Newbie Q - How long is too long?

[spatch]

In the fermenter?

Read that different beers do better if left longer etc.
Which ones like being lazy then?

In particular, I've got an Amber Ale thats been down 11 days and I was going to bottle on Sunday (@ 15 days)
but have a mates 30th Sat night & might not be upto the task......... would it be OK to leave it till
Mon or Tues or am I better off bottling Sat arvo?

[Kevnlis]

You will get 50 different answers to this question.

Mine, bottle as soon as you have a gravity that is the same 3 days running, unless you used dry enzyme.

[rwh]

The problems you can have are:
Too short: not enough conditioning, bottle bombs
Too long: autolysys, oxidation, infection

In practice, I've left my beer from a few days to three weeks, and to be honest, I'd say the three week beers are better than the only just finished fermenting beers. So unless you've got stupid temps (and therefore risk autolysis) I'd say you're fine for Monday or Tuesday. IMHO.

[warra48]

I'm with rwh.
I never bottle before 2 weeks in primary, and sometimes longer. Never had a problem.

[Chris]

7-7-14 for me. I only use my hydro out of interest sake now.

[pixelboy]

Yeah I bottle after 2 or 3 weeks. Depending on what weekend i've got time to do it

I haven't used my hydro at all for past 15 brews or so...

[James L]

yep... two week minimum....

for the lagers... i leave them in primary for up to 5 weeks.. no dramas... the longer i have left them, the better the result.

I think there is a fair ammount of patience needed when brewing... i remember when i first started brewing, i was trying to get a brew done from start to finish (bottling) within the week... but now, it might take up to 3 months before i get to taste the beer that i have made. 4 weeks primary ,4 weeks racked, 4 weeks in the bottle, but the results speak for themselves.

[spatch]

Thanks for the input fella's.

Ended up bottling the Ale this arvo after 13 days. Hopefully none go KABOOOOOOOOOM.

[KINGO]

I have this problem at the moment too, I have a Morgans queenslander gold with 500g be2 which has been brewing for 9 days now and still has a fine film of foam and small bubbles coming to the surface, I'm brewing at 22 degrees( I usually bre at 25 untill I learnt that that was bad info.) Shoult this take this long or is something else happening( I used the yeast under the lid and the fermentation did not start then restart.)Cheers Kingo.

[KINGO]

Sorry I should of said the fermentation has not stopped and restarted, it has been constant.

[Kevnlis]

That's all well and good that you guys leave your beer in primary for weeks at a time. For a new person who has no temp control, is using kit yeast and bottling the beer. I think it is best for them to take gravity readings and bottle at the end of fermentation.

I would not recommend leaving a beer in primary for 2 weeks on a Cooper's yeast cake when the temps are in the 20's. Admittedly I have done it, and had no worries, but for someone who is new to brewing it is not a great idea IMHO.

[warra48]

Aaahh, trust Kevnlis to reintroduce some sanity into this debate.
Long periods in primary are fine for those of us with temperature control, but if not, bottle when it's stable.
Good one Kev.

[spatch]

I would not recommend leaving a beer in primary for 2 weeks on a Cooper's yeast cake when the temps are in the 20's. Admittedly I have done it, and had no worries, but for someone who is new to brewing it is not a great idea IMHO.

So in trying to do the right thing we could be doing the wrong thing?

What about on better brands yeast cakes? Say Brewcraft, Black Rock or even Muntons?

And another silly newbie Q
What is "good" temp control? +/- 1degree? More less???

[rwh]

I have this problem at the moment too, I have a Morgans queenslander gold with 500g be2 which has been brewing for 9 days now and still has a fine film of foam and small bubbles coming to the surface, I'm brewing at 22 degrees( I usually bre at 25 untill I learnt that that was bad info.) Shoult this take this long or is something else happening( I used the yeast under the lid and the fermentation did not start then restart.)Cheers Kingo.

Take your hydrometer readings; it's ready to bottle if you get two readings the same 24 hours apart. My guess is it's finished fermenting, but the C02 is continuing to bubble out of solution.

I would not recommend leaving a beer in primary for 2 weeks on a Cooper's yeast cake when the temps are in the 20's. Admittedly I have done it, and had no worries...

Aaahh, trust Kevnlis to reintroduce some sanity into this debate.

He's related his own personal experience which runs counter to his advice. Sanity isn't the word I'd use to describe that.

What about on better brands yeast cakes? Say Brewcraft, Black Rock or even Muntons?

The brand of the yeast cake is irrelevant. The attributes of the particular yeast are. Some yeast are more prone to autolysis than others, however I'd expect some exotic liquid yeasts would be more likely to autolise than the hardy kit yeasts most manufacturers package with their kits. The yeast manufacturer generally includes this information in the detailed description of each yeast on their website. For example, have a look at the description of the WYeast 1968 London ESB Ale.

What is "good" temp control? +/- 1degree? More less???

Depends on your point of view. +/- 1 degree is definitely good enough; I'd opine that just having an automated system such as a Fridgemate temp controller on a fridge is pretty much sufficient. And it's also about keeping temps toward the lower end of the yeast's active range. The lower the temp, the slower the yeast should deteriorate after dropping out of solution.

[spatch]

Righto - more advice required please fella's.

Just put down another brew, Munich Lager with #60 converter kit and S-23 Salflager Yeast.
HBS said it could take 3 even 4 weeks to ferment.
I'm aiming at keeping it as close to 16 degrees as possible.
Fermenter is kept in an old non working fridge in the garage so Temps are relatively stable and given
the time of year I think this will be readily acheivable.

Would 3 weeks be OK here if it takes that long?
And do you think it'll really take 3 weeks?

Ta, spatch

[rwh]

I doubt it'd take that long at 16 deg. Maybe at 10, but not 16. At least not if your yeast is healthy.

[Chris]

Yeah, at 16*C you'll ferment out a lot faster than at optimal temps.

[spatch]

Thanks RWH & Chris.
3 weeks had me worried, 4 weeks had me petrified
Its bubbling away nicely, not as agressively as the S-04 and kit yeasts I've used before but
bubbling just the same.
Been a constant 16 too so whilst its not optimal, its bloody close.