I am in the middle of my first ever batch of beer…any Irish Red. I started the process last Thursday, June 22 around 5:00pm. I put it down in my basemen t and for the first four days or so it bubbled (fermented) like crazy. I checked again this morning, watched for about 10 minutes (NOT exciting) and didn’t see it bubble once. I’m a little nervous that something went wrong. If there is a trick I could try to jump start the process, I’d be all ears!
Now is the time to pull some brew out and see what your hydrometer tells you… no reason why it can’t be done or at least do the clean up phase… Do taste the sample you pull out… Thats a sneak peak of whats to come. Sneezles61
I’d let it sit for at least another week before taking a gravity reading and only then if you’re in a hurry. Otherwise I’d let it sit for 2-3 weeks.
Your beer has probably completed the most active part of fermentation but there’s still active yeast working in there and could be for a while yet. Don’t rush it. You’ll get better beer.
Your beer may be close to being done. Will still need some time for excess yeast and sediment to settle into the trub layer though. What was your fermentation temperature and what temperature is the beer now?
First let me say don’t worry, it will be fine. There are some variables here. The temperature will not only change the fermentation time but also change how our beer tastes. If it was warm,it will take off and ferment faster. This is not good for the taste though. The kit instructions say to pitch the yeast at 78° or lower. That is really high. Somewhere in the mid to low 60s would be better but not always easy to obtain when you first start. Search here or Google swamp cooler.
I brewed my own version of the Red Thursday. Kind of a big brother to it since the original gravity (OG) is 1.056 instead of the kit 1.044. I’m not even worried about how it’s doing yet even though the bubbling has slowed. That brings up hydrometers. Some of the brewing starter kit packages do not seem to have a hydrometer included. A terrible mistake. This is how you can tell if your beer is still fermenting or done. Take a look at this thread about hydrometers Hydrometers You need one, here is how to use one
Best bet if you don’t have a hydrometer is to take a quick peek if you are using a bucket and can’t see what is going on. There should be a ring of crud from the Kreuzen (foam) from fermenting. If there is still foam on top, it’s still active. If it looks like it has been active, don’t worry and give it another week anyway. The waiting is the hardest part (thanks Tom Petty). If it doesn’t look like anything happened post back here and we will try to help.
I appreciate everyone’s kind comments. Yes, my kit did not come with a brix tester. I’ll crack the lid when I get home and see what is happening! I feel better about my batch after hearing everyone’s comments.
Be sure to remember that a refractometer needs special calculations (that I know nothing about!) in order to be used when there is alcohol in the mix. Some sort of correction table. Others on here can help if you need it.
Looks like things are winding down to me. You have a krauesen ring which indicates a pretty active fermentation but not ridiculous so the temperature probably wasn’t too high. What yeast was pitched?
The clusters of bubbles on the surface now are off gassing for the most part. There’s probably still some yeast activity down in the bottom.
Consider what @hd4mark mentions above in regard to fermentation temperature control A really fast warm fermentation can produce off flavors. Do you have a stick on “fermometer” on the bucket? What was the temperature when you pitched the yeast? What was it over the first 3 days of fermentation?
Based on this picture I’d say you’re probably within a few points of final gravity now but I’d still give it 2 weeks minimum in the bucket. In the meantime get a hydrometer. They’re cheap and one of the best tools you can have as a brewer. Get three. They like to jump off tables when you’re not looking and they seldom survive the leap.
At about 12 days take a gravity reading, then another at 14 days. If there’s no change it’s ready to package. If you need tips on using a hydrometer don’t hesitate to ask.
I purchased this: Anpro Brix Refractometer, Beer Wort Refractometer, Dual Scale - Specific Gravity 1.000-1.120 and Brix 0-32%, yesterday. It will be here on Thursday (God bless Amazon Prime). If I understand correctly, I need to take readings and when the results stop changing, it can be bottled?!
Hopefully sometime down the road, I can be as helpful as you all!
I don’t use a refractometer but they do not read correctly when alcohol is present. I think there is a conversion for it but again, I don’t have one and stick to simple hydrometers. There are lots of brewers here that use refractometers so someone may chime in to help.
This is the fermometer. Get one for each fermenter and a couple extras. NB carries them too but this was the first link that came up on a search.
So you pitched at a good temp but without any temperature control, like the swamp cooler @hd4mark mentioned your temperature probably rose a good 5+ degrees depending on the ambient room temperature. Still not horrible fermentation temperatures but ales will be cleaner if kept below 70 for the first 3-4 days. Generally speaking for ales you want to shoot for the lower end of the optimal temperature range as listed by the manufacturer.
I use the refractometer once cooled down to pitching temp, on brew day… Then as I get to the end of fermentation, I use a hydrometer… I haven’t purchase a finishing hydrometer yet, but it will be part of my gear very soon… Calibrating is also a neccesity, both for temp and gravity equipment… Sneezles61
