Mr Beer - Read all about it and ask questions

[BrewinBromanite]

I think I posted this elsewhere on the site, but got no responses, so I'm going to re-post it here:

So, I got curious and took a little sample of my Novacaine (21 days into fermentation). First impression is that I think I am going to need to rack this to a secondary, and I only hope that will help - the sample was very cloudy, and I am sure that's because I didn't strain the mixture before fermenting, and there was a LOT of stuff that should have been strained out. I honestly think the trub is about level with my spigot. The other impression I got is that while it does taste like beer, and definitely has some alcohol, it is still kind of sweet. This very well might not be done fermenting yet, 21 days after brewing & pitching the yeast. Estimated FG is 1.028 (OG was est. at 1.111), but IDK if that is why it tastes as sweet as it does.

Any advice/suggestions? (Besides straining my wort next time? ) Should I cold-crash it before moving to my 2nd LBK?

Hard to say for certain, but I might suggest placing in a little warmer location along with some VERY LIGHT agitation or rocking. Don't aerate, just gently rock once or twice. This won't help the cloudiness initially, but there's a chance it could wake up some yeast in case they went to sleep early. Give it another week after doing this and take another reading to see if it dropped. If it doesn't, it's likely as low as it's going to go. At that point, cold crash and rack to a bottling bucket trying to keep as much trub in the fermentor. After carbing, the longer in the fridge will help the yeast in the bottle settle down firmly. I rarely bother with straining. A good cold crash (or do this in the bottle in the fridge after carbing) typically make a very clear beer. Good luck!


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[slym2none]

Well, I added an extra pound of DME, and two ounces of hops. I tried my best when pouring from my brew pot to the LBK to keep all the stuff I saw in there out, but a lot got in. I even held back the last quart in a sanitized containerand pretty much cold-crashed it for a couple days before pouring it into the LBK, just to keep the inch of muck that accumulated in the container out of my LBK.

I just looked, and the tilting actually did it's job, the trub stops short of the spigot and is a good inch-thick at the back of the LBK. I did give it a little agitation, just from getting it out of the cooler & putting it back in.

I am going to leave it alone, however - I changed my mind, and won't put it into my other LBK as a secondary. Too much chance of oxidation, what with the "blanket" of CO² being gone if I do that. I am just going to trust it will be done fermenting by Wednesday night (26 days, 2.4 gallons, one whole packet of US-05) and then cold-crash it before bottling.

Again, I know - I really need a hydrometer.

 

[douglasbarbin]

I think I posted this elsewhere on the site, but got no responses, so I'm going to re-post it here:

So, I got curious and took a little sample of my Novacaine (21 days into fermentation). First impression is that I think I am going to need to rack this to a secondary, and I only hope that will help - the sample was very cloudy, and I am sure that's because I didn't strain the mixture before fermenting, and there was a LOT of stuff that should have been strained out. I honestly think the trub is about level with my spigot. The other impression I got is that while it does taste like beer, and definitely has some alcohol, it is still kind of sweet. This very well might not be done fermenting yet, 21 days after brewing & pitching the yeast. Estimated FG is 1.028 (OG was est. at 1.111), but IDK if that is why it tastes as sweet as it does.

Any advice/suggestions? (Besides straining my wort next time? ) Should I cold-crash it before moving to my 2nd LBK?

Did you take a gravity reading? Because 1.028 is about as low as I'd expect it to attenuate for a 1.111 extract brew. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if it didn't even get that low.

 

[slym2none]

No hydrometer... I'm both poor & cheap.

 

[Kirkwooder]

No hydrometer... I'm both poor & cheap.

Let it ride a while longer. An extra week or two won't hurt it any and may give it some time to drop clear. A 1.110 beer is a big beer and may need another week or more.

 

[bpgreen]

Question on old Mr. Beer extracts.... I keep finding some old (Expires 2012/2013) Mr. Beer kits for $6 or so. They come with the IPA and booster. While I'm assuming the yeast is not any good, would the extract yield any decent results? Or would the taste be too funky? I'm moving past the Mr. Beer stuff, but seeing these available (plus, the bottles and the rest of the kit are good) has me interested in keeping a 2 gallon batch going.

You can use them. They'll likely to be darker than intended, and there may be flavor changes, but if the cans aren't bulging or leaking, you can use them. LME doesn't spoil per se, since there isn't enough water for bacteria to grow. But it does change color and flavor.

 

[brewski09]

What yeast did you use? That could be an issue. You are looking at about an 11% abv beer based on your estimated numbers so not all yeasts can handle that.

