Whatever happened to patience?

[Dutto]

That's it decision made, I will leave the wherry in fermentation for a 3rd week. I am thinking I need another fv to get another brew on������

What took you so long? :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[dandanni84]

2 weeks and about an hr:grin:

 

[Clint]

Second day fg still @ 1.008,clear,tastes fine...

Clint

 

[Robin54]

Yeah...same here,wherry nearing 2 weeks in the fv,bubbling stopped, fg reading of 1.008 yesterday. About to take another reading in a bit and another tomorrow, if all the same I'll barrel it. The kit instructions are way out.,a shame really as it seems loads of new starters get going with it. This forum is the place to get your answers and advice!

cheers all

Clint

2 weeks in... just bottle it on saturday.. no problem..just stop peeking! I don't do readings for kits...waste of time- 2x2x2 -is the golden rule
im in a similar situation..but its a dry hop on saturday. remember..its been warm of late.

 

[Leon103]

For me it all depends on style of beer. I find a brew fridge helps because you can regulate temperature and its out of sight/out if mind so I don't touch it for two weeks. I do think the newbie problem is to play around with the fv too soon and start bottling too early

 

[LarryF]

Due to a minor change in circumstances my impending AG foray will have to go on a back burner (pun fully intended) so I'll be sticking with kits for now so I want to get the best out of them, so I do like the points The ***** (sorry but your name seems completely at odds with what I see you post) has made. Three weeks in the FV as standard, I've just done a Coopers Stout that had four weeks in the FV with no noticeable bad effects but I'll know more as I try more bottles. Use a good yeast, with re-pitching from the trub makes this can be very affordable. Lastly, leave it alone, take your SG before pitching the yeast then take your FG when bottling and leave the lid on in between unless dry hopping, in all honesty it'll be very well done after three weeks. The same when conditioning in the bottle, I think it may be a case of stocking up on lighter and hoppier ales so you have beer to drink and the do a dark strong ale or stout that you can put away for a good few months to condition well without affecting your drinking stock. If you do this regularly then as your darker beers filter through they'll boost your drinking stock. Some great points raised and as we've all said patience is one of the most important ingredients but the hardest one to learn, I think this is a practical and applicable lesson in exactly that that I'll try and use in my brewing.

 

[ericmark]

I know the longer left the better, but for me it's stock levels which alter how long in the fermentor and bottle. As rule of thumb 10 days in freezer at 18.5ºC then move to clean fermentor and to fridge, where it sits a further 10 days with temperature no lower than 18.5ºC but no control on upper limit, then bottle and at least 10 days in the shed.

However on a visit to shed I found the bottles rather hard so let out some pressure. On opening the next bottle two days latter there was a marked improvement. So it seems I am bottling too early or keeping the temperature too low in the fridge. I think maybe the second 10 days should be at 20ºC? Also may be 14 + 14 days instead of 10 + 10.

I know 40 pints every 10 days seems a lot, however I don't only brew beer, and doing a Classic Liquors kit which produces just 6 bottles of Orange Brandy still needs the same time in the freezer as a full 40 pint fermentor. OK once in fridge I can squeeze in a fermentor and a demijohn, but it is the freezer space which limits output.

When my shed is full I am quite happy with one brew a month, but then I get lazy and leave it a few months without a brew, so then need to double output to catch up.

 

[BeerisGOD]

like Larry says its partly to do with stock of beers you have. once you get a couple of batches fully conditioned or half of which almost complete whilst you have a third in the FV on the go Youl be a lot more relaxed about leaving it be for that extra week or two at either phase.

there's a few that could may argue careful temp control with agitation could speed the process up
I have done this with the wherry I currently have fermenting but as Im dry hopping three weeks is still on the cards.

try dry hopping for 5/7 days after you're FG and it may hold you in the patience category a Lil while longer

 

[Cwrw666]

Me, I put my beer on to ferment, next day check it's got a krausen (quick peek or just telling by the lid bulging) then leave it alone for 2 weeks before deciding to bottle at my convenience which usually adds another week. Then I take a single hydro reading just to check the fermentation isn't stuck and then bottle.
Actually, I've only really had a problem with stuck fermentations with 2 can kits - doesn't seem to happen so much with 1 can kits or AG brews.
I did once have a very slow fermentation that took 5 weeks which had me worried but it got there eventually and was a goodun after all.

 

[Covrich]

The culture of putting your beer in a FV and you can drink it two weeks later I think comes from kit manufacturers. Whilst it hasn't been hammered home when newbies come here they are generally encouraged to go minimum 2 weeks.

Whilst I am a fan of him and his channel style I remember last year watching craigtube drinking a beer he picthed the yeast 6 days prior. He pitched the coopers yeast and transferred on day 6. forced carbed and poured...:-| . He ran out of HB and needed to get his stocks going..

 

[pms67]

Yup,ive done something similar
Coopers Heritage Lager i think
Fermented out in 4 or 5 days
In the bottle for 1 week
Not too shabby at all,should have dry hopped it though.
My Beerworks lager with Perle hops has been good but as the hops fade i would say its not as good as it was a few weeks ago

 

[dandanni84]

Ok, so today is officially 3weeks I have had my first ever brew in the fermentation vessel. This evening I will take a hydrometer reading and transfer to pressure barrel. What do I do if the reading is still too high, it is a woodfordes wherry so am expecting a reading around 1012 all being well. Do I leave it in fermentation another week?

 

[Covrich]

I would say it depends on how high it is .. if its 1014 for example I would just bottle it if its 1020 then that is a different issue

 

[dad_of_jon]

I think you will find that most people know that it is better to age beer for longer, whether in FV or keg, but unless as Graz said, you have a critical mass of enough beers to drink /try, then a lot will always get consumed before it's truly ready.

The only way to remedy is to make sure you've always got a good stock to drink, even if this means buying a few bottles, particularly for a brewday!

this is wot i tell my mrs. but she doesn't believe me ;-)

 

[dan125]

this is wot i tell my mrs. but she doesn't believe me ;-)

:lol: I'm always getting in trouble for buying beer at the shop when the 'house is full of homebrew' - according to 'er indoors.

 

[The Idiot]

:lol: I'm always getting in trouble for buying beer at the shop when the 'house is full of homebrew' - according to 'er indoors.

Tell her the homebrew is too strong and unless she wants you running around the house like a toddler on a sugar rush she'd be better off letting you have the odd shop bought pint!

 

[Cwrw666]

:lol: I'm always getting in trouble for buying beer at the shop when the 'house is full of homebrew' - according to 'er indoors.

Obviously if your house is full of homebrew you're going to need to accumulate more bottles for the next brew.:

 

[dan125]

Tell her the homebrew is too strong and unless she wants you running around the house like a toddler on a sugar rush she'd be better off letting you have the odd shop bought pint!

I try to tell her its purely for research purposes to improve my brews -but she knows me better than that :whistle:

 

[dan125]

Obviously if your house is full of homebrew you're going to need to accumulate more bottles for the next brew.:

:lol: I use swing tops for the few pints that I do bottle, but if I buy a capper - you've just given me the perfect excuse to buy more beer! :hat:

 

[HebridesRob]

Wheat beers can be drunk quickly, with little taste difference over time.

hoppy beers best drunk quickly AFTER they had a couple of weeks conditioning because the hoppyness will fade.

darker beers better left for longer 6 weeks or so as a rough figure because it depends on ABV.

high abv dark beers need more time again. 6 months plus for brewfferms abdij, but worth it.

The winner ^.

For a fairly light bitter or a mild, say 1.035 to 1.040, I find 5 days fermenting (start at 18c, after 2 days raise by 1c a day), 2 days cold-crash (2c), rack into King Keg, prime & fine, keep warm, start drinking in 5 days works well enough and means I can keep beer in my barrel with as little delay as possible. Wouldn't do this with bottled beer though.