Brewferm Abbey (Abdij) - Second Fermentation

kxroche

Hi. I’ve done the first fermentation of my Breferm Abbey beer and so far so good. I am a little confused about what happens after this. 

It would appear that having siphoned the brew from the first fermentation vessel, that I should now leave it to rest for 2-4 weeks in another vessel to rest before adding the sugar and bottling (second fermentation).  

I am already allowing the beer to rest between fermentations, but just a little concerned that the yeast might die while resting if there are no sugars to feed it. Perhaps this is just my ignorance, but I would appreciate some advice as I haven’t experienced homebrew manufacturers recommending a resting period before, so just wanted to check. 

Many thanks. 

Kevin

HBO_Staff

The good news is that it is a little easier than this, and you're right to double check. After the primary fermentation is complete Brewferm recommend moving over into a second vessel and adding the sugar to prime. This will be because you need to get the brew away from the sediment before stirring in the priming sugar. They then say to bottle it and leave it for a few weeks to condition. The more usual way is to move from primary fermentation and syphon carefully into bottles, leaving the sediment behind, then prime each bottle with sugar, just measure a dose of sugar out per bottle. Brewferms way means you prime all the beer in one go in the second vessel and then once it is dissolved syphon into bottles with it already added. Either way works, and if using a second fermenting vessel and allowing it to settle again it will further reduce the amount of sediment. On the second fermenting vessel you could fit a 'little bottler' to make filling your bottles really quick and easy

kxroche

Hi.

Thanks for your help with this matter.

I am however still really rather confused, as what you have advised would appear to differ from there instructions, if there instructions are in fact correct?

What they say in the instructions is:

FERMENTATION

(Following 1^st Fermentation) Siphon the beer into another clean recipient without stirring up the sediment. In principle, you can start to bottle the beer now but we recommend storing the wort in a colder place (max 20 Deg C) for another 2 to 4 weeks in the sealed recipient. This is the second fermentation.

BOTTLING

After the second fermentation the beer can be bottled. Transfer the beer to another clean recipient and then add the quantity of SUGAR 2 to the beer.

My question is, if one goes for the preferred method of allowing the Wort to be stored in a cool place, do we have to add SUGAR 2 immediately (they say this is second fermentation, but they don’t tell you to add SUGAR 2 at this stage), or do we only add the sugar after the beer has rested for 2-4 weeks and when it is bottled? Additionally is the sealed recipient they refer to a brewing bucket or a sealed barrel?

 

They could also well be interpreted as meaning a 3^rd fermentation. Do we have a 3^rd fermentation at the bottling stage, again using similar quantities to the SUGAR 2 addition as that is when they mention adding SUGAR 2.

This has really confused me and is obviously very different from the normal brewing/bottling process. Your guidance would be greatly appreciated.

Best regards

Kevin

HBO_Staff

We believe what they are saying is you can store it in a second vessel for 2 to 4 weeks as long as it sealed, then add the sugar just before bottling. However to keep it simple and to avoid any confusion it would be simplest just to let it finish fermenting in it's first vessel, then either syphon straight over into bottles and prime each bottle with sugar, or, transfer to a second vessel, mix in the sugar, allow it to dissolve and then move straight into bottles and seal up.

It is worth noting with the Brewferm range it is best to leave them in bottles for quite a few weeks to allow the flavours to properly develop, as they will be much improved, they do need a bit longer to be at their best

kxroche

I received this response from Brewferm. Hope this is useful to others.

Hello,

Thank you for brewing Brewferm beerkits.

You are correct, we recommend letting the beer rest for 2 to 4 weeks.

After this siphon the beer again to remove the yeast sediment and proceed with bottling the beer.

As long as the resting period is only 2 -4 weeks (if possible this may be in a cold environment), there will still be enough viable yeast cells present to ensure a good bottle fermentation.

This way of working is similar to what most commercial breweries do.

During the resting period the beer will become much clearer (such that you have less sediment in you bottle) and some off flavors and smells that are created during the fermentation process are removed from the beer.

Best regards,

robysocks

ive just started drinking mine well worth the wait

HBO_Staff

Thanks for letting us know how yours went, with them being of a fuller flavour they tend to be best if left for a while, it's good to know it was worth it for you!