1ST BREW EVER

[beertrix]

nice one i thought that would be ok.
next question.....is it 2grams of sugar for every pint????

[Gill]

Not sure about the grams, but I was told half a teaspoon for every pint. With a name like Beertrix...are you another brewing lassie? Seems mostly men on here!

[Lillywhite]

Not sure about the grams, but I was told half a teaspoon for every pint.

That's fine when bottling but when kegging 40 pints, 85 grams (3 ozs) of sugar is the usual amount.

[Gill]

That's fine when bottling but when kegging 40 pints, 85 grams (3 ozs) of sugar is the usual amount.

That's good to know since I just bought a keg today - thanks for the info.

[beertrix]

cheers folks (again)
next question.....do you leave the hydrometer in the fv or put it in every time you want to check

[OldSpeckledBadger]

do you leave the hydrometer in the fv or put it in every time you want to check

I've taken to leaving it in as it's a lot less faffing about.

[beertrix]

all bottled up and stoered away in the dark i dont mind telling you i wasnt expecting it to take as long as it did to sanitize all the bottles
so how long till it starts to clear and how long till i can store in the shed??????

[Barm]

Glad to hear it's all gone well!

Now you know mostly what a 'normal' brew goes like, the next one should hold few fears!

Best to keep those bottles somewhere fairly warm for a few days to start with, to get the conditioning fermentation going. After several days you'll notice that they've started to 'drop bright' - ie the yeast sediments out to the bottom, leaving the beer clear; leaving them in the warm for a week would be pretty safe. Then move to your cool, dark 'cellar' and try to keep your mitts off them for another 3-4 weeks to let them mature. Some claim that you can start drinking after 2 weeks: true; but without a doubt your beer will keep improving with age, probably as far out as 6-8 weeks.

[Lillywhite]

I've taken to leaving it in as it's a lot less faffing about.

If you have a sealed FV with an air lock then it's easier to take a sample, via a tap, using a trial jar. You're able to get a more accurate reading and have less chance infecting your brew.

[beertrix]

well paitence got the beeter of me again. upon transfaring the bottled brew from under the stairs to the shed i couldnt resist cracking a sample bottle open and what a lovely supprise
well carbonated ( was sure it would be flat )
well coloured ( thought it would be cloudy )
well flavoured ( thought id probably not sanitzied everything propperly )
so all in all very aproachable
even our lass was impressed i think that will change later this evening when i get the next lot on the go.
next up :- youngs cider kit with teabag flavouring
:- fruit juice winey turbo cidery type thing
thanks again to all who gave me advice