Me too. I've had my carboy in the fridge for about 2 weeks and it was going like crazy before I put it in there and now, nothing. The recipe calls for it to lager for 3-12 weeks and I know the yeast can continue to work without any bubbles in the airlock, I was just wondering if that was "normal".
Well I used Saflager 34/70 yeast and am keeping the temps around 52-56(ice bath is all I gots) and its been 12 days now and will be testing to see where i'm at and if i'll need to do a diacetyl rest. Once its finished and i'm happy with where its at or after the rest i'll rack into my secondary and lager it out in the garage hopefully in the low 40's if the temps cooperate. What yeast did you use and what temp range does it need? How long was it going crazy for before you put it in the fridge? What temp is your fridge at? Have you tested the gravity to see where its at? I'm sure someone with knowledge will jump in here soon to help ya out but in the meantime i'll be happy throw my guesses at ya
I've done 2 or 3 lagers. All about the same as you describe. I usually do them in winter and keep them in the basement, they seem to stall out so I leave them in the secondary for a few months. I then do a diacetyl rest and if nothing happens, then take a reading and bottle.
WARNING: total Geek post. Okay, I have not done a lager myself, but here is my understanding: Traditionally beer could not be brewed in the Summer as there were too many wild yeasts, bacteria, etc. to make brewing predictable (a consistently drinkable beer). The problem that arose from this Autumn to Spring brewing cycle was very obvious: no beer to drink when brewing could re-commence in the Fall. Then some Germans happened upon a brilliant solution - lagering. "Lager" is from the German word that means "to store", "to lay down", "storage" or somesuch. So they would put the wort they brewed in the Spring high up in the mountains in caves that stayed right at or just above freezing. In the cold temperatures the ale yeast (from a brewing perspective, all yeast was ale yeast at this time) would drop out of suspension to the bottom of the wort. As it sat in this cold environment, some of the yeast would - either coming out of dormancy (boredom?) or never having become completely dormant despite the cold - slowly begin to do its job of converting the sugars to alcohol and carbon dioxide. This mutantly-able yeast would replicate itself as is the way with yeast creating the right population density of "lager" yeast: a yeast that could work in much lower temperatures and from the bottom rather than from the top as its predecessors had done. This lagering fermentation progressed at a much slower rate and produced a flavour that was clearer and crisper losing the estery profiles of the now differentiated ale yeasts. So lagers were born. Long and slow and without which, what would Oktoberfest be?
Throw in some champagne yeast into that thing. There should be enough sugar to get the abv above 10% Would be an interesting brew for sure. Or better yet, ferment it with some ale yeast maybe 1056 for 2 weeks, then transfer it to another 6 gallon and then through in some champagne yeast. Keep that semi fruity aspect of the 1056 and then ferment out the remaining suagars with the champagne yeast for added abv kick. Or....lager it with some highe gravity lager yeast for an imperial brown lager.
We do need to get together. This weekend is bad for me. My wife is throwing me a 30th bday party tomorrow. Next weekend is darkness, gotta call in sick on saturday, not gonna miss that at all. Do you have any weekdays avail?
xBrian - I decided in the end to use the Nottingham that Northern Brewer had as one of the free yeast options. I didn't pitch it for 8 days, so I didn't feel I had any more time to wait. Things were too busy around here to do anything but put it sealed in the "cellar" and hope my sanitation was enough. Maybe I will call it a "pre-aging process." Maybe I shoulda added some oak. It took 14-16 hours to really take off and the krausening has finally settled down now after about 2 and a half days of that. Still some pushing through the blow off tube and the carboy is full of it, but the brew kettle I used for the other end of the blow off tube has no more krausen in it. Just deep-brown, wonderfully beer-smelling sanitiser with big bubble carbon dioxide releases every 2.5 seconds through the tube. This is just one more inspiration to start kegging. Gotta go do some budgeting now...
Slowly piecing together a kegging setup. I just need the gas lines, co2 regulator, and a Ranco temp controller for the freezer and I'll be all setup. (so basically everything but the freezer and kegs lol) :yumyum: And yes that freezer should fit 7 kegs.... :biggrin: -Steve
Do it. Now that I'm kegging i'm not looking back to those damn bottles ever again. It's sooo much easier. Worth every penny IMO
Someday i'll get me some kegs. Nice looking setup, gonna keep some space open for lagering? Update from Pauls Brewery- Strawberry Mead-secondary-4 months aged Orange Raspberry Mead-3 months aged-back sweetened last weekend Surly Furious-just over 3 weeks in bottles, needs another week or two, tastes delicious but still some residual sweetness Home Grown Cascade Pale Ale-just over 2 weeks in bottles, grassy notes very noticeable but a very well balance pale ale. Hoping the grassy notes age out. Paultoberfest-just over 3 weeks in primary, OG: 1.070, current OG:1.020 so nearly ready for Lagering phase, samples taste excellent Midwest Porter-1 week in primary Belgian Wit-On deck-own recipe to be brewed this weekend I need more room for fermenters/carboys :yumyum:
I've got midwest's holiday ale in my secondary right now. It should be kegged and ready to go right around the 2nd week of dec.