Also, plenty of experiments have been done on the effects of racking the trub from boil kettle to fermenter. Unless you are doing a super hoppy IPA it doesn't seem to matter. It only adds a few days to your aging before bottling for clearing purposes.

 

[slym2none]

What yeast did you use? That could be an issue. You are looking at about an 11% abv beer based on your estimated numbers so not all yeasts can handle that.

Also, plenty of experiments have been done on the effects of racking the trub from boil kettle to fermenter. Unless you are doing a super hoppy IPA it doesn't seem to matter. It only adds a few days to your aging before bottling for clearing purposes.

Was this question directed at me, or the last poster who asked a question?

 

[rich5665]

I got my first Mr. Beer kit about 3 weeks ago. My first brew was the Oktoberfest Lager that I just bottle this weekend. I picked up a second LBK less than a week later and brewed up a Czech Pilsner that will get bottled this coming weekend. I then went out and picked up 2 - 5 gallon food grade buckets found a couple of air tight screw down lids at the local Home Depot. I modified both buckets, One is my Primary Fermenter the other a bottling bucket. I have a partial mash Irish Red Ale that my LHBS worked up for me (more ore less 4 gallons of beer). I picked up a 3rd LBK for $5 that I'll use for the MR Beer 2015 Spring Helles Bock. I'm thinking I'll do another partial mash once I have two free LBK's.

 

[Kirkwooder]

I got my first Mr. Beer kit about 3 weeks ago. My first brew was the Oktoberfest Lager that I just bottle this weekend. I picked up a second LBK less than a week later and brewed up a Czech Pilsner that will get bottled this coming weekend. I then went out and picked up 2 - 5 gallon food grade buckets found a couple of air tight screw down lids at the local Home Depot. I modified both buckets, One is my Primary Fermenter the other a bottling bucket. I have a partial mash Irish Red Ale that my LHBS worked up for me (more ore less 4 gallons of beer). I picked up a 3rd LBK for $5 that I'll use for the MR Beer 2015 Spring Helles Bock. I'm thinking I'll do another partial mash once I have two free LBK's.

:rockin: Kinda addicting isn't it.

 

[detlion1643]

So i've been staring at my Mr. Beer keg fermenter for a while now as it collects dust. I've only ever tried the 1 kit that came with it and didn't care for it. I've been doing lots of wine over the years since I found this site, but want to try my hand at beer again. Previously, I've discussed some recipes on here, but never actually had the time or equipment to fully venture into the beer side of the hobby.

So, to finally fulfill my interest into the beer side, I opted to try my hand at creating a spiced porter. I don't have any equipment for a good size batch, so I have to opt for a partial boil and top up method to make use of the empty fermenter.

Spiced Porter *2.5 gallons for Mr. Keg fermenter*

.5 lbs Light DME
1.5 lbs Amber DME
.25 lbs Chocolate Malt

.2 oz Cascade (60 min)
.2 oz East Kent Goldings (15 min)

1/2 tsp cinammon (15 min)
1/2 tsp ginger (15 min)
1/2 tsp nutmeg (15 min)

So, with the above, I will be boiling 2 gallons of water for 60 minutes. After it cools and into the fermenter, I will top up with water.

Does the chocolate malt go into the boil the whole time or should I steep it for only some of the time (if so, how much time)? Are there any other suggestions?

 

[bpgreen]

So i've been staring at my Mr. Beer keg fermenter for a while now as it collects dust. I've only ever tried the 1 kit that came with it and didn't care for it. I've been doing lots of wine over the years since I found this site, but want to try my hand at beer again. Previously, I've discussed some recipes on here, but never actually had the time or equipment to fully venture into the beer side of the hobby.

So, to finally fulfill my interest into the beer side, I opted to try my hand at creating a spiced porter. I don't have any equipment for a good size batch, so I have to opt for a partial boil and top up method to make use of the empty fermenter.

Spiced Porter *2.5 gallons for Mr. Keg fermenter*

.5 lbs Light DME
1.5 lbs Amber DME
.25 lbs Chocolate Malt

.2 oz Cascade (60 min)
.2 oz East Kent Goldings (15 min)

1/2 tsp cinammon (15 min)
1/2 tsp ginger (15 min)
1/2 tsp nutmeg (15 min)

So, with the above, I will be boiling 2 gallons of water for 60 minutes. After it cools and into the fermenter, I will top up with water.

Does the chocolate malt go into the boil the whole time or should I steep it for only some of the time (if so, how much time)? Are there any other suggestions?

You'll want to steep the malt for roughly 30 minutes before starting the boil. Drain it off and boil the resulting liquid.

