So I'm brewing a blonde tomorrow...

[brewski08]

Brewing BierMuncher's Centennial Blonde tomorrow morning.

What are the odds you guys think it'll be ready by 4th of July?

I'd like to ferment it in a primary for 4 days, and transfer it to a secondary for another 4-5 days. Then I'd blast it with 40 PSI for 48 hours. Then I'd like to bottle it from the keg.

Anyone think it's possible? Any suggestions?

 

[thisone]

there's no need to transfer it to secondary after so little time

 

[urbanmyth]

It can be done. Just be extra good to the yeast and keep a good eye on temperature.

 

[jarrodaden]

Tell your friends about the awesome homebrewtalk you will send their way if they will provide great beer for the party on the fourth. Take your time. A great beer will be ready when it is ready.

 

[brewski08]

It can be done. Just be extra good to the yeast and keep a good eye on temperature.

I'll be using a dry yeast (either notty or US05) and fermenting in the mid upper. 60s.

 

[chumpsteak]

Should be ready on the 4th no problem. I just made a batch with Notty and the kraussen dropped in 3 days. Give it a week in primary to make sure it's done and then keg. The last batch I made with Pacman was tasty, clear, and carbonated in 14 days. I say go for it....with that light of a beer, even if it's not completely where it will end up it will be close and really tasty by the 4th. Like mentioned before though, pitch the right amount of yeast and control ferm temps so the yeast don't need to clean up after themselves too much.

Also, I would use Notty over the US05 for this if you want it to be somewhat clear. The US05 seems to take longer to clear for me.

 

[brewski08]

Should be ready on the 4th no problem. I just made a batch with Notty and the kraussen dropped in 3 days. Give it a week in primary to make sure it's done and then keg. The last batch I made with Pacman was tasty, clear, and carbonated in 14 days. I say go for it....with that light of a beer, even if it's not completely where it will end up it will be close and really tasty by the 4th. Like mentioned before though, pitch the right amount of yeast and control ferm temps so the yeast don't need to clean up after themselves too much.

Also, I would use Notty over the US05 for this if you want it to be somewhat clear. The US05 seems to take longer to clear for me.

The only reason I would use US05 is because I have some fresh packs on hand along with some yeast slurry of it in my fridge.

Did you make a starter with your Notty or did you find that 1 packet lead to a fast fermentation?

 

[sweetcell]

+1 on skipping secondary. for a relatively small beer like a summer blond, it's not required.

dry yeast do not require starters. in fact, making a starter with them is slightly harmful: they are already packed with what they need to start off fermenting, so by making a starter you're getting the yeast to use up its reserve on the starter instead of the actually beer.

we're just trying to make your life easier here: no secondary, no starter... you can thank us on the 4th

 

[brewski08]

Trust me...I LOVE not having to make starters for my beer.

Notty it is.

I think I'll go with an 8 day fermentation in a primary followed by a 3 day force carbonation.

It may not be very clear, but it'll work...right?

 

[AdamPag]

No secondary, No Starter, DO REHYDRATE (90*F) and good luck... thats fast, if you want it clearer maybe cold crash the last 24 hours before you carb it up

 

[Beer-lord]

No secondary, No Starter, DO REHYDRATE (90*F) and good luck... thats fast, if you want it clearer maybe cold crash the last 24 hours before you carb it up

+1 for rehydrating the yeast.

 

[Slyko]

Just a simple FYI,

I been a Centennial Blond fan for quite some time. The Notty works just fine, it's hella fast. But....................................... using Wyeast 1056 with a a 2L starter and 3 more weeks to age is the best beer I've ever had.

 

[MattzKauf]

Skip secondary, carb and go! It will be a great beer. Use either yeast it won't make much of a difference.

 

[chumpsteak]

Definately re-hydrate at 90+ for an hour or so. I fermented at 68 degrees and the Notty finished and dropped in 3 days....amazingly fast.

 

[iambeer]

dry yeast do not require starters. in fact, making a starter with them is slightly harmful: they are already packed with what they need to start off fermenting, so by making a starter you're getting the yeast to use up its reserve on the starter instead of the actually beer.

Could you use a reference for this statement? I don't think yeast have 'reserves'... if you are talking about the 'packed' ingredients you mention that the yeast is dried with, can't it be replaced with the proper amount of yeast nutritional additives? Isn't wort rich with sugar and nutrients by nature? I'm a bit skeptical.

 

[brewski08]

she's all done and brewed.

as soon as i mashed out, a miniature tropical storm broke out. damn florida weather.

 

[zakleeright]

Could you use a reference for this statement? I don't think yeast have 'reserves'... if you are talking about the 'packed' ingredients you mention that the yeast is dried with, can't it be replaced with the proper amount of yeast nutritional additives? Isn't wort rich with sugar and nutrients by nature? I'm a bit skeptical.

Just wanted to weigh in w/two things. The "dry yeast don't need starters" is something I've seen stated by many experts/authors who site yeast-geeks with impressive letters after their name, etc. ;-)
Check the Mr. Malty site about yeast starters, or read Gordon Strong's "Brewing better beer" (great book). It has been born out in my personal experience - using US-05 for dozens of brews with great results, good attenuation, and never a starter.

Second, I wanted to second that the Centennial Blonde recipe is a great one. We've used it as is (great), and as a base recipe to make a strawberry blonde, a "dirty blonde", a "toasty blonde", etc. Yea...turned it into completely different beers, but the original is a great recipe that I've gotten much mileage & compliments from. Cheers to he who formulated that one.

 

[Beer-lord]

Won't hurt to rehydrate dry yeast. But, a starter is not needed......I agree.

 

[jbaysurfer]

I don't have an easy solution for you, but I do want to encourage you to carb it slowly as possible with the goal of it being fully carbed by the time you bottle, which should be scheduled accordingly.

I say this because I've found that force carbing a keg tends to yield carbonation that doesn't completely dissolve into the beer, and when you bottle you it will release more readily then fully dissolved c02. This COULD, yield you beers that, once poured from the bottle are too flat for your liking.

I think you can do it, but I just wanted to convey that because with a blond, carbonation is an important part of the beer IMHO, and I try hard to get it right. Ideally, and I know you don't have time for this, I like to hit it with 30 PSI right away, then stick it in the kegerator under it's serving PSI (14 or so for me) and wait a good 5-7 days to drink. GL, if you can pull it off with a well carbed bottled product, you'll have done a pretty impressive grain to glass IMHO!

 

[jbaysurfer]

Won't hurt to rehydrate dry yeast. But, a starter is not needed......I agree.

Oh, and you've already brewed, but what I like to do with my dry yeast to rehydrate is pull out about a cup of wort during the boil, cool it down to 90F or so, and rehydrate it right in the wort. The yeast gets a sizeable Krausen going by pitch time and the fermentation takes off right away.