Have I Just Ruined My Beer?

[peterkinden]

Gents,

I was in my local HBS on saturday to buy some pipe to transfer my beer from primary to secondary fermenters. They recommended i buy a syphon and do it that way. So i syphoned from first to second and had to run the beer down the wall of the fermenter as the hose was too short. I tried not to splash the beer. However after doing this i read on this site further that the way to do it is tap to tap with some hose so as not to let any nasties in.

Have i just ruined my beer?

Cheers,

Peter

 

[mfdes]

Ruined is a pretty extreme word. It's pretty hard to ruin your beer.
I find it best to syphon as I use glass fermenters without taps. The easy solution is to buy a longer hose. Hose is cheap.
As to ruined, no, you beer already has alcohol in it if you're transferring to a secondary fermenter. Thus the chances of an airborne infection are pretty low. If you sanitised everything properly don't worry about it.
The main problem is probably oxidation. Oxygen is not good for finished beer, and you should have the least possible air contact. The main problem here might be long term stability, which has an easy solution: drink them up quick

On the side a bit: why use a secondary at all. I've had far better results since I started leaving the beer sit in the primary for some time after fermentation is finished. The yeast will clear far better and will have time to finish the job. A rashly racked beer will have high levels of diacetyl, acetaldehyde and fusels. A beer that's sat on the yeast for a few days after fermentation finished will be far clearer, and the yeast will re-absorb a lot of the diacetyl, convert the remaining acetaldehyde into ethanol, and get to work converting those fusels (nasty rough taste) into esters (fruity and not so bad).

Hope this helps. There is tons more information if you browse or search through.

MFS.

 

[Fatgodzilla]

On the side a bit: why use a secondary at all. I've had far better results since I started leaving the beer sit in the primary for some time after fermentation is finished. The yeast will clear far better and will have time to finish the job. A rashly racked beer will have high levels of diacetyl, acetaldehyde and fusels. A beer that's sat on the yeast for a few days after fermentation finished will be far clearer, and the yeast will re-absorb a lot of the diacetyl, convert the remaining acetaldehyde into ethanol, and get to work converting those fusels (nasty rough taste) into esters (fruity and not so bad).

Hope this helps. There is tons more information if you browse or search through.

MFS.

Great answer MFS. Too many people rush into a 7 days in primary, 7 days in secondary routine without understanding the why (and this relates most to kit brewers ). They simply pick it up from a source without knowing whether they are really benefitting their beer or not. Simple advice, don't transfer to secondary unless you know why (and need) to do it.

The risk of oxidising a brew by transferring to a secondary for no real benefit is too high a price to pay.

For the record, I only put a beer into secondary if I can refrigerate the beer to improve it with a lagering process after fermentation is long complete (as per my last three brews using Wyeast Euro Ale) or I have pitched a wort onto a yeast cake and Ifinish having a deep yeast cake that covers the fermenter outlet (same yeast !) and I want to clean it up before kegging.

 

[peterkinden]

Thanks for the reply,

As for drinking it fast as the long term stability may be affected - I can do that!

So rather than 7 days primary and 7 to 14 secondary just leave it in primary for 14? or should i leave it for 21 days?

It's so hard to know what to do as a newbie really. So many articles so many different opinions as to the best way to do it.

I just want to make good beer. He's me thinking that it was easy... Man this is going to take a lifetime to master!

I think i need a beer.

Cheers,

Peter

 

[mfdes]

Peter,
Depends on your temperature control. If you're fermenting at 18-20 degrees for ales and <12 degrees for lagers, I usually would leave mine for at least half the time it took to ferment again, at the fermentation temperature: for example, if fermentation was 10 days I'd tend to leave it at fermentation temperature for 15. It's an easy rule of thumb that works for me.
It'd be great to hear what others do.

MFS.

 

[Interloper]

I usually would leave mine for at least half the time it took to ferment again, at the fermentation temperature: for example, if fermentation was 10 days I'd tend to leave it at fermentation temperature for 15.

Yep this is pretty much my ratio too. If I'm using finings I add at least another day for that. I used to rush them out of the fermenter for fear of infection and because the SG was stable, but as you get older you get a bit cockier and you decide to chance it and just leave it on the yeast cake a bit longer.

I think I came around to this method after I had to leave a brew sitting for an extra 7 days because I just wasn't going to get time to bottle that particular weekend. 25 days was around the longest I've left one in primary and it was all fine. Took 11 days to ferment at around 14-18 degrees. I let it rest for 7 days taking it to 18 days when I planned to bottle it and then had to leave it another 7 until I could get around to it.

I fretted that I had wasted a wort, but after bottling it was much better at 3 weeks than previous brews at 8 weeks.

So if everything is stable and sterile, let it mature on the yeast cake a while.

 

[AlwayzLoozeCount]

I also just leave my beer for about 14 days, gives me plenty of time to find bottles and my beer always used to be slightly over carbed but not anymore. I dont bother with a hydrometer anymore either.

 

[Interloper]

I dont bother with a hydrometer anymore either.

Me either! So happy to hear someone else say that....

When people ask the alcohol content I just tell them "lots" :lol:

 

[peterkinden]

Does anyone have a trick to controlling the temp?

I have a heat pad that will normally leave it around 24 degrees.

However if i turn it off it's sit quite nicely around 16 degrees by itself.

As ales are supposed to be 18-20deg - which one is preferred? just over or just under?

I'm assuming that the only downside to being colder is that the yeast may go to sleep on me. is this a bad thing? it happened to me the other day - i turned on the heat pad and a few hours later it was happily fermenting away again...

Peter

 

[RobboMC]

1) Sooner or later you're going to want to make a beer that MUST be racked, e.g. a cold conditioned lager.
The only way to learn how to rack is to practice.

2) Many text books including Palmer recommend racking.

3) Once you get it worked out it's quite easy and safe as long as you don't splash the wort about.

4) Since I started racking my ales I find the clarity is improved as I can leave then in secondary for 2-3 weeks.
A quick cool to 10 deg C for bottling seems to work treat as well.

5) You're gonna need to rack for bulk priming so why not learn how.

 

[microbe]

I also just leave my beer for about 14 days, gives me plenty of time to find bottles and my beer always used to be slightly over carbed but not anymore. I dont bother with a hydrometer anymore either.

+1 for the 14 days and carb level seems much better

Hydro still gets used but only for the records.

Cheers,

microbe

 

[white.grant]

Does anyone have a trick to controlling the temp?

I have a heat pad that will normally leave it around 24 degrees.

However if i turn it off it's sit quite nicely around 16 degrees by itself.

As ales are supposed to be 18-20deg - which one is preferred? just over or just under?

I'm assuming that the only downside to being colder is that the yeast may go to sleep on me. is this a bad thing? it happened to me the other day - i turned on the heat pad and a few hours later it was happily fermenting away again...

Peter

There is a wonderful thing called a fridgemate that can both regulate a refrigerator's temperature and be set up to control a heat pad or belt. Search for "fridgemate" in the forums there are lots of threads.

grant