I finished up my gas manifold for the kegs. Here she is! I have a 40lb (yes pound) CO2 tank that I'm going to use to force-carb and push the kegs. I still need to get the CO2 regulator, a Ranco temp controller for the freezer, and all the gas/beer line hookups for the kegs yet. Those will come soon though! Pat~ Eventually I will install a collar on the freezer and install draft faucets on it, however they are a bit expensive and at the moment I can't justify the cost over party taps. It's in the plans just not at the moment. I have 2 more kegs coming from a friend which will push it to 6 kegs total. -Steve
Wit! Belgian Wit brew last Friday. 1oz coriander/1oz orange peel should do the trick. With additional 1-2oz fresh zest in secondary :yumyum:
i worked @ lake superior brewing for 4 years. anyone want to go for a tour of the brewery? i could set up a group tour. free samples!!!
I havnt brewed in 2 months....going through withdrawls. I got Northern brewer to switch out my tuns for me, the other ones cracked. So I will be brewing this weekend with my new 9 gallon stainless steel kettle. Very excited to use this thing. I think we should do a mnsubaru winter trip event to this!
I think we should do a mnsubaru winter trip event to this![/QUOTE] i agree. you want to lead the way on at one?
anyone have any extract hefe-weizen recipes? Just had a wonderful Hefe by Weihenstephaner so a clone of that would be great. Otherwise I'll try wheat DME and hallertau.
A friend and I brewed up a Hanks Hefe kit from midwest and added 9 lbs of pears from the pear tree in my back yard. Came out exceptional! Have yet to try the Hanks Hefe kit without additions but it gets great reviews.
I tried Hank's Hefe as my second or third kit that I brewed back almost 3 years ago. However, I don't remember it tasting as good as the Wiezenstephaner. I might give it another try, though with DME so as to avoid the caramelization of LME which can throw off flavors.
Give a late extract addition a try, no worries of caramelization and your beer will stay closer to the color you want which is why I usually do late extract additions.
+1 I do all my extract brews with late extract addition. I usually put 1-2 pounds into the boil at around 10-15 minutes and then add the rest at around the 40-45 minute mark, giving it a solid 15-20 minutes of boil time, which is more than long enough to sterilize and give the hot break. -Steve
Picked up some Warrior and Amarillo the other day :yumyum: Fairly sure the wife just headed down to Midwest, if I can get any info from her on sales i'll let ya know.
Why does this thread always dissapear for me. I can never see any threads in off topic if they are not bumped. Anyway, got my tun and strike water tank replaced finally. They were defective and it took a few months for them to be replaced. Also finally got my wort chiller fixed too. For my b-day in Oct I received a 9 gallon pot, so I can finally do full boils without worrying about boil over. I'm happy to say brewing is finally coming together for me in a higher quality form and I can be much more accurate with a better end result. So, wednesday, I brewed for the first time in 3 months. Here is what I did. 10# Rahr 2-row 1# carapils 1# cara 10L 1# cara 60L a handful of chocolate malt steeped a half cup of crushed cocoa nibs for 20 minutes of the boil. .25 ounce cascade pellets @ 60 half a 1 gallon baggie of Centennial wet hop cones @60 quarter of a 1 gallon baggie of Cascade wet hop cones @ 20 tsp of wyeast nutrient @ 15 tsp irish moss @15 US-05 yeast first runnings mashed @ 149 second runnings mashed out @ 170 third runnings mashed out @ 175 Giveing me right around 8 gallons of liquid. After boiling the first runnings for 20 minutes, the wort was all gathered together for a 60 minute boil. Cooled in roughly 10 minutes. Had the perfect amount of liquid, no additional water was needed and I was riding the neck of the 6 gallon carboy. OG is 1059, so I hit my target gravity on the head! now fermenting @ 69 with a big ol' frothy head still billowing up.
Congrats on getting brewing again, Brian. Sounds tasty. Two questions: the few ounces of chocolate malt for colour, or aroma, or to work together with the nibs for flavour? Second, I am guessing you froze the hops wet. Have you done that before; and have you seen any difference between that and fresh (non-frozen)? Also: to find this thread when it hasn't been bumped for a day or three, at the bottom of the Off Topics threads list change the "display threads from" to 2 days or a week, etc.
You can also always search for "homebrew" and find it. Went over to Northern. Picked up the Bavarian Helles kit, some PBW, and another set of keg lines for my 2nd keg. I'm damn excited about the Helles. I had it all the time when I was in germany and I cannot seem to find any of it here. I also really need to jump into all-grain brewing.
Been thinking the same thing lately. Although i've been having fun writing my own recipes and doing full boils so i'll probably be busy with the current setup for awhile. Or so I hope.
