I brewed Fred Bonjour’s Amarillo APA on 12/26. I took my first reading today and it’s 1.013, right on the money (and tastes amazzzzzzing). I can bottle tomorrow, 1/3 (8 days fermentation), since my day job starts up again on 1/4, or can keep it in a cool place (60/62 f) until my next chance to bottle, which due to my commute and business travel is Saturday 1/15.
I usually give beer the benefit of the doubt and let it sit in a fermenter rather than push the bottling, but this one seemed to ferment out fast. Is it possible this is ready to bottle tomorrow?
I don’t like to belabor my opinion but this is Fred’s Amarillo Pale Ale? With you describing your initial results it sounds like it’s ready to go. A beer with a SG of 1.046 ferments out in a couple days. And 8 days is a solid primary fermentation. Two more weeks on the yeast isn’t going to improve the beer at all IMO. A bigger beer yes, but you could be evaluating your bottles by the 15th.
An interesting experiment would be to bottle a few and see if there’s an appreciable difference. Fred’s recipe says age for 28 days. It doesn’t say primary but he very well could have meant that.
I’m with Euge. 8-10 days tops and my APA’s (1048) are done getting better or clearer in the carboy. The only improvement I’ve seen is cosmetic and after kegging or bottling and THEN sitting a few days.
Belaboring (or should we say chiming in!) is welcome, Euge–that’s what the Forum is for. It is Fred’s Amarillo APA and it did go from 1.046 to 1.013 in those 8 days. I didn’t take an interim reading (don’t like to mess with the carboy that much, and with small batches, too many measurements leads to serious attrition ). But I had the sense when I tasted it that it’s done, and from visual observation, it seems to have been in the same place for several days.
I would be surprised if Fred meant primarying this APA for 28 days – feels wrong for this beer – though it’s his recipe, of course.
For those following, this is what we’re discussing:
The catch for me is it’s this afternoon or wait til the 15th… those are the cards life is dealing me (I originally planned on leaving it in the carboy til the 15th, but was surprised by how “done” it tasted yesterday).
I think you’re going to enjoy either way… me personally, when I bottle, I don’t touch em for at least 60days… I just don’t prefer the flavor until then… (which is why I started kegging in the first place…) but even bottling now and waiting 15-30 days to taste or waiting 60, its still going to be a young beer.
). But I had the sense when I tasted it that it’s done, and from visual observation, it seems to have been in the same place for several days.