Ok, I’ve only done one basic batch and did it in a single container. Came out fine. My next is a little more complex and I need some help.
I’ve read tons of instructions on how to brew, but no one seems to list WHY you should transfer your wort to a fermentation vessel. Why not leave it on one? Does moving it provide more oxygen?
And… How do you monitor the wort temp while bewing? Seems most of the temp thingies are short and hard to get an accurate temp. Use the sticky ones on a metal pot???
[quote=“DarkSider”]Ok, I’ve only done one basic batch and did it in a single container. Came out fine. My next is a little more complex and I need some help.
I’ve read tons of instructions on how to brew, but no one seems to list WHY you should transfer your wort to a fermentation vessel. Why not leave it on one? Does moving it provide more oxygen?
And… How do you monitor the wort temp while bewing? Seems most of the temp thingies are short and hard to get an accurate temp. Use the sticky ones on a metal pot???
Thanks…[/quote]
So a few points
Are you asking why you can’t just ferment in your brew pot? Or why you can’t just ferment in a primary and not move to a secondary fermentor?
If you are asking why can’t you just leave your wort in the brew pot, there are a few reasons. first off, it is not air tight. it needs to be. or else bacteria and all kinds of nasty things will get into there. Also, need a way to have the gases from the fermentation leave without air coming back in. that is the main reasons. need an air tight air locked system.
it does NOT provide more oxygen per say. although transferring it does help get oxygen into the wort. but that is not the main reason
As far as temp while brewing - I found (I think on here or northern) the longer 12 or 14 inch thermometer. seems to be long enough. Or some brew pots have a thermometer on it I think, but that is beyond what I have. I think if you put a sticky one on the brew pot it would melt, and I am not sure they go that high on the range. I think they stop at about 100 degrees or so anyway
Yeah, the airtight thing is a big reason. Also, your kettle probably has a lot of sludge in it that I like to leave behind as I transfer. As for temperature, do you mean during the boil or while you ferment? During the boil, I don’t care… Boiling is boiling. While fermenting, yes, monitor the temp religiously for the first few days. Use a stick on fermometer, or monitor room temp shooting for a couple of degrees low.
Sorry for not provided the correct details. I would not leave it in the pot. My first and only batch I moved my wort from the pot to a single fermentor. But it was a very basic brew.
More complex batch going to start soon, and I’m wondering why I need to move my wort from the primary to the secondary fermentor. I’m sure there’s a reason to do it, but newbie me wants to know why?
In my opinion the are two reasons that you need to transfer to 2ndary. one is to get the beer off the yeast and trube but this only needs to be done if you are aging for long times. I.E lagers and big beers,. The other is to collect yeast for other beers and batches. I reuse yeast a lot and when I collect them from the bottom of a secondary fermenter they ,the yeast, are vary clean. I think clean yeast stores in the fridge better, this is just my opinion though.
P.S. welcome to the obsession.
Are you asking why you can’t just ferment in your brew pot? Or why you can’t just ferment in a primary and not move to a secondary fermentor?
If you are asking why can’t you just leave your wort in the brew pot, there are a few reasons. first off, it is not air tight. it needs to be. or else bacteria and all kinds of nasty things will get into there. Also, need a way to have the gases from the fermentation leave without air coming back in. that is the main reasons. need an air tight air locked system.[/quote]
Actually, one of the best brewers I’ve ever met, the guy who brought back the CAP style, puts a lid on his pot and ferments in it.
[quote=“Denny”][quote=“fullhousebrew”]So a few points
Are you asking why you can’t just ferment in your brew pot? Or why you can’t just ferment in a primary and not move to a secondary fermentor?
If you are asking why can’t you just leave your wort in the brew pot, there are a few reasons. first off, it is not air tight. it needs to be. or else bacteria and all kinds of nasty things will get into there. Also, need a way to have the gases from the fermentation leave without air coming back in. that is the main reasons. need an air tight air locked system.[/quote]
Actually, one of the best brewers I’ve ever met, the guy who brought back the CAP style, puts a lid on his pot and ferments in it.[/quote]
to add to this: Walking Man brewing’s fermenters just have 2-part stainless lids, that are less airtight that a homebrew kettles lid… We would just cover the seam with saran wrap and call it good. Although we would leave all the trub behind in the kettle.
[quote=“DarkSider”] I’m wondering why I need to move my wort from the primary to the secondary fermentor. I’m sure there’s a reason to do it, but newbie me wants to know why?
[/quote]
The main driver in older home brew literature is autolysis, but current thinking says this is a virtual non-issue in home brew. Autolysis is when you have dead yeast cells in your fermenter that burst open and essentially give you yeast guts in your beer. I’ve never tasted this personally but I gather it’s gross. One of the things that causes this is the weight of the beer in the fermenter pressing on the yeast cake at the bottom. So to prevent it you transfer the beer off the yeast after the yeast is good and finished.
Old school, puts that time at a month or less; and maybe that’s true for huge commercial fermenters, but it’s excessively conservative for home brew batch sizes. The weight of beer in a 5-gal fermenter is under 50 lbs; it’s just not that big a factor. I’m not exactly sure when you need to start worrying about autolysis in a 5-gal batch but I gather it’s only after several months, and bottling day is generally soon enough.
For longer aging, autolysis may be a concern, but a carboy that is less O2 permeable than a primary bucket would be the bigger driver for me.
As grainy points out, harvesting yeast is another good reason.
Some transfer just because they have always done so.
Some say it helps their beer clear faster.
Some prefer to transfer before dry-hopping.
The main downside to transferring is that you risk oxidation. Plus it’s time and effort.
[quote=“Denny”][quote=“fullhousebrew”]So a few points
Are you asking why you can’t just ferment in your brew pot? Or why you can’t just ferment in a primary and not move to a secondary fermentor?
If you are asking why can’t you just leave your wort in the brew pot, there are a few reasons. first off, it is not air tight. it needs to be. or else bacteria and all kinds of nasty things will get into there. Also, need a way to have the gases from the fermentation leave without air coming back in. that is the main reasons. need an air tight air locked system.[/quote]
Actually, one of the best brewers I’ve ever met, the guy who brought back the CAP style, puts a lid on his pot and ferments in it.[/quote]Thanks for bringing that up Denny. I was going to say what you did until I saw your post. You’re talking about Jeff Renner, right? For those that don’t know, Jeff is very a very knowledgeable brewer and actually served on one of the committees writing the BJCP guidelines several years ago.
And who says the fermenter has to be air tight, anyway? It’s not like anything is going to crawl up the side of it and do a swan dive into your wort.
I have two 8 gallon SS kettles that I use for fermenters, I just set lids on, no airlock.
A few weeks ago I did a 3 gallon BIAB batch in one of them, did the no chill thing and pitched the next morning in the same pot. Samples taste great and it’s very clear.
[quote=“ColoradoBrewer”]Thanks for bringing that up Denny. I was going to say what you did until I saw your post. You’re talking about Jeff Renner, right? For those that don’t know, Jeff is very a very knowledgeable brewer and actually served on one of the committees writing the BJCP guidelines several years ago.
And who says the fermenter has to be air tight, anyway? It’s not like anything is going to crawl up the side of it and do a swan dive into your wort.[/quote]
Yep, it’s Jeff.
And think of all the people who do open fermentation…
