Beer brew stuck as 1.15 after four weeks - am I ok to bottle?

[Joe DS]

Hi all,

First time brewing - using the Tiny Rebel Cwtch kit by Muntons. It's a red ale abv 4.6%
My OG was 1.5 recorded at 18.5degC. Unfortunately brewing conditions weren't great and a cold spell meant the beer was brewing in room temp ~17degC.

For about a week and a half the beer has been stuck at 1.15 hydrometer reading. A week ago I roused the beer (gave it a gentle stir, suspending the sediment at the bottom) but still no change.

Am I ok to bottle? Or would this be unsafe? I'm planning on mixing in 100g granulated sugar solution into the 20 Litres of beer when bottling.

Thanks very much

 

[An Ankoù]

Hi Joe,
Welcome to the band. I don't know the kit, but the online instruction leaflet
http://www.muntonshomebrew.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/CWTCH_LEAFLET_single_pages_lr.pdf
doesn't appear to offer an expected final gravity. They do give a technical helpline so you could ask them.
If it were me, I think I'd be inclined to bottle up, but I'd put some of the beer in 50 cl PETS just to keep an eye on what’s going on the bottles. Just in case.

You should also check that your hydrometer is reading correctly. To do that, fill a trial jar with plain tap water at the calibration temperature of your hydrometer (often 20C). The calibration temperature will be written on the hydrometer, underneath the scale. Put the hydrometer into the trial jar and it should read 1.000. If it doesn't then you'll need to correct your readings by whatever the difference is.

 

[kelper]

I think your current reading is 1.015! The original reading can't be 1.5. could it have been 1.050?

 

[Zephyr259]

Assuming what other have said and the beer went from 1.050 to 1.015 then that's 70% attenuation and 4.6% abv so seems reasonable, especially since it's been stable even after rousing.

 

[Joe DS]

Hi all, thanks a lot for your help.

I should note all the readings have been done with the hydrometer straight into the fermentation barrel - I don't own a trial tube. I've been using the Wilkos hydrometer.

I definitely mean 1.5 and 1.15 not 1.05 and 1.015. I also didn't understand why the OG was 1.5 and not lower down in the "start beer" category. The readings are still higher than the black "bottle" mark, hence why I am concerned that I can't bottle yet as I don't want them to explode!

I will check the hydrometer in water first - I have not done this.

Thanks all

 

[kelper]

I'm sorry to contradict you, but you are misinterpreting the scale. The top reading is 990, then next down is 1.000. This is an increase of ten 'points'. Next down will be 1.010. The highest yours reads is 1.120.

And, if you don't believe me , go to the maker's website

https://www.stevenson-reeves.co.uk/hydrometers/HBWB.htm

Yours is the S1207 Triple Scale Hydrometer

 

[Llamaman]

I don’t think even Brewdog would manage a 1.5OG!

Just played around in a calculator. You’d need 28.5kg of DME in 20L to hit 1.5.
An FG of 1.115 delivers an eye-watering 50.48% ABV.

I know this is of no help to the OP.
Sorry :)

 

[Joe DS]

Woops yes sorry I tried to edit that post as soon as I realised! My mistake there....

So would you guys say I am ok to bottle, even though it hasn't dropped below the "bottle" mark?

Thanks

 

[Slid]

Woops yes sorry I tried to edit that post as soon as I realised! My mistake there....

So would you guys say I am ok to bottle, even though it hasn't dropped below the "bottle" mark?

Thanks

I guess I would. Ankou's advice about having some in PET bottles is good advice. A couple of pop bottles would do.

 

[Zephyr259]

I would too given the stable gravity, most of my beers finish above 1.010 due to how I put together the recipe and the mash temp I use. The markings on the hydrometer are so generalised that they're almost meaningless in my opinion.

If in doubt PET bottles are an excellent idea as they make it so easy to monitor carbonation.

 

[xozzx]

The colours on the scale are a bit odd. I dont think Ive ever had a beer FG below 1.010, a good FG should be around 1.014 but this depends a lot on the beer, OG and yeast. 1.015 sounds fine

 

[Pavros]

The colours on the scale are a bit odd. I dont think Ive ever had a beer FG below 1.010, a good FG should be around 1.014 but this depends a lot on the beer, OG and yeast. 1.015 sounds fine

I've had lots of kits finish below 1.010. Depends on the kit, the yeast and the temperature fermented at. I currently have a pale ale kit sitting at 1.008 waiting to be bottled at the weekend which used US-05 (from memory but it may be Lallemand West Coast; need to check my notes). I also had a Bulldog kit ferment from 1.047 to 1.002 using MJ M44 US West Coast yeast - no infection, just a beast of a yeast!

The last kit I bottled was a MJ Hoppy American Porter and a week after starting, it sat at 1.014 for about a week. I then dry hopped it and it fell to 1.010 after a further 4 days.

1.014/1.015 is at the high end of the scale for a kit but it sounds like it's ready for bottling from the hydrometer readings