When is primery fermentation complete - FG reached in 36 hrs

[propush]

Hey everyone,

Last Saturday I breaw an ESB, with some S-04 yeast. The fermentation was incredibly vigorous and FG of 1.014 was reached in about 36 hours. OG was 1.063. Now, I know other presses need to occur in the fermentation bucket before the beer is ready for bottling (second fermentation in a bottle).

My question: how do I know it is ready to be bottled? There will be no drop in gravity, and there is no activity in the airlock (in the 36 hrs there was a lot of it - with krausen flying all over the place, even after I left the bucket with no airlock for 16 hours :rockin. This is my second brew, and I pretty much made this recipe up - nothing to compare it to. So if your advice is based on taste or smell - please be very specific!

Thank you very much guys!

p.s. link to recipe if relevant : http://hopville.com/recipe/1643732

 

[JordanThomas]

Fermentation is complete whenever it's complete. You can check by taking gravity readings a couple of days apart. If they are the same, it's done, almost assuredly. You won't want to bottle it right away, though. Allow it 3 weeks from the day you brewed for clarification. Otherwise you'll end up with 12oz bottles with 1oz of trub at the bottom of each. Doesn't sound pleasant to me.

 

[boscobeans]

A few general guidelines that I follow:

If you don't have a see through lid on your fermenter sneak a peek after a few weeks. The surface "should" be free of krausen with a few bubble rafts floating around. Hold a flashlight to the side of the fermenter and check for clarity (if it's a dark beer you won't see much except right near the surface). If it's cloudy or still has yeast floating on top or swimming in the beer let it go for another week or cold crash.

Even cloudy beers should eventually clear up once they have been in the bottle long enough.

Once it is fairly clear and the surface looks like flat beer (no real head) go ahead and bottle, provided the FG (final gravity) is stable and close to what you expected.

bosco

 

[propush]

So fermentation is done when gravity is low and stable. But we leave it in there for 1-2 weeks so it can clear out. There is no way to know it, without opening the lid. It is reasonable that it will clear in 14-21 days total - just to sum up everything. Correct me if I'm wrong, and if I was not - Thanks

 

[boscobeans]

You are correct.

Kits using liquid or dry extracts tend to clear up more quickly (a week or two) than kits using some grains or all grain recipes.

A few weeks in the fermenter after it is done will not harm your beer. It does allow the sediments (trub) formed during fermentation to compact down and form a nice tight layer on the bottom of the fermenter, making it easier to go on to the next stage.

bosco

 

[TyTanium]

S-04 is really fast, it usually finishes within 2-3 days. Leaving for 3 weeks won't hurt, but I don't think it's necessary. I usually bottle between 10-14 days for normal beers.

 

[Yooper]

S04 will start clearing shortly after fermentation is finished, and once the beer is clear it can be bottled.

The yeast "cleans up after itself" as active fermentation is winding down, including even digesting its own waste products. That period is for about 24-48 hours after fermentation finishes, so I'd make sure to always leave the beer in the fermenter for at least 3 days after it's done fermenting.

Then it starts to clear- some yeast strains clear faster than others. S04 will clear quickly, and leave a nice compact yeast cake behind. So I'd probably bottle a low-ish OG beer made with S04 at about day 10-14.

 

[propush]

S04 will start clearing shortly after fermentation is finished, and once the beer is clear it can be bottled.

The yeast "cleans up after itself" as active fermentation is winding down, including even digesting its own waste products. That period is for about 24-48 hours after fermentation finishes, so I'd make sure to always leave the beer in the fermenter for at least 3 days after it's done fermenting.

Then it starts to clear- some yeast strains clear faster than others. S04 will clear quickly, and leave a nice compact yeast cake behind. So I'd probably bottle a low-ish OG beer made with S04 at about day 10-14.

Firstly, I'd like to thank all of you for your help. This is an amazing forum.

Secondly - you say that 48 hours are required for the yeast to "clean up after themselves" after fermentation is done. Fermentation was done in 2 days, plus 3 day to clean up - total of 5 days. So why 10-14?

 

[Yooper]

Firstly, I'd like to thank all of you for your help. This is an amazing forum.

Secondly - you say that 48 hours are required for the yeast to "clean up after themselves" after fermentation is done. Fermentation was done in 2 days, plus 3 day to clean up - total of 5 days. So why 10-14?

To make sure it's nice and clear. If you bottle beer with a ton of stuff still suspended in it, you'll have all that crap in your bottles. S04 clears faster than S05, as an example, so by day 10 it should be nice and clear. Other yeast strains may take longer to clear. Also, young beer can often have acetaldehyde as an off-flavor. It tastes like green apples. That goes away once the beer has a tiny bit of age on it.

Some people like to "crash cool" their beers for a few days before bottling. That will really clear it up, as if you stick a 65 degree fermenter in a 40 degree fridge, the temperature shock to the beer will cause all kinds of excess suspended solids (pectin, polyphenols, protein, yeast) to fall out fast. If you really want to have a super clear beer in the bottle, try that!

 

[propush]

To make sure it's nice and clear. If you bottle beer with a ton of stuff still suspended in it, you'll have all that crap in your bottles. S04 clears faster than S05, as an example, so by day 10 it should be nice and clear. Other yeast strains may take longer to clear. Also, young beer can often have acetaldehyde as an off-flavor. It tastes like green apples. That goes away once the beer has a tiny bit of age on it.

Some people like to "crash cool" their beers for a few days before bottling. That will really clear it up, as if you stick a 65 degree fermenter in a 40 degree fridge, the temperature shock to the beer will cause all kinds of excess suspended solids (pectin, polyphenols, protein, yeast) to fall out fast. If you really want to have a super clear beer in the bottle, try that!

I am equipped to "cold crash", as we call it here, and I did that on my previous brew (was 8% alc. vol Belgian blond ale). It was left in the fermenter a total of 10 days, and came out epic. I'm going for a vacation next week - so its either I bottle on Monday or Sunday, which means 8-9 days total, or when I get back, which will make a total of 16 days. I'm just stressed on time - my friends drank almost all of the previous brew! NO BEER LEFT! How can one rdwahahb with no home brew?? Will it be ok to set bottling day to Monday?

 

[Yooper]

Yes, it'll be ok! But would it be better to wait? Maybe so.

 

[kh54s10]

Firstly, I'd like to thank all of you for your help. This is an amazing forum.

Secondly - you say that 48 hours are required for the yeast to "clean up after themselves" after fermentation is done. Fermentation was done in 2 days, plus 3 day to clean up - total of 5 days. So why 10-14?

How do you know that fermentation was finished in 2 days (unlikely)?

Accepted practice is to wait until all signs of fermentation are gone then take 2 gravity readings over three days. If they are the same then you should be at final gravity. The quick practice is generally to wait 5-7 days then take the readings so the shortest would be 8 days to 10. I am among the group that thinks longer is better. I let all my beers ferment for at least 21 days then bottle. I have had no bad beers in 30 batches.

So I would wait until you get back from your trip. But that is what I would do.
YMMV,

 

[propush]

thanks everyone

 

[propush]

In case you guys want to see how it is today:

Just a bit of turb at the bottom(not visible in img) - very hard to see it, but you can see it if you look from the bottom of the vessel.

I poured this out of the valve in the lower part of the bucket today's morning :]

 

[JordanThomas]

Personally, I'd wait. Until then... RDWHACB.

See what I did there?

 

[propush]

relax drink whatever has a callsign of beer? Lol you guys are correct - more waiting, less posting!