First Homebrew - Woodfordes Wherry

[Notmyname]

Hi there, I've started a Woodfordes Wherry kit. I've got a few questions and have looked all over the internet and on utube to try and get the answers but I'm still unsure on a few things.... If anyone could help it would be great, I really don't want to mess this up.... I don't think anything has gone wrong yet, but I'm just unsure about the next stage....

I sterilised the Youngs fermentation bin and lid, and spoon. Poured in the two warmed cans, and the mix of boiling/cold water as per the instructions, then stired it all up. Then added the yeast and stirred again (I wasn't sure about stirring the yeast but did it anyway). Then I put the bin in the airing cupboard.

After a day the top was bulging so it looked like it was working. After two days I was worried it might explode so I eased the lid and a strong burst of beery smell came out. I then left it for a week.

I've just taken a sample and it smells lovely :thumb:

However.... Do I have to now syphon it to the fermentation bucket, or can I just put it in the garage for a few weeks? The Woodfordes instructions say I should add a bit of sugar.... But will I wreck it if I don't? Also, is it possible to lift the lid and add the sugar to the Youngs bin, or will this risk contaminating the beer.

The hydrometer is currently reading 1.015. It this ok?

 

[Dunfie]

Sounds like your brew is going well.

If you haven't done so already you might want to read this "How To" from Tubby How to make the most of your beer kit.

It sounds like you have reached the end of your primary fermentation. 1015 is perhaps a tad on the high side but not uncommon for a kit beer as the yeast can get stuck and won't ferment any more. Once the FG (final gravity) is steady for about three days you are ready to move onto the next stage.

You will either be transferring the beer to keg or bottle. If you keg you want to take around 80g of sugar, bring to the boil with a little bit of water to sterilise and the allow to cool. Add this to the keg and then syphon the beer on top (being careful not to allow it to splash too much). Place your lid on the keg so that it is now airtight and put in a warm, room temperature place for a week or two to condition. Although the beer has finished fermenting the original sugars in the wort, the addition of new sugar will allow the yeast that is still in suspension to start a "secondary fermentation" which will bring the beer to condition through the creation of a controlled amount of CO2 (too little sugar at this stage will leave the beer flat - too much will be over conditioned). The important bit is to not allow too much air to get in contact with the beer at this point.

If you are bottling then you can either transfer to bottles using a syphon or "little bottler" and add a level teaspoon of sugar to each bottle. The other way is to Batch Prime your bottling process so that you introduce all of the priming sugar in a single batch. Again you will want to store in a warm place for a week to a fortnight to allow the beer to condition.

Once the beer has conditioned you want to move to a cooler place to allow the beer to mature.

 

[Notmyname]

Many thanks Dunfie,

I've got a plastic keg, so I'll follow your advice regarding boiling the sugar etc.

However... What's the best way to get the beer from the bin into the keg, while trying to minimise the risk of infection at this stage?

Also, do I need to transfer everything from the bin to the keg, of should I try to leave the sediment in the bin?

I'm assuming that if I open the bin lid and syphon from the top of the bin I'll be letting air in which may contaminate? Or, if I use the tap at the bottom of the bin I'll end up sucking all of the sediment at the bottom of the bin?

Not quite sure what to do, any advise on transferring would be brill!

(it's still reading 1.015)

 

[Wolverine]

Syphoning from the top is fine but make sure the other end of the tube is on the bottom of the keg so the beer doesn't splash about.
if you have a tap on the bottom of your bin and your hose fits it then you can use that it won't suck up the sediment. you might have to tilt the bin to avoid waste because the taps are a bit high and you will loose a couple of pints if you don't.

 

[Notmyname]

Sorry.... Apologies if Ive missed this but One last question before I proceed....

What would be the drawback of simply adding the sugar solution to the primary fermentation bin?
:wha:

 

[Runwell-Steve]

You need to avoid adding any air into your brew at this stage, so everything should be done to avoid any splashing.

If you were to add the sugar to the fermenter you would need to stir it, this has the potential to add in air, and stir up the sediment.

Add the sugar to the barrel, then syphon the beer in avoiding any splashing around. Leave the sediment behind in the fermenter, it doesn't hurt if you do get a little bit in the keg but you should avoid it as much as you can.