Sampling Brew during SG Tests

[Delorean1981]

Not a big issue here, but I've been using a thief to take a small sample of the brew and measure the SG in it. My question is rather for the most part, do you keep the sample and dump it in a glass to check the brew so far or do you dump it back into the batch?

I've heard you shouldn't dump it back in the batch for oxidation concerns but again, this is just a 'what do you do?' question.

 

[BoisePorter]

I wouldn't ever dump it back in. I drink mine. Gotta see how the flavor progresses...

 

[skidkid267]

Boise is right don't pour it back in, I always have a taste of mine. It will give you a preview of the taste

 

[Ace_Club]

Taste it here. Helps you learn about how the flavor changes as fermentation progresses.

 

[Golddiggie]

If the brew is getting close to being done, then I taste it... If I have plenty of brew in the carboy, then I don't worry about the few ounces needed for the hydrometer sample (and don't put it back in)...

I think it's a good idea to taste the brew when it's getting close to what you think is complete, so that you can get a better gauge on it. Where the readings might say it's done, a tasting will tell you if it's ready for bottles/kegging, or if you need to give it more time.

As a general rule, I'm not testing brews (now) until they've been fermenting for at least two weeks. When aging (post primary) it really depends on what they're aging on.

I think we learn a lot in the first few years of home brewing. Experience will teach us how our setup works best, and when to sample/test our brews. You might have a recipe that you've made so often, and can repeat it so well, that you only test/sample it towards the end to make sure it's where it should be... I'm not even close to being there yet.

 

[KevinW]

Yeah you probably do not want to return the sample. If you have sanitized everything very good then there may not be any issues but for me it is not worth it.
Sanitize the thief, put it in the sample container for gravity check, then drink it up! I like to taste my beers from grain to finish, even the hops. You can tell the impact of each ingredients flavor.
Taste the different maltsters grains some time, same grain like Munich from different companies. It is amazing how different they can taste!

 

[Delorean1981]

Yeah I love seeing how it's progressing. I think the simple smell of it that screams 'I'm Beer!' brightens my day. Awesome, thanks for your thoughts

 

[thisgoestoeleven]

Is there any problem with just sanitizing your hydrometer and taking a gravity reading right in the fermentation bucket? It seems like to get a sample big enough to float a hydrometer in would be enough for another bottle or two, especially if you're taking samples throughout fermentation to chart progress.

 

[Golddiggie]

Is there any problem with just sanitizing your hydrometer and taking a gravity reading right in the fermentation bucket? It seems like to get a sample big enough to float a hydrometer in would be enough for another bottle or two, especially if you're taking samples throughout fermentation to chart progress.

Problem could be getting an accurate reading due to the angle you would view it at. With the normal reading tube, you can have your eyes at the same level as the fermenting wort. You can't do that in a bucket.

The only time I would/have returned a sample was when EVERYTHING that touched it was sanitized, and I was taking a reading of young mead. You simply take a ton of readings (most of the time at least) with mead during the early stages. So you could lose enough to make a difference if you just toss it. Once you've passed the 1/3 break, you take far fewer readings... So unless you compensate for that during the making stage, you can run short by more than a bit. With beer, at most, I lose ~4-6 ounces (total) from hydrometer readings. Barely enough to think about.

 

[troub]

If you get a test jar, it doesn't really take that much to float the hydro in. A very small glassful. About 2-3 shotglasses worth, probably. As long as it's sanitary, I don't see a problem with putting it right in the bucket -- I would feel comfortable doing this with a hydro that just came out of some Starsan...probably not with bleach or oxyclean, because if you rinse it what was the point of sanitizing it anway? But, I like to taste it, too, so I always pull a sample into the test jar and drink it afterward.

 

[whitebirdfeathers]

I sanitize everything extremely well then jsut put the sample back in. When I'm putting it back in I make sure it goes in smoothly to avoid any possible oxidizing. I figure if you're really careful then it should be okay.

 

[aidan]

Is there any problem with just sanitizing your hydrometer and taking a gravity reading right in the fermentation bucket? It seems like to get a sample big enough to float a hydrometer in would be enough for another bottle or two, especially if you're taking samples throughout fermentation to chart progress.

I always drink AND ENJOY mine! My hydrometer came in a narrow plastic tube with a cap on both ends. That's what I use as my test jar, it just needs about half a cupful of liquid to take a measurement. Also I don't over do it with samples, 3 should do it, no need to take first sample until 3 days before target end of fermentation (unless you are suspicious about fermentation problem).

I actually really look forward to taking the SG samples because I get a chance to taste the beer.

 

[jfr1111]

I always drink my samples, even if they are taken super early. My earliest is two days in, taken this week since fermentation had seemed to stop on my Notty Mild and the whole thing looked weird: a lot of things are different when you're brewing a 1.030 beer ! Samplign every step of the way makes the projess even more magical since very early samples usually will taste like ass mixed in with more ass. I know it was the case for all of my brews except one and they all turned out decent to excellent.

 

[Petho]

I never drink the sample ( that sounds wrong!) it always tastes green and horrible and it bums me out. I wait for the finished product.