Home Brew

[ChiXJeff]

Wait a sec...... are those white colonies floating on top of your brew? I'm hoping that's just spots on your carboy, and not an infection starting.

A little foam on top of your brew is nothing to worry about. I get practically none, but I also siphon from primary to secondary.

 

[lesslimited]

Matt, how did you transfer that? Looks kinda chunky, from what I can see. Can you get a better pic of the surface?

And Jeff, thanks for the warning on the Irish Draught, I'll have to give it a bit more character. They do claim it's a good session beer, but the flavors sounded interesting. Maybe a bit more hops...

 

[kunaji]

Those are floating on top of my brew. How can I tell if it's an infection or is did this batch just go bad?

 

[lesslimited]

Did you taste it when you transfered it?

 

[ChiXJeff]

The Irish Draught...... well........ boring. I'm not sure what I'd do to jazz it up, more hops certainly wouldn't hurt. Maybe a bit more malt, crystal, chocolate, something.

Matt..... First thing I'd do is pull the airlock and take a good healthy sniff. If it doesn't smell like beer, you've got a problem. Unfortunately, I'd bet you've already got a problem. Those do look like bacterial colonies to me. Pretty much everything that I've ran through secondary here has either had a perfectly clear surface, or just a bit of foam. No floaties like that.

What are you using for a sanitizer? Did you sanitize *EVERYTHING* that came in contact with your boiled wort?

 

[kunaji]

Here's a few more pics from different angles.

I tasted it when I racked it from primary to secondary. I used an autostart siphon to start a gravity siphon to the secondary. I siphoned up enough beer to get a gravity reading and then tasted that. It didn't taste the greatest, but it did not taste like anything was wrong with it. I tried to be careful and sanitized anything that touched the beer with hot water and the sanitizer that came in my kit.

And here's a picture of it right before it came out of the primary.

 

[lesslimited]

So the bucket was the primary? Looking at that, it sure looks like you transferred too soon, so those floaties are possibly just yeast clumps. I've seen those in primary, but I usually wait till pretty much everything has settled before going to secondary. Depending on yeast and temperatures, one week isn't always enough time in primary.

 

[kunaji]

Yes, I used a plastic bucket for the primary. It smells like beer, maybe a little sweeter, if that makes any sense.

I'm hoping it's just yeast clump but I've never seen it before. Or even what the beer is supposed to look like when primary is done. I've not seen any of the writeups say much more than "wait a week then rack to secondary". You wouldn't happen to have a pic of a beer ready for secondary would you?

Thanks for the help guys, I really appreciate it.

 

[ChiXJeff]

I don't think that I've every had anything like that on top of my beer. Of course, if it's showing in my primary, I'll never see it inside that closed plastic bucket. It might be worth sanitizing a thief or turkey baster to pull out a sample. Sniff and taste test: if it doesn't taste or smell like beer.....

Looks like you had a good primary going, although it may not quite have finished. Did you get the same hydrometer reading a couple of days running before you transferred?

Gotta admit, I'm getting somewhat lazy. The St. Paul Porter I boiled the weekend you came up just got transferred into secondary today. There was a little stuff floating on top, but nearly all of the krausen had sunk to the bottom on top of the yeast cake. And I haven't even dropped a hydrometer in it.

 

[kunaji]

My OG was 1.043 and had fallen to 1.021 and stayed there with 2 readings 24 hours apart. If the krausen is supposed to fall, then I most likely misread the reading.

Just took a taste test, after sanitizing the tubing. It tastes like warm, flat beer. Is it safe to assume that it's not ruined then and is basically just finishing fermentation?

 

[ChiXJeff]

It smells like beer, maybe a little sweeter, if that makes any sense.

No, that makes complete sense. Also means that either your yeast hasn't finished fermenting out the sugars, or you're going to have a [slightly] sweet beer.

Or even what the beer is supposed to look like when primary is done. I've not seen any of the writeups say much more than "wait a week then rack to secondary".

That big foamy head in the primary is a bit of a clue that primary fermentation isn't done yet. That stuff is what will clog standard airlocks. The bucket I was fermenting the St. Paul Porter in had krausen residue all the way up the sides of the bucket, and on the underside of the lid. It even had clung to the bottom of the airlock, but didn't block it fortunately. Closest I've had to a gusher.

One of the things that _How To Brew_ harps on is to not transfer out of primary until you get at least 2 consecutive identical hydrometer readings 24 hours apart. Mine have always seemed to finish up in 4-5 days, but there doesn't seem to be any real downside to leaving it a few extra days in the fermenter. Within reason, that goes without saying. I certainly would get it out of the primary in under a month. Some longer aging beers may take nicely to a long secondary fermentation.

RDWHAHB. Oh, wait...... you can't quite do that yet, can you? :laugh:

 

[ChiXJeff]

As long as it tastes like flat beer, you're probably in good shape yet.

1.021 final gravity? Either you're going to end up with a sweet beer, or the yeast clumps mean it's still got some primary fermentation to go yet.

 

[lesslimited]

My OG was 1.043 and had fallen to 1.021 and stayed there with 2 readings 24 hours apart. If the krausen is supposed to fall, then I most likely misread the reading.

Just took a taste test, after sanitizing the tubing. It tastes like warm, flat beer. Is it safe to assume that it's not ruined then and is basically just finishing fermentation?

That would be my guess.

I usually pour a few ounces into a chilled glass and let it sit a couple minutes to chill the beer and settle. So at least it's just flat beer, not warm, too.

I like the glass carboy for fermentation, because I can see what's happening

 

[kunaji]

RDWHAHB. Oh, wait...... you can't quite do that yet, can you? :laugh:

Not yet. Working on some Leinie's red right now though.

 

[kunaji]

Has anybody tried to do a gruit ale? I've never had any and am looking for recipes to try out.

 

[lesslimited]

Haven't tried one of those yet.

 

[ChiXJeff]

I've officially got me first gusher. Vigorous fermentation last night, 2-3 bubbles per second, and today there's wort and foam blown through the airlock. Not blocked fortunately.

 

[Dirk Pitt]

I've officially got me first gusher. Vigorous fermentation last night, 2-3 bubbles per second, and today there's wort and foam blown through the airlock. Not blocked fortunately.

IMO, airlocks are only good for yeast starters in a growler and secondary fermentation.

For primary, I just stick a food grade clear tube that fits very tightly in the neck of the carboy with the other end submerged in a light solution of iodofor and water.

I ALWAYS bubble kreusen through the tube and sometimes nearly overflow the blowoff bucket.

I hate airlocks for primary.

 

[ChiXJeff]

Bottled the St. Paul Porter yesterday, and racked the bourbon barrel porter into secondary along with a pint of Maker's Mark and the toasted oak cubes. I'll let that go for at least a month before bottling.

Matt, how's your's looking now? I am going to be heading to MI for the weekend, but I don't know how the scheduling will work out. Probably heading south early Friday morning, and won't get back until way late Monday.

 

[kunaji]

I'll be bottling the amber ale tonight with any luck. After a few days the white blobs fell back into the beer and the surface cleared so I just racked to secondary a little too soon. I have a porter that will be ready to rack to secondary on Tuesday or Wednesday. By the time that's ready, I'm hoping to be able to keg it and have both batches ready at the same time.

I can meet up anytime as long as I can get a day or two notice.