I get asked this question a lot and the answer is yes and no. Yeah, I know, that isn't really a good answer, but allow me to explain.
If you are doing any kind of standard ale like an IPA, Pale ale, Wheat, Stout, Porter, pretty much any kind of ale recipe, then you don't have to do a secondary fermentation. Just let the beer sit for 2-3 weeks for all the yeast to flocculate out and then bottle or keg your beer as normal.
However, if you are adding anything to your beer after it's done fermenting, that's when I suggest to do a secondary fermentation. Adding things to beer . . . what's that? If you are adding vanilla beans, fruit, dry hopping, coffee or anything else, then absolutely, do a secondary fermentation. Why not add to primary fermentation? Well, during primary fermentation there is so much activity going on that a lot of the flavors and aromas that you want to extract from the addition of other ingredients will more than likely get blown out during primary fermentation, which means you won't have as much flavor in your finished beer. This is the only time I do a secondary fermentation.
Lagers and Big beers (a.k.a. High gravity beers) need secondary fermentation. Lagers do because you need to rack out of the primary and into the secondary in order to actually "lager" your beer at 34 degrees for a month or so. With big beers, it's necessary to rack off of the yeast and let them sit to mature a little longer and finish up their secondary fermentation, and because primary fermentation may last up to one month with big beers. I've racked big beers from secondary to a tertiary (third racking) for a few months. Then I'll add new yeast and bottle.
So if a recipe calls for racking to secondary, ask yourself if you're adding anything more to that beer, and if you aren't then I wouldn't recommend racking. By not racking again you eliminate possible oxidation and contamination to your beer. Just have some patience, leave it sit another week in the primary and then rack off. All will be fine.
7 comments:
Great blog, love all the info.
Stumbled over here looking for info on some different hops.
I just brewed up my first batch in a long time and I'm trying it today.
Tastes great.
On topic: I always dry hop, because that's the kind of beer I like. I do partial mash brews, do a primary for 3 to 4 days in a ferment bucket, then rack it off to glass and the dry hop for another full week using WL CA Ale Yeast pretty much all the time.
This last batch was 5 gallons and:
7 pounds pale liq
1 pound DME wheat
pound 120 crystal
pound Belgian carapils
ounce Magnum pellets 60 mins
ounce Magnum 30 mins
ounce Centennial. end of boil - 5 mins
ounce Cent. dry hop
California Ale Yeast
I think I didn't steep long enough. Last time I made this, it was more like a Brown than the amber it is now.
You mentioned that you shouldn't dryhop in primary because fermentation activity would blow off the dry hop aroma. I think if you add dry hops after fermentation is fully complete (10 days or more) then this wouldn't happen.
This might not be the ideal method, but there are advantages and it would be interesting to compare a batch dryhopped in secondary to another batch dryhopped in primary after the fermentation was finished.
Matt F, yeah, I've done that before. It works just as well as adding hops to the secondary. It's the lazy man method and I'm all about eliminating a step if I can.
In addition to losing aroma from a vigorous ferment, I've heard some of the hop oils stick to yeast. So if your yeast has not flocced, you might not want to dry hop. Dry hopping in a secondary might still be the way to go.
How do you get the carbonation in the fineshd product?( im new to beer brewing i mostly brew mead)
For carbonation you want to add 5 oz of sugar to the beer before bottling. The yeast ferments that out and carbonates the bottles. Usually, it takes 1-2 weeks.
Great blog and your videos are superb! Personally, I like to follow the 'double drop' system and so always use a secondary fermentation process for ales. Of course, I scale this type of system down to a home brewer's level!
Read more about the 'Double Drop' system here:
http://www.age-net.co.uk/new_forum/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=189
Post a Comment