I'm Back with Old Beer

[mike77]

Hello everyone I'm back having not brewed for over a year. I got side tracked for a bit.

Before I stopped brewing I left one in the primary fermenter! So it has been there for a year untouched sitting on the yeast all that time. I decided to pop it open today and it looked not too bad and I have gone ahead and kegged and dry hopped it. I had a little taste and again not too bad considering it is warm and flat. The only thing I would say was slightly unusual is that the ring yeast around the top of fermenter was pretty black in colour. So what's the deal here? Has anyone left beer in that long and how was it?

Also got my first brew under my belt on Sunday. All went well considering it had been so long.

It's using year old ingredients. Raikau Single Hop

4.5 k pilsner
250g Caramalt
250g Malted Oats

25g Raikau (11.2%AA) 60 mins
10g Raikau (11.2%AA) 15 mins
10g Raikau (11.2%AA) 10 mins
25g Raikau (11.2%AA) 5 mins
25g Raikau (11.2%AA) 0 mins

Yeast: Workhorse

Anyone tried Raikau? I bout a bunch of NZ hops before stopping that I never got around to using.

Mike

 

[clibit]

I used them once, was given some by a friend, but I think the beer I used them in didn't really showcase them. Don't have any recollection of their flavour, sorry.

Welcome back!

 

[mike77]

I guess I'll find out soon enough. This beer is going to be a pretty quick turnaround hopefully. I have people coming around a week on Friday for poker so want to have it kegged and dry hopped before the weekend. Yeast seems almost done may take a reading later.

 

[dan125]

I guess I'll find out soon enough. This beer is going to be a pretty quick turnaround hopefully. I have people coming around a week on Friday for poker so want to have it kegged and dry hopped before the weekend. Yeast seems almost done may take a reading later.

I hope its ready for you in time - I've just bottled a batch brewed with workhorse exactly 4 weeks after brew day. It's a slow settler!
I'd definitely cold crash if you can.

 

[mike77]

If it's not ready on time then it will be the year old beer on offer. Probably won't mention the year old part.

The plan with the new beer is to transfer it over to a secondary on Thu/Fri along with some gelatine for 24hours and try and clear it a bit. Then into the corny with some dry hops and into the fridge and cold crash. I'll need to see how things work out. The workhorse is eating through it so far. Started at 1.052 late Sunday evening and is 1.02 now. May make it.

 

[clibit]

With gelatine you really need to get the beer cold, I think, before you add it.

 

[mike77]

Ok beer has been stuck at 1.02 since my last post so I guess it is done. It's a higher fg than I was expecting but it's not budging. May have mashed to high. I also did a 30 min mash as i was in a hurry. Never tried that before.

Yeah you are probably right about cold crashing the gelatine but there is not enough room in the fridge for the fermenter. I'll wack it in a secondary tonight and try and drop out a bunch of yeast before kegging tomorrow. No doubt I'll have to run off a bit of beer from the keg to clear the sediment.

Mates all drink wankey craft beer anyway. I'll just tell them it is meant to be cloudy becase it's natural/unfiltered

 

[mike77]

Just kegged the beer this morning. Racking to a secondary with gelatine overnight has made a big difference despite not being chilled. It's not clear but it has removed a significant amount of yeast that has formed a skin at the bottom. So it has about 5 days now to carbonate, dry hop and perhaps clear a bit more in the keg.

Tasted the old beer last night and it is pretty rank. Will be going down the drain. May get another brew on later today.

 

[clibit]

Out with the old, in with the new. Sounds like good progress, let us know how it turns out and what you make of the Rakau.

 

[mike77]

Ok I've tried a pint of this tonight it's cloudy as expected but its a pretty decent tasting pint. I'm not great at describing flavours but would say the hops is nice and fruity, the bittering is not harsh and pretty much to my taste I would use these hops again. Think it would be good in any hoppy nz pale ale or in a hybrid lager

Am having dispensing problems. A lot of froth. Think I went at it too much with the co2. Have released some from the corny will let it sit for a bit. Need to get a proper co2 set up but never quite managed to figure it out.