My first recipe, help!!

[my311music]

I brewed my first recipe that I created myself and now I have some questions...

It is a oatmeal porter I made with 8 lbs of dark malt, 1.25 lbs of flakes oats, and 2 quarts of apple juice. I was going for an apple crisp flavored beer... Never heard of one and it sounds delicious. I'll post the recipe if it turns out good.

How do I know when I should bottle it?
The OG was at .076 and now it's at .013

Is ten days to short of a fermentation for a porter?

Why did my fermentation start slow, take off like crazy! , then slow, and stop of the past three day?

Are my bottles going to explode?


Life is to short for ugly women or crapy beer.

 

[sptaylor70]

Most people bottle after the beer has finished fermenting. We rack it to a bottling bucket, add sugar, stir, then bottle from there. I have one former student, however, who waits until the beer bubbles at about one bubble per 2 seconds, then bottles directly. He says that it works great, but I've never tried it.

Fermentation for Porter: Ten days is short for a 1076 beer, but really, it's done when it's done. You know that it's done when the SG holds steady for three consecutive measurements (so about a week).

Fermentation rate: What yeast did you use? What was the temperature profile during the time you speak of?

 

[my311music]

I've done that before too with the bottling before fermentation was done but my bottles blew up. :-/
So I always do it after it stops.

The temp was at 78 when I pitched a dry yeast without rehydrating and at a steady 65 after that. I also added 2 tsp of yeast nutrient after it cooled. I'm thinking that's what made work so fast. It's been real steady at 1.013 so I'm going to bottle tomorrow and see what happens. Thanks.


Life is to short for ugly women or crapy beer.

 

[sptaylor70]

What yeast did you use?

Dry yeast already comes with its own yeast nutrient, so you don't need to add any.

 

[my311music]

I used a us-05. I think it was Nottingham


Life is to short for ugly women or crapy beer.

 

[sptaylor70]

US-05 and Nottingham are different yeasts.

Fermentis US-05 (= Wyeast 1056 = WLP001; aka Chico) is the strain used by Sierra Nevada. It is probably the most beloved of home brewing yeasts, and probably the most neutral of all ale yeasts, outside of Koelsch or altbier yeast. US-05 really shines in lighter American styles, where you don't want much, if any, fruitiness.

Danstar Nottingham (= WLP039) is probably the second most beloved of home brewing yeasts. It is an English yeast, and probably the most neutral of English yeasts. It is at its best in lighter English styles, where there is a minimum call for fruitiness.

Neither Nottingham nor US-05 have a reputation for being slow starters, unlike, for example, BRY-97 and S-04. If fermentation started within, say, two days, then it's not unusually slow. The dramatic acceleration might have been due to the added nutrient.

 

[my311music]

Thanks for all your help. It's the Nottingham yeast. That's what my brew shop told me to use. I wasn't sure on the yeast type to use. Do you know what I should use to make a porter like the one I'm trying? If it turns out good I'll brew it again and try a different yeast. I wanted the apple and oatmeal to stand out. I also am going to try toasting the oats beforehand next time. I was reading that it will cause the flavor to stand out a bit more.



Life is to short for ugly women or crapy beer.

 

[Leithoa]

You can always consult the BJCP Style Guide: Porter Entry for help on ingredients or tasting notes for a given style.
As far as what yeast to use, any clean to slightly fruity yeast will make a good porter. It all depends on what you're going for. S-05, S-04, Nottinham, Wyeast- 1028, Wyeast-1318 London Ale III, Wyeast-1099 whitbread. There are loads of yeasts to choose from.
Wyeast and White labs have compiled some resources to help choose based on style of beer.

If you can stand the wait I'd suggest waiting 3 weeks before bottling your brew. It will give the yeast a chance to clean up and flavors to meld. If you can't wait. Bottle and hide half the batch for a 4-6 weeks.

In your notes you might want to get into the habit of listing the exact malt and maltster you used, ie 2 lbs Maris otter, Maltster:Crisp or 3lbs American/Domestic 2-row Maltster: Rahr. At the least narrowing it down to Maris otter or pale malt will help in recreating recipes.

 

[sptaylor70]

Depends some on what, exactly, you want. Danstar Windsor (= Wyeast 1028 = WLP013) and Wyeast 1275 Thames Valley (= WLP013) are both good porter yeasts - a little dry, a little fruity, some complexity. Wyeast 1084 Guinness (= WLP004) is a little fruitier, works well in bigger beers. Fermentis S-04 (= Wyeast 1098 = WLP002) would also make a very good porter - fruitier than the others. Or you could go the Baltic porter route, like Deep Ellum's Double Brown Stout, and opt for Wyeast 2112 Anchor (= WLP810), which gives a lager character. Experiment. Brew it several times, take notes, see what you like best.

 

[my311music]

This is the best app I've ever downloaded. Thanks guys.


Life is to short for ugly women or crapy beer.