misleading info on first brew???

[nathan009]

Few questions, don't want to make same mistakes twice.

#1
First batch a success, sort of. Had a strong butterscotch flavor, after being bottled for a week. Will this flavor age out of the brew?

HBS said to transfer to secondary when fermentation slows, but before it stops. So, I transfered to secondary after about 3 days. From what I've read on here this is completely wrong. Is this most likely what caused the buttery flavor?

#2
Once again HBS said to ferment ale at 70 72 degrees, sounds a little warm to me.
So I did fermenting upstairs in house. My basement stays around 65 to 68 degrees. Would this be a better location for brewing most ales, or is this a little onf the cool side?

OG 1.048 FG 1.018 3 days in primary 12 in secondary

 

[DeadYetiBrew]

Few questions, don't want to make same mistakes twice.

#1
First batch a success, sort of. Had a strong butterscotch flavor, after being bottled for a week. Will this flavor age out of the brew?

HBS said to transfer to secondary when fermentation slows, but before it stops. So, I transfered to secondary after about 3 days. From what I've read on here this is completely wrong. Is this most likely what caused the buttery flavor?

#2
Once again HBS said to ferment ale at 70 72 degrees, sounds a little warm to me.
So I did fermenting upstairs in house. My basement stays around 65 to 68 degrees. Would this be a better location for brewing most ales, or is this a little onf the cool side?

OG 1.048 FG 1.018 3 days in primary 12 in secondary

70-72 degrees isn't too warm it's within ale yeast temps. 65-68 would be better because there is heat produced from fermentation...

as for the first question, always use the hydrometer. Primary 7 day, Secondary 14 days, bottles 21 days, that's the general rule of thumb... However when you get close to the end of primary take a hydrometer reading, if it stays constant 3 days in a row move it to secondary.

 

[kenb]

70-72 degrees isn't too warm it's within ale yeast temps. 65-68 would be better because there is heat produced from fermentation...

as for the first question, always use the hydrometer. Primary 7 day, Secondary 14 days, bottles 21 days, that's the general rule of thumb... However when you get close to the end of primary take a hydrometer reading, if it stays constant 3 days in a row move it to secondary.

70-72 is too warm for some yeasts and can cause off-flavors. Especailly since 72 outside temp is closer to 77 inside your fermentor.
As for the butterscotch flavors, that is likely due to the yeast as well. Here is some good info on how to avoid it. Bottom-line is ferment at a lower temp range..outside temp of 60-64 is best....and then when active fermentation is complete or almost complete, usually after 3-5 days, do a diacetyl rest..ie bring the outside temp up to about 70f...and leave for a couple days....this will allow the yeast to reabsorb the buttery flavors...

http://beerme.com/diacetyl.php

 

[eddie]

It depends on what you're brewing. If you're brewing Belgians then 70-72 is just fine (and often recommended.)

 

[malkore]

so far everyone's right, but eddie's the closest. it really depends on your yeast strain whether 72F is acceptable or a creeping into 'too warm' territory.

removing the beer off the yeast cake aftre 3 days was a mistake, and is a huge reason why you had butterscotch flavors. that's diacetyl. yeast normally metabolize a fair amount of diacetyl, but only if the beer gets left on the yeast cake.

next time, don't listen to the LHBS. instead, wait for your beer to hit the final gravity, with 3 days worth of consistent hydrometer readings. Then its ready to rack to secondary for clearing. it sounds like your LHBS thinks secondary is for additional fermentation which isn't the case, despite the commonly used phrase 'secondary fermentation'.

I wish I could strike that term from the mind's of the world.

 

[nathan009]

thanks for all the info, this forum has answered alot of my questions

i'm going to leave in the primary atleast 1 week this time, then take a hydrometer reading

 

[Orfy]

That sounds like a good plan.

 

[mrk305]

My LHBS is a great plus to get stuff, but not a great place for advice.

 

[grasshopper1917]

You wanna leave it on primart til it is just about done fermenting - generally 3 days is a little soon i usually leave mine for 5-6 days depending on how fast it ferments out.

 

[DeadYetiBrew]

Sorry, i was referring to 70-72*F inside the fermenter not room temp.

 

[brett]

I let most of my ales ferment at 60-65F; I just let them ferment longer. I usually do primary for 3 weeks then straight to bottles, unless it's a bigger beer, which I let clear in a secondary for a few weeks before bottling.

I had issues with DMS and general off-flavors in my first few brews. I attribute them to high fermentation temperatures and a general lack of patience. Give it time, keep it cool. You'll have good beer.