Just started my first brew

Take a minute to introduce yourself to the Borg and tell us what's brewing. You can ask questions here too!

Moderators: BlackDuck, Beer-lord, LouieMacGoo, philm00x, gwcr

User avatar
rmaunruh
Newbie
Newbie
Posts: 2
Joined: Mon Sep 03, 2018 3:38 am

Just started my first brew

Post by rmaunruh »

Hi,

I just got my Brewdemon kit last week and set it up immediately. I'm excited about what's to come.

I do have a couple quick questions. I've decided to let my brew stay in the fermentor for about 3 weeks and then 3 weeks for bottling. How does that sound?

Also, is there a reason Brewdemon sells a clear kit for cider? Will it not work as well in the beer kit?

Thanks, I can't wait to try more advanced stuff too.
User avatar
mashani
mashani
mashani
Posts: 6743
Joined: Sat Aug 10, 2013 11:57 pm

Re: Just started my first brew

Post by mashani »

Cider will work fine in your little brown fermenter. The clear fermenter just lets perverts watch the little yeasties doing their thing more easily, and maybe it make it easier to see what needs cleaning later.

But beer would not be so good in the clear one because light + hops = skunked beer. The brown fermenter provides extra protection from sunlight, not just perverts.

Your 3 weeks + 3 weeks is probably good, but at 4 weeks after bottling you may find the beer even better. It just depends on the beer.

Welcome to our obsession.
User avatar
Kealia
Brew Guru
Brew Guru
Posts: 5588
Joined: Thu Aug 08, 2013 10:52 pm

Re: Just started my first brew

Post by Kealia »

Yeah, what he said.

It's clear that you've done some reading, good for you.

For new Brewers I do suggest to try a bottle after two weeks, then keep sampling at 1 week intervals so you can see and taste the difference. It gives you the "why" as to why you are waiting instead of just blindly following advice, ya know?

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk
bpgreen
Uber Brewer
Uber Brewer
Posts: 1965
Joined: Wed Aug 05, 2015 9:50 pm

Re: Just started my first brew

Post by bpgreen »

I have no advice to add, but I will welcome you to the forum and let you know that you can ask any question you have, no matter how basic it is. A problem with a lot of forums is that people forget what it was like when they were new. Here, everybody seems to be able to remember what it was like when they were new, but there are also people who are able to answer really complex questions from advanced users.

Welcome to the forum and to the hobby/addiction.
User avatar
John Sand
Brew Guru
Brew Guru
Posts: 4310
Joined: Wed Aug 07, 2013 9:01 pm
Location: Long Island NY

Re: Just started my first brew

Post by John Sand »

Welcome aboard! Please keep us posted.
Making beer and stew for the Zombie Apocalypse.
Never mind, there it is.
User avatar
Bluejaye
Fully Fermented
Fully Fermented
Posts: 395
Joined: Tue Aug 06, 2013 2:43 pm
Location: S.E. MI

Re: Just started my first brew

Post by Bluejaye »

Welcome. I agree with the suggestion to try one early, just so later you can say "wow, what a difference a week (or two) can make."
User avatar
Beer-lord
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 9634
Joined: Mon Aug 05, 2013 2:48 pm
Location: Burbs of the Big Easy

Re: Just started my first brew

Post by Beer-lord »

Welcome to the Borg and happy brewing!
PABs Brewing
Planning
Brew good beer and live a hoppy life
Fermenting

Drinking
Disfucted
Smelly Hops
(split batch) A Many Stringed Bow
Up Next
Men In Black
User avatar
RickBeer
Brew Guru
Brew Guru
Posts: 3099
Joined: Thu Aug 08, 2013 1:21 pm
Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan (Go Blue!)

Re: Just started my first brew

Post by RickBeer »

Welcome.

Refrigerate only what you're ready to drink, and put it in the frig 3 days prior to drinking it, which allows the CO2 proper time to absorb into the beer. You can try one early, and then one each, and what you'll learn is that light or hoppy beers are best young, and dark and heavy beers are best aged. I go 3-4 for everything minimum.
I have over 9,000 posts on "another forum", which means absolutely nothing. Mr. Beer January 2014 Brewer of the Month with all the pomp and circumstance that comes with it...

