I am begging for the wise and experienced ones of this forum to ensconce me with their knowledge.
I always thought this 'stuck fermentation' thing was something that happened to everyone else. I guess I am now everyone else....
The krauzen seemed quite thin (may just have been foam from stirring up the wort) the first couple of days but did then build up some rich foaminess. I dont use a bubbler so cant gauge activity like that. The OG was 1.050, and after a week the FG was in the 1.022 to 1.025 range and has just hovered there ever since (now at 10 days) On a 4.5kg grain bill I had about 3.8kg pale malt and 0.4kg malted wheat. I did use that new U1/132 hops for the first time. It currently tastes more bitter than it should and still quite sweet and yet quite an alcoholic taste. The hops fruitiness seems quite strong. So at this stage I dont specifically know if something is wrong, but all indicators say yes, and I can only assume what I have is a stuck fermentation, even though:
Things that I could guess could be causes:
So next step is fixing it. Can anyone recommend what is the best action to take? Everything I am reading says "act quickly". My concerns are:
TIA
I always thought this 'stuck fermentation' thing was something that happened to everyone else. I guess I am now everyone else....
The krauzen seemed quite thin (may just have been foam from stirring up the wort) the first couple of days but did then build up some rich foaminess. I dont use a bubbler so cant gauge activity like that. The OG was 1.050, and after a week the FG was in the 1.022 to 1.025 range and has just hovered there ever since (now at 10 days) On a 4.5kg grain bill I had about 3.8kg pale malt and 0.4kg malted wheat. I did use that new U1/132 hops for the first time. It currently tastes more bitter than it should and still quite sweet and yet quite an alcoholic taste. The hops fruitiness seems quite strong. So at this stage I dont specifically know if something is wrong, but all indicators say yes, and I can only assume what I have is a stuck fermentation, even though:
- Same US05 yeast i have used many times
- Same ferment temps I always use with US05
- Yeast was i think less than 6 months old, and stored in the fridge
- Yeast was rehydrated and showed definite foaming activity
- On a 4.5kg grain bill I had about 3.8kg pale malt and 0.4kg malted wheat.
Things that I could guess could be causes:
- Its possible the yeast could have frozen in the fridge, that sometimes slightly freezes milk etc, and damage/ killed yeast cells?
- I did use a different thermometer in checking the mash but it still correlated closely with the temps on my STC. Even so, massively high or low temps should still give more that ~50% fermentable sugars? Shouldnt it?
- Maybe i put rat pellets in instead of hop pellets, but hopefully this is not a factor.
- I did get all ingredients from a new supplier I havent used before, but quality all looked good.
- Maybe lack of oxygenation. I topped up the bucket with 2L of water which I poured from a height, and then stirred as aggressively as possible. So not the best way to oxygenate, but it definately wasnt forgotten
So next step is fixing it. Can anyone recommend what is the best action to take? Everything I am reading says "act quickly". My concerns are:
- Adding more yeast, I would have to oxygenate the wort again which might affect the already part fermented beer?
- If I add more yeast and dont oxygenate again, it may make things worse?
- I dont have more US05 yeast so I would be adding a different yeast. Would this be a problem? It would probably be a generic morgans yeast, that has been well stored
- Apart from increasing temps a bit to 'help the yeast along', I dont know what other options I have.
TIA
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