So next weekend we will brew our first all grain kit, dead ringer ipa. And looking at the calendar it looks like the Belgian Tripel will also be ready to bottle. I was wondering if I kept the bottling bucket covered and am bottling into 12 oz brown bottles, do you think it is ok to do outside on my deck? I can also put the sun umbrella up to block any direct sun. Then the plan would be to quickly rinse off the outside of the capped bottles and put in the case carton and put back in the house away from any light.
We have been waiting for this batch for almost 3 months now so I don’t want to mess it up at this stage, but it could be much more relaxed if I could bottle outside and rinse the residue away with the hose when done.
Not really too concerned about that as I planned to cover the bottling bucket , but that is a good point as I would need to keep a close eye on the bottles so I don’t add any extra protein by mistake… I think the alcohol content of this batch will kill most anything.
I wouldn’t take the chance personally. I brew outside but all else happens inside in a more controlled environment. I guess it depends on your set up. I always bottle with help from my lovely wife aka brew mistress. I fill and set the filled bottle to the side. She caps and wipes the bottle down with a wet towel and puts it in the case. But we do this in the same room where the beer is fermenting which makes it very easy. I’ve never timed it but we can do five gallons this way pretty damn quick. Don’t know what your setup is so I guess you would have to decide what would be easier for you. My concern would be at this point since the beer is done fermenting I would think it would be more prone to contamination after transfer to a bottling bucket. I try to move my stuff as little as possible.
I think your right, the more I think about it the less I feel it’s worth the risk. Too much time invested to this point to risk it. I’ll just do it in the kitchen like always or maybe in the basement.
I think a lot of it would depend on the conditions. Wind would be bad to stir up dust and debris that might find it’s way in. If it’s warm enough for insects to be around you know how some like beer. At bottling your beer is somewhere around 5% alcohol solution so infection is less of a problem. With minimal protection having it light struck (skunked) shouldn’t be much of a risk, especially in brown bottles. The exposure shouldn’t be much.
A couple of up sides. Anything spilled on the deck is a garden hose spray clean up. Best is you get to be outdoors after a long winter.
I wouldn’t. You will be moving the bucket around alot to get it out there, and oxidation would be my worry. But, you certainly can if you choose. Its your brew after all! RDWHAHB… Sneezles61