Certificate in Brewing and Distillation Technology

Sites to find beer making supplies: Adventures in Homebrewing - Mr. Beer - MoreBeer
My Beer - click to reveal
Currently using 6 LBKs.

Beers I regularly brew:
Bell's Best Brown clone
Irish Hills Red - I call this "Ann Arbor Red"
Mackinac Island Red - I call this "Michigan Red"
Oatmeal Stout - I call this Not Fat, Stout - Oatmeal Stout

Bottled 5 gallons of Ann Arbor Red on 4/18/17. Bottled 5 gallons of Michigan Red on 5/8/17.

Brewed in 2017 - 22.13 gallons (19.91 in 2012, 48.06 in 2013, 61.39 in 2014, 84.26 in 2015,46.39 in 2016)
Brewed in lifetime - 282.14 gallons
Drinkable beer on hand -  13.58 cases, with 6.11 cases ready in May and early June.
Average cost per 12 pack through all beer brewed - $6.27(ingredients only)
User avatar
Dawg LB Steve
Brew Guru
Brew Guru
Posts: 2778
Joined: Fri Feb 07, 2014 7:39 pm
Location: Greater Cleveland East

Re: Just started my first brew

Post by Dawg LB Steve »

Welcome to the Borg, great group here! If you have questions please ask, you will get answers!
:welcome: :cheers:
MONTUCKY BREWING
Currently brewing:

Next Up?
Kolsch?
Ginger Beer?
Traveling Red?
Yazoo Gerst Clone?
Peanut Butter Porter?

Currently Conditioning:
Cherry Mead
California Moscato

Currently enjoying:
Hardly Apple Cider on tap
Hardly Cherry Lime-Aid on tap
Oktoberfestive-Ale on tap
PGA Cider (Pear, Ginger, Apple) on tap 3rd Founders Cup 2016 King Of The Mountain on tap
Bottoms Up Brown on tap GOLD 2016 Ohio Brew Week Silver 2016 Ohio State Fair Silver 2016 Son of Brewzilla, Silver 2015 Son of Brewzilla, Bronze 2015 King Of The Mountain on tap
NITWIT BELGIAN STRONG ALE Banjo-Dawg RCE bottled
DAWG LB PALE ALE bottled
CITRA SLAPPED AMBER ALE bottle
MO FREEDOM SMaSH bottle
HOP TO IT IMPERIAL IPA bottle

Medal Count
Gold 3
Silver 5
Bronze 5
Actively brewing since December 2013
User avatar
rmaunruh
Newbie
Newbie
Posts: 2
Joined: Mon Sep 03, 2018 3:38 am

Re: Just started my first brew

Post by rmaunruh »

RickBeer wrote:Welcome.

Refrigerate only what you're ready to drink.
Interesting, so you don't recommend the cold conditioning I've heard about?

Also, will any white sugar be fine for the carbonation process?

Thanks, this seems like a wonderful community.
User avatar
BlackDuck
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 5156
Joined: Wed Aug 07, 2013 7:49 am
Location: Canal Winchester, Ohio

Re: Just started my first brew

Post by BlackDuck »

Welcome to the Borg!!
As for cold conditioning, I used to carbonate the bottled beer in my basement for 4 weeks. After that period I would put a couple in the fridge and do what RickBeer said, tasting them over time. They will change a bit over time. Try it and you'll see what we are talking about.

But now I'm going to throw a wrench into that theory...I keg my beers now. And you can't exactly leave some at basement temps and put a couple in the fridge to taste them. It's either all or nothing with a keg. After I keg a batch, it goes into the fridge and hooked up to gas to carbonate. It takes me about a week or so to fully carbonate. Basically a keg is just one big bottle of beer. I will say the the beers I pour a couple weeks after it's been carbonated are usually better than the ones I pour right away. So the wrench is that I think they they will condition just fine if you put them all in the fridge at the same time. You'll most likely be drinking them over time too, so you'll be able to tell the difference between the ones that have been in the fridge for a while compared to the ones that have only been in there a few days after being fully carbed.

So, to answer you question, I believe they will cold condition just fine if you put them all in the fridge after they've been fully carbed, it does in a keg!

