SG "stuck" at 1016

[Stunned Monkey]

Hi All, me again - time for some more paranoid ramblings from a noob.

My second batch has been on the bubble for the past week. It's a Brupaks Colne Valley bitter with an extra 250g of LSM. The temperature has wobbled a bit (<2 degrees) above and below the recommended 18-20. I'd rather it stayed above so have been using my brew belt. (Day 2 saw it going like a steam train at 22 degrees without the belt).

OG was surprisingly high at 1050 and it has now stuck at 1016 for the past two days. It's still bubbling very slowly (and smells like ripe bananas). The yeast head has died right back. I've given it a gentle stir this morning to see if it makes a difference.

Question: Should I worry? My original Coopers kit also got stuck a little high and certainly didn't end up as alcoholic as it should have, though that yeast was meant to be held at between 21 and 27 degrees.

I'm starting to wonder if the cheapy hydrometer that came with the coopers kit over-reads.... but I know better than immediately jumping to conclusions about dodgy instrumentation!

1050 --> 1016 suggests an ABV of 4.6% which is perfectly acceptable... and a cheeky taster was far from sweet (like a plank I did this after stirring it up a bit :| )

 

[Cussword]

If it's still bubbling it's still fermenting. I would give it a good stirring & leave it for a couple more days before testing again :thumb:

 

[Stunned Monkey]

Do you mean properly whipping up all the sediment?

 

[phettebs]

Be careful about introducing oxygen at this late stage by whipping it up. A gentle stir is fine but you don't want it all frothy so it gets oxidized.

 

[Stunned Monkey]

Be careful about introducing oxygen at this late stage by whipping it up. A gentle stir is fine but you don't want it all frothy so it gets oxidized.

Understood, of that I was careful :thumb: I was also trying not to churn up the sediment too much.

 

[luckyeddie]

Be careful about introducing oxygen at this late stage by whipping it up. A gentle stir is fine but you don't want it all frothy so it gets oxidized.

Understood, of that I was careful :thumb: I was also trying not to churn up the sediment too much.

Don't worry about churning up the sediment - worry about introducing a lot of oxygen. I'd keep the top / airlock on your FV and give it a good old side to side slosh to stir it up. There won't be any chance of getting any oxygen in then because it's going to have an 'atmosphere' of CO2 above the beer.

What yeast did you use - the one with the kit?

 

[Stunned Monkey]

Don't worry about churning up the sediment - worry about introducing a lot of oxygen. I'd keep the top / airlock on your FV and give it a good old side to side slosh to stir it up.

Too late. It was a very gentle stir, was being very careful not to aerate it. Also it's a coopers FV which means the lid is about half the diameter of the main body. There should be a good "puddle" of CO2 on the top anyway. It has been slowly burping since I put the lid back on too, so something's still alive. It's just surprising me how long it's taking.

What yeast did you use - the one with the kit?

:thumb:

 

[luckyeddie]

Okerlydokerly.

Diddly.

Sorry, watched too much Simpsons.

:lol: :party: :

 

[Stunned Monkey]

Well I gave up and bottled it on Saturday anyway (half a tsp of light spray malt per 500ml pet bottle) - the change in SG was such that at least 4.6% ABV was on the cards and it crossed my mind that the hop pellet teabag that came with the kit having split means there's quite a lot of stuff in suspension at the bottom of the FV when I took a sample. There was a lot of sediment.

Couldn't help myself and cracked a bottle open today just to see how it was going. I'm a happy bunny. After the beer squash of my first attempt, this is a million miles apart, loads of body, plenty of yeast pee, lovely "just right" carbonation, and really sweet brown sugar aroma... just a touch too bitter for the time being, and needs longer to clear.

I scrubbed out the FV and set it straight back to work on an IPA :

 

[phettebs]

Well done SM. Glad you had a good experience and jumped right back in! :thumb:

 

[31bb3]

Have you checked your hydrometer is accurate it should read 1000 in water

 

[Stunned Monkey]

I have actually.... it took me a while to realise It does indeed work correctly. I put it down to the split hop bag :hmm:

 

[Stunned Monkey]

Well the Milestone IPA has broken the dreaded 1020 barrier (from 1046) on day 4 and is still farting its way towards the finish line :party: