Refers to both the phase of fermentation after primary fermentation, and a continuation of fermentation in another vessel.
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1answer
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Effects of sugar before bottling
I've just finished my second batch of beer and am about to bottle it. I'm already happy with both ABV and how it tastes. Carbonation's not a big deal to me and it's already a tiny bit fizzy anyway, so ...
1
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1answer
62 views
How likely to get off flavors from American Ale transferring to secondary?
I transferred my American Ale from primary to secondary after 10/11 days. I guess fermentation is pretty much complete. I might be going away for 3 weeks and so I didnt want the beer sitting in the ...
9
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7answers
297 views
How to clear beer
I am brewing my first homebrew an American cream ale. Was just reading into secondary fermentation. In the directions and books I've read it seems to suggest doing this. But as I search online and ...
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2answers
198 views
Why (if) should I do secondary fermentation? [duplicate]
I like to kees things simple, and I do not like to clean stuff, so adding secondary fermentation is something that bores me... Should I do it instead? What are the advantages and resons of doing it?
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2answers
91 views
Good Way to Stuff Dry Hops into Dry Hop Bag
I'm new to brewing and I recently transferred some brew from secondary that had dry hopping into a corney keg.
I think everything went fine, but I really had a hard time stuffing the dry hops into ...
3
votes
2answers
130 views
Do I need to rack to a new vessel for a secondary (fruit) fermentation
Planning on adding 5 lbs of frozen, thawed cranberries to a saison. Can I just dump them (gently) into the primary? I was planning on some sort of tertiary/bright vessel afterward for clearing it up ...
3
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1answer
164 views
Wine max secondary fermentation time
I started my first batch of wine a year ago, and got up to racking into secondary fermentation, but never bottled it, and then forgot about it. Is it a lost batch? Is it even safe to try?
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1answer
173 views
Options to improve clarity and reduce sediment in a barrel conditioned lager
My home-brew lager that I start secondary fermentation (in May) still hasn't settled, we have had spells of warm weather, and my beer still isn't clear... it has been further delayed as I had to vent ...
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3answers
340 views
Racking a carbonated beer from a keg back to the fermenter
Long story short, I have a wheat beer that has a weird band-aid phenol that isn't going away. Rather than dumping, I thought I would try racking to a new fermentor, adding chopped dried apricots, and ...
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4answers
169 views
What solution of hard alcohol is sufficient to sanitize and infuse something for addition to a fermenting beer?
Context:
I'm brewing into small, split batches lately to test the effects of various additives. I've got some true cinnamon bark and cacao nibs which I am planning on crushing up, letting steep in ...
12
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6answers
2k views
What is the secondary fermentation debate?
This question mentions a debate about secondary fermentation. Sort of like the existence of dark matter, everything I have read about homebrewing points to there being some disagreement about ...
2
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2answers
361 views
Does keg secondary fermentation temperature matter?
I'm considering investing in a keg, fridge, etc. I live in a warm climate and currently do secondary fermentation in the bottles in the heat. I've read that people have chest freezers to store kegs. ...
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votes
3answers
728 views
How long can I let my fermentation go in the original bucket?
I'm brewing a Belgian Tripel. I don't typically use a secondary fermentation. The Tripel however, is my biggest beer so far, and requires much more time. Should I transfer to a secondary?
All I have ...
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2answers
757 views
Premature Kegging - leave batch in keg or rack to carboy?
I kegged a batch of hefeweizen on Sunday morning and force carbonated. My all-grain recipe was a combination of several that I found online, but largely an original creation. The plan was to leave the ...
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2answers
2k views
Does adding extra sugar to dark ales (e.g. stouts) better their flavour?
I've heard anecdotal accounts of people adding extra sugar (more than the recommended amounts) to their secondary fermentation when brewing dark ales such as stouts and porters. Apparently this can be ...
2
votes
2answers
394 views
Hard lemonade secondary fermentation
I successfully fermented a must of lemonade, dextrose and honey with EC 1118. It is good but very dry. I racked it into a secondary and added more lemonade concentrate for sweetness. My problem is I ...
2
votes
2answers
188 views
Adding strawberries to half of a batch - too much oxidation in carboy?
