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Pages: 1

Fermentation started again in 2ndary




Here's a little question I have for you more experienced beer brewers.  I have a batch of what I'm hoping will turn out a Long Trail Double Bag Clone; I know I should use a hydrometer and all that but I broke my hydrometer during the boil so I never got an OG and don't have one to get the FG and probably wont get one before I bottle this batch.

It was in the Primary for 7 days, foam settled and it started to clear, airlock activity dropped to really slow.  So I racked into the secondary, it's been in there for 6 days and now has a head to it and bubbles ~ every 13 seconds.  I'm wondering if there was still too much fermentable sugars and that's what's going right now.  I was planning on bottling after 7 days in the secondary but I don't want bottle bombs and I'm thinking I should leave it in the secondary for an additional week.  This is a verry malty brew and I've heard of bulk aging these but also heard that too long on a yeast cake can produce off flavors.  I also don't really want to pitch more yeast before I bottle.

What d'ya think?  I know, I know: "go get a hydrometer" grumble grumble.



 

I always leave the beer in primary at least 2 weeks.  it takes months to get off flavors from sitting on the yeast cake.  In the early days of home brewing, the yeast available was of lesser quality and it would die off and autoalyze a lot sooner than the yeast available now, and the advice against long primary times is a carry over from then.

in your case, definitely leave your brew in the secondary for an extra week at least.  make sure there is no more fermenting going on before bottling, or you'll have a mess.

 

Using a hydrometer is the only  way to really be sure that it is done, but in the absence of that, letting it sit another week or two is probably a good idea.  Don't worry about off flavors from sitting on the yeast cake, it takes months and months (at least) for that to happen.

 

That's what I thought I'd need to do.  I'll let it go at least a week if not two more.  Having paitience is arguably the hardest part of home-brewing for sure. hmm



 

AND GET A HYDROMETER!

Seriously, it sounds like you really enjoy this, and will be doing another batch of beer at sometime. This is the tool you really need. I am assuming you are doing extract, so the OG chances are was probably right on, but the FG is important.

I will echo the previous posts about autolysis and time on the yeast cake. Even a primary to me 7 days is WAY too quick. You may have had near complete fermentation, however post fermentation the yeast still have another cycle, and that is when they clean up after themselves and remove some off flavors reducing the risk of diacetyl. Removing from the cake early not only limits this but reduces the yeast cell count that may be present and active, and makes it a much harder time to reduce those last couple of points as well.

The airlock activity you are witnessing now may not necessarily mean new CO2 is being produced by further fermentation, but instaed CO2 that was created during the primary, and absorbed into solution, your transfer has shaken it out, and it is slowly esacaping like a glass of soda going flat. Also if there has been a temp change, the CO2 is more likely to come out.

 

I know I know, I'm going to be getting a new hydrometer soon.  The guy who owns my lhbs got me paranoid about leaving in the primary too long.  I told him the Hefewizen I just did I left in the primary for two weeks and he winced and told me that was pushing it.  So I followed his advice with this batch and racked after one week.

I'm just gonna let this one sit for a couple of weeks and then take some hydrometer readings over a couple of days.  It's already clear, was after the second day in the secondary.  But airlock activity didn't pick up until day 5.  So I'm just going to let it go and go and go.  The temps been pretty consistent since I racked, (been hot this week, even in the basement) and it's held pretty steady at 74*.  IF it turnes out bad I'll let you know, if it turns out good I'll let you know.  Thanks all for the reassurance.

And yes, I'm doing extract brewing.  I don't know if I'll ever take the leap into all grain, it seems I can make qulity enough brews for my taste with extract and I'm not sure I'll ever feel the need to jump into the extra work and investment.  Plus my house is small and I don't have a garage I can brew in, etc, etc, yadda yadda yadda.  I may do the AG one day, but for now I'm pretty content with what extracts can do for me.

I'll keep you all posted on this one as the weeks go on.  If it turns out like I hope I'll post the recipe but I don't want to bother yet, especially if it turns out not as I expected.  I don't want to post a Double Bag Clone that tastes nothing like Double Bag.

 

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