help with my apple ale
Moderator: slothrob
help with my apple ale
Hey all. I brewed an ale on 11-03-01 and in addition to my malt, I steeped 12 lbs. of sliced apples during the last 25 min. of my boil. A steady fermentation started on the second day and lasted until I racked to secondary on 11-13-01. I need to go ahead and bottle if it’s going to be drinkable by Christmas but I still have a bubble in my airlock every 3-4 minutes.Today is the 26th of Nov. Is it safe to bottle yet? I’ve never had a beer to go this long . Thanks so much and happy holidays to all.
- Mesa Maltworks
- Strong Ale
- Posts: 477
- Joined: Tue Sep 11, 2001 11:16 pm
- Location: Georgetown, Grand Cayman Island
Remember that thing called a hydrometer ?
ALWAYS use a hydrometer to assess whether it is time to bottle or not ! If there is NO decrease in gravity for 3 consecutive days, you can go ahead and bottle. Bubbles in the airlock can be misleading due to temperature and pressure differentials, so don't rely on that as an indicator of readiness.
- Mesa Maltworks
- Strong Ale
- Posts: 477
- Joined: Tue Sep 11, 2001 11:16 pm
- Location: Georgetown, Grand Cayman Island
Fruit & Fermentation
Yes... sometimes a fermentation with fruit can take longer for 2 main reasons... 1) fruit contributes additional sugars to be fermented and 2)depending on the method used to entrain the fruit, mashing with or adding fruit to the boil for varying durations and or temperatures can produce more complex sugars that are harder for the yeast to utilize and can slow fermentation somewhat.
Thanks......
This being my first attempt at fruit beer makes me want to brew some mead. I hear that's a really long ferment. (-: Thanks a whole lot for all the help. This site is an invaluable resource for all of us!
- Push Eject
- Double IPA
- Posts: 233
- Joined: Wed Mar 21, 2001 1:01 pm
- Location: Lancaster, CA, US
- Contact:
Looong fermentations
Re: Mead - my wife took a whack at her first mead last April... it has yet to be bottled. She racks it once a month, but I believe the fermentation is done and she is just waiting for it to clear to her liking. Last time I took a hydrometer reading it was at 16%. Thank God for beer: I don't have that kind of patience!