2nd Fermentation time..

[chairmanmaw]

Hello all,

I'm about ready to perform the 2nd fermentation on my Coopers European Lager. When I performed the 2nd fermentation on my 1st attempt (Brewbuddy lager) I did the fermentation in separate 1L bottles. This time, It's my intention to transfer my brew from my first FV in to a second FV (to get a more even spread of the sugars), but prepare the 2nd fermentation sugars ready for the transfer in the second FV. Following that, I will then bottle my lager from my second FV.

My question is this; after transferring my lager to my second FV, how long can/should I leave it before bottling it?

Also, should I perform the 2nd fermentation at a low temperature? I have been fermenting my lager for the last few weeks in a cool/cold environment.

Thanks for any advice

The Chairman

[chairmanmaw]

[quote="Chris-x1"]Are you saying you are planning on using a fermenter as what is generally refered to as a bottling bucket ? if so, yes this is one way to ensure even distribution of sugars and works well.[quote]

Yes that's it. Still a bit new to this brewing caper. Excuse my igornanec!

Thanks for the info Chris!

[chairmanmaw]

This may well sound like a very stupid question, but here you go none the less.

When I transfer my brew in to the bottling bucket, what should I do with the sediment?

Obviously, I want to get rid of it, but does this mean there is left over yeast still in the brew, that will then react with the 2nd fermentation sugar?

[chairmanmaw]

You want to leave as much of the yeast slurry (sediment) behind in the primary fermenter.

You want a small amount of yeast in the beer in order to ferment the priming sugars and create co2 to carbonate the beer.

Thanks again Chris.

The first brew I made had a bit of a yeast aftertaste. Will removing the slurry help eliminate this? are there any other ways to get rid of the yeast taste?

[chairmanmaw]

Allow the yeast to sediment out fully and pouring the bottle carefully to leave the yeast behind will remove the yeasty taste.

It takes around 4 weeks for bottles to condition properly.

Awesome. Cheers!

[chairmanmaw]

Are you saying you are planning on using a fermenter as what is generally refered to as a bottling bucket ? if so, yes this is one way to ensure even distribution of sugars and works well.

Arrrrgggghhh Help!

I added priming sugars in to the bottling bucket for the 2nd fermentation and left it for 48 hours, instead of bottling it immediately. The brew seems to have gone flat now (with a small sample). What can I do to rectify this?

[arturobandini]

Not an expert by any means but wouldn't that be your Co2 floating up and away out of your bucket? Your brew has just used the carbonating sugars as extra fuel and added a little more alcohol to your brew. The yeast should still have plenty of drive left and adding more sugars and bottling it up should give you the fizz you need. It would probably be wise to check those sugars have definitely been fermented out before adding more as you may end up with unintentionally high sugar content in your bottles leading to huge fizz!