Info Please Secondary Fermentation?

[ZAPP168]

Ok, I have heard about this, I have looked around the site for it, Still unsure.......What is it? How is it? Why is it?
THANKS!

[HogieWan]

After your primary fermentation is almost done, racking your beer to another vessal has a few benefits. First, it will allow particles to settle out of the beer so that you get a clearer, better tasting brew. Letting the beer age a bit helps the flavor mature. Taking it off the trub in the primary keeps the trub from adversly affecting the flavor.

Read this. (http://www.howtobrew.com/section1/chapter8-2-3.html)

[HogieWan]

How long is too long for secondary?

[Fast_Eddy]

Originally posted by HogieWan
How long is too long for secondary?

IMO - depends on the amount of sediment.

Very little sediment - three to four weeks is okay. Potential for longer carbonation.

Lot of sediment(lots of decaying trub and yeast) - 2 weeks tops.



Nothing hard and fast here. Remember - nothing prevents you from doing a tertiary, either.

[BluesHarp]

Depends on the style, as well. I have 12% Boubon Imperial Stout that has been in secondary for 95 days now to allow it to mature and mellow before bottling; but that is on the extreme side.
I normally secondary for 10- 14 days.

[Sven6]

I usually use the 1-2-3 method... 1 week in the Primary, 2 weeks in the Secondary, & 3 weeks in the Bottle (or Keg)... Seems to work well for me.

[ZAPP168]

6 weeks? WOW, I was having trouble waiting two. Thanks for all the info.

[Fast_Eddy]

Originally posted by ZAPP168
6 weeks? WOW, I was having trouble waiting two...

The best cure for this problem is to brew more. That way you won't be as tempted to drink the beer before it is ready. A beer(in general) that is 6 weeks old is markedly better than a beer that is 2-3 weeks old.

[I'mRocketMan]

I agree with Fast_Eddy! FWIW, I aged my Chimay Bleu clone (9.7%) for 13 months in the keg (cold-conditioned) Currently I have my Triple Moon Tripel (12.75%) in secondary (it's been several months since I brewed it) and I'm planning on tapping at Yule'05!

[Sven6]

Originally posted by ZAPP168
6 weeks? WOW, I was having trouble waiting two. Thanks for all the info.

I know... I still have a hard time waiting, but it really does make a difference in the quality of flavor... I found that I was tapping into my kegs too early, and by the time they were really tasting good, the keg was about to blow foam...

I agree with Fast_Eddy, the solution is to brew more often, that way you have something to drink while the others are fermenting/conditioning and you wont be as tempted to tap into them.

Sven

[I'mRocketMan]

Now if I can only get my friends to wait as well.... LOL!

[cluckk]

I had one batch of robust porter that the recipe called for two weeks of bottle conditioning. I wanted to see what the difference was (if any) between 1 and 3 weeks. I started drinking one bottle a day after 1 week. I didn't notice much difference for the first few days. After a second week the beer had improved and by the third week it was some of he best I had ever had.

Right now I have some Amber Ale conditioning and more Robust Porter in the secondary. I am drinking commercial suds (a really good porter) during the interim just to cut down on temptation to tap into my own brew.

Waiting for bottle conditioning is the hardest. It is so hard not to just pop the top on one.

[fretlessman71]

What porter you drinking? Is it on my porter list here? (http://www.realbeer.com/discussions/showthread.php?s=&threadid=6358)

[cluckk]

The commercial porter I drink is Deschutes Black Butte Porter. It was on your list but I did not see a rating. It is really the first porter I started with so it has sort of become the reference for me on other porters. I have had a few of the others on your list, but they can get quite expensive, especially in a small Idaho town.