Fermentation stopped early

[Chris]

I've got a Golden Ale that was in the primary for about 3 days, then has been in the secondary for about a month now. It reached 1.017 about 2 1/2 weeks ago and isn't dropping any further. Taste is fine, just seems to have stopped fermenting. Temp normally in 20-24 range, although it has dropped to 14 when I accidentally switched off the heatpad (yeah, I need to get a temperature controller, it's on the list).

 

Ideally I would just bottle it as is, but is it risky with such a high final gravity? Don't want any beer grenades in the garage. Lowest i have bottled at in the past is 1.015.

 

What are the other options, I guess pitching more yeast would work no? However I'm not that happy about leaving it on the dead yeast for much longer. I guess racking off again is a possibility, but not one I'm keen on. As I said, I am keen to have done with it and bottle. I use glass mainly btw not PET.

 

Also what would have caused this, is it my poor temperature management?

 

I rehydrate my yeast before pitching. Using S-04. Wasn't as vigorous as the last batch of US-05 i did but it was pretty good.

 

Any advice much appreciated. Cheers

[jt]

with a Brewcraft converter

 

I'd probably ditch that in favour of more malt - the contents are a bit of a lucky dip ?

And you'd be fine with one pack of yeast

[Chris]

Totally agree. Am trying to wean myself off the kit stuff and converters, last few brews have been just LME/DME and my own hop mixtures. It was good while refining my methods but now I kind of know what I'm doing I want to get more towards adding a few specialty malts and eventually going BIAB.

[James Lawson]

Come to think of it, I used that kit in my early days along with a can of malt and it finished at 1.020. Was very  and quite a few of them ended up being gushers after a few months in the bottle (I used the carbonation drops). So it might just be that kit? Not sure..

[Chris]

Could be - have stopped using the kits now, as soon as my hardware arrives I want to start BIAB

[Evan Davies]

The hardware will be on its way, sometimes I can be a slack arse, I have everything here now but have been brewing madly to get some drinking stock, 3 porters in last 2 weeks, will send bits this week PROMISE

[Chris]

Ah ha no worries Evan, been too busy renovating and buying/selling trucks to do any brewing lately. Whenever you get chance. Cheers

[MrC]

Some more questions:

- what kind of extract (dry or liquid) and how old was it?  Liquid Malt Extract (LME) changes over time and becomes darker and less fermentable (and need more hops & specialty malts to hide the oxidised flavour).  

- what was the OG?  Typically, the higher the OG, the higher the FG.

 

If you're worried you could rouse the yeast (give the fermenter a swirl) and then keep a constant temp for  a few days to see if it comes down any further.  After that you should be fine.  Also, 2.5 weeks on the yeast is fine.  I quite often ferment for 3-4 weeks with no concerns.

 

[Chris]

As per the recipe in the post I just stuck up top, LME and DME. OG = 1.041 which is why I was expecting a low FG. If it was my old ale recipe or a killer IPA or stout I could understand it, but this is just a light session beer.

 

It has been > 4 weeks on the yeast, 2.5 weeks is the time the SG has been constant. But yeah I'm not too worried about autolyzing yet, wouldn't want to push 6 weeks though as haven't tried that before.

[MrC]

2.5 weeks is the time the SG has been constant

I'd bottle it.  If it aint fermenting in the fermenter then it aint gonna ferment much in the bottle either.

 

I would, however, be wary of the carbonation levels.  If the bottle are getting fizzier over time you might want to either drink them all quickly or store them cold to prevent further fermentation in the bottle.

 

If the yeast is dead (which I doubt) then the beer won't carbonate in the bottle.

[Chris]

I hear you, that makes sense about it not fermenting much further in the bottle.

 

Will go easy on the priming, being a pom I like my beer nice and flat anyway ;) Um yeah in this house beer has a habit of disappearing quickly enough!

[Dougal]

JT already hinted at it, but temperature control really helps with flocculant english ale strains like S-04 and 1968. Temperature fluctuations can cause them to drop out early, and they're a real bugger to get going after that. I've had a couple of batches (one was 5 weeks in primary) over-carbonate because of this- the yeast wake up in the bottle and consume everything they'd left as well as the priming sugar.

 

Starting at the bottom of the range for the yeast and bumping it up a degree or two a day after the first couple of days until you get to 22C or so seems to solve it.

A fermentation fridge will be your best ever trademe purchase!  

[Chris]

Thanks Dougal, I have 3 fermenters on the go at a time, what do you reckon to starting them off in the fridge, then taking them out when a new one is ready to go in? Kind of a rotation thing? Can't afford or have room for 3 fridges. Cheers