Fermentation / Bottling time

Jonny the Brewer

Jonny the Brewer

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Hi all. I am a small batch beginner brewer and have a few Qs.

I've got some beer fermenting that I made recently. On Sunday it will be two weeks since I made it so I had hoped I'll be bottling then, however it's still slowly bubbling so I assume it's still fermenting.

I don't have the tools to take a sample and a gravity read. Would it be a problem if it's still fermenting when I bottle it? (like, one bubble every 10 or so seconds so quite slow).
 
Jonny the Brewer said:
Hi all. I am a small batch beginner brewer and have a few Qs.

I've got some beer fermenting that I made recently. On Sunday it will be two weeks since I made it so I had hoped I'll be bottling then, however it's still slowly bubbling so I assume it's still fermenting.

I don't have the tools to take a sample and a gravity read. Would it be a problem if it's still fermenting when I bottle it? (like, one bubble every 10 or so seconds so quite slow).
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Assuming you intend to add more sugar to the wort in a bottling bucket (or sugar to each individual bottle), it would be a huge problem if you bottle the wort while it's still fermenting. You would likely over-carbonate the beer and risk exploding bottles. Very nasty.

However, the idea that you are still getting active fermentation after 2 weeks is a bit suspect. Unfortunately, without taking a series of gravity readings with a hydrometer, you really have no way to know for sure. It's not recommended to bottle without confirming terminal gravity.

Good luck.
 
Megary said:
Assuming you intend to add more sugar to the wort in a bottling bucket (or sugar to each individual bottle), it would be a huge problem if you bottle the wort while it's still fermenting. You would likely over-carbonate the beer and risk exploding bottles. Very nasty.

However, the idea that you are still getting active fermentation after 2 weeks is a bit suspect. Unfortunately, without taking a series of gravity readings with a hydrometer, you really have no way to know for sure. It's not recommended to bottle without confirming terminal gravity.

Good luck.
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thank you! I took the OG but I have no real idea what the ABV should be, so what good would a gravity reading do, out of interest? I always take the FG reading before I bottle and work out the ABV...
 
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Jonny the Brewer said:
thank you! I took the OG but I have no real idea what the ABV should be, so what good would a gravity reading do, out of interest? I always take the FG reading before I bottle and work out the ABV...
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ABV had nothing to do with what he is saying. You can't know if the fermentation is finished if you don't take two successive readings to verify SG doesn't change.

You can roll the dice and hope, but I wouldn't do it. A hydrometer is like $10 and refractometer is $35. Cheap insurance against bad results or exploding bottles
 
Minbari said:
ABV had nothing to do with what he is saying. You can't know if the fermentation is finished if you don't take two successive readings to verify SG doesn't change.

You can roll the dice and hope, but I wouldn't do it. A hydrometer is like $10 and refractometer is $35. Cheap insurance against bad results or exploding bottles
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Ah I get it now. How much gap would you leave it between the two readings?
 
Jonny the Brewer said:
Ah I get it now. How much gap would you leave it between the two readings?
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I always leave 3 days. Then if it changes a measurable amount, it's not done. 1 in or 2 pts is a judgment call (within the calibration of the hydrometer). Yeast will clean up other compounds after main fermentation is finished too, so no reason to get into too big a hurry ;)

Just as a side note. 1 bubble every 10 sec is still pretty active, if that is from fermentation. Those bubbles can be causes by the beer off-gassing co2 as well though. Which is why you need to check
 
Minbari said:
I always leave 3 days. Then if it changes a measurable amount, it's not done. 1 in or 2 pts is a judgment call (within the calibration of the hydrometer). Yeast will clean up other compounds after main fermentation is finished too, so no reason to get into too big a hurry ;)

Just as a side note. 1 bubble every 10 sec is still pretty active, if that is from fermentation. Those bubbles can be causes by the beer off-gassing co2 as well though. Which is why you need to check
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Great advice, thanks!
 
What yeast did you use?
I leave diastaticus yeast for a minimum of 3 weeks, normally 4.
Just to be sure
 
I too am a small batch brewer - 2.5 gallons at a time. As a matter of habit, I let my beers sit in primary fermentation for 3 weeks, minimum. At the end of 3 weeks, I’ll check a refractometer sample for FG. If the sample is in the predicted “ballpark” then I’ll proceed with bottling. Never have I had a bottle bomb, so my process seems to work. Patience will take care of many worries in brewing.
 
I brew 5-7 gallon batches and do the same thing Herm does. Three weeks in the fermenter then verify gravity at bottling.

One thing to be cautious of is infections. With an infection, the bacteria keep consuming sugar well after the yeast have completed their work. How does the beer look, taste and smell? I had an infection recently where there was a thin white film on the surface of the beer. The aroma and taste wasn't bad, just a tad sour or tart. Since I was at my expected final gravity, and I was curious, I bottled anyway. The flavor never improved and after a few bottle bombs, I dumped the rest. I had them in a cardboard box so, no real risk of injury, just a pain to clean up the mess. Now that I've alarmed you, let me say "Don't be Alarmed!" :D. I mention this just to caution you about the risks of bottling too early. Maybe start with fermenting long and then shorten that time as you gain experience. Don't worry about leaving your beer in the fermenter too long. You have at least a couple of months in primary before you would even begin to think about problems developing.
 
Unless something is wrong, that thing should be done with a West Coast Ale Yeast at two weeks at 68F. Was your fermentation temp cooler? Does your bubbling come after you shake the fermenter or on its own? If in a transparent fermenter, it should look flat with hardly anything remaining on top. The krausen should have settled. Yes, do the above and make sure the beer is not infected.
 
Sandy Feet said:
Unless something is wrong, that thing should be done with a West Coast Ale Yeast at two weeks at 68F. Was your fermentation temp cooler?
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Probably. I am in the UK so might be a bit cooler than 68.

Sandy Feet said:
Does your bubbling come after you shake the fermenter or on its own?
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Both. If I leave it, then the bubbles happen around every 12 seconds now.

No signs of infection.
 
O.k. it won't hurt to leave it for another couple of days. SafAle S-05 is pretty much a dry West Coast Ale yeast over here, and it likes it around 68F/20C in my refrigerator. I couldn't do room temp because it is waaaay too hot most of the year in my house.
 
How consistent is the temperature where you have your fermenter? If it's gets noticeably colder overnight the bubbles could just be the beer releasing the atmosphere it sucked in overnight (which is something to avoid).
 
@Jonny the Brewer , let's talk quantity and age. What size batch and what sort of OG are we dealing with? Also...what's the age of the yeast you used?

As the yeast gets older it will loose some of its vitality so that 9 billion cells or whatever Lalle says was in the packet will lessen as it gets older.

Given whatever the OG was, if it's a high gravity brew and the batch size was large enough, you may be under pitched or are stressing the yeast. Two weeks for a small batch should be enough under the right conditions and the proper pitch rate.

Give us some more of the numbers and we'll help you figure it out before you bottle that batch.
 
Since you are a small batch brewer every drop counts. I wouldn't take a reading until you can't notice anymore bubbles.
 
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