Two questions about a recipe...

[AzfromOz]

Hi, newbie brewer here with newbie questions....

The recipe I'm going to try (a pale ale from The Complete Joy of Homebrewing) says to add the malt extract and Amarillo hops to 7.5l of water and boil for 60 minutes. First silly question: do I add the hops and extract to cold water and then boil it up, or wait for the water to boil before adding the hops and extract? Obviously the 60 minutes doesn't start until the water's boiling in the first scenario and starts straight away in the second.

Second: I don't have a secondary fermenter for bottling day so am going to add the primer to the original fermenter before bottling straight from the primary fermenter (I've spent about $200 already so figure the secondary fermenter can wait!). I'm going to stir gently (not splashing etc), but figure 5 minutes of gentle stirring should be enough. Does this sound right?

This is my second batch, having made a small batch with a kit bought from the Brewsmith Australia website, so this is my first time flying solo.

Supplementary question: why did I never get into homebrewing before this???

Cheers :icon_cheers:

 

[Drop It Like It's Hop]

G'day Az, I'm no expert but hopefully can help out

1) I'd add the malt when the water is hot but not quite boiling. This way you've got time to prepare for the hot break (where the wort starts to foam) and grab a stirrer. I'd wait until after the hot break to add the hops.

2) Rather than stirring up the yeast and sediment, have you thought about either buying a priming measure spoon (around $5) or even using carbonation drops straight into the bottle? That way you know each bottle has the right amount of priming sugar in it and you're not stirring up any of the sediment.

 

[AzfromOz]

Thanks for the response!

Re. point 1 - yes, that actually makes perfect sense. Thanks.

Re. point 2 - I assume a priming measuring spoon is just a measuring spoon? My bottles at the moment vary in size from 330 to 375ml (hey, I'm just starting!) so I imagine it gets finicky dealing with different volumes. But short of buying a secondary fermenter, sounds like that might be the best, non-trub-stirring option.

Cheers :icon_cheers:

 

[Drop It Like It's Hop]

Yep, a priming spoon is just a spoon that's the right size for scooping the correct amount of dextrose per bottle. You can get one from most homebrew stores or I think BigW even have them. It should have 2 ends (1 for stubbies, 1 for longnecks) or some have a third measure for 500ml bottles. Just put a level scoop in each bottle - use the small end for any bottles between 330ml and 370ml.

The carbonation drops are even simpler - they're like little boiled sweets that you can put in each bottle. One per stubbie. Once again homebrew stores or Big W have them - a bag of them will set you back about the same as the spoon (<$5).

 

[Pogierob]

You don't want to be adding your priming sugar straight to the primary fermenter, if you don't have a second vessel ( can just be a bucket with a tap on it) then I wouldn't bulk prime.
as DILIH suggests, get yourself a measuring spoon

EXAMPLE

http://www.grainandgrape.com.au/products/category/YAOCHCBL%20bottling/7SUGAR+DISPENSER


Be careful with carbonation drops with your small bottles, the difference between 330ml and 375ml can be substantial.

 

[AzfromOz]

Thanks again for the reply!

I assume dextrose is fine as a priming sugar and preferable to table sugar? It was going to be the stuff I put in the primer so I assume that's the case.

Cheers :icon_cheers:

 

[Pogierob]

People use both for priming, I can't say what is the best as I have only ever used normal sugar.


You have dextrose on hand, use it.
Prime a couple of the bottles with normal sugar and see if you notice a difference.

If you can't notice a difference between the two, it's up to you what you use but table sugar is cheaper.
If you can notice a difference, go with the one you liked the most.

Besides, it won't be long until you are ebaying cornelius kegs and c02 bottles, realising you have just spent half your weekend typing SS Perlicks into google and the other half looking at the cheaper options, understanding what the difference between using 4mm vs 5mm beer line to balance your system is.


Welcome to the slippery slope that is definitely fun to be on.

 

[Yob]

Tip, dme doesn't clump in cold water.. Add it to cold water and dilute, bring to the boil, hell, add boiling water to it (it's what I so for my starters)

 

[Brewman_]

LDME into cold water while stirring, to prevent any clumping. Then Heat. Add too fast and it will turn into a big blob like a minty.

Priming.
Bottle priming: Dex or sugar is perfect. Note that the priming spoons / measures are only set up for sugar, the quantities vary between both so don't prime with Dex with a priming spoon.
Bulk Priming. Yep like mentioned by Rob. P just use a cleaned sanitised bucket.

 

[TehCrucible]

Tip, dme doesn't clump in cold water.. Add it to cold water and dilute, bring to the boil, hell, add boiling water to it (it's what I so for my starters)

LDME into cold water while stirring, to prevent any clumping. Then Heat.

That is a crazy good tip! I hadn't even considered trying that. Cheers guys.

Besides, it won't be long until you are ebaying cornelius kegs and c02 bottles, realising you have just spent half your weekend typing SS Perlicks into google and the other half looking at the cheaper options

Hahahaha this is scary accurate, I sucked it up and ordered the Perlicks yesterday. Bottling sucks. Can't wait for the rest of my keezer gear to arrive.

 

[Matplat]

Also do a search for Goatherder Pseudo Bulk Priming.

I did it last weekend, in the words of Jesse Pinkman.... it's da bomb man!

Matt

 

[Drop It Like It's Hop]

I hadn't heard of psudo bulk priming before, however it does look like a great idea - mixing the consistant dosing of carb drops with the economy of bulk priming. Definately will give this a try

 

[AzfromOz]

Thanks everyone for your great advice on this thread. Am flying solo this weekend so will see how we go! I intend to relax, not worry, and have a homebrew.

Cheers :icon_cheers: