First AG brew - stuck fermentation

[ahnlak]

Having done a few kits in my time, I recently decided to give 'proper' brewing a go; things seemed to go pretty well, and my beer was soon fermenting more furiously than I've ever seen (first time the foam had reached the lid of the FV!)

However, after 4 or 5 days the fermentation died right down, and it's now been stuck at around 1025 for a week. I've tried giving it a good stir, put it somewhere a little warmer to try and jumpstart it but nothing happening.

Next step will be to try re-pitching, but I'm wondering - have I screwed up somewhere earlier in the process? Could my thermometer have been off and I mashed too hot or something? Am I going to have to pour the nicest smelling homebrew of my life down the drain (or just drink a rather sweet, weak beer?!)

Any advice gratefully received!

Pete

 

[phettebs]

Don't dump it!!!

So far, you've done all the right things. I had a beer with S33 yeast do the same thing a couple months ago. It stalled at 1.020. I ended up pitching some Wyeast 1098 and it finished at 1.010.

Worst case, you could always brew another batch and blend them to end up with something in the middle. Overly sweet beers can be hard to drink. :-)

 

[ahnlak]

Thanks; hopefully I just managed to kill the yeast rather than do anything sillier :)

I have to admit I find the range of available yeasts a little confusing - are there specific ones worth seeking out / avoiding? (does the S-04 I fairly randomly ended up with have a tendency to drop dead halfway through the ferment?!)

 

[phettebs]

I have not seen it do that. It flocculates (drops out of suspension) quite well but it has always finishes strong for me.

I have not had good luck with S33 the two times I've used it and will avoid it going forward. But that was just my experience with it.

 

[ahnlak]

Well, for what it's worth the second pitch didn't push it along any; have racked and tasted it and damn if it isn't one of the tastier beers I've produced and not too sweet either - actually surprisingly strong tasting considering it's still-high gravity.

So, short version is I'll stick it in bottles and drink it anyway and stop worrying about what my instruments say. Double checked my hydrometer out of paranoia, and wondering if I need to buy a new thermometer in case the mash temps were off.

Perhaps the lesson here is to stop worrying about the numbers and trust my tastebuds :)

 

[Muddy Funker]

Glad it's turned out okay,

I've had AG#13 stick, It's on 1022 from 1054 and just won't budge after trying all the usual tricks.

No idea why it's happened as all instruments have been double checked, this is the first time.

I'm gonna keg it and see how it finishes :thumb: