First extract brew

[oz11]

Have just completed the clean up after my first extract brew. Prior to this I did a Wherry kit which is nicely drinkable.
I followed the splendid stout "how to" on these pages and now have a few more questions!

I got all my ingredients from the malt miller but I found the choc and black malts so finely crushed that I seemed to get a lot of bits in the wort. I did put them all in a muslin bag before you ask! Is it normal for that or did I order the wrong grains?!

After cooling I dropped my wort from a height into the FV to get ot aerated, but I turned my back to check the gravity and mrs oz yelled that it was foaming out the vessel! Is that normal? I cleared the excess off but I was a bit worried about that.

Finally I pitched the yeast but I have just check the temp on the outside of the FV and it's climbed to 26.5C, is that too high? It's S04 btw.

On the plus side, it smells lovely at the moment, it's a nice dark colour and the SG was a pretty decent 1045 after temperature correction.

 

[Mark1964]

fermentation should be around 22 deg c also you can catch the grain bits by using a seive when you transfer to your fv 26 deg too high what sort of heater are you using

 

[Mark1964]

fermentation should be around 22 deg c also you can catch the grain bits by using a seive when you transfer to your fv 26 deg too high what sort of heater are you using

Its normal for the wort to foam up its a good sign means you put lots of oxygen back in

 

[oz11]

fermentation should be around 22 deg c also you can catch the grain bits by using a seive when you transfer to your fv 26 deg too high what sort of heater are you using

Thanks Mark, I did use a sieve which caught a fair amount of "debris".

I've not got a heater on it as I think indoors will keep a high enough temperature, so it was sitting in cupboard under the stairs. I've just moved it to a cooler place to try to get the temperature down. I'll move it back once it's cooled a little I think

 

[Mark1964]

it will ferment happily at 18 deg c i wouldnt worry bout it

 

[broadfordbrewer]

Hi Oz, I read and am watching with interest... let us know how it turns out. I'm planning my first extract brew
Well done for having a go, I'm sure your next effort will be much easier now you've got the first out of the way :thumb:

 

[oz11]

Hi Oz, I read and am watching with interest... let us know how it turns out. I'm planning my first extract brew
Well done for having a go, I'm sure your next effort will be much easier now you've got the first out of the way :thumb:

I shall keep you informed, at the moment it's sitting under the stairs at about 21C. And I'm already thinking about the next one! I don't feel like jumping to AG just yet so another extract brew I think.

 

[oz11]

Just checked the gravity and it's down to 1014. It started at 1046 (temp. corrected) so it's coming along nicely. I hope!

Tasted the sample and very impressed. Even at this early stage it has decent clarity and a good stout-like flavour. The colour is near black with a reddish hue when held to the light. :thumb:

Hoping to keg/bottle it at the weekend all being well.

 

[graysalchemy]

I shall keep you informed, at the moment it's sitting under the stairs at about 21C. And I'm already thinking about the next one! I don't feel like jumping to AG just yet so another extract brew I think.

I planned when I started brewing to do 3 extracts then move onto AG but I got so much encouragement here I moved over to AG after 2 :party: :party:

Come over to the darkside :twisted: :twisted:

:

 

[broadfordbrewer]

I shall keep you informed, at the moment it's sitting under the stairs at about 21C. And I'm already thinking about the next one! I don't feel like jumping to AG just yet so another extract brew I think.

I planned when I started brewing to do 3 extracts then move onto AG but I got so much encouragement here I moved over to AG after 2 :party: :party:

Come over to the darkside :twisted: :twisted:

:

The force is strong

 

[TheMumbler]

Hope it turns out well. I leapt straight to AG, not sure why really.

 

[Baz Chaz]

Hope it turns out well. I leapt straight to AG, not sure why really.

Yup, I did 2 kits then AG ...... no going back I don't think, the pint I'm on ATM is beautiful :thumb:

You're only down the road from me Mumbler :!: worth bearing in mind if you / me stuck sometime :thumb:

 

[oz11]

It's a week since brew day so took a second sample/gravity reading.

It's down to 1011 and i'll probably get it kegged and bottled tomorrow. I'm amazed how good it is so early. The sample was as clear as a bell and taste was reminiscent, to me, of titanic stout. That is just from memory and I'm sure side by side they'd be chalk and cheese!

It started off around 1046 so I'm looking at 4.5% or 4.6% ABV, which is more than the recipe, but I have ended up with less than 23L after evaporation, loss to hops, etc.

My thanks go to TS for the recipe and to everyone on the forum who's posts across the boards have been interesting, witty, and above all, so helpful!

Cheers!

 

[broadfordbrewer]

Cheers for the updates oz11. I'm hoping to get my 1st extract stout (same recipe) underway this weekend!

 

[Baz Chaz]

...... The sample was as clear as a bell and taste was reminiscent, to me, of titanic stout.

Hope it goes down just as well :whistle: :rofl:

 

[oz11]

...... The sample was as clear as a bell and taste was reminiscent, to me, of titanic stout.

Hope it goes down just as well :whistle: :rofl:

Very good indeed!!

Anyway

Put the brew into bottles/"easy" kegs this afternoon. (The "easy" must refer to the pouring and drinking, not the filling...more later!)

I thought two easy kegs, 5 litres each, and the remainder in bottles.

It started well, had my newly acquired little bottler. Batch primed in a spare FV with tap. All good.

Filling the first keg it dawned on me that I couldn't see the level so I wasn't sure when to stop. I erred on the safe side and didn't fill it enough. I'm hoping being only about 3/4 full won't cause problems.

Filling the second keg I made sure I put more into it, but as I removed the keg it caught on the little bottler and yanked it off. Cue panic as I try to stop precious beer pouring out. Having seen a tip to bottle over an open dishwasher door the spillage was contained so no real damage done to the kitchen, just precious beer that would never get drunk!

So onto the bottles, no real problems though the last couple took some air bubbles in as I got down to the last few pints in the FV. Got Mrs Oz to tilt it to get as much out as was possible. Fairly time consuming compared to a single budget barrel but I hope the rewards will come in a few weeks.

And then came the cleaning.

What do people do with the yeasty dregs after primary fermentation? I have woods at the end of the garden and it got disposed of there!

Questions:
Any tips on filling mini-kegs/easy kegs? Can I fill to the brim as I was doing with the bottles? Or will that not leave enough free space?

Any thoughts anyone?

Cheers!

 

[oz11]

Just opened the first bottle as an early taste.

It's been in cold storage in the garage since tuesday.

Only a slight fizz on pouring, but a lovely black colour with a dark ruby tint when held to the light.

The nose is mainly dark chocolate/coffee.

More dark chocolate on the initial taste and a excellent stout "feel" to it, with a strong bitter aftertaste that goes on....and on...and on! Maybe a little too bitter at the moment, it would be nice if it smooths out a little bit with longer storage.

Overall, very pleased. Just as well as I have nearly 40 pints to get through.

 

[tubby_shaw]

I'm glad you are enjoying the stout
It does smooth out given a little more time :thumb:

 

[oz11]

That's nice to know! As it goes down though, I'm enjoying it more and more!

Many thanks for the recipe, and for the answers to my questions.

Great forum here... onwards and upwards!

 

[oz11]

Three months after bottling and this just keeps getting better.

No hint of any extract "twang" and very, very more-ish.

Cheers TS, great recipe! :thumb: