Okay northern brewer recomends, 2 week primary, 2 week secondary on most beers.
Someone else on here says 3 weeks primary and skip secondary
Someone else in a brew club says you have to primary and secondary,
and someone else says as soon as the bubbling stops get that beer out of primary. I think the white house said they primary for 3 or 4 days before they secondary. to avoid off flavors from the yeast.
What is anyones suggestions?
3 week → bottle
Unless it’s a big beer, this schedule will be good.
Dimik
that is what I have been doing and been doing fine, but the local brew club, said one will get off flavors, now remember I am a very inexperienced brewer, and I just want to learn. One of the members of the brew club told me 3 or 4 days, then or I will get off flavors.
I guess I am completely confused, and I hear the white house does the same, I know 3 weeks primary works great for me, so much easier.
I really want to brew a 15 gallon batch and try one of each, however, I can only brew 10 gallons at a time now, and only have room for 4 kegs in my fridge, and to compare apples to apples, I would have to well keg one batch in a few days short of 3 weeks, another 3 weeks, and another 4 weeks.
And my taste buds would never work for a taster as I am also a smoker.
your help is greatly appreciated.
Kevin
This debate is as heated as the one about blue or red coolers. :shock:
Some, I included, feel that the issue with the beer being on a yeast cake is only with commercial beers where there is 100’s of gallons of beer weight on the yeast.
Others think otherwise.
If the issue was any beer being in contact with the yeast, then IMO, every bottle conditioned beer would have off flavors.
I always go 3 to 4 weeks in the primary with great results. Watching the bubbles is not a good way to judge fermentation. If you have directions that say to primary for 3 to 4 days then rack to secondary to avoid off flavors from the yeast…thats just plain wrong. As far as NB’s 2 in primary and 2 in secondary, I always thought it could use a little updating. CHEERS.
well I have been going 3 or 4 weeks primary. At times even longer, never did a secondary anymore. I went to the brew club and talked to one guy and told him that and came home and put 25 gallons in secondary, and on one, seen the foam on top and I remember that when I used washed yeast, it turned sour. So it just got me to wondering again.
I have to say washing carboys after 4 days, works much better then after 3 weeks, however its more work in the end.
In other words it wont affect the beer, its personal preference only?
Kevin
Guess I was also told stainless steel holds heat for a saach rest. Put cover on and its fine for the hour. I cant comprehend that either, but was recently told that.
Looses no heat at all.
Every time you touch the beer, you risk introducing an infection.
Yes, if you let the carboy sit for 4 weeks the krausen sticks more. Soaking for a day with PBW/oxyclean or even a bleach solution helps get the crud out. I clean out the easy stuff. Then add a gallon or so of water and a scoop of Oxy. Put a carboy cap on and tip the carboy upside down in a pail. This get the water/oxy in contact with the crud, but saves water.
Stainless Steel is a poor conductor of heat. That is way SS pots have a layer of copper or aluminum sandwiched on the bottom. How much heat you loose will depend on the room temp and thickness of the pot.
Homebrewing is about what works for you. Listen to people’s ideas. Then decide if they work for you. There are many ways to clean a fish, dress a deer… What works for you is what matters.
[quote=“Nighthawk”]
Homebrewing is about what works for you. Listen to people’s ideas. Then decide if they work for you. There are many ways to clean a fish, dress a deer… What works for you is what matters.[/quote]
This. Try things in different ways and see what you like. Although 3-4 days isn’t long enough primary, IMHO :mrgreen: You can’t be sure fermentation is complete.
I really don’t think this is as big of an issue on either side as it has been portrayed. I tend to do a secondary mostly because I have always done it. Other than that I find I can rack off a little more of the sediment before putting it into my kegs, but I’m not sure that would even make a difference.
In practice the main reason why I have continued to use a secondary has been so that I can get a new beer started in my primary about a week later. Otherwise I sometimes wait two weeks in the primary, rack into a carboy and put it in the keg when any extra sedimant has fallen out (usually 3-7 days). I’m sure this is unecesary, but it is how I like to do it.
orange cooler. just sayin’.
