First All-Grain Brew - Questions/Comments

[Tantalus]

I started my first all-grain brew (actually my first attempt at beer) last Tuesday, I'm just looking for some comments on my procedure and I have a couple questions.

Recipe from:
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f65/rolfs-irish-red-65023/

Scaled down from 5.00 gallons to 2.00 gallons.

Yeast: Nottingham
Batch Size: 2 gallons
Original Gravity: max 1.080, likely 1.055-1.060
Final Gravity: -
IBU: -
Boiling Time: 60 minutes
Color: -
Primary Fermentation: 10 days at 64F

Ingredients - Amount, Item, Type, % or IBU
2.60 lbs Pale Malt, Maris Otter (3.0 SRM) Grain 76.47%
0.20 lbs Cara-Pils/Dextrine (2.0 SRM) Grain 5.88%
0.10 lbs Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM) Grain 2.94%
0.10 lbs Oats, Malted (8.0 SRM) Grain 2.94%
0.40 oz Challenger Hops [6.20%] (60 min) 23.7 IBU
0.40 Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 15.0 min)
0.40 lbs Brown Sugar (Last 5 minutes of boil)
Nottingham Ale Yeast

1. Mashed grain in using BIAB method.
2. Took lid off pot and checked temp after 20 min, had dropped to 145F from 152 so reheated to 155F and insulated with a towel.
3. At 60:00 min pulled bag out of pot, drained and after grain had stopped draining squeezed extra wort out of bag using sanitized pot lids (retrieved a great deal of wort this way), sparged in smaller pot for 10 min, removed grain using same method and added back into pot.
4. Measured pre-boil SG of 1.060 and calculated efficiency at 75.27%.
5. Boiled and added Challenger hop pellets in bag.
6. After 60:00min chilled pot in sink, added water to make up volume.
7. Poured wort into 2 gallon fermenting bucket, took OG reading from bottom half - visible particles in suspension, got reading of 1.080. Since water was added I assume this was far too high and assumed a more likely final OG of 1.055.
8. Pitched yeast.

So, first I'm wondering if my procedure has any inherent flaws that should be corrected.

Second, the recipe calls for a fermentation of 10 days at 64F, the air temperature around my fermentor has been hovering at 70F. I'm going away next weekend and I'm wondering whether I should rack my beer at 9 days or 14 days. Any ideas?

Thanks so much guys.

 

[SouthBay]

1. How much water did you have to top off with? Your gravity pre boil should be lower than your final gravity, unless you added more water back in than you boiled out.

2. Higher fermentation temps will speed up the process, and possibly create off flavors depending on the yeast. Id think itd be ready at 9 days given the increased temps. Then again, waiting longer usually doesn't hurt anything, and more time on the yeast Might help clear up the flavors after the warmer fermentation.

 

[kh54s10]

Search "swamp cooler" basically a bucket with water and rotating ice bottles to control the temperature of the wort. Remember that the fermentation process will add as much as 10 degrees to the temperature of the wort.

Control of the temperature of fermentation is very important to getting the best flavors.

I suggest about 3 weeks in primary to allow the yeast to do ALL the work they will do. Then, if your gravity is stable you can bottle it.

 

[Tantalus]

1. How much water did you have to top off with? Your gravity pre boil should be lower than your final gravity, unless you added more water back in than you boiled out.

2. Higher fermentation temps will speed up the process, and possibly create off flavors depending on the yeast. Id think itd be ready at 9 days given the increased temps. Then again, waiting longer usually doesn't hurt anything, and more time on the yeast Might help clear up the flavors after the warmer fermentation.

1. I topped off with probably around half a gallon.
2. That's what my original thought was.

Search "swamp cooler" basically a bucket with water and rotating ice bottles to control the temperature of the wort. Remember that the fermentation process will add as much as 10 degrees to the temperature of the wort.

Control of the temperature of fermentation is very important to getting the best flavors.

I suggest about 3 weeks in primary to allow the yeast to do ALL the work they will do. Then, if your gravity is stable you can bottle it.

Is it going to be too late to control the fermentation? Most of the airlock activity has slowed down.

Also, the original recipe recommends 10 days. Is there a specific reason for that?

 

[Tantalus]

Any more ideas on the timetable?

 

[SouthBay]

I think off flavors are going to be generated mostly in the first couple days, while the most active fermentation is going on.

So, let it go longer.

ps, nottingham can go to a very low ferm temp for an ale. Might as well knock the temp down and let it sit on the yeast for a while. Won't hurt anything.

 

[BrewinHooligan]

I personally bottle at 14 days or so if my gravity is stable over a few days becuase I don't have a sufficient pipeline, but 3 weeks in the fermenter tends to be the consensus here as to the minimum you should leave it so the yeast can clean up any possible off flavors and to clear.

 

[Tantalus]

I'm going to give it a sample at 14 days and decide from there whether it would probably do better with bottle conditioning or more time in the fermenter.

Thanks to everyone for all the help.