Homebrewers - Whats in the fermenter?

[Salvelinus]

Can we do a sanitizer roundup? What are you guys using.

I started with a powder called one-step but I hated the powder I got it all over the place. Last night I used some Star-san and the amount of foaming drove me nuts. I know you don't need to rinse it but I hate the idea of sanitizer in my beer. Took me 4x longer to rinse growlers than it took to fill them.

Bottled a magnum filled pale ale, brewing up a porter for winter shortly.

[St. Lou Stu]

Originally Posted by Salvelinus

Can we do a sanitizer roundup? What are you guys using.

I started with a powder called one-step but I hated the powder I got it all over the place. Last night I used some Star-san and the amount of foaming drove me nuts. I know you don't need to rinse it but I hate the idea of sanitizer in my beer. Took me 4x longer to rinse growlers than it took to fill them.

Bottled a magnum filled pale ale, brewing up a porter for winter shortly.

Star-san is some awesome stuff.
Don't worry about the foam. I will let the left over liquid drip out using a carboy drier (or just drip dry bottles) and the foam usually stays in the carboy or whatever. I then rack right onto it and let the beer push the foam out. Never had an off taste.

That said, I do get all of the liquid out. I've heard that yeasties actually like munching on the foam.

Star-san rocks. All I use.
Besides steam heat for clean bottle sanitization.

Edit - Rinsing is actually counter-productive.

[BeerAdvocate]

Originally Posted by Salvelinus

Can we do a sanitizer roundup? What are you guys using.

I started with a powder called one-step but I hated the powder I got it all over the place. Last night I used some Star-san and the amount of foaming drove me nuts. I know you don't need to rinse it but I hate the idea of sanitizer in my beer. Took me 4x longer to rinse growlers than it took to fill them.

Bottled a magnum filled pale ale, brewing up a porter for winter shortly.

Star San is the only way to go. Tons of people use it with no complaints.
Dont Fear the Foam!

[duckmanco]

Originally Posted by BeerAdvocate

Star San is the only way to go. Tons of people use it with no complaints.
Dont Fear the Foam!

+1 here as well, NEVER ever fear the foam and don't rinse, I read somewhere, probably homebrewtalk that the president of the company that makes star san stated the foam actually becomes yeast food when the beer is racked on to it. Also rinsing could possibly bring in more bugs than you might have just cleaned. Something to think about anyway. Go with the foam, let it be.

Anyhow, I got northern brewer's bourbon barrel porter in the secondary with 2 oz. of toasted American Oak soaking in a pint of Evan Williams Single Barrel that will go in on Tues and sit for another few weeks, then bottling.

After tomorrow, Northern Brewer's Three Hearted Ale kit will be in the fermentor waiting for a dry hop of 1oz. each of Centennial, Amarillo, and Citra.... I'm hoping it comes off really West Coast.

[kaisersozei]

Originally Posted by Salvelinus

Can we do a sanitizer roundup? What are you guys using.

I started with a powder called one-step but I hated the powder I got it all over the place. Last night I used some Star-san and the amount of foaming drove me nuts. I know you don't need to rinse it but I hate the idea of sanitizer in my beer. Took me 4x longer to rinse growlers than it took to fill them.

Bottled a magnum filled pale ale, brewing up a porter for winter shortly.

I use One-step without too many issues. Typically I make a big 4-5 gallon batch in my fermenting bucket, where I soak all my gear and then transfer it to the secondary. When that's done, I move it to a bucket where I soak any beer/wine bottles I've accumulated to remove labels.

It's a process.

[icantbejon]

Originally Posted by kaisersozei

I use One-step without too many issues. Typically I make a big 4-5 gallon batch in my fermenting bucket, where I soak all my gear and then transfer it to the secondary. When that's done, I move it to a bucket where I soak any beer/wine bottles I've accumulated to remove labels.

It's a process.

I forgot to delabel my last batch of bottles, so now my oktoberfest is sitting in a bunch of Sam Winter Lager bottles. I gotta remember to take off labels before bottling the winter ale.