You can use any white sugar to carb, I always used corn sugar. Not really sure why, it's just what I learned. Hell, some people even use honey to carb.
ANTLER BREWING
Drinking
#93 - Gerst Amber Ale
Conditioning and Carbing

Fermenting

On Deck
User avatar
mashani
mashani
mashani
Posts: 6743
Joined: Sat Aug 10, 2013 11:57 pm

Re: Just started my first brew

Post by mashani »

The only thing I will add is that when bottling, you are creating a little "mini fermentation" to get the carb, where kegging this isn't the case. I'd wait at least a few weeks after the beer is fully bottle carbonated before I threw them all in the fridge if I was going to go that route because otherwise I would taste acetaldehyde (cidery green apple), and that will not condition out in the fridge, the yeast has to be active for that to happen. IE, I would let them sit for 4 weeks and then throw them all in the fridge if I was doing this.

I generally don't, I just keep beer in boxes in my basement, and move say 6 or 8 at a time into the fridge as they are "depleted".

Any sugar works as said. The difference between cane sugar and corn sugar is that yeast can directly eat corn sugar, but has to split cane sugar into two simpler sugars by producing an enzyme (invertase) before it can eat it. Basically it creates its own invert sugar out of cane sugar. Honey actually has invertase in it.

This process "may" create more acetaldehyde. I say "may" because I don't know if anyone has ever actually measured this scientifically. But lots of people (including me) would say they can taste the acetaldehyde more when using cane sugar if the beer is consumed really young (like 2 weeks in the bottle). By 3 weeks or 4 weeks I can't tell any difference because they yeast cleans it up anyways. I am an acetaldehyde super taster however, many people might not even notice. And I don't drink my beers until they have been in the bottle for 3-4 weeks anyways, so I just use cane sugar anyways.

Acetaldehyde doesn't just taste like cider/green apples, it can give you significant headaches / hangover symptoms, and trigger migraines. So you really do want to let it condition out whether you can taste it or not.

Some people think corn sugar gives them "finer carb". I think this is more likely just that it's producing carb a bit faster due to the process I mentioned above (direct consumption vs. splitting the sugar), so the carb that is produced has had more time to fully absorb into the beer if you are drinking them when young. I think with some age on it, it doesn't matter.
User avatar
BlackDuck
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 5156
Joined: Wed Aug 07, 2013 7:49 am
Location: Canal Winchester, Ohio

Re: Just started my first brew

Post by BlackDuck »

mashani wrote:IE, I would let them sit for 4 weeks and then throw them all in the fridge if I was doing this.
Yup, I agree, and also metioned the 4 weeks carb/conditioning time.
ANTLER BREWING
Drinking
#93 - Gerst Amber Ale
Conditioning and Carbing

Fermenting

On Deck
User avatar
TonyKZ1
Brew Master
Brew Master
Posts: 678
Joined: Fri Feb 20, 2015 12:19 pm
Location: Marble Hill, MO.

Re: Just started my first brew

Post by TonyKZ1 »

Hello and welcome to the site. As others have said, I do also, ferment 3 weeks and carb/condition for 4 weeks.
Bailey's Billy Goat Brews
User avatar
HerbMeowing
Fully Fermented
Fully Fermented
Posts: 433
Joined: Fri Aug 07, 2015 7:05 pm
Location: ~37°N : ~77°W

Re: Just started my first brew

Post by HerbMeowing »

Maunruh; welcome to home brewing.
Some say it's an obsession.
Some say it's an addiction.
The choice is yours to make.

My 2¢ ...
Corn sugar cost more than table sugar.
Table sugar works just as well as corn sugar.
- As they say ... it's your beer; do what you want.

All else equal ... Home Brewing 101 kit recipes ... such as Brewdemon and Mr. Beer ... are ready for bottling after fermenting for two weeks. Waiting three weeks to bottle will have no ill effect on the finished product.
Better to wait an extra week to bottle than bottle too soon (see: bottle bombs).
- As they say ... it's your beer; do what you want.

As for conditioning; it's been my experience w/extract recipes ... they come into their own around Week 6 in the bottle.
That's not to say you can't drink it sooner ... only that the brew's flavors needs that much time to meld & mature.
- As they say ... it's your beer; do what you want.
Homebrew will get you through times of no money
Better than money will get you through times of no homebrew

- apologies to the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers
Post Reply