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Primary vs. secondary fermentation for poblano peppers

oaklandpat

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I accidentally added poblano peppers (and some seeds) to the primary fermentation stage rather than secondary -- for a chili pepper pale ale. I can't fish them out, so what would be a good recovery strategy? I gather that the peppers won't really do their job unless they're around at the end, but if I leave these peppers behind when I go from primary to secondary, wouldn't I need to reduce (by some margin) the peppers I add to secondary?
 
OR, don't bother to transfer to secondary.  Most brewers these days don't bother with a secondary fermenter.  It adds too much risk of infection and oxidation for very little benefit.
 
Thanks, but how might that alter the intensity of the pepper flavor in the ale? I was thinking of transferring to secondary, tasting the wort, and then adjusting the peppers (adding new ones while removing the old, perhaps). I haven't had problems with using secondary fermentation and I like the improved clarity of the beer.
 
Since you have already committed the peppers to the primary, you can take a small sample and taste it every couple of days until it gets to just a bit hotter than you would like.  My experience with hot peppers is that the heat will slowly mellow over time.  Personally, I have added them at flame out and then used a tincture at packaging to get the heat to where I wanted it.  That provides some ability to control the flavors to my liking.

As for secondary improving the clarity of beer, I have yet to see nor can I understand how moving the beer from one container to another improves clarity.  If anything, it is disrupting the flocculation and settling of the yeast cells which would extend the time for them to fall out of the wort.  I do full volume BIAB, fine with Irish moss and use Brewtan B for stability and come out with brilliantly clear pilsners and other light colored beers using no secondary. 

That said, if you want to use a secondary fermenter it is your choice and process. 
 
Also understand that a majority of people and sources that advocate secondary fermentation got their information from John Palmer who wrote about it in the first edition of his hugely popular book, How To Brew. Over time however John has changed his mind about the practice and by his fourth edition of How To Brew he urges against it. I remember hearing him at a seminar once saying "unfortunately I may have had something to do with that myth".
 
Thanks, Oginme and Kevin58. I guess I thought that I got greater clarity because I left ever more sediment behind when siphoning into the carboy for secondary and then into the bottling bucket, and so on. I like the idea of sampling, and I'll post back with the results. Again, thanks.
 
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