The waiting is the hardest part

[lazarus0530]

So like a a month and half ago I brewed my first nut brown ale. Before I bottled it I gave it a taste.I was not impressed at all thought something went wrong. Im not the most patient person in world (what can I say I'm a Sagittarius) so I put it away in the bottles for 18 days.
I popped one open today since it's the beginning of my weekend and ...hot Damn is this the same beer I brewed or what?
This has a clean flavor with a nice nutty taste finish. I'm very proud of this one

The lesson here is this listen to revvy , yopper, and the doctor. I can't believe how much this beer has grown up. It's like teaching my boy how to ride a bike or my daughter learning how to swim. It's brought a tear to my eye.
I'm glad there a network like this to share my beer with. I wish I brewed enough for everyone on here to enjoy. Thank you to all of you.

 

[onipar]

Oh hell yeah. My Nutbrown tasted miles apart from primary to bottle to fully conditioned.

 

[lazarus0530]

Oh hell yeah. My Nutbrown tasted miles apart from primary to bottle to fully conditioned.

Unreal right? I couldn't believe it. I was about to give up on home brew. I'm not into my 6 one and I'm feeling it! Hellz yeah!

 

[lazarus0530]

Unreal right? I couldn't believe it. I was about to give up on home brew. I'm not into my 6 one and I'm feeling it! Hellz yeah!

That's now not , not...whatever mug!

 

[twelvelookslikex]

did it really make you cry?

 

[lazarus0530]

did it really make you cry?

I'm proud of it ...I might of shed a tear or two. :,) of joy

 

[scrambledegg81]

Someone had to.

 

[wolfman_48442]

You're so right about waiting being the hardest part of brewing.
Water questions? You can research that.
Ingredient problem? Same.
Waiting? Uh... The only cure to that is a fat pipeline...

 

[twelvelookslikex]

Yea I'm on my first week of fermentation and im going crazy waiting. I would start another but I don't even have enough bottles yet to bottle my first batch.

 

[scrambledegg81]

Yea I'm on my first week of fermentation and im going crazy waiting. I would start another but I don't even have enough bottles yet to bottle my first batch.

Easily fixable! There's a ton of options available for non-screw-top bottles: your LHBS, a local bar (if you ask nicely), or online sources sell cases at decent prices.

 

[lazarus0530]

Video Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uMyCa35_mOg&ob=av2e

Someone had to.

I was singing it my head as I was posting this..thank you!

 

[wolfman_48442]

Yea I'm on my first week of fermentation and im going crazy waiting. I would start another but I don't even have enough bottles yet to bottle my first batch.

Start another batch ASAP! You'll drink the first in record time and then be pissed that you're waiting on #2. And if your friends get wind of you brewing kickass beers that you're just giving away, well ...

 

[lazarus0530]

Start another batch ASAP! You'll drink the first in record time and then be pissed that you're waiting on #2. And if your friends get wind of you brewing kickass beers that you're just giving away, well ...

Already got a October fest going. As soon as I cleaned my bucket I steam lined that one. I waist no time my friend.
My weekend is off to a toasty nutty start.

 

[ozzy1038]

The key to alleviating the the wait is always have some beer fermenting. After you have a batch bottled it makes it a lot easier to wait as you have something to drink. The key is keeping up with demand.

A good rule of thumb is to brew one batch every week for a month, then switch to every other week. This should keep you well stocked.

Ask friends to save pop tops for you. Or search and post on craigslist. You can even call a bar and see if they will save the pop tops for you. At my LHBS they are $10.00 a case which isn't bad.

 

[jeffjm]

The key to alleviating the the wait is always have some beer fermenting. After you have a batch bottled it makes it a lot easier to wait as you have something to drink. The key is keeping up with demand.

+1. Happiness is a full fermentor.

 

[LandoLincoln]

It helps if you only brew at your friend's house and you keep most of the homebrew over there. The temptation is much lower. But then you lay awake at night wondering how much of the homebrew your friend is drinking on you.

 

[tyraindreams]

I just bottled my first batch on Tuesday... I didn't taste it because I was too busy trying not to make a massive mess... I doubt ill make it to the end of tonight(Brewing batch 3) without cracking open one of the 3 12 oz test bottles... MMM FLAT BEER!

 

[LandoLincoln]

I just bottled my first batch on Tuesday... I didn't taste it because I was too busy trying not to make a massive mess... I doubt ill make it to the end of tonight(Brewing batch 3) without cracking open one of the 3 12 oz test bottles... MMM FLAT BEER!

DON'T DO IT! You'll likely have a beercano on your hands. The beer needs time to get the CO2 absorbed into the beer itself. If you open it this soon, the CO2 will be waiting for you, but it won't be absorbed into the beer yet.

Wait three weeks.

 

[tyraindreams]

But its so hard ...

 

[lazarus0530]

But its so hard ...

