Beer infection

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Nigel1969

Beer infection

Post by Nigel1969 » Tue Dec 18, 2012 8:03 pm

Is there any way of knowing if your brews infected, without tasting it. I just don't want to ferment for 2 weeks, condition for another 2, then store for a few more weeks. It could be all a waste of time.

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Eric
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Re: Beer infection

Post by Eric » Tue Dec 18, 2012 10:55 pm

What makes you fear infection?
Without patience, life becomes difficult and the sooner it's finished, the better.

Nigel1969

Re: Beer infection

Post by Nigel1969 » Tue Dec 18, 2012 11:45 pm

I'm not sure really, I just want my first brew to be drinkable at least. It's been fermenting for 6 days now, but tastes crap, and its full of gas. Not looking good so far.

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Eric
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Re: Beer infection

Post by Eric » Wed Dec 19, 2012 12:11 am

Sounds like you are making beer.
Leave it alone, would you ever judge a sausage or fish pie by taste before it was cooked? Like beer, you wouldn't predict what it might be like when properly cooked.
If your fermentation vessel is reasonably well sanitised and you avoid letting anything spurious get into it, after 3 days or so the yeast will finish primary fermentation and it shouldn't be infected. A few days later it should be ready to cask or bottle, but, until you have a little more experience, leave it covered and alone for, say, another ten days. Then, with everything sanitised as best you can, transfer the beer and leave the yeast, into bottles or keg with some priming sugar. That's when it starts to get hard to resist.
Without patience, life becomes difficult and the sooner it's finished, the better.

Nigel1969

Re: Beer infection

Post by Nigel1969 » Wed Dec 19, 2012 12:20 am

Thanks for your advice, much appreciated. And yes it is beer, just a basic Coppers with dextrose. Going to bottle with a sugar tab in each. Although I might not bother, it seems gassy enough for some reason.

chrisheartsbeer

Re: Beer infection

Post by chrisheartsbeer » Wed Dec 19, 2012 8:49 am

Eric: that's a pretty good point re: fish pie. I'm brewing a lager at the moment and I've tasted it a couple of times from the test tube. It is proper crappy tasting. I have trust though that it will come good.

Nigel, I would put the drops in the bottles too. The sugar that the yeasties are eating in your bucket will soon run out. They'll need a bit more food to give your beer a nice head when they're in the bottle.

Nigel1969

Re: Beer infection

Post by Nigel1969 » Wed Dec 19, 2012 2:17 pm

Yeah I'm just going to add one. It says 2, but that's if my bottles are 700ml. They only 500. Hope your brew tasted as good as expected.

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