Introduction and first brew

[ayrek]

Hello, everyone, I'm Ayrek.
I've been wanting to get into brewing for a very long time, and I finally decided to make the initial investment, and try my hand at it. I bought a single stage equipment kit, a brew kettle, and enough bottles for my first brew. I also bought this ingredient kit.
http://www.midwestsupplies.com/apple-ale.html

6 lb. Pilsen liquid malt extract
1 lb. Gambrinus Honey malt
1 lb. brown sugar
4 oz. apple extract
1 oz. Hallertau pellet hops
and dry yeast

Having baked bread for years, and having read a fair amount, I was pretty sure I knew what I was getting into (other than a few really silly noob mistakes). I proofed my yeast in warm water just like I would have with bread, and within about 3 hours I had very active fermentation. This was Friday morning. Today, fermentation basically had seemed to stop, and I've read that when using dry yeast, sometimes it can finish in as little as a few days.

My question is, do you think it would be too soon to bottle this coming Friday?

I'm in a strange situation, spending my week in my apartment going to college, and visiting my mom's house on the weekends, where I'm doing my brewing. So my options are a little limited.

Edit: I think I posted in the wrong forum. Technically I steeped my grains rather than doing a partial mash, I think? Learning to talk about brewing seems to be a lot more difficult than actually learning to brew...

 

[dwart]

I would suggest giving it another week. Let it sit in the primary/secondary for at least two weeks. Most people seem to recommend 3. Welcome to the world of brewing. I'm a new myself to.

 

[Butchv12]

Do not bottle anything after one week, but do not wait more than 4 either for simple beers.....

Welcome!


Oh yeah, do not under any condition, drink it until 4 weeks - cause if you do you will start a new thread here wondering why your beer is flat!

 

[ayrek]

Oh yeah, do not under any condition, drink it until 4 weeks - cause if you do you will start a new thread here wondering why your beer is flat!

Haha I actually bought PET bottles, so that I could observe the carbonation phase a bit more closely, at least for my first few brews.

To be honest,I was mostly hoping to clear out my primary so I could get a second brew going. I suppose I'll be putting that off a week! Oh well hahaha. Thanks

 

[RM-MN]

It's fun to use a plastic bottle to see how carbonation is proceeding but there is more to it than just producing CO2. There are more complex actions going on too that lead to better flavors. Your beer may be carbonated in less than a week but it still won't be good to drink or at least not as good as it will be if you wait.

 

[william_shakes_beer]

If you are new you should take an original gravity reading and bottle when the SG remains stable for 3 consecutive readings. If the gravity is dropping the yeast are still fermenting and will continue after you bottle, quite possibly bursting the bottles. I generally do 4 weeks primary, 4 weeks bottle conditioning and take SG readings at start and end to calculate my ABV, but if you want to rush this batch, let the hydrometer by your guide.

 

[ayrek]

I think I'm just being a little impatient with it, since it's my first time. I was going to take gravity readings, but I realized (a bit too late) that, while my equipment kit came with a hydrometer, it did not come with a cylinder. I'm hoping to remedy that soon, but technically I went a little over budget on this as is, so I'm looking for a free solution hahaha.

To be honest, I'm really looking forward to getting it into a bottle and tasting it at each stage of development, from when it is first fully carbed, on through a few months of storage. I've read a lot about how aging affects the beer, but I'm anxious to observe that first hand.

Once my fermenter is freed up, I'm going to brew a peach hefe, and right around the corner is also the end of the semester, so I have impending papers and final exams. I'm hoping that is enough of a distraction to get me to leave my brews alone for a while

 

[RM-MN]

Didn't your hydrometer come in a plastic tube with a cap on each end? Those tubes work great for putting samples in. Leave the hydrometer in the tube, fill it until the hydrometer floats, read hydrometer.

 

[ayrek]

Didn't your hydrometer come in a plastic tube with a cap on each end? Those tubes work great for putting samples in. Leave the hydrometer in the tube, fill it until the hydrometer floats, read hydrometer.

Actually it came in a two piece tube, each about the same length, maybe 2/3 the length of the hydrometer itself, and one end slides over the other. I'm not sure either half is deep enough to take a reading, but when I get back to my mom's I'll double check that.

Failing that, I can take a reading directly in the fermenter, right? I mean, obviously I'll have to be extremely aware of my sanitation, but other than that, what issues can I expect to encounter if I attempted this?

 

[RM-MN]

No, if it is a tube shorter than the hydrometer it won't work. I have mine more than 3/4 full for taking the final gravity reading. The only issues I see with taking a reading right in the fermenter are sanitation, bubbles obscuring the line on the hydrometer, and the angle that you look at it if the fermenter isn't clear.

 

[etownpaul]

I have taken all my hydrometer readings directly in the primary or secondary and never had a problem. I give the hydrometer a quick rinse in a bleach based cleaner, then a thorough rinse under tap water and good to go.

 

[william_shakes_beer]

I think I'm just being a little impatient with it, since it's my first time. I was going to take gravity readings, but I realized (a bit too late) that, while my equipment kit came with a hydrometer, it did not come with a cylinder. I'm hoping to remedy that soon, but technically I went a little over budget on this as is, so I'm looking for a free solution hahaha.

To be honest, I'm really looking forward to getting it into a bottle and tasting it at each stage of development, from when it is first fully carbed, on through a few months of storage. I've read a lot about how aging affects the beer, but I'm anxious to observe that first hand.

Once my fermenter is freed up, I'm going to brew a peach hefe, and right around the corner is also the end of the semester, so I have impending papers and final exams. I'm hoping that is enough of a distraction to get me to leave my brews alone for a while

I bought a test jar, but to be honest I just spray it with starsan and pop it directly into the fermenter. ( You did fill a spray bottle with star san after you brew day. Didn't you?)