Need advice on first ever brew.

Hi,

I've been attempting my first ever brew and I am not sure if anything has gone wrong. I need some advice if possible.

I'm brewing a Munston's Continental lager kit and the brew has been in the FV now for about a week. I am concerned that not much is happening on the fermentation side and since mixing up the wort mixture from the can I found out I had done this wrong.

Here's what happened...

Wanting to make a good job of it, I followed the John Palmer website. I sterilised every and then made up the wort mixture and tipped it into the FV. Then I boiled and added the rest of the water to the 23 litre amount and put that in FV. I activated the yeast in a jug as per the website, but mine did not result in the foamy mass in the picture. Mine came out more like a fizzy milk solution. I tipped that in the FV and gave the whole lot a stir. Clipped the lid on and fitted the airlock.

The first problem I have is that it is not exactly bubbling away. It's been in the FV for about a week now and apart from the odd gurgle the next day, it has been quiet. I read about the gas escaping from the seal of the FV and I guess this may be possible.

Since then, I learn from Munston's website that you sould not boil their kits when you make them up as I had done, so I am worried that I may have wrecked the brew from the outset.

What are my options here? I have not opened the FV; is it safe to take a peek inside and what should the brew look like at this stage?

I plan to leave it in the FV for one more week and then bottle. Is it worth doing this or just scrap this one and chalk it up to experience?

...Or am I just a panicking newbie....?

Advice is welcome....

Regards,

Lightman

Not a kit beer brewer myself, hardly any beer at all, so hopefully somebody with actual expertise will be along shortly.
I think it may well be Ok though.
Do you have a hydrometer?

Hi,

Yes, I have a Hydrometer. I've read up on how to use it, but I am not sure when. I was planning to try it later in the week. If I get two readings that are the same it is ready for bottling and I know the gravity. My theory anyway.

Regards,

Lightman

It should be OK, the CO2 has probably just leaked out the FV.

At worst by boiling the kit you may have caramelised some sugar but I doubt it.

Did you take an initial hydrometer reading? Take another one now to see if the reading has dropped, if it has it is fermenting.

:thumb:

Did you take a hydrometer reading at the start of brewing just before you pitched the yeast? Thats known as the Original Gravity or OG of the Brew, once you have that then when you take a reading at or towards the end you can easily calculate using the calculator at the top of this page to figure out how strong your brew is. You are absolutely correct about getting two or three consecutive readings the same indicates that the brew is finished. I would normally let the brew sit undisturbed for a further 3 - 5days to let the yeast clear up after itself after having finished fermenting then bottle. The sort of ranges you should be looking for in a brew kit (without any modification) is getting an OG of around 1046, when it has finished fermenting it should be around 1010 or maybe a little lower.

As MattyH says the gas has probably escaped from the lid, none of them seal very well.

If you boiled the remaining water and added it, what temp was the liquor at when you pitched the yeast?
Unless I'm reading you wrong it sounds like the liquor will have been too hot and I guess that will kill the yeast??

how much boiling water did you use?

Kinleycat said:

If you boiled the remaining water and added it, what temp was the liquor at when you pitched the yeast?
Unless I'm reading you wrong it sounds like the liquor will have been too hot and I guess that will kill the yeast??

Click to expand...

I'm reading this the same as you, temp would've been far too high and killed the yeast :electric:

Hi,

Maybe that's it. Although I let the water cool before tipping it into FV it may well have been too hot. Although I do not know the actual temperature, the wort would have been warm to the touch but not boiling. If I has splashed myself with the mix it would not have been a problem.

Oh well, you live and learn.

It there a way of knowing if there is any 'life' in this brew, or am I better just starting over?

Regards,

Lightman

Best idea is to check with hydrometer if the reading is 1.030 or lower just give it a little stir and make sure its kept somewhere warm for another few days then recheck.

If you have inadvertently killed the little yeastys the reading will probably be 1.030 or above if so pop down to wilkos or a local home brew shop and buy some more yeast and just sprinkle it on top and keep warm for another week. Then recheck with hydro.