Beer Brewing: Step Two, the Carboy

I've been so busy at work this week...I had forgotten how breakneck the pace is in the fall!  I have been neglecting the blog and writing about my own kids and family to write about my students (I have to write about 47 letters before Nov. 1/Nov 15).  At least I really love the kids I'm working with and writing for!

Anyway, Monday night Carlos and I transferred the fermenting beer from the initial fermenter into the 5 gallon carboy.  This time, the siphon worked without any problems and the whole process went off without any glitches.

We sanitized the carboy first by siphoning sanitizer into it.  Then we emptied it out and started siphoning in the beer.  It smelled delicious.  Hopefully it tastes delicious too!  I didn't have the courage to taste it yet.  Then I put a 1" piece of plastic tubing into the carboy with the other end submerged in a bucket of water and sanitizer to prevent blow off as it finishes fermenting.

I have my 53 12 oz brown bottles but still have to wash, scrape off the labels, and sanitize them.  That's a project for this weekend or next.  A week from this coming Monday, the beer should be ready to bottle.  After bottling, it needs to sit for a few more weeks so that it can carbonate.  Then, hopefully, I can start giving it away!

No matter how this turns out, I am eager to brew another batch.  Having done it this first time, I now feel much more confident in the process from the mistakes I made this first time.  So I think I'll keep trying.  I found a jalapeno beer kit online--I think that's my next brew!!