Hey All,
I did an all grain batch of beer 3 weeks back. Everything started out great. Nice gravity, all starches converted, started fermenting after about 6-8 hours. Problem is, the head that develops when it’s fermenting still hasn’t fallen back down and it’s been a little over 3 weeks. It’s a really thick consistency and I’m wondering if something happened. I want to transfer to a secondary but I didn’t want to do so until the head falls back down. Should I be concerned, and do I need to wait to transfer to a secondary. While not new to brewing this is my third batch of all grain and I’m still a bit gun shy with the new process. Help!
I’ve had some beers like that where it just never fell. The gravity was stable so I racked it. The beers were always fine but yes, it’s a bit disconcerting to see that after 3 weeks when it’s not the norm.
Check your gravity and make sure it’s where you expect it to finish. If it’s still high, then you may have a stuck fermentation. What temp is it at currently? If it’s a bit cool, maybe move it someplace warmer. There are various things you can do to try to restart it. But really, if your gravity is where you expect it to finish and it’s not changing, I wouldn’t worry about it.
What yeast did you use? What temp has it been at?
If you used West Yorkshire, I know this is not uncommon. Maybe with some other strains also. If it makes you feel better, you can help the krausen fall by rocking the carboy gently periodically. Either way, take a gravity reading to check if it’s done and be confident you can rack if it’s where you expect it to be.
I’ve had a similar situation with a Mongoose IPA. Used the WY 1945 NEOBRIT. Sat in primary(after a huge blowoff) for 4 weeks @65 deg. Finally got under 1.020 for a couple days. Although it still had a small layer of krausen on top, i transferred to carboy & dry hopped with 2 oz. UK KENT. Been about 8 days, and has alot of hop matter on top & floating throughout. Wanted to bottle this weekend-but?? Maybe i’ll cold crash for a couple days & see what happens. :?
I normally just rock the bucket for a couple days and it breaks up and drops out completely
Hey All,
Thanks for the responses. I actually got sick and never got a chance to transfer to a secondary. I looked at the carboy again today after rocking it some and the head did indeed fall. So now that I’m feeling better I think I’m ready to move to the secondary. :cheers:
