advice please

[mattyguk1]

hi all,i started my first batch of home brew at the weekend and could use some more advice.i started saturday lunch time and by late afternoon the mix had a large frothy head and the barrel lid was bulging this carried on till sunday evening when the head dissapeared! is this ok or was that to quick? its now without a head and the hydrometer is reading 110. is this all ok as it seems a little quick to me? any advice appreciated thanks in advance matt

[hobbit]

Hi..

Seems a we tad quick to me but if you have a SG (specific gravity) of 1010 then you should wait a day and check again. If it is still at 1010 then you are ready to keg/bottle and prime. What was the OG (original gravity) ?

hobbit

[mattyguk1]

thanks,i didnt check the original gravity! didnt know i needed to

[Jerry Cornelius]

thanks,i didnt check the original gravity! didnt know i needed to

You don't need to. But if you do, you can work out what the ABV is, using a calculator.

It's also IMO a good idea to leave the beer for at least 10 - 14 days in the FV before you bottle/keg. Personally this is something I've always done and it is supposed to give the yeast time to clean up off-flavours. My brewing schedule is based around a brew every two weeks, so this works for me. It does mean you have to be a little more patient though! As I've always done this, I have no reason to know if it's better than just bottling as soon as the SG is stable, but I suspect it is...

[mattyguk1]

thanks,so theres no hurry to bottle once the SG settles then?

[Jerry Cornelius]

No, just take your time. There's no need to rush it.

[OldSpeckledBadger]

thanks,so theres no hurry to bottle once the SG settles then?

No. In fact leaving it a few extra days can be very beneficial because it allows a lot of the yeast to settle out so you end up with a smaller film of yeast at the bottom of your bottles which in turn means you can pour more beer into your glass without dragging yeast in too. Less (yeast) is more (beer)

[hobbit]

Hi Matty,

I would say 14 days is too long if you have already reach your FG (final gravity) after three days, which you seem to have done at 1010 for a real ale. When at FG, as OldSpeckledBadger wrote, the yeast will fall to the bottom of your FV to form what is referred to as "the trub". This will occur quite quickly once fermentation has ceased (ie FG has been reached). You should prevent your beer from sitting on the trub for too long as a complex series of chemical reactions collectively known as autolysis begins. Autolysis involves the breakdown of yeast cells which releases nitrogenous substances which can badly taint the taste of your beer, I beleive two weeks is the maximum amount of time you would want to leave your beer in the FV after flocculation due to autolysis. So once you have reached the FG in your FV, after two/three days to allow it to settle, remove it to SV or bottle and keg it. Leave it to condition as this will allow the beer to mature and improve in flavour and remaining yeast to digest the priming fermentables.

hobbit

[pauljmuk]

disagree - always leave mine for 14 days, never had off flavours, always had very clear beer. With lid on, and out of direct light, the beer will look after itself.

Can't see how leaving it longer can make much difference so long as you have protective CO2 layer - otherwise, how is it different from sitting in a keg?

I thought autolysis took months to have an effect - some belgian beer makers leave their beers in the FV's for weeks or months!