Beerworks Golden Rocket kit - stuck at 1018 - Suggestions Please!

[cakeraptor]

Hi Brewers! Brand new to this - and just a little stuck at the moment ...

I was lucky enough to get a starter kit with Beerworks Golden Rocket kit (West Coast style strong IPA) as a Xmas pressie from my son. Online reviews are favourable so I've been looking forward to this project. Over the last two weeks I’ve given this a go but now I’m a bit stuck and would appreciate some advice please!

Firstly worth saying I’m pretty good at following instructions. I also arranged some extra gadgets including heating mat and temperature controller.

I started off fermenting at 21°C with og 1056 and maintained that for first 9 days. Initially airlock bubble action was pretty strong but died away dramatically by day 3 but not completely. I read a few online forums and apparently that’s normal ….
I added the hops as directed after 5 days. This process was a bit weird... The instructions said to prepare a jug of boiling water and break them down with a knife. However as soon as the contents of the vacuum pack were in the jug it just all turned to a green mousse.
While the instruction said to remove hops only using a spoon and leave the water behind that wasn’t an option as all I had was a jug of green sludge – so I just poured all that into the bucket. Smelled very nice though.
Airlock bubbled increasingly slowly until day 9 when bubbles were apparently stopped so I starting taking daily gravity readings as kit instructions indicated things might be ready by day 10. It was at 1018. Again I did some online research and wasn’t too worried – I did a gentle stir and raised temperature to 22.5°C.

Next night I did another stir and took reading - Still 1018.
I raised temperature to 24.5°C but no change by day 12.

Having read further on online forums I went to Wilko and obtained a small amount of extra yeast to add. Gervin 5g. This provoked some CO2 bubble action but only that afternoon. Following morning all was quiet again.

Now on day 15 I am still getting gravity reading 1018 and no airlock action. Surface of beer is virtually free of any bubbles etc.

On the last stir I did take opportunity to taste the wort and it does at least taste like ale – not sweet.
The hydrometer in the kit looks fairly cheaply made - but I did check it in a bucket of plain water - and it does read close to 1000.

So not sure what to do next? If the yeast isn’t working in the fermenter I assume there’s no point bottling as it won’t work there either?

Thanks in advance. Your advice would be appreciated please.

 

[Pablosaurus]

Hey there,

My kit brews NEVER reach the stated final gravity. It's always a bit of a disappointment but then I (almost) always enjoy the end result anyway. Not once have I thought 'this tastes a bit weak'. I've done the Golden Rocket in the past couple of months and I can't remember what it settled at, but was really pleased with the outcome nonetheless (it's strong too, so have no fear on that front). Since you've followed the instructions carefully there's no need to be concerned - get it bottled/barreled and accept the 1018 figure. It's a lovely kit so the sooner it's conditioning, the sooner you can enjoy it....noting also that it takes a while to reach peak condition - six weeks or so.

Moral of the story: always take the manufacturers FG rating with a pinch of salt. Consider it a guide only, and all will be well.

 

[Sandimas]

What yeast did it come with?

1056 -> 1018 isn't unreasonable for some yeasts, 69% attenuation: many yeasts are in the range 70-75%, so if you can tell us which one it is we may be able to help.

In my experience, once a fermentation has stopped it can be very difficult to get going again. Adding more yeast doesn't help, the fermentables have been consumed, sometimes adding a bit of sugar for the yeast to chomp on (200g or so dissolved in a bit of water) can get it moving again (similar concept to priming in bottles).

If it really is stuck, bottle it and just keep an eye on the bottles. Some yeasts re-start in the bottles. I bottled one at 1025 recently, it was fine just well and truly stuck. And not a high OG either, 1052.

 

[cakeraptor]

Thanks for those comments. I was quite depressed at the weekend but it sounds a though I'm being premature!
The original yeast was a bit anonymous in the kit. The packet was just marked 'Golden Rocket' which is the name of the kit.
On at least one website advertising this kit it describes the yeast as 'West Coast USA' whatever that means ...

I'll start preparing those bottles then!

 

[Hazelwood Brewery]

I think your beer is fine and ready for kegging/bottling. Those instructions for the hops are intended for whole hop flowers, you were obviously supplied with pellets which just disintegrate in water . You don’t actually need to rehydrate the hops at all, even the “leaf” hops, just throw them in the fermenter dry.

 

[cakeraptor]

Yeah must have been out of date instructions!

I could probably do with some advice on sterilising the bottles please. I've been supplied with a sodium percarbonate steriliser they describe as 'no rinse'.
Do I have to actually fill the whole bottle and leave for xx minutes - or is it just a case of filling an inch and then shaking around and pouring out?
Or is there another better technique? With 40+ bottles there's probably a tried and tested method for practicality?