I'm not a big fan of spices in beer and haven't used them in a long time, but offhand that looks like a lot of spice for a Mr Beer sized batch. With spices, a little can go a long way. I would think that 1/2 tsp total would be about right, or maybe, since you'er using 3 spices, 3/4 tsp (1/4 of each). But as I said, I haven't used spices in a long time, so maybe somebody who uses spices more often can chime in.

 

[detlion1643]

Thanks for the info bpgreen. I'll leave out the spices for this one to test the basics first.

I've been playing with the brewersfriend recipe creator for numbers, and made some changes:

.25 lbs Chocolate Malt (steeped before) *unchanged*

*changed (amounts and type)*
1 lbs Extra Light DME
2 lbs Dark DME

*changed both of these to .5 oz, also EKG at 30*
.5 oz Cascade (60 min)
.5 oz East Kent Goldings (30 min)
*I read that porters/stouts shouldn't really be getting into the 15 minute hop addition, but that just might be peoples opinions*

That gives about the following which states it's within the style I am looking for:
OG: 1.053
FG: 1.013
ABV: 5.22%
IBU: 19.00
SRM: 24.74

 

[TonyKZ1]

You also might check out some of the recipes they have over on the Mr. Beer site. As they've got quite a few standard refills plus more advanced recipes too. Quite often the guys will find that instead of the beer refill being bad, it was their procedure (recommended 3 weeks in fermenter and 4 weeks in the bottle carbonation/conditioning), sanitizing, or lack of that caused the problems.

 

[douglasbarbin]

Thanks for the info bpgreen. I'll leave out the spices for this one to test the basics first.

I've been playing with the brewersfriend recipe creator for numbers, and made some changes:

.25 lbs Chocolate Malt (steeped before) *unchanged*

*changed (amounts and type)*
1 lbs Extra Light DME
2 lbs Dark DME

*changed both of these to .5 oz, also EKG at 30*
.5 oz Cascade (60 min)
.5 oz East Kent Goldings (30 min)
*I read that porters/stouts shouldn't really be getting into the 15 minute hop addition, but that just might be peoples opinions*

That gives about the following which states it's within the style I am looking for:
OG: 1.053
FG: 1.013
ABV: 5.22%
IBU: 19.00
SRM: 24.74

You are basically doing only a bittering addition with that hop schedule. If you want flavor/aroma, do an addition near the end of the boil. Some people like it, others prefer to let the roasted grains dominate the nose.

 

[rich5665]

I've got 3 empty LBKs just waiting to be put back into use. I picked up the Mr. Beer 2015 Spring Helles Bock, it's 3.75 pounds of HME that'll go into 1 LBK and I'm thinking of doing all grain batch and splitting it between the other 2 LBKs. That leaves my DIY 5 gallon Primary open for another batch. I also was the recipient of 2 - 5 gallon carboys that need to be cleaned, sanatized and put to use. Oh the agony

 

[bwidner]

Hi everyone and thanks ahead for any advice or replies, as most a Mr beer kit got me into the hobby, I quickly moved to extract brewing and after a few batches onto BIAB. I have made a few ipas at this point and have gone really heavy with late hop additions and dry hopping, however two weeks after bottline when I crack one open there is very little hop aroma or taste and I feel like I am missing something. My most recent was an amber ipa 2.5 gal batch and here were the additions

FWH- 1 oz chinook
15 min- 1 oz simcoe
10 min .75 oz centennial
5 minute .75 centennial
3 min .5 centennial
flameout 1oz centennial

Dry hopped 5 days in secondary with 1.5 oz centennial and 1 oz citra.

I would think this would lead to a very hop forward beer, and while it is very good there just is no reall hoppiness to it. I used s-04 yeast as well and rehydrated it prior to pitching.

So my question really is(sorry if the background is not needed!)has anyone else experienced this? I actually wonder if the LBK venting system is allowing aroma to leak out or not be absorbed? I have another thread int he recipe section and already have determined based off response that I need to add more hops in the 25-7 minute left to boil range to help with flavor.

 

[douglasbarbin]

Hi everyone and thanks ahead for any advice or replies, as most a Mr beer kit got me into the hobby, I quickly moved to extract brewing and after a few batches onto BIAB. I have made a few ipas at this point and have gone really heavy with late hop additions and dry hopping, however two weeks after bottline when I crack one open there is very little hop aroma or taste and I feel like I am missing something. My most recent was an amber ipa 2.5 gal batch and here were the additions

FWH- 1 oz chinook
15 min- 1 oz simcoe
10 min .75 oz centennial
5 minute .75 centennial
3 min .5 centennial
flameout 1oz centennial

Dry hopped 5 days in secondary with 1.5 oz centennial and 1 oz citra.