I am currently fermenting a blonde ale, and I was thinking of adding strawberries after primary fermentation. However I don't want a full batch of stawberry ale, so I plan to rack only half of the 5 ...
1
vote
2answers
188 views
Dry hopping at the end of fermentation?
First of all I know being impatient is not the way to approach brewing, but I would like to sneak my last batch (as well as the ones I had planned) into a PRO-AM comp in two weeks. I have an session ...
4
votes
5answers
698 views
Is there a good way to estimate/calculate volume lost in fermentation(s)?
Last night I bottled a batch and realized that I lost a significant volume from the boil size. In the primary, I filled my 6 gallon carboy, and after the trub lost in primary and secondary, I bottled ...
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vote
2answers
448 views
Secondary Fermentation, Yeast still active?
A little background on the brew:
For my latest batch, I followed this recipe from hopville. I made a few alterations: I used a different strain of wyeast (London Ale III), I also used oak chips ...
1
vote
3answers
121 views
Quick fermentaion, what should i do?
I made a batch of cider 6 days ago, and it started fermenting nicely, however now the bubbles in the air lock have slowed to nearly 1/min (according to my recipe means it's fermented)
However this is ...
8
votes
4answers
3k views
Why is a carboy used for secondary fermentation?
It seems like you could a second bucket for the secondary fermentation. Is there any drawback to not using a carboy for this purpose?
8
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6answers
3k views
How to strain wort before primary fermentation
I recently made a big beer (Dogfish Head 90 minute clone) with an OG around 1.11. I had never tried to strain wort before moving to a primary fermenter but thought it would be a good idea since this ...
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vote
4answers
584 views
Secondary Fermentation
I've had my beer (Belgium witbier) in primary fermentation for about a week. I'd like to rack to secondary, then keep it in secondary for 3 weeks. Advisable? I could keep it in primary for another ...
3
votes
2answers
438 views
Secondary fermentation including carbonation in a Corney keg
I am making my third batch of cider using juice from a local farm, so far its worked out well other than a persistent haze in one batch. I want to try and simplify / improve by process by removing a ...
5
votes
2answers
2k views
Secondary Fermenter Temperature — Colder?
My American Pale Ale has been fermenting away nicely for the past few days and I'm certain I'll be racking to secondary within a few days (after SG gets stable).
I'm curious: I've been keeping my ...
3
votes
4answers
490 views
after fermentation (carboy) if I put it in the fridge what do with the air-lock?
listening to an interview with John Palmer he suggests putting the fermentation vessel in the fridge (after fermentation is complete) to drop out some left over trub and yeast. I figured I would give ...
11
votes
3answers
953 views
What are the advantages and disadvantages of transferring to a secondary vs. a long primary?
The conventional wisdom in homebrewing has been challenged in recent years. This wisdom held that a beer should be transferred from the primary fermentation vessel to a secondary one after 7-10 days. ...
8
votes
2answers
402 views
Fruit Beer: When to rack to secondary?
Right now, I'm working on a peach wheat beer. I pitched about 5 days ago now, and the airlock stopped bubbling yesterday. I'm going to do a gravity reading later on today to see if it's finished. My ...
6
votes
4answers
1k views
Recover a brew that quit fermenting after I moved to secondary fermenter
I started my first batch of beer, a "Nut Brown Ale", 2 weeks ago. Its initial gravity was 1.040. As per the instructions, I siphoned the beer into the secondary fermenter (a glass carboy) after two ...
3
votes
1answer
340 views
Filtering out the dead yeast cells and other trub during transfer from primary to secondary fermentation
Typically, when I transfer my wort from the pot to the bucket/carboy for primary fermentation, I like to use a very fine knit mesh reusable grain bag to catch all the hops, and other trub that has ...
3
votes
1answer
584 views
Anyone ever had their secondary fermentation bubble for 3 weeks?
So first fermentation went smoothly, solid bubbling from the airlock for about 5 days total racked into second fermenter and dry hopped on the seventh day. First day nothing. Second day it started ...
6
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1answer
268 views
Steps in Secondary Fermentation
I just picked up my Better Bottle Carboy... and will be racking to it in a few days. I have a few questions to ask since I did not use a secondary during my first few batches:
1) Do I add yeast at ...
