What's in Your Fermenter? 2020

[boozehound]

Just did a quick 5 litre demijohn of mead with m05, accidentally pitched at 38 degrees, but it seems ok. 

Also 20 litre with Coopers English bitter can with Safale 04 and 750gm LDM at 20 degrees.  OG at 1040. I've made this before and it is awesome. 

[Titan]

On 4/23/2020 at 6:01 PM, Titan said:

Eisbock is done cold crash on the way. Finished at 1.015/16 which is about right. Will sit at 2c for 7 days. 

Update. This one has been in a keg in the freezer and somehow its not freezing. 2 days at -2 no ice. 2 days -4, still no sign of ice. Now sitting at -6. Will check later this morning to see if any ice present. Any ideas?

[Otto Von Blotto]

Keep going colder til it freezes? Other than that no idea. Alcohol obviously lowers the freezing point but you'd think -4 would be low enough. What's the ABV?

My original ferment fridge freezes beer if it's on its coldest setting without a temp controller. I doubt it's going down to even -2. Was a pretty low ABV beer it froze though. 

[Titan]

19 minutes ago, Otto Von Blotto said:

Keep going colder til it freezes? Other than that no idea. Alcohol obviously lowers the freezing point but you'd think -4 would be low enough. What's the ABV?

My original ferment fridge freezes beer if it's on its coldest setting without a temp controller. I doubt it's going down to even -2. Was a pretty low ABV beer it froze though. 

Yep i just checked it again and i have ice. Abv was 7%. Im thinking maybe to much ice now so have backed it off to -2 again and will package later on this morning. Im looking for about 4-5l of water left after packaging.

Edited May 9, 2020 by Titan

[Otto Von Blotto]

Yeah 7% might take a bit more to start freezing. Good to hear it's worked now

[Journeyman]

21 hours ago, Shamus O'Sean said:

I think you could be right on the extra mash time plus cooling time extracting more sugars and hence the higher OG

Whatever it is, it's still producing head - day 4 and there's still a couple cms head on the brew. I haven't had one last that long before as usually by day 4 there's at most a few patches. The brew above it, the XPA, was put in the day before and it's been clear on top for 2 days.

They're not far apart in SG either - the XPA reads 1.025 and the Amber is approx 1.030. It's hard to read the Amber one as the sample tube also still has head on it.

The XPA is a saved APA trub addition and the Amber is a Nott starter pitched while active.

[Otto Von Blotto]

Pitched my Bo pils just about half an hour ago, obviously it was needing to be done but I also need the cube for today's brew. I put it in the fridge last night around dinner time, and it ended up settling on 6.3°C in the brew fridge after pitching yeast. I'm fermenting it at 12 degrees so it'll have a bit of warming up to do but should be there by tonight. I prefer pitching these lower than the ferment temp, and doesn't really worry me how far under it is. The weather here always ensures they warm up. 

Got the full 21 litres, and OG was 1.050 so basically what I aimed for. 

Edited May 10, 2020 by Otto Von Blotto

[Titan]

Done and packaged. 13.5l beer from 19l so left 5.5l ice. Started at 7.5 abv and finished at 10.5.

[Shamus O'Sean]

Island Toasted Coconut Porter

Except I went with

• 1.136kg of Light Dry Malt instead of 1.5kg (because that's what I had left)
• 200g of Chocolate Malt instead of 300g because of using less LDM
• East Kent Golding hops instead of Styrian Goldings because I did not have that hop.  Yes, I know they are not actually related.
• Also brewed to 23L
• Should be about 4.3-4.4% ABV

Did this brew in the kitchen.  Like I do for most Coopers based recipes.  Family commented on the pleasant coffee/chocolate smell through the house.  My inside brews are not usually praised.

[Otto Von Blotto]

Bo pils had warmed up to just under 11 last check before bed. I doubt I'll see any activity tomorrow but should do by Tuesday. 

[stquinto]

On 5/9/2020 at 12:29 PM, Bearded Burbler said:

Well squinti mate I reckon that you have watched the right videos ha ha ; )

What yeast (type/brand) and flour do you use?

% protein?

 

Sorry mate, thought I’d replied but probably didn’t hit send. The bread doesn’t use yeast, you make your own starter/mother from flour and water. After 12 days of discarding and feeding it will double in size the. You can use it instead of yeast. Any non-bleached flour will do, bread flour is even better. I do 450g white and 50g wholemeal. 

[stquinto]

Oh, and it’s bottling time for my Pale Ale brews with Citrus and Cascade added on day 4.  Not half murky though, I put some finings in, hopefully it’ll of cleared a bit

[UncleStavvy]

Taken a while for this lager to get going at 12°. Started it Saturday night and have a visible krausen this morning so all good so far. Now the waiting begins.

In the meantime, inside temps have dropped with the cold weather over the weekend. I've had the sparkling ale bottles in crates next to the computer but noted 13.5° this morning. So I've bitten the bullet and placed the crates in the spa at 21° and there they can stay for two weeks. I'd prefer 18° but that's the tubs lowest setting, however that was also fermentation temp so all good I hope

[Shamus O'Sean]

37 minutes ago, UncleStavvy said:

I've bitten the bullet and placed the crates in the spa at 21° and there they can stay for two weeks. I'd prefer 18° but that's the tubs lowest setting, however that was also fermentation temp so all good I hope

All good.  Just should be 18°C or above.  Although 40°C would not be good.

