Where did all that foam come from in the first picture?
Whoa, never seen that kinda head before!
Anyway, you've got 23 liters of beer there.
Do you do anything to keep that bucket on the cool side? Like around 66°F/19°C?
Keeping the beer fermenting at lower temperatures makes better beer. Except for Saisons, maybe.
Did you get any hops to be added later as "dry hops?"
It's at a constant temperature of 20 degrees. I was planning to leave it for two weeks, assuming it has stopped bubbling at that point and then dry hop for one week.
It is bubbling a lot, I only started it yesterday lunchtime
The kit came with 100g of mixed hops (simcoe, centennial and chinook) for dry hoping.
It seems a lot better than the cheaper kits I have used in the past.
Just keep it cool, don't let it get hotter than 20C, especially in the beginning! The beer inside the fermentor may well be 3-6 degrees higher without a way to drain off the heat it generates.
If you can, stick the bucket in a large storage tote or cooler filled with cold water (19-20°C). It creates a wonderful heat sink, keeping your beer at constant low temperatures. Add a couple bottles of frozen water to that water jacket to keep the temps in that range, change them out once or twice a day for fresh ones.
Once fermentation slows down (krausen drops) you can let the temps raise naturally by ambient air, to help it finish out and clean up after the party.
Sure, better kits should include more and better IPA hops. 100 grams sounds about right. I would dry hop 5 days before packaging.
You're bottling, I assume?
I have moved it to the space under the stairs which is a bit cooler. I will check what temperature it reduces too.
Yes, I am bottling.
I will follow your suggestion and dry hop for 5 days.
I have second fermentation bin, which I was going to siphon into before siphoning into the bottles to get rid of most of the hops and sediment.
I appreciate your support
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