I am brewing my first 5 gallon batch, the Black IPA. The sheet that came with it says “1-2 weeks primary, 1-2 weeks secondary”. What advantage or disadvantage would there be to leaving it in primary (and maybe secondary) 2 weeks instead of 1? Are there any measurements/readings I should be doing at the end of 1 week to see if I should let it go another week? I am fine with waiting but I don’t want to mess up somehow by leaving it in the fermentor too long!
Thanks for helping a new brewer out!
I have brewed the Black IPA kit both extract and all grain. It’s a fantastic beer! My recommendation would be to leave it in primary for 2 weeks, then take a gravity reading. I used US-05 for both batches, the AG kit finished at 1.012 and the extract kit finished at 1.020. If your gravity is below 1.020 it should be done. If you want to be sure, wait another 2 days and take a second gravity reading. If they are the same, it’s done. You can leave in primary for quite a while without any negative effects.
Rad
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Yeast autolysis isn’t as much of a concern as it was years ago. Of course, you still don’t want the beer sitting in the primary too long or it can cause off flavors. I wouldn’t be concerned until it hit the 9-10 week mark.
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