[UncleStavvy]

1 minute ago, Shamus O'Sean said:

All good.  Just should be 18°C or above.  Although 40°C would not be good.

Management insists that it's kept ticking over so if I'm paying for the power I'm going to take advantage of it.

[Journeyman]

On 5/10/2020 at 10:44 AM, Journeyman said:

Whatever it is, it's still producing head - day 4 and there's still a couple cms head on the brew. I haven't had one last that long before as usually by day 4 there's at most a few patches. The brew above it, the XPA, was put in the day before and it's been clear on top for 2 days.

They're not far apart in SG either - the XPA reads 1.025 and the Amber is approx 1.030. It's hard to read the Amber one as the sample tube also still has head on it.

The XPA is a saved APA trub addition and the Amber is a Nott starter pitched while active.

The Amber has finally settled a little - enough in the sample so I could get a reading that wasn't a guess. Looks like 1.024 right now, which I think means it's already at least 7.9 ABV with some fermenting still to go. Fridge smells good - will be dry hopping this and the XPA today.

[Naughty Corner Brewing]

23 hours ago, Shamus O'Sean said:

My inside brews are not usually praised.

My brew days are never praised Even when I’m in the garage!

[Journeyman]

19 hours ago, Journeyman said:

The Amber has finally settled a little - enough in the sample so I could get a reading that wasn't a guess. Looks like 1.024 right now, which I think means it's already at least 7.9 ABV with some fermenting still to go. Fridge smells good - will be dry hopping this and the XPA today.

Sitting at 1.020 this AM so still kicking along. I think I better bottle this one!  Not sure I want a keg of 9+ ABV sitting there.

Although... it WOULD mean I can just have a schooner of it instead of a bottle. 

Now... do I have enough will power to leave it at just ONE!

[Greenyinthewestofsydney]

20 minutes ago, Journeyman said:

Sitting at 1.020 this AM so still kicking along. I think I better bottle this one!  Not sure I want a keg of 9+ ABV sitting there.

Although... it WOULD mean I can just have a schooner of it instead of a bottle. 

Now... do I have enough will power to leave it at just ONE!

I bottle all my high ABV brews. I share your thoughts. A 750ml bottle of of 10% ABV brew is too much for a weekday. Invest in a bottle stopper. I picked one up from bundaberg soft drinks a while back. It will hold enough gas in there for a few days.

[Journeyman]

23 minutes ago, Greeny1525229549 said:

I bottle all my high ABV brews. I share your thoughts. A 750ml bottle of of 10% ABV brew is too much for a weekday. Invest in a bottle stopper. I picked one up from bundaberg soft drinks a while back. It will hold enough gas in there for a few days.

Could you please post a pic? I've had wine ones in the past but they relied on pumping out the air. Or champagne ones pump IN the air - don't think I want to do either with my beer.

Or is yours one of the cone SS ones with tapering rubber sleeve?

[Greenyinthewestofsydney]

12 minutes ago, Journeyman said:

Could you please post a pic? I've had wine ones in the past but they relied on pumping out the air. Or champagne ones pump IN the air - don't think I want to do either with my beer.

Or is yours one of the cone SS ones with tapering rubber sleeve?

 

12 minutes ago, Journeyman said:

Could you please post a pic? I've had wine ones in the past but they relied on pumping out the air. Or champagne ones pump IN the air - don't think I want to do either with my beer.

Or is yours one of the cone SS ones with tapering rubber sleeve?

When you clip it down the rubber part expands and seals off the neck. Wish i bought more of them when i was in Bundy

Edited May 12, 2020 by Greeny1525229549

[Titan]

On 5/10/2020 at 2:21 PM, Titan said:

Done and packaged. 13.5l beer from 19l so left 5.5l ice. Started at 7.5 abv and finished at 10.5.

Im now having doubts about this beer. I just cracked the last precursor to this beer abv 7.5%. Not well carb, had some fizz on opening thinking the alcohol content inhibited the seconday ferment. S23 i have read is able to ferment at 11.5 ish. Not real confident that this is the case. When i bottled this i added fresh s23 saved from my starter. Just wondering if it can handle 10.5 abv. Thoughts on this would be great.

[Marty_G]

8 hours ago, Greeny1525229549 said:

When you clip it down the rubber part expands and seals off the neck. Wish i bought more of them when i was in Bundy

Yep a good old school seal...I have some and they are great... I remember having them when I was a kid in the 60's. .. 

[Greenyinthewestofsydney]

10 minutes ago, Titan said:

Im now having doubts about this beer. I just cracked the last precursor to this beer abv 7.5%. Not well carb, had some fizz on opening thinking the alcohol content inhibited the seconday ferment. S23 i have read is able to ferment at 11.5 ish. Not real confident that this is the case. When i bottled this i added fresh s23 saved from my starter. Just wondering if it can handle 10.5 abv. Thoughts on this would be great.

Hey titan. I can tell you that it will take a higher ABV brew longer to naturally carbonate than a lower ABV one. More viable yeast in the bottle will eat the sugar quicker than less viable yeast. My last belgian dark strong is almost 11 ABV and after 5 weeks its almost fully carbed with no additional yeast. Patience my friend.

[Pezzza]

35 minutes ago, Titan said:

Thoughts on this would be great.

Sorry cannot help @Titan never done anything that Hi-Tech.  But @Greeny1525229549 is likely to be on the money... probably just need a bit more time at a nice temp for Secondary Ferment.