First Stout - huge blow-off - Can I save the brew?

[MoHo]

My first attempt at a stout was going (fairly) smoothly up until last night. Before going to bed around 11pm, I went down stairs to check and see if my wort had started fermenting - sure enough, it had (after about 20 hours). I went downstairs this morning to check on the fermenter, and I found disaster! The lid to the fermenter (6 gallon bucket) had completely blown off, and beer foam is all over the carpet and the walls!

Here is my question - can I save this brew?? At this point, the foam is still overflowing the capacity of the bucket. In order to replace the lid, I would have to toss a good bit of foam. Any thoughts? Advice? Please help!

Mo

 

[Grannyknot]

I would sanitize the lid, put it back on there, and see what happens.
Good chance the beer will still be drinkable and probably good.
Also a good chance you are going to be doing a lot of cleaning today.

 

[Fuzzymittenbrewing]

I would sanitize the lid, put it back on there, and see what happens.
Good chance the beer will still be drinkable

Yeah do this but you also need a blow off tube. I always start ferments with one attached to avoid this mess. Its not always neccesary but just in case. Setup like this video with sanitizer in the jug

 

[Phage-cage]

I just had a similar experience except the imperial stout I was brewing also blew out the blow off tube! 5 gal in a 6.5gal better bottle. I had a rotation of blow off tubes clean and sanitized ready to go on the carboy whenever it decided it had had enough and blew out. Was using safale s-04

 

[MoHo]

Thank you all for your help! The lid has been sanitized and reattached. I have secured a blow-off tube and have it dumping in another bucket, filled halfway with water. Everything seems great now.

I had to go upstairs this morning and tell my wife, "we've had a beer-splosion" in the basement. The next 2 hours were spent scrubbing carpet, walls, and the ceiling! I found wort as far as 15 ft from the bucket! Luckily, my wife and I both work from home and could tend to it, but it yielded a very unproductive morning. Lessons learned the hard way are not easily forgotten!

Thanks!

 

[reuliss]

Depending on how much yeast you lost, you might consider pitching more. Oftentimes, the best, most attenuative yeast is toward the top.

 

[MoHo]

Thanks reuliss. If I had more time, I would probably do so. I am actually leaving town tomorrow for the next 12 days. The yeast has still been very active since I re-sealed the lid and blow-off tube. Do you think I am in danger of losing the brew?

 

[corkybstewart]

It blew it's top because it got too hot. Blow off hoses treat the symptoms but next time keep that fermentation cooler and you'll never have the problem again, plus your beer will be netter.

 

[MoHo]

It blew it's top because it got too hot. Blow off hoses treat the symptoms but next time keep that fermentation cooler and you'll never have the problem again, plus your beer will be netter.

Thanks - I had it in my basement where it was roughly 74*. What is the most efficient way to keep it cooler, without running the AC at 68* here in Atlanta?

Thanks

 

[Fuzzymittenbrewing]

Thanks - I had it in my basement where it was roughly 74*. What is the most efficient way to keep it cooler, without running the AC at 68* here in Atlanta?

Thanks

Holy cow that is hot. Maybe a closet in the normal cooled part of the house?

 

[corkybstewart]

Put it in a big bucket of cool water and put ice until the water is around 60F. Then maintain that temp with frozen bottles of water.
To save this batch cool it fast, then keep it cool a couple of weeks in primary and the fusels you've been making will mellow out.
When I started in 1992 I had no idea temp control mattered, but in the late 90's I started paying attention to it. Of all the things I've tried and done with homebrewing over the years I can positively say nothing has improved my beer as much as controlling fermentation temperature. There are lots of ways to do it, some more complicated than others. I have room(and a supportive wife) so I built a big insulated plywood box with a window AC attached. Lately my garage is around 100-110F but I have a lager fermenting at 54F internal temp

 

[MoHo]

Holy cow that is hot. Maybe a closet in the normal cooled part of the house?

Too hot? I have since dropped my basement temp (and subsequently the beer) to ~70*. What is an ideal temp for fermenting?

 

[Fuzzymittenbrewing]

Too hot? I have since dropped my basement temp (and subsequently the beer) to ~70*. What is an ideal temp for fermenting?

For a stout probably 65-68

 

[austinb]

Most ales should be fermented between 65-68 degrees. Also keep in mind that fermentation also creates heat so even though the basement was 74 your beer could have easily been 80 degrees which is way too hot. You are very likely going to get Belgian beer like esters and possibly headache causing fusel alcohols. Be careful the first time you drink this and only try a little at first because a beer high in fusels can give you a pretty nasty headache after just one beer though you will probably taste it if it is that bad.

 

[Inkguy]

Thanks - What is the most efficient way to keep it cooler, without running the AC at 68* here in Atlanta?

Thanks

Two choices. I live in WI, where summer is hot enough that even my basement is hot (relative to yeast tolerances). So I
a) brew no later than May, or whenever the basement passes 70
b) stick to lagers, if you have fridge space, since they have to be cold, so ambient doesn't matter

I had the same thing happen to me with a stout once. I had it in a 6.5 gallon bucket. The lid blew off, I cleaned and put it back on, using a 12 pack to hold it down. The lid blew off AGAIN and the 12 pack went all over the kitchen (closed cans, not liquid!).

Of course that's the least labor-intensive way...
My beer was fine.

 

[m3n00b]

Two choices. I live in WI, where summer is hot enough that even my basement is hot (relative to yeast tolerances). So I
a) brew no later than May, or whenever the basement passes 70
b) stick to lagers, if you have fridge space, since they have to be cold, so ambient doesn't matter

I had the same thing happen to me with a stout once. I had it in a 6.5 gallon bucket. The lid blew off, I cleaned and put it back on, using a 12 pack to hold it down. The lid blew off AGAIN and the 12 pack went all over the kitchen (closed cans, not liquid!).

Of course that's the least labor-intensive way...
My beer was fine.

Ummmm most lagers need to start around 50f. Fridges don't go that high because above 40 is a danger zone for food storage.

I say get a chest freezer or fridge and a tstat or try a swamp cooler method with frozen water bottles.

 

[Inkguy]

It's been my experience that, if you set the numbers/letters high enough on both the fridge and the freezer, the fridge will stay around 48 or 49. I have done that for nearly a dozen lagers and an alt, cold-conditioned for a month at 42 - brewed in three different units, over 15 years.
Of course, it helps to have it be a spare with no food in it...

Saisons and meads are also an option - they ferment at high 70s as I understand. Obviously if you want a stout that won't help!

 

[Ivypunx]

If your lucky the head protected the beer from oxidation and infection. I usually use a blow off tube for primary if the beer has a relatively high OG or if there isnt much head space. I currently have a stout that is just shoving crud through the blow off tube

 

[ChefRex]

.

 

[NewWestBrewer]

Thanks - I had it in my basement where it was roughly 74*. What is the most efficient way to keep it cooler, without running the AC at 68* here in Atlanta?

Thanks

Swamp cooler - a big rubbermaid bucket filled with water and rotating frozen water bottles works great.

 

[m3n00b]

Saisons and meads are also an option - they ferment at high 70s as I understand. Obviously if you want a stout that won't help!

I have one going at 86.

 

[Ivypunx]

Swamp cooler - a big rubbermaid bucket filled with water and rotating frozen water bottles works great.

I run the same set up. It works wonders. And during the day it never gets under 85 in my house in texas