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Author Topic: I’m new to Brewing. Is the color of my wort supposed to look like this?  (Read 1983 times)

Offline BrewBama

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I’m new to Brewing. Is the color of my wort supposed to look like this?
« Reply #30 on: March 16, 2023, 07:01:29 am »
Other than an early test taste, batches aren't in drinking rotation for approx 2 1/2 months.
The pipeline is big enough to ensure brews everyday.  I don't' have the issues discussed above.
If I may suggest, instead of touting the speed of grain to glass, increase pipeline and/or be patient.

Cheers
As long as errors aren’t made I would agree. My only problem with a pipeline with such a long tooth to tail is mistake detection. Time cures all *may* not be true when a mistake is made at the beginning of a pipeline only to realize it was repeated numerous times. IOW, I’d rather dump three batches than six.

For example, I recently went thru a series of batches that tasted soapy to me. I pinpointed what I think was the culprit and rectified the mistake but not until three beers entered the pipeline. I was able to brew in quick succession using yeast known for a quick turn. If my pipeline was longer, that could have been a debilitating issue. This way I was able to solve the issue in a matter of week vs months.

I like more of a Goldilocks approach which I found to be about a three week schedule for a three keg rotation which suits my batch size, drinking rate, and lifestyle.

I guess the moral of the story is to not make mistakes. Unfortunately, I’m human and I do dumb things from time to time.
« Last Edit: March 16, 2023, 07:27:55 am by BrewBama »

Offline hopfenundmalz

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IDK. When a mfr says, “Be sure to give beers made with XYZ yeast a sufficient diacetyl rest.” I tend to believe them and give it a day or two at 65°F or so to rest.

I guess I could take a hydrometer sample and taste test it. …but a day or two doesn’t hurt one way or the other IMO so I let it rest in those cases.
My last lager, made with diamond, tasted it great on day 8. I decided to keg. A week later it was a diacetyl bomb. It’s been sitting upstairs ever since. Hopefully, time will fix it.

If it took a week after kegging to appear, it's unlikely a fermentation flaw that a d rest would have prevented. At least as far as I know
I have always gone by the information in this presentation from Kara Taylor of White Labs.

The diacetyl rest raises the temp to speed up transformation of precursor to diacetyl where it can then be reabsorbed by the yeast. Precursor is tasteless.  If you remove beer with precursor from the yeast that precursor will slowly become diacetyl. If the yeast is gone, then no reabsorption can occur.

https://www.homebrewersassociation.org/attachments/presentations/pdf/2015/2015%20AHA%20Avoiding%20a%20D-domb%20-%20A%20Key%20to%20Understanding%20Diacetyl.pdf
That was a good presentation.

The precursor oxidizes to produce Diacetyl. I've had had beers turn buttery after packaging due to O2 exposure.
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Offline ynotbrusum

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It is interesting to hear the dynamics in opposition here - rack beer too soon and the diacetyl precursor may turn into diacetyl, yet racking early means more yeast is left in suspension to prevent the precursor from turning to diacetyl.  Damned if you do and damned if you don’t. I just re-pitch plenty of healthy yeast from batch to batch and it takes care of the issue - at least for me, so far…but my beer doesn’t get above 50F after racking from primary post crash.  YMMV, Cheers!
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Fire Rooster

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Other than an early test taste, batches aren't in drinking rotation for approx 2 1/2 months.
The pipeline is big enough to ensure brews everyday.  I don't' have the issues discussed above.
If I may suggest, instead of touting the speed of grain to glass, increase pipeline and/or be patient.

Cheers
As long as errors aren’t made I would agree. My only problem with a pipeline with such a long tooth to tail is mistake detection. Time cures all *may* not be true when a mistake is made at the beginning of a pipeline only to realize it was repeated numerous times. IOW, I’d rather dump three batches than six.

For example, I recently went thru a series of batches that tasted soapy to me. I pinpointed what I think was the culprit and rectified the mistake but not until three beers entered the pipeline. I was able to brew in quick succession using yeast known for a quick turn. If my pipeline was longer, that could have been a debilitating issue. This way I was able to solve the issue in a matter of week vs months.

I like more of a Goldilocks approach which I found to be about a three week schedule for a three keg rotation which suits my batch size, drinking rate, and lifestyle.

I guess the moral of the story is to not make mistakes. Unfortunately, I’m human and I do dumb things from time to time.

I always have a batch ready to go. I need 24 22 oz bottles to bottle a batch.  After I have about 12+ bottles I brew a batch
Between my drinking and progress of fermentation I'll have 24 bottles when ready to bottle.  I taste test early
(after 2 weeks +/- fermentation, and 3 weeks bottle condition @ 75f), and maybe 2 other tastes a week or so later.
If the progress of the taste test shows no hope, I dump bottles and brew another batch.  Only done a few times.
Pipeline is big enough for one failure.  I drink one or two every day, usually one.  Haven't bought beer for home in 3-4 years.

I also add 1 rounded teaspoon organic cane (not beet) sugar to each 22 oz bottle before filling, and bottle carb/condition for 3 weeks @ 75f,
so this may also have something to do with it ?  I don't' keg or force carbonate.

Cheers
« Last Edit: March 16, 2023, 07:03:23 pm by Fire Rooster »

Offline tommymorris

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IDK. When a mfr says, “Be sure to give beers made with XYZ yeast a sufficient diacetyl rest.” I tend to believe them and give it a day or two at 65°F or so to rest.

I guess I could take a hydrometer sample and taste test it. …but a day or two doesn’t hurt one way or the other IMO so I let it rest in those cases.
My last lager, made with diamond, tasted it great on day 8. I decided to keg. A week later it was a diacetyl bomb. It’s been sitting upstairs ever since. Hopefully, time will fix it.
This beer is finally diacetyl free and on tap. It’s a Pils with Magnum hops. I can finally taste the hops rather than movie theater butter.

I took this beer out of the fridge and set it upstairs where it was warmer for two weeks. A lot of that time it was still only at 60F due to cold weather. I thought the beer was better and put it back in the fridge, but when I went to pour a pint it still had a faint butter taste. That day I took the keg back out of the fridge and added a healthy dose of fresh Diamond slurry from another Pils I had kegged minutes earlier. This time with fresh yeast and much more of it, I thought the diacetyl would clear up faster.  It did. I only left it out of the fridge 3 days.  I was drinking it last night and it was great.

PS. I use floating dip tubes so I wasn’t worried about adding slurry to the serving keg.