First Batch Bottled - :)

[bj42brumby]

Hi All,
Ok.. newbie here just bottled his first batch of beer. I transferred to a second fermenter two weeks ago and today I bulk primed as per instructions on this website, thankyou very much, and then spent less than an hour filling 68 stubby bottles and capping, again thankyou for the advice to get a benchtop bottle capper.
Easy peasy..
And I did have a wee sample of the dregs.. sweet (because of the priming) but not bad at all. The guy at Boronia HomeBrew said a good homebrew could be enjoyed warm and he was right.. despite the sweetness, it had a nice taste.
I'm actually surprised. I've done everything wrong, especially in this heat we've had. I had nowhere cool I could store it so I've just had to cross my fingers it wouldn't go funny. I tried to be as clean as I could but really, when you're washing bottles and trying to sanitise them in the kitchen sink.. well.. not sure how successful I was.
Now the two week wait.. and I'll find out whether it's good or not. Fingers crossed.
I did notice that it looked quite clear.. and there was nothing much sitting in the bottom of the secondary fermenter.. but then again, it could have ended up in the last few bottles. They looked a little cloudier than the rest of them.. and I hadn't used the finings sachet that came with the kit. So, guess I'll see. Now to sucker a couple of mates for the taste test

Cheers
Craig

 

[Gavo]

Good work on your first and welcome aboard.

You could try a number of ways to keep the fermenter cool. I used to use a box and rotate frozen 3lt milk bottles to keep the fermenter cool. After leaving it to settle in the fermenter for the time you did you will usually come up with quite a clear beer at bottling time. You will still get a film of yeast at the bottom of the bottles and this is quite normal.

Beware of this obsession hobby as it will just draw you in further and further.

Cheers
Gavo.

 

[bj42brumby]

Thanks Gavo.

Obsession huh.. so I've got one batch bottled, another batch still in the first fermenter and I'm thinking of going and getting another Coopers blend this afternoon to start another batch tonight after I've transferred the batch in the first fermenter into the second one..

 

[Steve]

I'm thinking of going and getting another Coopers blend this afternoon to start another batch tonight after I've transferred the batch in the first fermenter into the second one..

dont think....just do it...you know you want to :beerbang:
Congrats on your first brew
Cheers
Steve

 

[Gavo]

Thanks Gavo.

Obsession huh.. so I've got one batch bottled, another batch still in the first fermenter and I'm thinking of going and getting another Coopers blend this afternoon to start another batch tonight after I've transferred the batch in the first fermenter into the second one..

So I see the obsession hobby has already started. :lol: Keep up the good work.

Cheers
Gavo.

 

[ford-ute]

I agree just go and do it you will not be sorry you did

but like gavo said it becomes like a obsession it seem now days all i do is think of recipes or how ingredient will flavour my beer or and another big warning your brewrey thinking of conical fermenter mash turns fermenting fridges keging gear and all mannor of shinny cool stuff to make it that much more enjoyable or to help you make a better beer but dont worry its all worth it

oh one way you can keep you fermenter cool is to put it in the laundry sink and fill part way with water and either change the water regulary or change frozen milk bottles reglary

 

[Gavo]

but like gavo said it becomes like a obsession it seem now days all i do is think of recipes or how ingredient will flavour my beer or and another big warning your brewrey thinking of conical fermenter mash turns fermenting fridges keging gear and all mannor of shinny cool stuff to make it that much more enjoyable or to help you make a better beer but dont worry its all worth it

Ah, so I'm not the only one.

Cheers
Gavo.

 

[LightLager]

Hi Brumby,

Congrats on the brew. It is always a good feeling to get one in the bottle.

You could try a number of ways to keep the fermenter cool. I used to use a box and rotate frozen 3lt milk bottles to keep the fermenter cool.

Temperature control is the number one variable to control during a brew, it will have the most effect on the taste. I ripped through three kits without thinking about temperature control, got very similar results despite the different styles.

Once you have an idea of how to keep your brew at an even temp, start changing the yeast, this really helped with my kits. I never use the kit yeasts now.

Anyway, glad to see your here...

LL