1st brew question

[joshleard]

I'm very new to this so apologies for asking simple questions. My first brew I attempted Stone and Wood pacific Ale last Friday (dec 30) OG - 1040. Took a reading on 6th Jan and was 1014. Little high I thought? I was under the impression FG would be 1010?
Did another reading this evening and it was 1014 again.
Controlled fermentation of 19-20 degrees.
I have given the fermenter a little swirl to see if I can activate yeast as I thought FG needs to be 1010.
Am I overthinking it?
Is it ready to bottle?
Have I ruined it by swirling it?

Hardest thing is being patient with being first brew but I'm happy to leave and bottle at 2 week mark.

Thanks in advance. Any info will be great [emoji3][emoji106]

 

[Danscraftbeer]

Is this a kit?

 

[joshleard]

Yes. Purchased a kit from local home brew shop.

 

[LAGERFRENZY]

Take a sample of tap water and check your hydrometer - it may just be badly calibrated. Chill the water to 20C if this is the temp that your were checking the brew at. If in any doubt leave the brew for a second week before bottling - it will give the yeast time to drop out and clean up after itself and reward you with better beer. Chances are you have ruined nothing - chill and have a beer!

 

[joshleard]

I did test hydrometer with water and it was 1000.

Thought I was overthinking it.
Cheers for the advice mate [emoji106][emoji481]

 

[Leyther]

I've yet to get any of my first 3 brews under 1.012 and they've turned out ok, one tasted awful to start with but it's actually now coming good and I drank a good few pints of it yesterday. Give it another week it will benefit from time anyway

 

[joshleard]

Cheers Leyther

 

[damoninja]

Did you oxygenate it prior to pitching yeast?

 

[joshleard]

Yes I did. Whether done right?

 

[damoninja]

Oxygen is probably not an issue, when you top up you add some oxygen and if you gave it a good whiz it ought to be fine.

The only brews I ever had under attenuate were kits, except for one RIS due to under pitch.

 

[manticle]

What's in it?

 

[joshleard]

Trying to replicate a stone and wood pacific ale kit recipe I got from local home brew shop

 

[damoninja]

What's in it?

Trying to replicate a stone and wood pacific ale kit recipe I got from local home brew shop

Means what is the whole recipe?

 

[joshleard]

- 1 can of mangrove jacks blonde
- 500g dextrose
- 500g light malt
- 20g galaxy (5min)
- 20g galaxy (dry)

 

[stm]

What yeast and how much of it?

 

[indica86]

1014 sounds fine for a kit.


Really,

 

[ScottyDoesntKnow]

Best bit of advice I got on this forum when starting was to throw away the kit yeast and get a bulletproof brewing yeast like Safale US-05. I stupidly ignored it because I was lazy and used the kit yeast. Surprise surprise, beer finished with a high gravity and tasted like shit. Never brewed another kit but always use us-05 for my all grain brews and they finish between 1.004-1.008 within a week.

 

[joshleard]

Thanks for all the info people. I did just use the packet of yeast that came with the kit.

I have purchased another kit to have a go at making hop hog. With these warm temps I put the yeast packet and hops in the fridge. They've been in there for a week. These should be ok to use? How long will the last in the fridge?

 

[Maheel]

the yeast can last years and still fire up (although may not be best yeast then....) if the hops are cryo vaced they will be fine

sounds like you have done some reading / research and are doing most things right and worrying about as much as most of us do

let that one in the fermenter go a little longer, if you can cold crash it do that for a few days

then get the next one going and enjoy your brewing
better is you try a better yeast but temp control is going to help you a lot if you can manage it

 

[joshleard]

[emoji106] thanks Maheel.