The recipe kit came with:
0.5# Chocolate Malt
0.75# Crystal 60L Mlt
0.75# Caraamber Malt
7# Amber Extract
2 oz Fuggle hop pellets
4.5 oz priming sugar
1 capsule BrewVint Yeast Fuel
Yeast: WLP009 Australian Ale Vial
The instructions that came with it were followed exactly, but as with most things the OG and FG differed. The OG was supposed to be 1.050, after it was adjustment(for temp) it was 1.0547, FG supposed to be 1.012 after adjustment 1.0112(let it go a little too long I think).
I didn't make a starter(I will next time) and just pitched the yeast when the temp had cooled down to mid-low 70's on 04/15/2012 at about 12:00 PM. Fermentation didn't start until sometime 04/16/2012(nobody was home/awake to notice it). The recipe said to check the SG after 5-7 days(head of house made this with my help, so it's "her" beer, so I didn't have any say in when to check) and when I checked it it was at the FG. I racked it into a 5 gallon carboy for secondary to clear. Will be bottling sometime between 04/26/2012-04/28/2012.
I'll update as it comes along.
My notations are in parentheses. Instructions that came with it are:
Sanitized everything first!
In a 20+ qt. stainless stockpot, bring 2 gal water to 155F and turn off heat. Soak the grain in the hot water for 25 minutes(grains came in a muslin bag). Lift the grain bag in and out of the water like a teabag(we actually skipped doing this). After soaking the grains, lift the grain bag out of ther water being careful not to splash yourself. Once the bag has dripped almost all of the water out, without squeezing, discard the grains, add 1 gallon of water and return to heat until boiling.
Turn off the heat once again and move the stockpot to a cool burner. Add LME. Stir constantly to dissolve the LME. Return heat to the mixture once dissolved, stirring occasionally. The mixture now contains a lot of sugar and can burn if not stirred. Heat the mixture to boilng. When the mixture reaches boiling, it can rise very rapidly and boil over. At this time, reduce heat to control the rising foam. Once the boil is under control, adjust the heat to a good rolliing boil without boiling over.
Add 1.5 oz Fuggle bittering hops(pellet form) and set timer for 60 minutes
Add 0.5 oz Fuggle flavor hops(also pellet form) for the last 10 minutes.
Once the boil time has elapsed since the bittering hops were added, remove the wort from the heat and cool down quickly to 80F. A sink full of water with ice in it works well(or so the instructions say). You may need to change the water a couple of times because it will warm up quickly(duh!). Ideally the wort should be cooled to 80F within 15-20 min(it was about 20). Once the wort has cooled to 80F, pour this mixture into the sanitized primary fermenter and add cool water to make 5 1/4 gallons. Vigorously stir the wort to make sure the sugars are well mixed with the added water. Check the SG of the wort. The original specific gravity should be approximately: 1.050.
Let the yeast warm up to 72-78F(ours was somewhere in this range we took it out to room temp when we started). Shake the yeast container well and pour into the wort and stir/aerate well(I was asleep when this occured and after warning HoH about the yeast vial "exploding" like a shaken soda bottle when opened it still happened
).
Put lid on fermenter with airlock installed(then some stuff about how it ferments).
After 5-7 days since the wort started fermenting, the mixture will calm down(it was calm from the beginning) and the excess proteins will settle at the bottom of the primary fermenter. At this time, check the specific gravity to make sure it is within 3-4 points of the FG and then carefully move the fermenter full of beer to a counter top. Be careful not to disturb the sediment(then it mentions that you can move it several hours before to let it settle). Carefully siphon the beer into the sanitized secondary fermenter. Move the airlock from the primary fermenter to the secondary fermenter. Let the beer clarify in the secondary for 5-7 days. If the beer has not cleared in 7 days, you can add Claro K.C. finings for beer(I won't add finings). The final specific gravity should be approximately 1.012(Then it goes on about how to prime(bulk) the beer and bottle it. It also mentions to store it for 3+ weeks for best taste).
