Brew UK Forum | Beer Kits
Wherry second stage advice
Hi folks,
I'm homebrewing for the first time with a christmas special offer wherry kit. I have followed instructions carefully, and my brew has been in the second stage keg for 4 days(first 2 days at 21 degrees). I keep tweeking the rubber pressure release collar to control pressure. Things looking good.
However, I have taken a couple of samples, takes beautiful, but beer is still cloudy. Am I being too keen?
How long should it stay in the keg before clearing for drinking or bottling?
What temp should it be stored at? At present I have it at 17-18 degrees. Should it be cooler?
I have made it to this stage thanks to this excellent forum.
I look forward to your educated replies.
Responses
Posted 1 year ago by Moderator
Hi Roy. First, don't worry about releasing the pressure from the barrel. In the natural course of things the CO2 given off will expand the barrel and if you stand it on a level surface you will see the small round feet on the bottom of the barrel will be raised from the surface. They can be raised as much as half an inch. If there is no leak from the tap, there is no need to release any pressure.
Second, it takes probably 4 weeks for the beer to clear in the keg, so no worries yet. In a pub, the cellar where the beer is stored is always at 12 - 14c, so in a perfect world, your storage temperature is a bit high. Overall, it shouldn't make too much difference, but the rules of beer say that the cooler the cellar temperature, the quicker the beer will clear.
Having said all that, there have been many posts lately about Wherry not clearing and it's something I've seen myself. Eventually, it will clear. How long it takes is anybody's guess. It helps if you leave it in the fermenter a few days longer to allow the beer to clear and then try not to transfer any sediment to the barrel. Don't worry. Drink it anyway. In Medieval times all the beer was cloudy. On the other hand, no-one lived much past about 28. Happy brewing.
Planning: - To get some more brews on now the weather's a bit cooler
Fermenting: - Ginger Beer experiment
Conditioning: - A normal bitter with Styrians
Drinking: - All of it!!
E-mail: arnyfris@gmail.com
Posted 1 year ago by Member
So, at 36 that makes me a very old man who still loves his cloudy beer. Happy Daze!!
Thanks for that saracen. I'll work on the 13c climate and see how it goes. Cheers!!
Posted 1 year ago by Member
How long can you leave it fermenting before you need to keg it? Can you leave it untill it is clear before tranfering to a cornelious keg to avoid a cloudy beer?
Thanks for any advice.
Fermenting : Spitfire Clone
Conditioning : Woodfordes Nelsons Revenge
Planning : Speckled Hen Clone
Posted 1 year ago by Moderator
In primary it can be left for 2 weeks with no ill effect. You could also put it in a secondary fermenter (make sure its air tight and air locked) for ages, but I would try to keep the temp low.
Plannin'-
Loads a beer after an upgrade!
nathbrew@gmail.com
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Thanks Nath.
Would this the best way of getting it as clear a possible...to leave it longer in a secondary fermenter and then only syphoning off down to what I need?
When finally putting it into the keg I wouldn't need to add any sugar like I normally do as I'm going to add co2 from the gas cylinder. Is that right?
Fermenting : Spitfire Clone
Conditioning : Woodfordes Nelsons Revenge
Planning : Speckled Hen Clone
Posted 1 year ago by Moderator
Yes and no - leave it for a few weeks in secondary and then transfer the lot (if you have a bit left over from the corny then bottle it).
Yep - I pressureise my cornys at 12psi for ale and 20psi for lager for 2 days and shake the kegs every now and again then purge the excess gas and set at 2-3psi for serving (but you may want something different).
Ta,
Nath
Plannin'-
Loads a beer after an upgrade!
nathbrew@gmail.com
Posted 1 year ago by Admin
Rich, don't worry if its a little cloudy when you stick it on the corny, it will soon clear and only the first pint or so will be a little hazy.
You could try moving it somewhere cooler for a few days before kegging and also keg from that spot so you don't move it again and disturb the yeast. Transferring to a secondary fermenter won't help it clear, in fact the process of moving it will mix the yeast back into it and therefore it will take even longer.
If you have an airlock on it then it will be fine for a couple of weeks although I tend to give it 10 days then keg. Usually pretty clear within a week then crystal clear a week later.
You could add finnings a few days prior to kegging too if you want to get it really clear but personally I tend to avoid these. Finnings are a good idea if you plan to transport though as it will settle down a lot quicker afterwards. Isinglass are the best.
Posted 1 year ago by Member
I usually do a second fermentaion in an air lock barrel to help clear the beer. Im always amazed at how much sediment has fallen to the bottom in the second stage especially as I am so careful when transfering it from the primary fermenter. Am I wasting time doing this, should I just ferment it in the primary air lock barrel for about 10 days and maybe add some finnings at the last day or so.
Why do you avoid using them Greg does it change the flavour of the brew?
Fermenting : Spitfire Clone
Conditioning : Woodfordes Nelsons Revenge
Planning : Speckled Hen Clone
Posted 1 year ago by Moderator
Some people secondary, some dont. I suppose its personal preference really. I normally just primary ferment then straight to corny/bottle. Finnings probably dont change the flavour at all but whats the point of adding something to beer when it will clear itself by time anyway.
Purist!
Plannin'-
Loads a beer after an upgrade!
nathbrew@gmail.com
Reply
You must log in to post.