[gunslinger249]

Probably should have done this before cooking up my first batch last night, but oh well. Got a beginners kit from Austin Homebrew Supply and have an amber (extract kit) fermenting right now, and a pale ale kit in the mail. Planning to do a secondary fermentation on it. Any suggestions or tips for the upcoming steps, or in general?

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[Slowbrew]

Welcome the forum and to the hobby!

Many people have decided to leave the secondary fermentor in the box for most beers anymore.  A week or 2 longer in the primary will generally clar the beer and not transferring to the second vessel reduces the risk of oxygen.  You can do a secondary if you like.  I did many of them when I started out too. 

Just something to think about.

Paul

[BrewBama]

Welcome. If you like to clean and sanitize, you too can brew beer.

My recommendation is to prioritize the bombardment of information to fit your desired goals. Only use the information you need at this point in your journey. Evaluate and decide for yourself if it’s right for your brewery.

The example is Slowbrew’s recommendation above: he gave good advice on secondary fermentation. You may choose to still use secondary fermentation ...that is your choice. Many do. But his advice gives a pretty good reason not to discovered by others who’ve gone before you.  Which is why many do not.

Cheers!


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[klickitat jim]

My best advice is to relax and enjoy the journey of becoming a brewer. There is a lifetime of learning available,  or you can keep it really simple. There are many ways to do many things. Learn to chose what's for you by knowing what you want from the hobby, and by trying things out before believing the hype.

At this point, cleaning and sanitation is important. Making sure the beer is done fermenting before bottling is important. Keeping it fun is important.

I highly suggest a book called How To Brew by John Palmer. If you are an auditory learner, you might enjoy podcasts like BeerSmith, Basic Brewing Radio, Experimental Brewing, and Brew Strong. Try to start with early episodes that talk about home brewing processes.

Welcome and enjoy

[gunslinger249]

Thanks, all. I have read most of Palmer, and that was sort of the path I had decided I wanted to go. Do a few extract kits first following the recipes to the letter, then eventually progress to the point where I am capable of creating things on my own. That's partly why I want to do a secondary, to get the experience of the process.

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[klickitat jim]

There's nothing wrong with knowing from personal experience.

[denny]

Thanks, all. I have read most of Palmer, and that was sort of the path I had decided I wanted to go. Do a few extract kits first following the recipes to the letter, then eventually progress to the point where I am capable of creating things on my own. That's partly why I want to do a secondary, to get the experience of the process.

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FWIW, Palmer says don't do a secondary.

[Bob357]

Welcome. You have received a bunch of good advice above. Enjoy the best hobby ever.

[hopfenundmalz]

Welcome.

[gunslinger249]

FWIW, Palmer says don't do a secondary.
[/quote]

Palmer says noobs shouldn't, but that it's a process that benefits almost every style. If I don't do it this time, I still want to do it in one of the next few batches that I brew.

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[klickitat jim]

Again, yes you should. And compare what you get out of doing one and not doing one. Actually, that could be a great first experiment. Palmer may be right, or may be wrong.

[charlie]

There's nothing wrong with transferring to secondary. I did it many times when I started brewing. My considered opinion is that you only need to transfer to secondary if you're going to dry hop, the reason being that the lipid rich yeast cells absorb the hop oils and other desirable hop components, and you will leave that behind in the fermentor when you keg the brew if there's a lot of yeast present.

If I dry hop I wait until fermentation is at one bubble per minute or less (an arcane measurement system if ever there was one :-) before transferring and dry hopping. I once dry hopped an active brew, and the brew room smelled great, but the beer didn't because all the aroma went out the air lock. Live and learn. lol

Charlie

[gunslinger249]

There's nothing wrong with transferring to secondary. I did it many times when I started brewing. My considered opinion is that you only need to transfer to secondary if you're going to dry hop, the reason being that the lipid rich yeast cells absorb the hop oils and other desirable hop components, and you will leave that behind in the fermentor when you keg the brew if there's a lot of yeast present.

If I dry hop I wait until fermentation is at one bubble per minute or less (an arcane measurement system if ever there was one :-) before transferring and dry hopping. I once dry hopped an active brew, and the brew room smelled great, but the beer didn't because all the aroma went out the air lock. Live and learn. lol

Charlie

Great insight, thanks. I think dry hopping is a ways off for me, but I'll keep it in mind.

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[gunslinger249]

Again, yes you should. And compare what you get out of doing one and not doing one. Actually, that could be a great first experiment. Palmer may be right, or may be wrong.

That's another reason I want to do it.

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[gunslinger249]

What do you guys recommend as a good next style for me to do to expand my knowledge base?

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