Runs With Beer

You want to leave your beer in the fermenter long enough for fermentation to finish. Of course, that is difficult to exactly determine unless you take a sample of your wort and use a hydrometer to measure the specific gravity before adding yeast and take another sample or two when you think fermentation is complete, (a day or two apart, but, several days after fermentation started).
There are many variables that come into play that impact the fermentation time frame, such as: type of beer, amount of fermentable sugars, yeast type and strain, temperature during fermentation, etc.
If you have a hydrometer, take a small sample of your beer several days after fermentation begins but after you think the beer is fermented enough to bottle and then, do the same the day after…when the specific gravity doesn’t change…the beer is ready to bottle. If the specific gravity changes, keep taking small samples every day or two, until there is no change.
If you don’t have a hydrometer, keep an eye on your beer…a good rule of thumb is to give it about 8 -10 days in the fermenter, keeping an eye on the air-lock…before transferring it to either a secondary fermenter or your bottling bucket and then into bottles (after adding priming sugar). If the air-lock doesn’t seem to have any activity after 8-10 days, it is probably ready for bottling. Try not to leave your fermented beer in the original fermenter for more than necessary because it can develop off-flavors. I’ve left mine in the fermenter for up to 15-20 days and didn’t notice any off flavors but, I try to remove the fermented beer as soon as fermentation is done, usually, 8-10 days.
Although it is not necessary for most simple home-brews, I often transfer my beer to a secondary fermenter and let it clear for an additional 1-4 weeks before bottling/kegging and sometimes, for my stronger beers, a couple months.
Bottling – let your beer age in the bottles, undisturbed, in a cool (not cold), dark place (like a basement or in a closet) for at least a couple weeks before putting in the refrigerator…this allows the beer to carbonate naturally. I’ve let my beer carbonate in the bottle for as little as one week but, two weeks is better…longer even, if you can wait, is better, as the beer flavor seems to improve. Less than a week in the bottle will probably be under-carbonated…When that’s done…enjoy!
Hope that helps!

I need seal able bottles for mixed (mostly vodka) drinks by tomorrow night. ‘checked Walmart/Target/Micheal’s but no luck, any suggestions?

do you know of a free label sight were i can print some off please thank you for any help you can give to me.

When I started homebrewing, I bought all my wine and beer bottles from the local recycling center. Once I went commercial, I had to start buying from a local distributor. I would try looking around for local a bottle manufacturer or distributor. Call a local brewery and ask who they buy their bottles from, if nothing else, it will set you on the right path.
Start with the recycling center, and ask your friends to start holding onto the pry off bottles for you. Offer to trade them some of your homebrew for the empties.

I have two types of beer bottles: (1) The typical bottle which I use a cap, (2) The Grolsch style bottle that has the fancy swingtop plug.
I have made beer two times. In both cases, the beer I made in the typical beer bottle with a cap had a much better seal and produced a nice carbonated beverage. The Grolsch style bottles do not maintain a good seal and result in a flat beer.
After my first batch of beer, I tried applying a little bit of vegetable oil to the seal of the Grolsch style bottles in hopes that it would improve the seal, but it didn’t work.
Since my Grolsch style bottles were brand new when I started, I expected the seals to be in good condition. Does anyone know what I can do?

Some say the longer you leave it the better it tastes. Is that true?

I used a batch with crown seals and the beer is flat. I’d been told the glass is quite thin so I was quite careful….Maybe i should have hit them a lot harder !