I would think this would lead to a very hop forward beer, and while it is very good there just is no reall hoppiness to it. I used s-04 yeast as well and rehydrated it prior to pitching.

So my question really is(sorry if the background is not needed!)has anyone else experienced this? I actually wonder if the LBK venting system is allowing aroma to leak out or not be absorbed? I have another thread int he recipe section and already have determined based off response that I need to add more hops in the 25-7 minute left to boil range to help with flavor.

The LBK venting system isn't really much different from a traditional airlock, in that they both let air escape from the fermenter. I don't think that's your issue.

How do you chill your wort before transferring to the fermenter? It's important to chill it quickly to "lock in" the aroma; otherwise, it will volatize and evaporate when the temperature is too high.

 

[Kirkwooder]

Hi everyone and thanks ahead for any advice or replies, as most a Mr beer kit got me into the hobby, I quickly moved to extract brewing and after a few batches onto BIAB. I have made a few ipas at this point and have gone really heavy with late hop additions and dry hopping, however two weeks after bottline when I crack one open there is very little hop aroma or taste and I feel like I am missing something. My most recent was an amber ipa 2.5 gal batch and here were the additions

FWH- 1 oz chinook
15 min- 1 oz simcoe
10 min .75 oz centennial
5 minute .75 centennial
3 min .5 centennial
flameout 1oz centennial

Dry hopped 5 days in secondary with 1.5 oz centennial and 1 oz citra.

I would think this would lead to a very hop forward beer, and while it is very good there just is no reall hoppiness to it. I used s-04 yeast as well and rehydrated it prior to pitching.

So my question really is(sorry if the background is not needed!)has anyone else experienced this? I actually wonder if the LBK venting system is allowing aroma to leak out or not be absorbed? I have another thread int he recipe section and already have determined based off response that I need to add more hops in the 25-7 minute left to boil range to help with flavor.

How fresh were your hops? Freshness is huge in hop utilization. The fresher the better. I have seen hop packages in some LHBS that were 2 years old.

 

[bwidner]

The LBK venting system isn't really much different from a traditional airlock, in that they both let air escape from the fermenter. I don't think that's your issue.

How do you chill your wort before transferring to the fermenter? It's important to chill it quickly to "lock in" the aroma; otherwise, it will volatize and evaporate when the temperature is too high.

Until my last two batches it was an ice bath, I just bought a chiller and neither of those are ready yet so that very well may be the case.

 

[bwidner]

How fresh were your hops? Freshness is huge in hop utilization. The fresher the better. I have seen hop packages in some LHBS that were 2 years old.

Im not sure, I will have to keep an eye out for dates on packaging.

 

[douglasbarbin]

How fresh were your hops? Freshness is huge in hop utilization. The fresher the better. I have seen hop packages in some LHBS that were 2 years old.

2 years old isn't necessarily a problem if the hops were stored properly. I would much prefer a 2-year old pack of hops that has been nitrogen flushed, vacuum-sealed, and stored in a freezer over those same hops exposed to oxygen at room temperature in a poorly sealed ziplock bag for a few months.

Along those same lines, I have used liquid yeast that was well over a year old but frozen in a water/glycerin solution, and it was fine. Take that same yeast when it was fresh, but leave it in a hot garage for a couple weeks during summer, and it probably will be completely dead.

 

[brewski09]

Hi everyone and thanks ahead for any advice or replies, as most a Mr beer kit got me into the hobby, I quickly moved to extract brewing and after a few batches onto BIAB. I have made a few ipas at this point and have gone really heavy with late hop additions and dry hopping, however two weeks after bottline when I crack one open there is very little hop aroma or taste and I feel like I am missing something. My most recent was an amber ipa 2.5 gal batch and here were the additions

FWH- 1 oz chinook
15 min- 1 oz simcoe
10 min .75 oz centennial
5 minute .75 centennial
3 min .5 centennial
flameout 1oz centennial

Dry hopped 5 days in secondary with 1.5 oz centennial and 1 oz citra.

I would think this would lead to a very hop forward beer, and while it is very good there just is no reall hoppiness to it. I used s-04 yeast as well and rehydrated it prior to pitching.

So my question really is(sorry if the background is not needed!)has anyone else experienced this? I actually wonder if the LBK venting system is allowing aroma to leak out or not be absorbed? I have another thread int he recipe section and already have determined based off response that I need to add more hops in the 25-7 minute left to boil range to help with flavor.

