Post Boil Questions

[cbzdel]

Everything up to getting thought the boil is very simple, going to make my second batch here soon, I am still iffy on my first batch, but I am just going to leave it alone and hope for the best!

I have 3 questions questions..
1) I just use the stir like mad method for aeration, do I add the yeast before or after doing this, if after I just dump the yeast of top of several inches the foam?

2) For you general ales how do I know what a good temp is, seems like everywhere I looks its a different answer, some day 70+, some say 65-70 and some say it works well for them at 60-65?? My house is generally in the 65-70 range, never going outside of that range unless in a head wave in the summer then it might creep up into the mid 70s inside the house.

3) Seems like the new thing is just leaving in a primary until complete then bottole/keg, what do I do in the case of dry hopping?? I read dry hopping in the primary can mess up the beer.

I think thats it for now, I am sure I will have many more in the future haha

 

[phuff7129]

I started out using the stir like crazy method and I had pretty good fermentations. I would pour the wort into the fermenter from counter height to get a lot of air into the wort, then I would top up and stir like crazy and pitch the yeast right on top. Most manufacturers do recommend that you rehydrate dry yeast before pitching. Basically just hydrate the yeast in a small glass of water that is around 90 degrees. That being said I have pitched without hydrating the yeast with no issues.

As for temperature all you need to do is go the yeast manufacturer website and it will tell you everything you need to know about the yeast you are using, including the ideal temperature range.

I have done secondaries and I have just left it in primary and both work great so I stayed with the easiest one which is just leave the beer in primary. For example I will leave an IPA in primary for 2-3 weeks. Then I will dryhop right in the primary fermenter. When I am done with the dryhop I will go ahead and keg or bottle.

Welcome to this great hobby.

 

[BestBeerShop]

Everything up to getting thought the boil is very simple, going to make my second batch here soon, I am still iffy on my first batch, but I am just going to leave it alone and hope for the best!

I have 3 questions questions..
1) I just use the stir like mad method for aeration, do I add the yeast before or after doing this, if after I just dump the yeast of top of several inches the foam?

Your method works perfectly fine. Add the yeast on top after aerating.

2) For you general ales how do I know what a good temp is, seems like everywhere I looks its a different answer, some day 70+, some say 65-70 and some say it works well for them at 60-65?? My house is generally in the 65-70 range, never going outside of that range unless in a head wave in the summer then it might creep up into the mid 70s inside the house.

65 - 70 degrees is perfectly fine for your typical ales.

3) Seems like the new thing is just leaving in a primary until complete then bottole/keg, what do I do in the case of dry hopping?? I read dry hopping in the primary can mess up the beer.

While it is standard practice to dry hop in the secondary, I don't see why you couldn't in the primary. I would wait until fermentation is complete before you apply the hops. Someone else may want to chime in here however.

I think thats it for now, I am sure I will have many more in the future haha

 

[sweetcell]

Everything up to getting thought the boil is very simple, going to make my second batch here soon, I am still iffy on my first batch, but I am just going to leave it alone and hope for the best!

I have 3 questions questions..
1) I just use the stir like mad method for aeration, do I add the yeast before or after doing this, if after I just dump the yeast of top of several inches the foam?

2) For you general ales how do I know what a good temp is, seems like everywhere I looks its a different answer, some day 70+, some say 65-70 and some say it works well for them at 60-65?? My house is generally in the 65-70 range, never going outside of that range unless in a head wave in the summer then it might creep up into the mid 70s inside the house.

3) Seems like the new thing is just leaving in a primary until complete then bottole/keg, what do I do in the case of dry hopping?? I read dry hopping in the primary can mess up the beer.

I think thats it for now, I am sure I will have many more in the future haha

1) i've done both, doesn't really matter. might be a bit better to pitch after aerating... it's nicer to the yeast the foam will dissipate quickly.

2) go online and search the yeast manufacturer's website for the yeast's ideal range. so are great at 70, others should be kept at 64. please be aware that ambient air temperature isn't the same thing as beer temperature. fermentation can produce a lot of heat and the beer can be 10 degrees warmer, or more, than ambient at peak fermentation. air temp is a good place to start, but you should have a stick-on LCD thermometer on your fermentation vessel, or some other way of keeping an eye on the temps inside the bucket or carboys (a stick-on thermo on a plastic bucket isn't ideal since plastic doesn't transmit heat as well as glass, but it's better than nothing). if your house is 65-70, you may need to provide a bit of cooling - or at least a heat sink - for your beer at high krausen. do a search here for "swamp cooler".

3) "I read dry hopping in the primary can mess up the beer" - false, at least as a blanket statement. you can mess up anything if you try hard enough i dry-hop exclusively in primary and i've made some highly-regarded hoppy beers. some folks move secondary if they're going to re-use the yeast (and even then i'd argue with them) but there is no absolute requirement to dry-hop in secondary.

 

[cbzdel]

1)
3) "I read dry hopping in the primary can mess up the beer" - false, at least as a blanket statement. you can mess up anything if you try hard enough i dry-hop exclusively in primary and i've made some highly-regarded hoppy beers. some folks move secondary if they're going to re-use the yeast (and even then i'd argue with them) but there is no absolute requirement to dry-hop in secondary.

Do you dry hop at beginning of fermentation? Or wait a couple days before adding hopps?

 

[Jdslep]

Even when dry hopping in primary, wait for fermentation to settle down first. The reason is so aromatic (smelly) compounds don't get blown out the airlock.

 

[sweetcell]

yes, wait for fermentation to end.

 

[dstranger99]

This could just be personal preference, but I'd rather dry hop in a secondary (with hops in a muslin sack)... I want those hops focused like a schoolboy on the teachers big ass!!!......(No trub in the way, yeast, etc)....

 

[cbzdel]

I have a kegging system and dont think I will ever bottle, if I did it would be into a growler from a keg..

What about dry hopping withing the corny keg itself? or more hassle than what its worth?

 

[Jdslep]

I have a kegging system and dont think I will ever bottle, if I did it would be into a growler from a keg..

What about dry hopping withing the corny keg itself? or more hassle than what its worth?

I hear people doing that often. Use a bag, though!

 

[BigFloyd]

I hear people doing that often. Use a bag, though!

This ^^^^.

When considering fermentation temps, keep in mind that the level and type of yeast activity during the whole process varies quite a bit.

During the first week, try to keep the temperature (as measured on the fermenter, NOT the ambient air) at the low end of the optimal range for that yeast. For most ales, that's going to be around 60-64*F. That's the time when the ferment is generating its own heat and can be 6-10*F higher than the air temp. It's also the time when most off-flavors are produced due to yeast stress caused by temps inside the fermenter being too warm (or the wort being too warm at pitching).

After that active period finishes, it's OK and even beneficial to let it warm up 4-6 degrees from where you started to give the yeast a better opportunity to consume many of the by-products they made during their little wort feast.