First time brewing

[merhlyn]

Hi everyone.

I just did my first brew, a Brewers Best kit, American light.
I have had the brew going for 13 hours now and I have a foamy. Not sure if that is what I should see

Recipe
American Light
3.3 lbs. LME (Munsons)
1.0 lbs. Pilsen DME
8 oz. Corn sugar
8 oz. Rice syrup solids

.5 oz. Brewers Gold hops
.5 oz. Cluster hops

1 packet Nottingham yeast (dry)

Picture was taken after 13 hours of fermentation.

Guess my question is, is the foam normal?

 

[GrogNerd]

absolutely normal, looks awesome

 

[RitalinIV]

Merhlyn,

That foam is called krausen. Basically it is protein from your wort with spent yeast cells. If you hopped your wort already, there may even be hop resin in there too. It is all good and part of the fermentation process.

Krausen is light and creamy in color and even range to light green colors depending on how you hop and what type you use.

Some kits recommend racking after the krausen subsides but I found in the beginning that if I waited a little longer, it allowed my brew to mellow out. Later, I found out this was called "conditioning."

Good luck,

-Ritalin

 

[twistr25]

Absolutely what you should see. What temperature is it at? Need to try to get it into the mid to upper 60s. Easy way to do this is a swamp cooler. Just a rubbermaid bin filled with water and some frozen water bottles. Higher temps at the start of fermentation will/can lead to off flavors, including esters and fusel alcohols.

You'll want to let it ferment for at least 10 to 14 days, take a gravity reading, wait a couple more days take another gravity reading and if they are the same, you can package it or move to secondary, whatever you want to do.

It will technically condition while it is in the bottle and/or keg.

 

[merhlyn]

I am currently at 71-72 degrees on my temp. Got it in my basement were it is generally cooler and with out any big temp swings.

Michael

 

[twistr25]

You are on the upper edge if not just outside the recommended temp range. You should be ok, but for future batches you'll want to watch that a little closer and at least try to get it in the middle of the range. Nottingham for instance is recommended between 57-70F, and prefers it on the colder side.

Looks good though and welcome!

 

[RitalinIV]

Outstanding advice, twistr25! One "like" to you, Sir!

Keep your yeast happy and they will, in turn, make you happy too.

Welcome to the club,

-Ritalin

 

[merhlyn]

Talk a little work, but I got the temperature down to about 66°F. And it seems to be staying steady. Thanks all for the advice I appreciate it.

Michael

 

[BadDeacon]

66 is great! I always had a problem with temperature. Figuring that out has made my batches tastes I much better!

 

[merhlyn]

Has been 6 days so I "racked to a secondary". The bubbling from the air lock was done to about 1 a minute and the kruesen(?), had seemed to cog away,. About 70% from the top left. I had a nice yeast cake in the bottom of them carboy after racking and am wondering if I could do anything with that. Nothing advanced just hate to through it down the drain if it could be used for anything.

 

[twistr25]

Did you happen to take a gravity reading? You should be at FG before moving it.... I personally like to leave it in the primary for 10 to 14 minimum, do not listen to the directions that tell you to move it in under 7 days, that's crazy.

Search yeast washing on here for the left over yeast cake.

 

[BadDeacon]

I concur on the yeast washing. Saves a ton on future batches.

 

[merhlyn]

My of was 1.04 and when I racked it was at 1.08. I did taste the beer and it was a bit flat but taste was clear with a hop taste to it. Nothing bitter or over the edge. I think it is going to be good.

My high point though was when I pulled the stopper and had a wonderful beer aroma surround me. Made the work worthwhile. I am hoping that I never lose that moment.

Michael

 

[twistr25]

Mind restating those numbers...

 

[brent77]

Yeast washing can be a pain. I have had some success with racking onto a yeast cake with another batch. The rule for this is that you should always be at least stepping up the gravity/abv of the second batch. Also, not a great idea for beer with tons of hops in the first batch. A lot of people will make a small Saison and step it up to a super Saison. Or brew a pale ale and then rack in a big iPa.

 

[merhlyn]

OG Is 1.040 and when I put it into secondary I was reading 1.008.

Michael

 

[twistr25]

Sounds like you hit FG which is good, but whether the yeast could have done a little more for you, possibly. Shouldn't turn out bad in any fashion, but I would recommend 10 days in the primary at minimum IMO. That will likely come back to bite you down the road, bottle bombs, really sweet beers, etc.

 

[merhlyn]

I was a little worried based on some of the comments that I may have moved to secondary to soon. Me thoughts were based on, when it moved it did not seem to be fermenting any more.

To my surprise this morning I am starting to see little foam at the top of the surface. Correct me please, but I am thinking this is the yeast starting to grow again. I am also seeing my airlock bubble every few minutes.

I fell like a kid on Christmas morning..........

 

[unionrdr]

A 1.040OG going down to a 1.008FG is usually done in my opinion. It could just be off gassing co2,which is good to fill the head space to keep o2 from allowing nasties to breed.

 

[RitalinIV]

Compost is the best use. Once you get really good, some folks wash the yeast and use it again. No joke!

Your beer looks good but remember, the best way to tell when you beer is ready for the secondary is to take a measurement of the specific gravity. As a general rule, when it remains stable for 3 straight days, you are good. Without a hydrometer, the device used to measure specific gravity, most folks just wait an extra week if they are unsure.

Tell us how it turns out-- it looks great!

-Ritalin