[quote=“kevlee67”]Guess I was also told stainless steel holds heat for a saach rest. Put cover on and its fine for the hour. I cant comprehend that either, but was recently told that.
Looses no heat at all.[/quote]
Whoever told you that can come manage my MT temp. Having someone else controlling the burner, stirring, and recirculating, will free up some time. :roll:
mrv
that what I thought, I could not imgaine, they told me I can add a blanket if I want but its not neccessary.
I really questioned it myself. but I am a new brewer who knows shit, so when I have questions, I bring them to this forum or direct to Northern brewer.
Near as I can tell, I have to do my own thing, if it works, it works, if it dont it dont.
I can tell you, I tried to wash my own yeast, and ended up dumping 20 gallons of beer, I used some washed yeast with success, but have decided its not worth the trouble.
I also have to say, I malted my own barely, and have had success, and well a flop, happens to be, my son, my gf and I really like my flop.
Light Body
Watery, Weak, and Thin Mouthfeel – Appropriate for Light American Lagers & Lambics
Causes
•Low dextrins
•Poor quality malt
•Large percentage of adjunct sugars
•Low mash temperature
•Protein rest too long
Prevention
•Increase dextrin malt
•use quality malt
•decrease adjunct sugars
•use higher mash temp
•shorten protein rest
I like to mix this beer with some hoppy beer I made, shinning star pale ale, not very hoppy but more hoppy then I like, mix the two together and omg.
I will continue with my practice I am doing.
Next question is though, if I brew more beer then I can drink in 3 weeks, how long can one leave beer in primary?
Example, just saying, I have 55 gallons of beer, in fermentors, and when my friends come over we can still only drink 5 gallons a week, so, that is like 11 weeks out. With my job, some weeks I may work 80 hours a week, and then next week, I only work 50, so have to make beer when I can.
I’ve never had the problem of too much beer in my fridge. In my belly, yeah.
Right now, all my beer is kegged, but if I had to brew with no open kegs, I’d start filling bottles.
Due to moving, I’ve had a beer in primary for about 6 weeks with no ill effects.
Regarding a ss MT, I wrapped mine in Reflectix last week, it dropped 2 degrees in 30 mins. Big improvement over bare steel.
Kev, how much do you brew at one session, how much do you ferment at a time. Just wondering.
I either brew one or two 10 gallon batches. typically. I started with 5 gallon batches, then when we got busy at work, kinda didnt have time to brew so decided to go to bigger batches. And figured since I could brew one 10 gallon batch, I could just as well brew 2 at about the same time. Like to start the first one then wait about a half hour to start the second one.
Use a hydrometer to confirm final gravity by taking a reading on 3 consecutive days - if no change in that time, you are done and can rack or bottle, but I just wait three or four weeks before moving from primary (I go straight to keg) to make sure the yeast have time to clean up after the party…just how I roll. YMMV
:cheers:
ya I took some advice of the brew club rather then the people on here before I posted this question on this form, and see one of the carboys has bubbles on top, which tells me it got sour, I am back to primary fermentations.
[quote=“kevlee67”]ya I took some advice of the brew club rather then the people on here before I posted this question on this form, and see one of the carboys has bubbles on top, which tells me it got sour, I am back to primary fermentations.[/quote]Those bubbles on top (of a secondary) are most likely just a spontaneous fermentation and nothing to worry about. Until you get more experience,try the 2w in primary, 2w in secondary and then bottle or keg. And don’t make decisions on the quality of your beer until it has been in the bottle at least 4 weeks. Lots of things change in the bottle too.
I have a suggestion and I know it’s allot of work…but how about make the same exact beer and do it 2 different ways.
For one of them ferment it for 3 weeks in primary and for the 2nd one move it to secondary after the readings say it’s done fermenting. Then you would see the difference in taste, if there is any.
I had one person at my brew club tell me the same…get it off the cake ASAP. I have to say…when I did that for my black IPA it did come out pretty good versus not doing it when I did the same beer the 2nd time. Now the nay sayers will say it’s my process, but I know I did the same process each time.
