Stuck Or Ok? Wlp002

[Fermented]

Hi Guys!

Just need a quick bit of help.

I put on an IPA about five days ago.

OG = 1062
SG = 1020 now.

Ambient has been 20C constantly. Fermenter is showing 22C on the thermo strip. Krausen has gone completely as has condensation.

I have been rocking twice or three times daily to avoid it floccing out before it is done.

WLP002 attentuation range is 63 - 7x%, iirc. This means I am getting just shy of 67%, I think.

I think it's done, but the high SG makes me a wee bit uncomfortable.

So, the big question: Is it stuck and needs a shot of another yeast to finish it off, or would it be OK to bottle in PET now?

Sorry to push, but I would like to bottle that and start another brew tonight (cup-o-slurry method, similar recipe). Hope there's a chance for a quick answer.

Thanks in advance.

Cheers - Fermented.

 

[Online Brewing Supplies]

For the brewers who dont know, what is WlP 002?, got to be more specific.I dont use W/LabsI would say its done , you started high and it finished I would say.If you want to be sure drag off a samlpe and drop so dry yeast of the same Lager, ale ,and do a forced fermentation at ambient.
GB

 

[Fermented]

Thanks for the reply... bottled it in PET. Will observe and report in due course.

Sorry for the n00b question but I'm unfamilar with the behaviour and performance of this yeast.

Cheers - Fermented.

 

[katzke]

5 days for an IPA is not near long enough. In fact few beers are ready to bottle by then. Next time be prepared to give your beer time to finish out. Our last brew we got lazy and left it for over a month in the primary and it tasted so good out of the fermentor I could have finished it all just then. Unfortunately my wife wants a strong hoped IPA so it went into the secondary with 2 ounces of Cascade hops.

As to your beer no way to tell if it was ready unless the gravity was constant for 3 days. Then it still could have been stuck and take off in the bottle. Only time will tell. It would also be helpful to know if it was an extract recipe or grain and if grain what you put in and what temp you mashed at.

 

[kabooby]

Your FG is dependant on so many things
- Your OG
- Type of yeast
- Size of the yeast pitch
- Quality of yeast
- Gravity of the wort
- Fermentation temp
- Amount of oxygen in the wort
- Amount of dextrins in the wort

You mention that the temp has been a constant 20C. Is it possible that it is getting colder of a night time?

Have you used many liquid yeasts before? How did they finish? Your level of oxygen in the wort is more critical with liquid yeast than dried.

Just because the krausen is gone does not mean it has stopped fermenting. Leave it for a few more days and check the gravity again. It always help any beer to remain on the yeast for a few days after terminal gravity. It allows the yeast to clean up and floc out a bit more.

Kabooby

 

[Fermented]

You mention that the temp has been a constant 20C. Is it possible that it is getting colder of a night time?

No, it was sitting on a ceramic tiled concrete slab and in a corner made of two tiled brick walls - reasonable thermal inertia. I have an old data-logging DMM with a thermocouple and have been mapping the temperature. It's still my first year of brewing, so I want to know what temps I get in what month/week so I can forecast what varieties I can at what time of the year. Max was 21.8, lowest was 19.2... oops that makes the mean 21C...

Have you used many liquid yeasts before? How did they finish? Your level of oxygen in the wort is more critical with liquid yeast than dried.

Only a handful - I'm still progressing in this hobby. One ale one took off like wildfire. No idea what it was. Another White Labs Belgian took around ten days to even look like finishing. To push aeration I agitate the hot wort aggressively onto ice, then add top-up at full force from the laundry tap, then whip it up some more with my trusty brew spoon, measure OG and then pitch and then whip it up some more. Is it enough? I don't have time and money to spend on an oxygen rig.


I made the follow-on brew on cup'o'slurry from this one I asked about... 28C water, 20 g dex as a feed, left overnight while the wort cooled... it's fermenting like a Nottingham is reputed to.

Am guessing that the error in the one I asked about in the opening post was not making a mini-starter and just doing the usual aerate and whip the yeast in. Even with dried yeasts I find that warm water and a small feed of dex (10 - 14 g) for an hour or so improves the start and overall activity of the fermentation.

Just because the krausen is gone does not mean it has stopped fermenting. Leave it for a few more days and check the gravity again. It always help any beer to remain on the yeast for a few days after terminal gravity. It allows the yeast to clean up and floc out a bit more.

Krausen falling in is usually a sign that fermentation is slowing in my experience. It's by no means a definite confirmation of it being complete.

My biggest concern is that WLP002 is reputed to floc out like crazy at the best of times. I've read a couple of reviews which suggest that it needs a tickle before bottling in order to ensure that there is enough yeast in suspension to ensure carbonation. From what I saw of the layer of cement in the bottom of my fermenter, I would be inclined to agree. Even in the original WL tube, it was clotting thickly and dropping out in about ten minutes tops.

The cup'o'slurry was much the same - mix it up, drops out... mix it up, drops out... but as soon as it was 'happy' it foamed well and the solids were visibly circulating... and dropping out just as fast. By morning it was mud with some foam and clean water on top (circa six hours).

The new brew has foamed violently out of the air lock (time to make a blow off tube set) since six hours after pitching and climbed to 26C. Now it's resting in a nice cool bath with an ice block and am logging 18.4 - 20.9 C. It calmed down a lot, but after a little rocking earlier tonight it's hissing and carrying on rather a lot.

Thanks for the guidance and the confidence boost. Greatly appreciated all!

Cheers - Fermented.

 

[katzke]

The new brew has foamed violently out of the air lock (time to make a blow off tube set) since six hours after pitching and climbed to 26C. Now it's resting in a nice cool bath with an ice block and am logging 18.4 - 20.9 C. It calmed down a lot, but after a little rocking earlier tonight it's hissing and carrying on rather a lot.

Thanks for the guidance and the confidence boost. Greatly appreciated all!

Cheers - Fermented.

The old dont depend on the airlock for activity comment. As part of the fermentation process CO2 gets dissolved into the wort. When you disturb it by shaking or transferring to a secondary you will get gassing and bubbles in the airlock.

Also it is better if you feed yeast with wort and not just sugar. Get some dry malt extract for your starters or proofing. The sugar works the same on yeast as it does on kids. Just gets them all wound up and then after the crash they are all pooped out. Feeding a balanced diet will give them something for later.

 

[Stuster]

As katzke says, five days for an OG of 1062 is too short. There's really no need to rush it into bottles/kegs that quickly. If you are keen to re-use the yeast at that time, I'd rack it to secondary and then you can use a cup of yeast as you have. It sounds like you've got a really vigorous ferment going for the second batch which could be due to overpitching. How much yeast did you pitch for the second batch? With fresh yeast like this there's no real point in doing a starter. The yeast is ready to go.

I see you are using dextrose to feed starters. Really you need to be using DME as it has the proteins etc that yeast need for growth. 100g with 1L water, boil, cool, add the yeast. I think it's worth boiling water you use for starters, even if you do use some tap water in your brews. Any contamination at this stage will grow also and could give you more off-flavours in the finished beer.

 

[Fermented]

Sorry for the slow reply but it has been busy here.

I used about 200 mls of slurry and fed and watered as above.

Thanks for the tips!

Cheers - Fermented.