definitely a new favorite hobby! Thanks guys!


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[fartinmartin]

That's a bit tight on headspace, so keep it cool, 15c, or you will be foaming up and out. Cool slows it down ! Your brew will be several degrees over the ambient temp.

 

[Hello]

That's a bit tight on headspace, so keep it cool, 15c, or you will be foaming up and out. Cool slows it down ! Your brew will be several degrees over the ambient temp.

I see what looks like a blow off tube.

Keep the fermentation temp within the yeast's tolerance. It could be 64-72 or 54-70 … just depends on the yeast. You don't want it too cool that it slows the start of fermentation. You could get some off flavors.

 

[teleplucker]

My first batch was BBS too. I made the Grapefruit Honey Ale in early March. Your experience was exactly like mine - issues with mash temperature and a lot of boil off. There were four or five places where I was sure I ruined it, as any noob, but it all works out fine and I was rewarded with a tasty brew in the end (only two bottles left). I've gone on to make 4 more batches and bought a second one gallon carboy . I fill the carboy even more full than you did and it's fine with a blow off tube. Your picture looks exactly how it should, in my experience.

For mashing, when I did the kit, I wrapped the brew kettle (aka stock pot) in a sleeping bag and lost a lot of heat. I now heat the oven to 170, turn it off, turn on the warm setting and mash in the oven. I can keep the temperature of the mash within 2F degrees of target consistently.

With the boil off rate, I've found that I need 1-1.5 quarts more water than the kit instructions suggest.

The only other suggestions I would make are: (1) use Star-san, not the sanitizer in the kit; (2) the bottling technique works fine, but be sure to practice three or four times with water/sanitizer prior to siphoning the beer; (3) using honey for carbonation (or the amount noted) resulted in over-carbonation - I've now switched to corn sugar and using the on-line calculators; (4) hydrate dry yeast prior to pitching - it probably doesn't work any better, I just find it easier to work with.

 

[Ash1616]

That is the exact same kit my wife bought me for Valentines day and which has subsequently got me hooked on brewing. I also experience over carbonation using the Honey as BBS suggested but now I just tone it to 2.5 tbls instead of 3tbls.

Good luck with the new hobby...after this batch you're gonna run to your LHBS and get enough gear to have a few brews going at the same time. Just wait and see!!!

 

[Tutsbrew]

Con-flipp'n-grats on your first brew!!!!

 

[The542]

Welcome to the obsession!

 

[spennd]

Wow!! This is also my first time using this and I'm AMAZED at the responses I've gotten! Thank you very much gentleman I appreciate it! And I'm already planning my 2nd brew and another 1 gallon fermenter! CHEERS!! 🍻


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[fartinmartin]

If one gallon batches are your thing that's great, have fun with them.
An awful lot of guys spend cash on the hobby and very quickly learn that buying small is one of the biggest mistakes, particularly when starting out. For instance I started with a 19L boil pot, I kick myself every time I look at it, just not big enough. The small gear is not good economy if you think you will ever progress to bigger brews.

 

[Ash1616]

I have the opposite point of view. Since im just learning the craft id rather learn on thr small scale, play around with recipes and also make mistakes with one gallon rather than have 5 gallons of something you dont like. I suppose it all comes down to your comfort level, dedication to the craft, and willingness to outlay the cash for a larger operation.

 

[spennd]

I live in a small 2 bedroom apartment, so space is an issue. I just don't have the room to fit a 5 gal fermenter or the right stove top to cook a 5 gal brew. I'm hoping to move within the next couple years and have the space to do just that.


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[spennd]

I'm a little worried though it's already at 48 hours and it's not fermenting as much as I expected... I've got the hose attached and it's running into the bowl of water and I'm only seeing a few bubbles pop every minute. Is that normal?? I was thinking about pulling some towels fresh out of the dryer and wrapping it up??


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[GotDrunkThenLost]

I don't think I'd be too concerned about the low number of bubbles, you're getting some which implies something is happening.

Both brews I've done have had pretty good fermentation for the first couple of days then within 72 hours of pitching had slowed to a trickle, it was a little quicker than I thought but seems to have gone OK, gravity was good and the tasters out of the hydrometer jar has me looking forward to 2-3 weeks time when I can crack open a bottle.

 

[spennd]

This is where it's at after 48 hours and I'm not seeing much of any action at all... Getting a little discouraged.


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[FatDragon]

You're totally fine. Make sure this is in a dark place with suitable fermenting temperatures and forget about it for the next three weeks.

If you're interested in doubling your operation with another one-gallon fermenter, you could get the second batch planned and started in the meantime; that'll get your pipeline primed so you can start a new batch every 10-14 days so you'll have roughly enough for a bottle a day once your first batch is bottled and carbed.

 

[spennd]

How do you recommend I get it in suitable fermenting temps, just curious? I shut all the windows in the room, wrapped it in a towel and put it in my closet with the closet door shut, I live in michigan btw so it's not that warm out yet so I'm jut trying to keep it warm lol.


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[joesmink]

looks like the yeast is dropping out
i would give it a good whirl, tip carboy on angle then rotate to get liquid really spinning inside carboy (If gas starts coming out of airlock then you know fermentation has started) to re suspend yeast and maybe warm it a little till you get some action out of the airlock then try to keep it around 66 degrees

 

[spennd]

How do you recommend I get it in suitable fermenting temps, just curious? I shut all the windows in the room, wrapped it in a towel and put it in my closet with the closet door shut, I live in michigan btw so it's not that warm out yet so I'm jut trying to keep it warm lol.


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[fletchergsmith]

Put it in a cooler full of water with a fish tank heater. Works pretty easily for I gallon fermenters, a small cooler can usually fit two if the lid doesn't close I wouldn't worry.



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[MarathonMurse]

How do you recommend I get it in suitable fermenting temps, just curious? I shut all the windows in the room, wrapped it in a towel and put it in my closet with the closet door shut, I live in michigan btw so it's not that warm out yet so I'm jut trying to keep it warm lol.

Even in Michigan, you're probably facing the opposite problem than you think. I'm not much further out of the frozen lands beyond the wall, but I generally have to put in a little effort to keep my temps low enough to not throw off flavors.

Remember, fermentation generates heat. Get a stick-on fermometer and see what your temps really are before you try to warm things up. I keep my house at 63 during the winter, but I had my first brew get into the high 70s before I knew better.

Right now a wet towel keeps me in the 64-68 range, but in another few weeks, I'll need to put my fermentor in a cooler and swap out frozen water bottles to keep things from getting too warm.

 

[fletchergsmith]

looks like the yeast is dropping out

i would give it a good whirl, tip carboy on angle then rotate to get liquid really spinning inside carboy (If gas starts coming out of airlock then you know fermentation has started) to re suspend yeast and maybe warm it a little till you get some action out of the airlock then try to keep it around 66 degrees

Wouldn't this cause oxidation if not done flawlessly which if the fermentation is already in progress, which is probably the case, a couple bubbles a minute through a blow off tube is quite a lot, would cause off flavors. Also it's bottom fermenting yeast right shouldn't it be on the bottom, once you start to see that thin layer of white sediment on top of the trub. That's the healthy yeast that's doing the fermenting. The suspended yeast are reproducing which if you can see it on the bottom of the fermenter that should be plenty.
Anyway when in doubt, hydrometer.



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[FatDragon]

How do you recommend I get it in suitable fermenting temps, just curious? I shut all the windows in the room, wrapped it in a towel and put it in my closet with the closet door shut, I live in michigan btw so it's not that warm out yet so I'm jut trying to keep it warm lol.

The stick-on thermometer that others have suggested is a good accessory for your fermenter. It'll help you gauge what kind of temperature your beer is brewing at, though you should expect the beer in the middle of the fermenter to be a bit warmer than the thermometer reads (although probably not by a huge margin in a one-gallon batch). Generally, most ale yeasts like temps around 62-66F, so that's what you should probably be shooting for. The easiest way to maintain your desired temps would be to keep the fermenter in a cooler or tub with cool water (if you're trying to cool it down, as it gets hotter, adding ice packs or frozen water bottles to the tub might be advisable) or a glass aquarium heater to get the temp up to your desired numbers.

When in doubt about temperature, going cooler is almost always the safe bet. Many ale yeasts will ferment just fine, if a bit slowly, at cooler-than-recommended temperatures, at least within reason. Warmer temperatures typically encourage the production of esters (fruity off-flavors) and fusels (a different kind of alcohol that tastes bad and can be harmful in excess, though on a homebrew scale it's mostly the taste that'll get you). If you did end up fermenting a bit on the warm side, it's possible that the beer has already fermented out. My first brew was done in about 24 hours after the first bubbles started because it was too warm; the beer ended up tasting good but had a bad aftertaste, and that aged out by the time I cracked the last bottle about three months after bottling.

looks like the yeast is dropping out
i would give it a good whirl, tip carboy on angle then rotate to get liquid really spinning inside carboy (If gas starts coming out of airlock then you know fermentation has started) to re suspend yeast and maybe warm it a little till you get some action out of the airlock then try to keep it around 66 degrees

Considering that even the first pic showed that much stuff at the bottom, I'm assuming it's break material and trub. A yeast cake even close to that size on an ale yeast after a couple days would be unlikely, and if that were a huge yeast cake, it would mean that fermentation was booming and there should still be a ton of yeast in suspension. In other words, agitation is probably harmless but unnecessary.

Wouldn't this cause oxidation if not done flawlessly which if the fermentation is already in progress, which is probably the case, a couple bubbles a minute through a blow off tube is quite a lot, would cause off flavors. Also it's bottom fermenting yeast right shouldn't it be on the bottom, once you start to see that thin layer of white sediment on top of the trub. That's the healthy yeast that's doing the fermenting. The suspended yeast are reproducing which if you can see it on the bottom of the fermenter that should be plenty.
Anyway when in doubt, hydrometer.

A little light agitation of the yeast cake shouldn't cause problems with oxidation. However, I don't think that's necessary at this point. Also, an ale yeast should be top-fermenting, not bottom-fermenting - that would be lager yeast.

I always reserve the right to be wrong, but I'm pretty sure I kept it accurate here.

 

[fletchergsmith]

Wish you wouldn't have made that reservation because it looks like I'm the one needing a table at the I'm wrong restaurant


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