Smashing Pumpkin Ale Fermented Too Fast?

Extract/Partial Mash Brewing
1

Last Friday I brewed the smashing pumpkin ale kit, but today (~65 hours after pitching) it seems like fermentation is almost finished.

Along with the kit, I added some real pumpkin (4lbs) along with some 2-row malts (3lbs), mashed around 151F for an hour. The OG came out to be 1.070. I also made a 1500mL starter with the Wyeast 1056 and pitched it at 75F (recipe says anything under 78F is ok, but I later realized it’s better to pitch somewhere in the low 60s). Ambient temperature was around 60F.

I’m brewing in a 6 Gal bucket and didn’t have a blow off tube so I just placed the lid on top of the bucket without it being completely sealed (only for the first 24 hours). After 24 hours, I fully sealed the bucket and did notice a faint banana smell to the beer (the wort had a strong pumpkin smell to it, but now I don’t really recognize it as a pumpkin smell). Today I checked the gravity and it’s already at 1.024. There’s no airlock activity, but there’s plenty of krausen.

My question is, did I ruin the beer by pitching at 75F? Or is the banana smell coming from the pumpkin spices mixed with the smell of yeast and fermentation?

Typically if you pitch in the low 60Fs and also if you have a 1500mL starter, would fermentation happen just as quickly?

2

Ruined? probably not. You may have some rocket fuel flavor from the higher temps but I wouldn’t think it’s ruined. I’ve done this one twice with the pumpkin, (Safeale-05 not 1056;) both times it finished at 1.018 for me, so I’m thinking you’re not quite done. No airlock activity does not indicate that the yeast is done, especially if you still have krausen.

My advice, if you’re planning a secondary, rack it in another week or two, then wait another few more weeks before bottling. If you’re not planning a secondary just bottle it in a month or so. There’s really no point checking gravity so soon; I usually don’t bother myself. But wait at least another week before checking again.

3

Thanks. I’ll probably just leave it in the primary for about a month then bottle.