I've never frozen the cones before, these were picked and immediatly frozen for future use. I've read about people freezing them and the results from those folks were good. I wanted to get some of the oils in there for mouthfeel, aroma and flavor. They froze well and didnt seem to degrade at all. The handful of chocolate grain is for some color and just a touch of distant flavor. The nibs are for aroma with a hint of nuttiness in flavor.
Wife will be gone most of Saturday. Looking to do this which is a midwestsupplies Hop Head Double IPA with 3lbs additional DME and an extra 1oz of Cascade Hops. Triple IPA "American Barleywine - Strong Ale" Expected Values: OG: 1.097 FG: 1.024 IBU: 116 SRM: 18 ABV: 9.4% Additional to boil: Briess Dried Malt Extract- Golden Light- 3 Lb 1oz Chinook 60mins 1oz Cascade 45mins 1/2oz Centennial 30 mins 1oz Cascade 20mins 1/2oz Centennial 10 mins 1oz Crystal 5mins
Holy hell, 116 ibus sounds tasty! Going to brew either later today or tomorrow, not sure yet. Results with recipe will be up after I do though. Also going to keg the beer I posted up on a few replies up, today. Will have a review on that too. I'm hopeing hops did well, it doesnt smell very hoppy right now in the fermenter.
Kegged the fresh hop ale tonight, should be ready to go in 48 to 72 hours. 20 minutes into the boil on this: 10# Rahr 2-row 1# Wyermann pale wheat 2# Wyermann rye malt 1# Briess cara 10*L Going to throw it in the primaray of the fresh hop on the current yeast bed of Safale US-05 dry yeast for a more rapid beginning of fermentation. Done this a few times and it usually takes off within an hour of the transfer. Hops are 1.5 ounce cascade pellets @ 60 1 ounce cascade wet cones @ 20 Going to add wyeast nutrient @15 and irish moss @15 Will add an OG when I get one.
The fermentation on the above post went ape $hit! Thing took off in about an hour and 45 mins and went absolutely nuts. The blow off tube is filled with funk anf the bucket is too. Very happy with that. It was actually like the beer was boiling haha! Things have no settled down since. The cold temps in my basement are hurting hte beer though, even with the carboy thermal wrap the temps are at 67 degrees and I need them to be at 70. So fermentation is now king of sluggish. Going to wrap it in a towel in hopes of heating things up with the plug in heater carboy thing on it. The fresh hop I kegged turned out more like an English bitter. Not happy with the in accuracy at all. The beer is great, but it isn't what I was after. I don't have one in front of me to review it. Mouthfeel, color and head retention are all very nice though. Next time I wont use cocoa nibs, it added to much nuttiness and not enough chocolate.
1st All Grain Well did my first All Grain brew around a week ago and it turned out fairly well. Brewed a SMASH recipe using Pale Malt and Summit hops as I had yet to try Summit hops I wanted the hops to stand out from the malt. I used my 5 gallon pot as the mash tun and hit my mash temp at 154 for 60 minutes then did a dunk sparge in my 10 gallon brew pot for 10 minutes with some stirring at 170 and onto the boil. Used 2 oz. of hops in the boil and have 1 oz. for the dry. Hit my gravity almost spot on so looks like I got 75% conversion based of my calculations which is pretty good considering this was my first attempt and not having specialty all grain equipment. I promised some pictures but as brewing goes I was drinking more than I was taking pictures. I did however get a few shots of the whirfloc addition, at the time I was amazed at the instant chunkiness of the break :laugh:
I just ordered my burner (Hurricane burner) to run on natural gas last week. Now I need to pick up a big 15 gallon aluminum kettle from Sams club (50 bucks) so I can move over to all grain. I already have a 10 gallon rubbermaid MLT setup and ready to rock. I'm sick of extracts! I've done 2 batches of a cider with about 4-5 pounds of grains as my first "all grain" and yeah...I'm ready to move to bigger and better things! :biggrin: Plus it won't take me long to recoup the investment in the equipment doing all grain versus extracts. Now I just need to get the rest of the stuff for my keggerator and I'll be REALLY set.... :laugh: -Steve
Congrats dude. Smash beers are the way to go to help you understand what flavors and colors base malts add, as well as hop profiles. In the future though you may want to turn down the temp on your first runnings mash. 154 is a bit high for what you are doing. You may find it is overly sweet with nonconvertible sugars resulting in a lower abv. When smashing I generally try to mash in at 149 and mash out at 165/170.
I'm jealous. I wish I could step into the world of all-grain and forced carbonation. I should stop bye some time and see your set up. Maybe we should do a "Brew Day" in Roch! Just bottled the Triple IPA on Sunday. OG 1.098 FG 1.026 Also pretty sure Ryan's right about the Aluminum.
Went to Northern today to do a smash. I got a lb of hops for christmas that I have not used before and want to see what flavors aromas the hop provides. 10# American pale 1# Cara 20L Safale US-05 yeast Hops are German Hallertau
