my first batch /finally/

[400d]

ok, today was my first brewday. I just put the lid on the fermentor and stuck the airlock. so everything is done.

I have to say that I had couple of problems that I solved improvising.

so, my mash went quite well. I didn't lose temperature. it was stable for an hour. after this I transfered the wort to my double bucket filter. and there I had a big problem because the holes in the top bucket were too little to let the wort through.

so whole thing was stuck!

then I had to improvise so I just poured all contents of the bucket (the wort and grainbed) through the insect net into my boiling kettle. this net was very good because it held even the smallest grain particles.

i sparged through the same net puring hot water over grains.

I have to say that wort is not as clear as I expected, but still I think it's ok.


the boil was a disaster. I have an electric stove and this thing is sh*t. It took me over one hour to get it boiling, but finally i did.

the boil was very poor. I could barely see it boiling, but it boiled.

the hops (pellets) completely disolved inside.


then I cooled it in a bathtub. it didn't take long time.

after this I transfered it to a fermentor and pitched the yeast.

now I'm waiting. I hope to see some sign of fermentation soon.


anyway I wanted to ask, is it a problem because I used my hands to squeeze this net, aiming to get as much as I can from grains?

 

[400d]

oh, and I forgot to say that in the fermentor I ended up with something like 2 liters more than recipe. I suppose my poor boiling didn't evaporate the expected amount of water. Is this a problem?

 

[Nurmey]

Congratulation and well done! It sounds like you overcame the obstacles very nicely. With your overage, your beer may be a little lower alcohol than the recipe indicated but it will be beer you made. Did you get gravity readings?

 

[400d]

Congratulation and well done! It sounds like you overcame the obstacles very nicely. With your overage, your beer may be a little lower alcohol than the recipe indicated but it will be beer you made. Did you get gravity readings?

of course not!

 

[Grizzlybrew]

Three Notes:

1) If the buckets were nestled right on top of one another, the problem may have been suction and not the size of the holes. You had the pressure of the wort trying to fall down, but the pocket of air in the collection bucket would being trying to forc itself back through those very same holes.

2) The grain hulls provide a good filter, but only after they have settled and compacted slightly. That's why you vorlauf or recycle wort. It will always be cloudy if you don't. And by the same token, the more you refilter, the cleaner the runoff will be (to a degree)

3) Obviously, you have a vessel large enough to do a full boil - that's alot of volume for an electric stove. Try wrapping a flame-retardent insulation blanket around it. You might also split into the wort into two batches to get it boiling. However, I would combine the two boiling worts back together before you start hop additions.

 

[scrambledegg81]

I've heard that squeezing the grain bag isn't a good idea...releases a lot more tannins into the mash if I remember right.

 

[abroch]

3) Obviously, you have a vessel large enough to do a full boil - that's alot of volume for an electric stove.

I take it an electric hot plate would be just as bad?

 

[Vuarra]

I would say that a hot plate would be worse. If you have to go electric, something to hold the heat in would be great... I do partial boils for a few reasons, and 3½ US Gallons is easier to boil than 5.

 

[abroch]

So doing partial boils, 3 1/2 in one pot and 1 1/2 in another? Combine at the end?

 

[Vuarra]

Works for me... just don't forget to split your hops in the same ratio, so that you can extract all the bittering and flavouring that you can.

 

[400d]

I am very worried. It has been 12 hours from pitching the yeast, and still nothing. not even a bubble.

the temperature was ideal all this time. I pitched at 100 F. I suppose I killed the yeast at this temperature....


I don't know what to do now....

 

[scrambledegg81]

Oof...100 will definitely have an effect on the yeasties. Cool it down in a cold water bath to around 70F, and re-pitch a new batch of yeast.

PS-RDWHAHB. It's still salvageable.

 

[400d]

ok, after 18 hours from pitching the yeast and sealing the fermentor, now I can see some krauzen forming on top, if I take a closer look I can see that this krauzen is actually omoving, bubbling. I can also see small white particles sinking down from this krauzen...

but still no airlock activity.


I hope I will be ok

 

[scrambledegg81]

Well apparently 100F wasn't enough to completely kill them off...sounds like normal fermentation going on!

 

[Grizzlybrew]

I take it an electric hot plate would be just as bad?

Probably. I just recently starting using my mother-in-law's induction burner. As long as the pot is magnetic, it will work. I can get 5 gal boiling in about 30 min, whereas the gas stove top took more like 45 min. Still not the best, but better. I think they may be pretty expensive though.

but still no airlock activity.

You said you sealed the fermentor... I'm assuming you're using a bucket. If so, everytime you crack the lid to peek at it, you allow pressurized gas to escape. If you peek everyday, you may never see airlock activity. My LHBS guy brews in 10 gal buckets with only a fine mesh net over the top. He said he likes it to "breathe". He then transfers to airlocked secondaries.

 

[400d]

after three weeks in primary and secondary, and after my newbie fears, finally today I bottled...

While I was bottling I had one small glass of beer right out of the fermentor, and.....


IT'S GREAT!!!!!!!

now, I need help again. While it was fermenting it had really good temperature, and everything was ok...


now, three weeks later, weather has become really nasty, and now it's freezing outside. the temperature of the room where I keep my bottles is around 60 F which is very cold I suppose...

when I get home from work I turn the heating on and raise the temperature to some 70 F and keep it like this for some 10 hours....


so the temperature in the room is fluctuating all the time. is this going to affect the beer quality?

what do you recommend?

 

[HillbillyDeluxe]

60-70 should be fine for both the conditioning and carbonation. Carbonation may take a wee bit longer at 60 than 70 but no prob. I have similar conditions and never have problems. That being said, the more stable the temps the better. i would alow the temp to rest at 60 all the time if that were my low temp. The yeast wil generate some heat and your actual bottle temp might be slightly higher. Loks like tou got your **** together pretty well though. Dig you go AG from the beginning, or is this your first AG batch?