0.5# Chocolate Malt
0.75# Crystal 60L Mlt
0.75# Caraamber Malt
7# Amber Extract
2 oz Fuggle hop pellets
4.5 oz priming sugar
1 capsule BrewVint Yeast Fuel
Yeast: WLP009 Australian Ale Vial
The instructions that came with it were followed exactly, but as with most things the OG and FG differed. The OG was supposed to be 1.050, after it was adjustment(for temp) it was 1.0547, FG supposed to be 1.012 after adjustment 1.0112(let it go a little too long I think).
I didn't make a starter(I will next time) and just pitched the yeast when the temp had cooled down to mid-low 70's on 04/15/2012 at about 12:00 PM. Fermentation didn't start until sometime 04/16/2012(nobody was home/awake to notice it). The recipe said to check the SG after 5-7 days(head of house made this with my help, so it's "her" beer, so I didn't have any say in when to check) and when I checked it it was at the FG. I racked it into a 5 gallon carboy for secondary to clear. Will be bottling sometime between 04/26/2012-04/28/2012.
I'll update as it comes along.
My notations are in parentheses. Instructions that came with it are:
Sanitized everything first!
In a 20+ qt. stainless stockpot, bring 2 gal water to 155F and turn off heat. Soak the grain in the hot water for 25 minutes(grains came in a muslin bag). Lift the grain bag in and out of the water like a teabag(we actually skipped doing this). After soaking the grains, lift the grain bag out of ther water being careful not to splash yourself. Once the bag has dripped almost all of the water out, without squeezing, discard the grains, add 1 gallon of water and return to heat until boiling.
Turn off the heat once again and move the stockpot to a cool burner. Add LME. Stir constantly to dissolve the LME. Return heat to the mixture once dissolved, stirring occasionally. The mixture now contains a lot of sugar and can burn if not stirred. Heat the mixture to boilng. When the mixture reaches boiling, it can rise very rapidly and boil over. At this time, reduce heat to control the rising foam. Once the boil is under control, adjust the heat to a good rolliing boil without boiling over.
Add 1.5 oz Fuggle bittering hops(pellet form) and set timer for 60 minutes
Add 0.5 oz Fuggle flavor hops(also pellet form) for the last 10 minutes.
Once the boil time has elapsed since the bittering hops were added, remove the wort from the heat and cool down quickly to 80F. A sink full of water with ice in it works well(or so the instructions say). You may need to change the water a couple of times because it will warm up quickly(duh!). Ideally the wort should be cooled to 80F within 15-20 min(it was about 20). Once the wort has cooled to 80F, pour this mixture into the sanitized primary fermenter and add cool water to make 5 1/4 gallons. Vigorously stir the wort to make sure the sugars are well mixed with the added water. Check the SG of the wort. The original specific gravity should be approximately: 1.050.
Let the yeast warm up to 72-78F(ours was somewhere in this range we took it out to room temp when we started). Shake the yeast container well and pour into the wort and stir/aerate well(I was asleep when this occured and after warning HoH about the yeast vial "exploding" like a shaken soda bottle when opened it still happened
).Put lid on fermenter with airlock installed(then some stuff about how it ferments).
After 5-7 days since the wort started fermenting, the mixture will calm down(it was calm from the beginning) and the excess proteins will settle at the bottom of the primary fermenter. At this time, check the specific gravity to make sure it is within 3-4 points of the FG and then carefully move the fermenter full of beer to a counter top. Be careful not to disturb the sediment(then it mentions that you can move it several hours before to let it settle). Carefully siphon the beer into the sanitized secondary fermenter. Move the airlock from the primary fermenter to the secondary fermenter. Let the beer clarify in the secondary for 5-7 days. If the beer has not cleared in 7 days, you can add Claro K.C. finings for beer(I won't add finings). The final specific gravity should be approximately 1.012(Then it goes on about how to prime(bulk) the beer and bottle it. It also mentions to store it for 3+ weeks for best taste).
