Charlottesville Area Masters of Real Ale

Very true.  The colonists didn't have indoor plumbing either.

Do you have an outhouse or just crap outside?

(Relax.....have a homebrew)

It is an interesting point, earlier brewers were not sitting around scrubbing carboys, using One Step and pouring vodka in air locks.  Bathing once a year was optional.  Yet beer got made, and apparently was enjoyed.  There is a history report in it for some one.

Possibly stupid technical questions:

1.  I put the red cap the air lock came with back on the air lock.  Is that a do or a don't?
2.  Does the vodka in the air lock evaporate?  It may be my imagination but it looks like there is less there than when I started, but that may be a function of the bubbling playing tricks with my eyes.

If they made crap, we'd all be drinking (ugh) mead.

Yes put the red cap on and don't worry about the vodka. I've had some last for three weeks. You can always add a teensy bit more if needed. But don't add too much because it can get sucked back in. (Not a problem, it's just that you only need that barrier so volume isn't usually an issue.)

To do a secondary fermentation or not, that is the question.  Still have the foam at the top and it has not fallen back, bubbling in the air lock is still consistent.  But the beer looks too "muddy" for a Kolsch.  There was concern at the time too much sludge got into the carboy (should have used a strainer, or at least a collander in hindsight).  Thoughts on secondary fermentation in another carboy?

I think you are definitely going to want to rack into a secondary, but I wouldn't worry about it until the foam on the surface of your beer (the krausen) falls back in and mostly dissappears. 

The junk on the bottom of your fermenter is normal.  After you have cooled your wort, you can strain it, or you can gently stir up the cooled wort (so that the stuff kinda piles in the middle of the pot like tea leaves) and siphon from the sides.  Either way, don't worry about it.  I used to, now I just dump all that stuff in and make sure I'm making about 5.5 gallons so I won't be "losing" any beer by leaving that junk behind.

And don't worry about your beer being clear until it is done fermenting.  As long as the airlock is bubbling, your beer is going to be cloudy and muddy.  As the fermentation slows and stops, that stuff will drop down to the bottom.  Not all of it, but it will get a lot clearer.  Your beer won't be Coors Light clear, but much better than it looks now. 

I'd wait until you are seeing ~1 minute between bubbles, and then rack it into you 5 gallon carboy.  When you do that, you will leave a lot of that sludge behind.  And then, when you are ready to bottle, you will leave even more junk behind as you rack it into your bottling bucket.

With a Kolsch, definitely do a secondary.

Agreed, and don't worry. When the krausen (top sludge) falls back through the brew, it too will help pull crud to the bottom.

That's what I thought.  Thanks for the advice, I will let you know how it turns out!

There is a fair amount of discussion on whether you need to rack to secondary or not.  The primary reason originally given to do it was to get your beer off the yeast sediment, which could degrade and give off flavers. However, new studies are showing that yeast does not degrade at a rate that impacts flavor for several months.  So, you risk oxidzing your beer or contaminating it by transferring for little to no gain, plus it is more work.   As long as you siphen your beer off the sediment right before bottling, it seems to work fine.  I don't do it anymore, unless I need to add something to the beer during late fermentation, such as dry hopping.

Likewise, I only go to a secondary if I know that my yeast doesn't compact well after a month in the primary...or if I've got more crud in there.

When you get ready to rack to either your bottling bucket, secondary or keg, it's best to move  your primary up to a higher location and let it rest for another 20-30 minutes to let things settle again. What I do is move my primary up to the top of the washing machine, then I go and clean my hoses, keg, etc. (and get another beer). By the time I'm done setting up, it's been about 20-30 minutes and I know that if I've kicked up any chunks, hopefully they've had a chance to fall. Most of all, I don't worry. Any of that leftover stuff that gets into your beer won't hurt...well depends on how much. Too much and you could get bottle bombs. I just meant that your beer may be cloudy due to excess sediment. (You may fart more.)

This were things break down because everyone has a different way of doing things.  None right or wrong if the beer is good.

I don't worry about racking off the yeast sediment.  You will be bottling it waaaayy before the yeast breaks down.  But I refuse to use a bottling bucket.  There is more danger in oxidizing or contaminating your beer by racking into the bucket than racking into a secondary.  My secondary IS, to certain extent, my bottling bucket and I bottle straight out of that.

Find what works for you.

Lots of yeast DOES lead to increased farting, though.  THAT is right across the board.

I find that brewer's yeast can be used as effective weapon in this regard.  If your wife won't let you buy that new brew kettle or conical fermentor, just begin a steady diet of brewer's yeast until the smell drives her mad or she lets you get the new equipment.  Works like a charm . . . so long as you don't mind sleeping on the couch!

 

Put the "Kolsch" in a secondary, should not have let it go this long.  I had too much residue from the brew in the primary.  Actually tastes pretty good, but more a Pale Ale than a Kolsch. 

Also brewed a Honey Porter on Saturday.  10pm is a great time to brew, everyone else in the house is asleep and get get to watch what I want on TV (in between checking the pot of boil over).