1) dry hop it for 3-4 days with 1-2oz of hops for a rocking aroma

2) as someone else mentioned, cool it quickly. I drop to about 170 for whirlpool additions and slam it with hops there and then cool as quickly as possible once I'm ready (20-30 minutes after whirlpool with the reduced temp). But when I go to cool it I do it as quickly as possible.

3) yes, your fermenter will affect the hop flavors and aromas.

 

[BBoyle2886]

Hi so I'm brand new at brewing and I have a Mr. Beer brew kit and have a question about temperature

I know that the temp threw out the brewing proses is important, I don't have great control over the temp in my apt. I can place the batch in a room that I can keep at 68f threw out the day but at night it drops to 62f-65f

1. How much will this effect the fermentation proses?
2. Should I extend the fermentations proses a week or so to make up for the cold temp?

 

[ericbw]

Hi so I'm brand new at brewing and I have a Mr. Beer brew kit and have a question about temperature

I know that the temp threw out the brewing proses is important, I don't have great control over the temp in my apt. I can place the batch in a room that I can keep at 68f threw out the day but at night it drops to 62f-65f

1. How much will this effect the fermentation proses?
2. Should I extend the fermentations proses a week or so to make up for the cold temp?

Have you read about swamp coolers? Basically, if you set the keg in a tub of water (Rubbermaid bin, or something like that), drape a towel over it so that it sucks up the water, then put a fan on it so it is cooling it, you can bring it down pretty well. Add ice packs to the water, too. Swap those every 12 hours or so.

If your room temperature is 68, you could be as high as 78 in the fermenter (fermentation makes heat). That's too high.

Also, the temperature of the liquid changes slower than the air. So it might take all night for it to really cool down much, and then it is heating back up again. So it probably maintains a pretty consistent temperature overall.

You should let it ferment AT LEAST 2 weeks, but I think you get much better results with Mr. Beer if you let it go 3-4 weeks in the fermenter. After the first week or so (when fermentation is mostly done and you're just waiting for it to clear and settle some), then the temperature is not as important.

Many people will tell you that you don't need to wait 3-4 weeks and that it is sloppy/lazy brewing to do it that way. And for experienced brewers who control things well, it is possible. But for Mr. Beer, I think you'll find a consensus about slightly longer fermentation.

 

[BBoyle2886]

So if I can keep the room at 62F and ferment for 3-4 that will be ok?

 

[rich5665]

What I found with my Mr. Beer is that after 2 weeks if you draw a small sample it will smell fruity. This is because the wort is still fermenting. If you wait 3 weeks and draw a small sample, it smells more like beer. I've brewed 3 LMEs from Mr. Beer and this has been a constant. There's a reason for the 3 week fermenting 4 week conditioning formula, it works. On my larger batches, I follow the recommendation from my LHBS 2 weeks fermentation and then bottle or keg.

 

[ericbw]

So if I can keep the room at 62F and ferment for 3-4 that will be ok?

It will be ok. But if you can keep the room temperature cooler, it would be better.

 

[slym2none]

I keep my LBK in a cooler and use ice-bottles to regulate the temps, switching them out twice a day. During primary (most active) fermentation, I get ambient air temps down to 58-59° F and after the first week, I keep air temps at 62-63 (two ice-bottles v/s one) while wort temps go as high as 64 during primary fermentation and then stay right at ambient, 62-63° the rest of the time.

 

[brewski09]

Hi so I'm brand new at brewing and I have a Mr. Beer brew kit and have a question about temperature



I know that the temp threw out the brewing proses is important, I don't have great control over the temp in my apt. I can place the batch in a room that I can keep at 68f threw out the day but at night it drops to 62f-65f



1. How much will this effect the fermentation proses?

2. Should I extend the fermentations proses a week or so to make up for the cold temp?

I think that temp is probably good. I'd fill the mr beer fee yet with water and place it on the ground or wherever you are going to ferment and then measure the temp over a day or two. I use aquarium thermometer strips that attach on to the outside (just make sure it will be completely on the fluid filled part of the LBK). You may be surprised at the actual temps you get. Going slightly cooler is not a bad thing in my experience. These levels can actually make for a cleaner fermentation profile. As far as fermentation goes, let the visible activity go until it's done, add 3 days, and then check back in if you are unsure. I liked to secondary just because the trub caused issues for me with these fermenters and is get clear beer with a secondary. The key is to wait long enough to bottle and then let the bottles age long enough before drinking them.

Oh, and don't use the yeast that comes with the kit, it's not good.