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2answers
166 views
Should we primary ferment in carboys prior to transfer into an oak barrel for a solera?
We are about to undergo a 55 gallon brew as a club, to be added to an oak barrel to be a solera. Is autolysis enough of a concern to primary ferment in glass and rack into the barrel?
As a ...
4
votes
2answers
758 views
How long do I roast chocolate nibs to use in cider?
Read several posts about chocolate stouts and it seems that using nibs as a secondary flavoring without adding to the boil is the consensus. Roasting them first has been suggested, as well as soaking ...
4
votes
3answers
647 views
Can I bottle ale after 2 weeks in keg?
I've primary fermented my Woodfordes Admiral Reserve for 4 days, kegged with 3oz if sugar and it's now it's been in there a week. I don't want sediment in my beer. Can I bottle it after 2 weeks in the ...
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votes
2answers
2k views
Can fruit be left in secondary too long?
I just put 5 pounds of blackberries in secondary fermenter with 5 of the 10 gallons of a Belgian wit. I was going to bottle it all one week from now, assuming fermentation has died down.
Are there ...
2
votes
2answers
341 views
How to treat Brettanomyces for secondary fermentation?
I'm wanting to add some Brettanomyces lambicus to an old ale after it has been moved to a secondary fermentor (it should be in the 7-8% ABV range at this point, and the primary yeast will be Wyeast ...
6
votes
2answers
540 views
How long is too long to condition a beer in secondary without having to pitch bottling yeast?
How long is too long to condition a beer in secondary without having to pitch bottling yeast?
What factors do I need to consider when deciding whether or not to pitch yeast at bottling?
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votes
4answers
1k views
Temperature swing of 10+ degrees during fermentation
I'm fermenting a porter, and pitched the yeast at about 75 on Sunday night (4 days ago). Lively fermentation started the next day, and though the wort had cooled to about 68 the first night, the ...
11
votes
3answers
746 views
What is the best way to sanitize vanilla pods?
I Am planning on adding a vanilla pod to secondary in my next brew. What is the best way to sanitize it before it goes in?
4
votes
3answers
257 views
Post-Secondary Fermentation
I've heard mentions of people using tertiary, quaternary, quinary, etc fermentations. Does this really provide any significant benefit beyond secondary?
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votes
1answer
468 views
How can you use an oaken barrel for secondary fermentation?
I may be able to get my hands on a oaken barrel that I'd love to age a Scottish ale in. What can I do to sanitize it adequately and minimize oxygen exposure?
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votes
3answers
486 views
Can I put a secondary fermenter in room temperature without creating any off flavors?
I would like to have more brewing capacity, but I am limited by the amount of temperature controlled storage that I have. Do you only need temp control in the primary fermentation process? I'm ...
9
votes
2answers
408 views
Should I dunk my dry hops?
When dry hopping, should you try to submerge the hops after you add them to the secondary?
Half the hops in my last IPA weren't wet after a week, so I'm thinking they couldn't contribute much flavor.
...
5
votes
5answers
699 views
Help! My secondary fermenter exploded!
So, I was brewing a nice IPA the other day. I walked in to check on the carboy and the stopper had popped out and there were hops everywhere! I stopped it back up and bottled it a few days later ...
4
votes
3answers
298 views
Removing Fruit From Secondary
I recently brewed a peach hefeweizen and I added 7lb of fresh peaches to the secondary. I just chunked the peaches and popped them into the carboy. I have siphoned the beer out for bottling and now ...
5
votes
3answers
2k views
How long should a barleywine be aged before bottling?
I generally rack my beers to secondary for about a week before bottling just to clarify them a bit, but as I understand it, barleywines should be aged much longer to allow some flavors to develop and ...
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votes
7answers
18k views
If/When to move to secondary fermentation
Digression from What's the point of secondary fermentation?
What are the good rules of thumb for determining a. whether to use secondary fermentation at all and b. when to move from primary to ...
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3answers
3k views
What's the point of secondary fermentation?
I've always bottled directly after the primary fermentation has finished. What's the point of the secondary fermentation? Can I use a bucket or is it something that really necessitates a glass carboy?
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