Also it says to wear gloves - is that really needed? I hadn't read that properly when I did the bucket at the start - and no obvious after effects!

 

[Hazelwood Brewery]

I used to fill my bottles and leave them to soak for 20 minutes but you could use less and give them a shake I guess.

Health and safety would say gloves are required because Sodium Percarbonate is a bleach. I never have used gloves though.

 

[GhostShip]

Sounds like it's ready to bottle to me. 10 days sounds a long time for the hops to be left in, but you did exactly the right thing by just chucking everything in.

You don't need to fill the bottles with the steriliser - just put a bit in and swirl it around to try and ensure that all inner areas are covered. For future reference, this will make a big difference to your life:
https://bit.ly/38KU8EX
It has a spring action and you just 'pump' the bottle up and down a few times and it's done. I can do 40 bottles in just a few minutes.

I haven't done the Golden Rocket, but I have done the President's Sierra, and it was superb. The Beerworks kits are excellent - hope you get a great result!

 

[chris-s]

I would add a little bit of sugar, just with a sample if you like, to see if the yeast is still active.

If it starts fermenting and slows again after about a day, you know it will condition in the bottle ok, so go ahead and bottle.

If there is no activity, you might end up with a flat, sweet beer. So maybe think about adding yeast and sugar. I have never had to do that so have no experience to go by. Perhaps someone else can help.

 

[cakeraptor]

Sounds like it's ready to bottle to me. 10 days sounds a long time for the hops to be left in, but you did exactly the right thing by just chucking everything in.

You don't need to fill the bottles with the steriliser - just put a bit in and swirl it around to try and ensure that all inner areas are covered. For future reference, this will make a big difference to your life:
https://bit.ly/38KU8EX
It has a spring action and you just 'pump' the bottle up and down a few times and it's done. I can do 40 bottles in just a few minutes.

I haven't done the Golden Rocket, but I have done the President's Sierra, and it was superb. The Beerworks kits are excellent - hope you get a great result!

Thanks. Looks like a great gadget- but I'll wait and see how this turns out before deciding whether this is a hobby or a one-off ...

 

[cakeraptor]

I would add a little bit of sugar, just with a sample if you like, to see if the yeast is still active.

If it starts fermenting and slows again after about a day, you know it will condition in the bottle ok, so go ahead and bottle.

If there is no activity, you might end up with a flat, sweet beer. So maybe think about adding yeast and sugar. I have never had to do that so have no experience to go by. Perhaps someone else can help.

ok that sounds like a good idea - I could use a sterilised jug to scoop out a single bottle's worth and try just bottling just one? After how many days should I get a fizz when opened?

 

[chris-s]

ok that sounds like a good idea - I could use a sterilised jug to scoop out a single bottle's worth and try just bottling just one? After how many days should I get a fizz when opened?

I didn't mean bottle the sample.

I only had to do this once and used a 15ml measuring spoon of sugar to a 23L bin. So just a tiny bit so as not to sweeten it too much. It produced lots of tiny bubbles for about a day then slowed/stopped again. That way I knew the yeast was still active and went ahead and bottled with confidence.

I don't know exactly what I would have done if it hadn't produced bubbles. Maybe a little experiment with yeast and sugar.

Good luck,

Chris

 

[cakeraptor]

Fair enough - but I have actually bottled one as a definitive test with 3g of sugar. So not sure what to expect. Is the carbonation fermentation normally visible? Will it be obvious without having to open the bottle - or do I wait a couple of days and then pop it?

 

[chris-s]

I'm sorry I don't know the answer to that. Once bottled they don't get looked at for at least a month.

Many here work on two weeks in the warm for carbonation so I could guess you might find some after a week or less. But it would be just a guess.

You could still do what I did as well. The bubbles were noticeable the same day.

 

[GhostShip]

Fair enough - but I have actually bottled one as a definitive test with 3g of sugar. So not sure what to expect. Is the carbonation fermentation normally visible? Will it be obvious without having to open the bottle - or do I wait a couple of days and then pop it?

Sorry if you've already mentioned this, but are you using glass or plastic (PET) bottles?

 

[cakeraptor]

Glass bottles - and after 2 days I popped my test bottle.

Hurrah - nothing to worry about after all. Pleasant carbonation level. Even ok taste - very slight sweetness - but should be good.

Excited again! First pint is drinkable!

Bottling kit at the ready! Just don't know how I'm supposed to wait another 3+ weeks after that!

 

[cakeraptor]

thanks again for everyone's comments!

 

[Dicko]

Hi cakeraptor
For future brews a good way of checking if your brew has carbed up is to use a pet bottle as It will firm up as it carbs. A good indication that all is well.

Cheers Dicko