cask conditioning??

[drmick]

I've got a Riggwelter clone that has been fermenting for 10 days with S04, it was nearly down to the FG on Sunday but I haven't checked it yet to confirm this. I want to bottle this but I'm not going to have the time to prepare all the bottles and transfer it. I'm off on holiday on saturday so won't get a chance to bottle it until the following weekend. Therefore I was thinking of cask conditioning as I can quickly sterilise a budget barrel and transfer it to that and just want to check what I think I am meant to do is correct. Do I just transfer the brew to the barrel and leave it for a week, venting the gas after a few days (or getting someone to do it for me as I'm not going to be there). Then the following weekend transfer it to the bottles with some priming sugar - should I also add extra yeast at this point or will there be sufficient yeast still in suspension.

Thanks

drmick

[adm]

If you leave it somewhere cool, you can most likely just leave it in the FV with no trouble! Then bottle and prime when you get back. You might need add some fresh yeast, but that's about it.

[tangoman]

Personally i'd put it in the budget barrel now,getting it off the dead yeast and giving it a week in secondary so to say.It should be okay to leave without it building up enough pressure to worry about.

[drmick]

if I left it in the FV it would have been in there for 21 days by the time I come to bottle it - would that be OK? There are various posts about the perils of off flavours from leaving brews on the yeast cake too long which is what makes me a bit wary.

I think I will do as tangoman suggests and get it into the barrel just to be on the safe side. Can't do it until tomorrow night but hopefully will be OK. As for adding fresh yeast should I just chuck in a fresh sachet into the brew with the priming sugar (normally disolve it in hot water and add to the brew before bottling so that each bottle gets the same amount) just before bottling next weekend.

Thanks for the help

drmick

[likesbeer]

I did a very strong bew a little while ago that took a fair while to ferment out, I left it about 10-12 days then transfered to another FV which had an air lock and left another 10-12 days then bottled just adding the required few grams of sugar and no extra yeast it still conditioned up fine. I would think that a barrell for a couple of weeks would do just as well as an airlocked FV.
If you dont prime then I doubt much pressure will build up so wouldnt worry about that.
Basically I agree with Tangoman as well