A few questions

[StuartJ]

Complete newbie here, and sorry if any of this has been asked previously. I wasn't able to find any answers by searching.

I'm on my first brew using the Coopers Wheat beer kit. I initially thought I had ruined it, as the temperature was still around 33 when I added the yeast, but after two days at a constant 22 degrees, it seems to be fermenting, so I guess we'll see.

I saw one set of instructions where it said to stir the yeast in, and another that said not to stir it in, just to sprinkle it on top. Should I have stirred it? Can I move the fermenting vessel or stir it during the fermentation process? Can I add things like honey and/or citrus extracts 2 or 3 days in?

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks

Stuart

[rossm]

..the yeast will be OK Stuart, it will find it's way around no worries there.

[Muddy Waters]

Hi Stuart - Welcome [biggrin]

 

You can move your FV (gently) but don't stir it. People will have different ways of doing things but generally you sprinkle dry yeast and stir liquid or rehydrated yeast.

 

You can add things during fermentation if done properly but if it is your first brew I would keep it simple and stick to your original plan.

 

For your next brew try to get you temp down at least 10C before adding your yeast. Depending on the time of year this may require you to put some water in the fridge the day before brewing.

[StuartJ]

Thank you both very much. I've been wanting to do this for a while, and I'm excited to get started.

Is it too late in the process to add honey? I'm on day 3 of fermentation.

[Guest]

Hiya Stuart & welcome to the forum.

 

Great advice by the guys so far on your questions.

 

Learn to achieve your fermenter primary temperature before pitching your yeast. It'll save you a lot of time & worry. If you are using a brew kit tin, the instructions will guide you on how to achieve that start temperature by mixing various levels of hot & cold water. Try not to get ahead of yourself & just follow those instructions as best you can, it's really worth it. [happy]

 

I brew with dry yeast & I'm most happy to close & tighten my fermenter lid once I know my yeast has been sufficiently "dunked" under the brew liquid & stirred a few times. That is only my personal preference though.

 

All I would add is give your 23L of fermentables a really good stir prior to pitching your yeast. I like to think I am pitching the yeast into a consistency of what I'm brewing, not a mish mash of poorly stirred levels of various fermentables.

 

As far as your introduction of honey, I'm just starting to experiment with the introduction of it myself into my brews. I'm using it mainly as a replacement for dextrose (or brewing sugar) as I have a dislike for some brews that seem to leave an overly sweet after taste from excessive amounts of dextrose. I've read other threads on here where other forum regulars are adding amounts of honey at around day 5-7 into a 2 week brew to create a more obvious honey type flavour through their brew.

 

Take the time to look through the pages of threads already posted on here to source info you want. If you can't find a topic within a few pages of those already posted, there are some great guys on here with almost boundless amounts of home brewing experience to draw on by simply posting a new topic.

 

Good luck with your future brewing. [biggrin]

[Otto Von Blotto]

I've never noticed a sweet aftertaste in brews with too much dextrose, mind you, I've only ever brewed one - it tasted like cider and was not very nice at all. Ever since I've used all malt, unless a particular recipe calls for some dex.

[StuartJ]

Thanks BeerLust and Otto. Much appreciated. So far the worst part of this hobby is the patience required. I'm THIRSTY!! :)

Thanks again for everyone's input.

[Muddy Waters]

Beerlust - Excessive dextrose will more likely make an overly dry or harsh tasting beer but not a sweeter beer. Malts are more likely to leave residual sweetness - I find too much amber malt leaves my beers "sweeter" than suits my palate.

[Hairy]

I think most honey is 90-95% fermentable and dextrose is pretty much fully fermentable.

 

By replacing dex with honey you may be left with more residual sweetness.

 

Beerlust, if you have based your dislike of dextrose on beers with large amounts of it then I can understand your position. But dextrose is moderation is fine for kits and extracts.

 

The malt used in extract brewing can lead to a higher FG and sweetness in a beer. By adding say 200-300g dextrose, this will lead to greater attenuation and create a drier finish.

 

Ultimately, as you are doing, it is alll about experimenation to find whhat you like.

[Guest]

When I initially got into home brewing, most of the advice coming from the Homebrew shop attendants were about using their "Brew Enhancers" & "Brew Blends" in company with your base tin, if you wanted to improve the taste of your beers. So not knowing any different at that stage, you take their advice. . . until you realise different.

 

The "Enhancer" packs I was using in those earlier days consisted (as a main) comprising 500gms dextrose/250gm Maltadextrin (corn syrup powder)/& occasionally 250gms of a dried malt &/or a small amount of an unknown hop variety depending on the pack you chose or was advised to use. I hold no grudge against any of those homebrew guys, as my beers did improve over the basic flavours of the tin.

 

However, they still tasted like homebrew. The after taste was an obvious one, & one I didn't like. I put that down to the 500gms or so of dextrose. Dextrose has it's place sure, but not in that quantity for me in a 23L brew.

 

Anyways, I'm now cruisin' down the honey alternative trail in place of dextrose, & will be interested in what residual affects will linger after the 80-85% sugar base of the honey ferments out in my future brews.