second ever brew

[Philsc]

Hello Folks,
I just finished my second ever brew. Stepped up from 5L to a massive 10L. How will I drink all that beer!?

Had lots of finicky little problems that come from trying to do this on the cheap. One larger problem was that the wort didn't cool down quickly. It took more like two hours. Having read so many "don't ditch your beer!" comments, I proceeded as normal, pitched the yeast and I guess we'll see in a few weeks.

It was getting late when I finished. I put in the bung and the airlock and stowed the thing and cleaned up. I found that I had just under a pint of wort dribbling out of the hop debris and break. I put some saran wrap on it and put it in the fridge planning on drinking the stuff. Then I thought, "could I boil the stuff, cool it (it shouldn't take as long this time) and throw it in the fermenter?"


Thanks folks

Phil

 

[duridsr4fite]

I don't see why you couldn;t, but I don't know what the advantage to it would be. Personally, I like drinking/tasting the brews I have done in various stages of the process. A pint is a bit much though. When it comes to bottling time, you can use that chilled wort as bottling sugar, instead of dme, as long as it is sterile.

 

[CouchFarmer]

How are you cooling your brew pot? I use an ice bath and it's never taken more than an hour a 5 gallon batch.

 

[histo320]

How are you cooling your brew pot? I use an ice bath and it's never taken more than an hour a 5 gallon batch.

+1

I don't even use an Ice Bath, I just fill up my bathtub with cold water, and it cools in about an hour.

 

[SumnerH]

It usually takes about 20-25 minutes with an ice bath for me.

1. During end of boil, run a few inches of water in the sink.
2. Place brew pot with lid on in sink.
3. Pour plenty of ice around the pot (I use 15 lbs)
4. Run water to top of sink.
5. Remove lid and stir (gently) constantly.

It's best if you can get enough water in the sink that the pot floats slightly--that's more surface area for cooling.

 

[Philsc]

I used an ice bath, but I completely underestimated the amount of ice I would need. I chucked in a few trays and 4 frozen bottles of water. It melted in no time and i was left cooling the pot with 60F water for an hour or so. My kitchen sink isn't very deep, the pot was not immersed up to the line of the wort.

I never thought of letting the pot float slightly That's a great idea. I'll just have to find a container. Also, next time, I'll fill up the freezer with bags of ice cubes.

I stirred at the beginning, but the idea of stirring throughout the cool gives me the screaming horrors. It seems to be inviting infection. However, if you do it, SumnerH, I'll try it out.

As to the leftover wort, I do as you do, Durids4fite, I taste it my beer throughout its life. That's why I have under a pint (I started with a pint).

I have thought about priming using the wort. Can someone give me an idea of how much I'd need for 9 Litres, or a way of working out how much I'd nee?. That's 2.4 gallons. The gravity of this brew is high. I'm aiming for 1040 and getting 1060.

Phil

 

[ifishsum]

I make a bucket of sanitizer while my wort is cooling, so I can constantly re-sanitize the spoon I use to stir the cooling wort. Keeping it moving (and the water in the sink, with a different spoon) make a big difference in cooling time.

 

[Philsc]

I make a bucket of sanitizer while my wort is cooling, so I can constantly re-sanitize the spoon I use to stir the cooling wort. Keeping it moving (and the water in the sink, with a different spoon) make a big difference in cooling time.

I bet it does. I really wanted to get the wort moving to cool it down but was scared of even opening the lids. I imagine the air as full of baddies like when you start playing space invaders and they're all desperate to destroy your beer.

I'll definitely use your technique next time, though - as well as reducing the danger period, it speeds things up. I keep a bucket of sanitizer solution by and am constantly re sanitizing stuff.

 

[CouchFarmer]

Here's my cooling system. It doesn't usually take more than 20 minutes with 3-4 small bags of ice, though I usually let it sit longer to let some of the trub settle. Course, you need a sink big enough to have the brew pot clear of the drain.

 

[Philsc]

After the advice given here on this thread, the cooling of brew #3 (Orphy's Mild Mannered). Went much quicker. Thanks everyone.

Bottled brew #2 last week. It didn't go too well. Out of 10 litres, I only got 5.5 bottled. The rest went over my face, jeans and the floor - siphoning issues. It would seem that I've either got a dodgy auto siphon or I broke the thing (or both).

So I've been experimenting with different siphon techniques.

I've taken the tubing with the bottling wand attached, filled it with water, and attached it to the racking cane. I then dipped the racking cane in the container and pressed the bottling wand in a different container. That did not work to my satisfaction. The liquid poured from the racking cane into the liquid in the bottling wand.

I then tried it without the racking cane. That worked a little better. Still some pouring though the tube.

Am thinking about buying a new autosiphon but a bit wary after my last experience.

Any ideas?

 

[ifishsum]

I bet it does. I really wanted to get the wort moving to cool it down but was scared of even opening the lids. I imagine the air as full of baddies like when you start playing space invaders and they're all desperate to destroy your beer.

I'll definitely use your technique next time, though - as well as reducing the danger period, it speeds things up. I keep a bucket of sanitizer solution by and am constantly re sanitizing stuff.

I even keep the lid off for the first several minutes of the cooling process - that wort is throwing off enough steam that nothing airborne could fall into it anyway. Once it stops steaming I'll put the lid on and finish the cooling.