First time brewer needs LOTS of help...

[Richard Maclaurin]

Hi, I've just done an all grain Epic clone as my first ever attempt at brewing.  Nothing could possibly go wrong, could it?  Oh yes it could.  I managed to lose over 5 liters in the boil, then tossed the whole lot into the fermenter, trub and all.  The Wyeast, which has been sitting patiently in the fridge for the last three weeks didn't seem to have an unbroken bag inside, so I suspect it had already been burst. There doesn't appear to be any fermenting happening if the air lock is anything to go by,  the SG is a whopping 1.085, and I would really like some advice.  Should I ditch the whole lot and start again, decant and remove grub, add boiled water back to the 20 L mark (I've only got 16 L incl. grub!) or what? Cheers.

[Richard Maclaurin]

Hi Matt,

Thanks for your thoughts.  I will leave the rest of the bottles to condition for another week or two, as you suggested.  As for "off flavours" I might have put you wrong there.  I have a beer that is drinkable (just), but because I cocked up the recipe (one of many mistakes) the flavour is strong and not nicely balanced.  There are no off flavours that I can detect, just not the Epic Pale Ale taste I was aiming for.

[mattd2]

Oh, that makes sense now that I remember your volume/OG mishap. Yeah since this was your first I think having a drinkable (even if it is only just) result is a good result. And it seems like you are going to be much better prepared in regards to anticipating your volumes/boil off/absorbtion amounts for the next one. Are you going to try the Epic again or go for something else?

[Richard Maclaurin]

I'm going for Epic again, not only because I love the beer, but also because I will have a reference point with the first attempt.

[David Malpas]

I'm by no means an expert - being only on my 6th batch or so myself - but I also had really flat beer on my first attempt - I put this down to not having the bottles in a warm enough place for them to carbonate? (it was the middle of winter).

Since then I've taken to adding the entire priming sugar to some water in a pot and boiling it for a couple of minutes, and then gently mixing this with the fermenting beer in a second bucket and bottling from that.

Once bottled I've left them in a warm (~20degrees) place for a week and then a fridge for a second week.

This method has produced good results for me.

[David Malpas]

sorry - I meant fermented beer - the beer usually has been in the fermenter for about 3 weeks by this stage and has reached it's FG

[Des Ross]

Hi Richard. First, as others have said, give this beer time to condition and mellow. It is a high gravity beer so be patient...it will improve but obviously will be a different beer to Epic! Second, when you added the priming sugar, did you stir the beer gently to ensure the solution was evenly mixed? The heavier priming addition will otherwise be concentrated near the bottom. Third, CONGRATULATIONS on your first AG beer! Doing a repeat is a good idea...and don't give up on that first beer just yet...you might be pleasantly surprised in 6-8 weeks time (if you can keep it it that long!)

[Richard Maclaurin]

Hi Des, thanks for the encouragement.  I did stir in the priming sugar, but as I was novice it's entirely possible that I didn't stir enough.  I will wait for a couple of months and taste again.

[Des Ross]

Good, sounds like the priming solution should be well mixed...it's important not to stir vigorously to avoid oxygen pick-up. Just a suggestion but perhaps on the day when you bottle your second batch, brew a nice light beer about 1040 OG and ferment it using a good dollop of the old yeast cake..cool it down the new wort to about 17C first then pour it onto the yeast. Your fermentation will get going quickly and you should be able to bottle within 14 days and drink in another 3 weeks. This will give the first 2 brews time to condition and mature while drinking the 3rd.

[Richard Maclaurin]

An excellent idea, but possibly a bridge too far for me at this stage of my brewing career.

[Mark Goodin]

I wouldnt be too concerned...best piece of advice I was given when entering the world of All Grain was "Learn the process and take notes (mental or written) at every stage of the brew day. If you end up with something you can drink at the end of it all, then that is the bonus or cherry on top"....

You will make plenty of mistakes, but this is what you learn from. It may take a few AG batches for you to feel comfortable in your process and equipment etc, and you may not get that perfect drop right away (I certainly didnt), but you will learn a lot from it. With AG brewing, I love the brewing side of it, when the best tastes great a month later, well then that's the bonus and makes you feel great that you have made it!

Good luck and keep going bro!