Beer Forum

So I have heard mixed things lately regarding the need to transfer to a secondary fermentation tank once primary has finished...My question to all of you would be what do you do? Is it necessary to transfer every batch you make over to a secondary before kegging or can you simply ferment as usual and skip the second tank? I'm interesting in hearing what others do...

Thanks for the input!

From the Pope and Palmers' book - Brewing Classic Styles - page 42

"... In general we recommend a single vessel fermentation for a minimum of 1 week, and not more than 4 weeks, before packaging. Racking to a secondary is not recommended except for beers requiring a long maturation, such as lagers, or beers requiring a second fermentation, such as sour ales and fruit beers."

Most of my beers I leave in primary for 3 or 4 weeks and then rack right to the keg. If I have a beer that I want to have particularly clear for a competition, I will move it to a bright tank (either a corny keg or a 5 gallon carboy) for a week or so to allow stuff to continue to settle out before kegging.

Barleywines and other big beers that need aging also go right to a keg after a month in primary. I put just enough CO2 pressure on it to keep the lid sealed and set the thing in a cool corner for 8-10 months before sampling. Pressure will build up a little during that time from continued fermentation but not enough to bother anything.

Wayne

mattzacc wrote:So I have heard mixed things lately regarding the need to transfer to a secondary fermentation tank once primary has finished...My question to all of you would be what do you do? Is it necessary to transfer every batch you make over to a secondary before kegging or can you simply ferment as usual and skip the second tank? I'm interesting in hearing what others do...

Thanks for the input!

With the exceptions of what BCMAUI posted (which is what I follow), if people are telling you to secondary all yours beers are generally old school brewers. They are used to a time when malts were not as modified, yeasts were not as good, etc...
To put it bluntly, it is outdated info

I like my beers to clear. That's why I normally do a 2 week primary followed by a 1 week secondary (brite tank).
Nothing to do with being old school. Just, like Bug said, to clear the beer out before kegging it.

Brandon wrote:

mattzacc wrote:So I have heard mixed things lately regarding the need to transfer to a secondary fermentation tank once primary has finished...My question to all of you would be what do you do? Is it necessary to transfer every batch you make over to a secondary before kegging or can you simply ferment as usual and skip the second tank? I'm interesting in hearing what others do...

Thanks for the input!

With the exceptions of what BCMAUI posted (which is what I follow), if people are telling you to secondary all yours beers are generally old school brewers. They are used to a time when malts were not as modified, yeasts were not as good, etc...
To put it bluntly, it is outdated info

Was speaking to a long time home brewer from Oregon late last week and he told me I only needed climate control for lagers (which were whimpy beers) ales were fine as you did not want to get them colder than 68F, warmer ferment was not a problem. He could not understand why I wanted to keep a constant 68F (or whatever) during an ale ferment. He also encourgages watering down the water in the fermenter to reduce headspace and does not understand why I would use a hyrdometer pre or post ferment. I did not even mention the refractometer. I'm not going to rain on his parade, he has brewed much more than I have and I thanked him for his guidance and helpful hints.

As I slowly figure this craft out I'm finding out there many different ways to skin the cat, and opinons are like assholes, everyone has one. There are many different ways to making beer, but before finding the BN, I did not feel I had enough knowledge to go forward and dive in.

As long as you have fun doing it and enjoy the beer you make, go for it. I happen to enjoy tasty craft beer, so that is my goal to homebrew along those lines. I also want to figure out how to create styles of beer that don't make it here, or if they do, are altered during the voyage. German beer in Hawaii has gone 1/2 round the world and sat in a few warehouses and shipping containers along the way, so never in prime condition if and when it gets here.

I am fortunate to be able to start off with the BN, How to Brew, Brewing Classic Styles, Zymergy and BYO as my training wheels. Those who started 30 years ago had it much harder and less of a selection of ingredients. Even if their advise is not current, many of them blazed the path for us who follow, and for that I thank them.

Yeah, I also do a short secondary to help clear the beer and get it away from the bulk of dead yeast cells. I always get another smaller layer of sediment in the secondary, so it helps with not getting a giant layer of sediment in my bottles (I don't keg yet).

Crash cooling and Gelatin gets the beers just as clear with less chance of infection. Which is the main reason I wouldn't secondary. Of course I guess I have somewhat of a secondary since I keg.