So I figured I'd try to make some beer since I live in Milwaukee.
I got an ingredient kit (American Wheat), brewed it up, had it fermenting just fine and then the weather turned really cold and it got cold in my house. The fermentation pretty much stopped (yeast went dormant) at 1.020 (OG 1.040) but it had been fermenting for over a week so I thought maybe it was just finished. The instructions on the kit didn't have a finished gravity, though I did think that 1.020 was high but I'd never done this before...
The kit instructions said to leave it in the primary for 2 weeks after it finished fermenting so I just let it be for a few weeks.
Though every once in a while I'd swear I'd hear the air lock bubble. This past weekend I checked the gravity and it had gone down to 1.015, looks like it wasn't done just resting, I guess I keep it too cold in my house for ale yeast. So I've been pointing a space heater at the fermentation bucket in the evenings when I'm around and the rate of bubbling in the airlock has increased.
I wanted to have this beer ready to drink for Christmas, however now I'm wondering if I need to let it sit around in the primary for another two weeks after this second round of fermenting is complete or if the time it sat dormant earlier is good enough?
I'd like to have it bottle condition for more than the minimum of two weeks if possible, but that means I'd need to bottle this weekend.
Anyone got any advice/insight?
I got an ingredient kit (American Wheat), brewed it up, had it fermenting just fine and then the weather turned really cold and it got cold in my house. The fermentation pretty much stopped (yeast went dormant) at 1.020 (OG 1.040) but it had been fermenting for over a week so I thought maybe it was just finished. The instructions on the kit didn't have a finished gravity, though I did think that 1.020 was high but I'd never done this before...
The kit instructions said to leave it in the primary for 2 weeks after it finished fermenting so I just let it be for a few weeks.
Though every once in a while I'd swear I'd hear the air lock bubble. This past weekend I checked the gravity and it had gone down to 1.015, looks like it wasn't done just resting, I guess I keep it too cold in my house for ale yeast. So I've been pointing a space heater at the fermentation bucket in the evenings when I'm around and the rate of bubbling in the airlock has increased.
I wanted to have this beer ready to drink for Christmas, however now I'm wondering if I need to let it sit around in the primary for another two weeks after this second round of fermenting is complete or if the time it sat dormant earlier is good enough?
I'd like to have it bottle condition for more than the minimum of two weeks if possible, but that means I'd need to bottle this weekend.
Anyone got any advice/insight?
