Hey everyone. I’ve read these boards like crazy and can’t decide what to do.
11 days ago I brewed extract caribou slobber and pitched the danstar dry yeast without rehydrating. Within 24 hours fermentation was wild with airlock activity. The krausen fell by day 3 or 4.
OG is 1.54
FG is 1.24.
Ferm temps were around 64 degrees steady. Is this possibly stuck or is that all my yeast can do? I expected a lower FG. Can I bottle this in a week or two like i normally would?
Thanks in advance!
Try putting the beer in a warmer area then give it a good but gentle swirl to see if you can get the yeast going again. Then give it a couple more days and check again. Don’t splash the beer around just a good swirl. See if that helps.
I had one get stuck just a few weeks ago and I ended up bringing the end of the primary up to 70-75* (room temps) for the last week or so and it finally finished with some regular swirling of the bucket. It was the longest fermentation I have had in over 20 batches and I still cannot explain why.
Thanks guys. I brought it up the the main floor and put a shirt over it. Will give it a swirl every few hours while I’m home and check gravity this weekend.
Going to check the gravity this evening. If it still didn’t drop after a few days is this safe to bottle or should I repitch some yeast? I’m going to NB in a bit so I could pick up some more danstar or US 05 or something. Just looking for best course of action. Thanks guys.
I had the exact same thing happen with the exact same numbers. Did the warm and stir thing with no success. I have never had a stuck fermentation before but have never used Danstar. My conclusion, the yeast sucks and I will never use it again. I picked up a packet of Safale 05 and within 2 days it is down to 1.016. According to BeerAlchemy it should finish around 1.014. I seldom use dry yeast but have never had problems with Safale. Confirms my normal routine of Wyeast and starter are best.
Good Luck.
Weird, glad you got yours down to where you wanted it. I pitched the US-05 on Sunday and checked the gravity just now… still around 1.022. There was very minor airlock activity (but consistent… like small bubbles frequently not major like my other batches).
I think I’m just going to bottle it on Saturday as previously planned. Don’t know what else to do at this point. A taste test proved it to be a little sweeter than I wanted, but it tasted good.
:cheers
same exact thing happened to me too!
I used the danstar dry yeast, and FG stuck at 1020.
after 3 weeks I bottled it, and it tasted great!
(the first time I made it with the Wyeast 1332, no starter, it went to 1014 and was also great).
oh well.
this just happened to a stout and porter, both that used darker LME.
I may go to all lighter LME.
I have read that darker lme has more unfermentables.
[quote=“verbhertz”]Weird, glad you got yours down to where you wanted it. I pitched the US-05 on Sunday and checked the gravity just now… still around 1.022. There was very minor airlock activity (but consistent… like small bubbles frequently not major like my other batches).
I think I’m just going to bottle it on Saturday as previously planned. Don’t know what else to do at this point. A taste test proved it to be a little sweeter than I wanted, but it tasted good.
:cheers[/quote]
Careful, you are prone to bottle bombs at this point if you bottle it up without the gravity stabilizing. Make sure it doesn’t change for 3 days in a row.
Oh thanks I know. I’ll test on Saturday and bottle if it hasn’t changed.
If it’s the daystar Windsor ale yeast, then I bet it’s done. That yeast is not a high attenuator that’s for sure. Take a few gravity readings a day or so apart and see if it changes. If not, its done. I had the same thing happen with that yeast on my first ever batch, NB’s Bourbon Barrel Porter fwiw.