It is man ! Take a breather! Relax! Think about baseball or your grandparents having sex. You gotta over come the needs. Temptation is the devil . And you know what killed the cat.

 

[Celticway]

I say do it. I sample every part of the brewing steps. Mash, pre boil, post boil, a couple of days into ferm, pre conditioned. You learn alot that way.

 

[BrewKnurd]

DON'T DO IT! You'll likely have a beercano on your hands. The beer needs time to get the CO2 absorbed into the beer itself. If you open it this soon, the CO2 will be waiting for you, but it won't be absorbed into the beer yet.

Wait three weeks.

If the CO2 isn't in the beer, how's it gonna cause a beercano? CO2 that isn't absorbed in the beer is hanging out in the vapor space (since that's the only place in the bottle that isn't the beer) and can't do much other than go PFFTTT when you open the bottle.

 

[ozzy1038]

Another key to alleviating the wait is to have some good craft beer to tide you over. One of the benefits of that is you can get bottles at the same time. I prefer to multitask that way. LOL!!

I have found myself buying beers now based upon the type of bottle. A lot of my favorites do not have the right kind of bottle!! (and no I don't mean twist offs ) Seems like a lot of green bottles are that way.

 

[1Mainebrew]

If the CO2 isn't in the beer, how's it gonna cause a beercano? CO2 that isn't absorbed in the beer is hanging out in the vapor space (since that's the only place in the bottle that isn't the beer) and can't do much other than go PFFTTT when you open the bottle.

So the co2 is in suspension, but at warm temperatures, it is ready to get out of suspension in a hurry. Cold beer will allow the co2 to remain disolved in suspension and not just kick it out like a bird teaching its fledgelings to fly.

 

[BrewKnurd]

So the co2 is in suspension, but at warm temperatures, it is ready to get out of suspension in a hurry. Cold beer will allow the co2 to remain disolved in suspension and not just kick it out like a bird teaching its fledgelings to fly.

I agree that warm beer holds less CO2. but 1) that wasn't the point the guy I was responding to was making, or at least that wasn't clear if it was. he appeared to be arguing that if you don't give it time to carbonate, you'll be more likely to have a beercano. and 2) yeah, CO2 comes out of solution faster at warm temps, but there was also less dissolved in the first place. In a warm beer, you'll have less CO2 in the beer and more in the headspace because that's where it'll reach equilibrium, so there's less CO2 to "kick out". But whether its warm or not, or its been carbonating for a day or a week or a month, if you get a beercano just opening your beer, something ain't right. i.e. you overcarbed or got a bug.

 

[lazarus0530]

I agree that warm beer holds less CO2. but 1) that wasn't the point the guy I was responding to was making, or at least that wasn't clear if it was. he appeared to be arguing that if you don't give it time to carbonate, you'll be more likely to have a beercano. and 2) yeah, CO2 comes out of solution faster at warm temps, but there was also less dissolved in the first place. In a warm beer, you'll have less CO2 in the beer and more in the headspace because that's where it'll reach equilibrium, so there's less CO2 to "kick out". But whether its warm or not, or its been carbonating for a day or a week or a month, if you get a beercano just opening your beer, something ain't right. i.e. you overcarbed or got a bug.

All I know is this...when I drink a warm beer there's more of a "phhhhtzzzz" sound when I pop open a cold one it's less but I can see like a cloud of joy come out

 

[tyraindreams]

Actually I did crack one open just to try it and it's almost fully carbonated, mind you this batch of beer hasn't really done anything the way it was supposed to, and its pretty damn good. Exactly the amount of cherry taste i wanted it to extract from the fresh cherries... with a little aging i bet it will taste great... and i'm no longer tempted because I know it will be better if I wait...

 

[ozzy1038]

Actually I did crack one open just to try it and it's almost fully carbonated, mind you this batch of beer hasn't really done anything the way it was supposed to, and its pretty damn good. Exactly the amount of cherry taste i wanted it to extract from the fresh cherries... with a little aging i bet it will taste great... and i'm no longer tempted because I know it will be better if I wait...

Exactly. I think that "fix" helps you wait. Also, it is part of the process and helps you see (taste) the transformation of your beer.

 

[tyraindreams]

I bottled 24 new 22oz bottles for waiting and I bottled 3 recycled 12 oz bottles for tasting and testing... but mostly tasting...

EDIT: and the reason that doesnt add up to 5 gallons is due to a bottling wand malfunction lesson learned muslin bag your dry hops...

 

[LandoLincoln]

If the CO2 isn't in the beer, how's it gonna cause a beercano? CO2 that isn't absorbed in the beer is hanging out in the vapor space (since that's the only place in the bottle that isn't the beer) and can't do much other than go PFFTTT when you open the bottle.

Have you never seen that video that Revvy posts all the time of the guy that opens beers at various stages of carbonation?