Can you pitch too much yeast?

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mangine77

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I had a beer that wasn't doing anything after 48 hours so I pitched another packet of yeast. First time it was a nottingham but the second packet was Windsor.

The beer has now been very active for 4 days and I'm wondering if there is the possibility of off flavors or just a bad beer because of this.

It's a blonde ale, so I would have expected to calm down by now. I have a feeling that the second packet sparked the first one into action also.

Are there some things to be concerned as far as how this will turn out??
 
Yes, you can over pitch.

The beer will end up tasting yeasty, but that will fade.

next time don't panic at 48 hours. 72 hours is the minimum.

Did you rehydrate the Nottingham first? did you pitch at the right temp? did you oxygenate your wort?
 
Did you rehydrate the Nottingham first? Yes


did you pitch at the right temp? For sure. 66 degrees

did you oxygenate your wort? With a drill attachment aerator


I will add that this was my first ever all grain batch. I'm not sure what effect this could have on it. All of my partial mash batches (at least 10) have started fermenting within 24 hours. I used the Zapap system for this all grain batch.

I'll also add that I wasn't just counting on the airlock to gauge fermentation. After 48 hours, I took a quick peek and there was zero Krausen formation and no sign of it getting ready to start.

What are the differences between all grain and partials where I could have gone wrong to cause this??
 
Pitching two different strains is the one thing that grabbed my attention first. Beyond that, most dry yeast has more than enough for one batch, so you may have overpitched. I wouldn't lose sleep over it, personally. Most of this stuff is academic. Just leave it in the primary for 4-6 weeks on the cake to let it condition, then bottles for another 4-6 weeks and you should be a-okay.
 
Pitching two different strains is the one thing that grabbed my attention first. Beyond that, most dry yeast has more than enough for one batch, so you may have overpitched. I wouldn't lose sleep over it, personally. Most of this stuff is academic. Just leave it in the primary for 4-6 weeks on the cake to let it condition, then bottles for another 4-6 weeks and you should be a-okay.

Really??? I should wait this long now before bottling???
 
Really??? I should wait this long now before bottling???

For every batch, not just this one.

Many brewers are too impatient.
You can drink green beer 2 weeks after brew day.
Or you can drink really good beer 2 months after brew day.

Bottle this batch after 2 weeks and drink one a week.
The last one is always the best.

The trick is brewing more than you can drink right away.
Once the pipeline is full you won't be tempted to drink green beer.
 
Really??? I should wait this long now before bottling???

Yes. On every beer you do, 3 weeks minimum in the primary. I've settled on about 4-5 weeks in the primary, depending upon my schedule. Then after that, leave your brews in the bottle for minimum 3 weeks for proper conditioning, then one week in the fridge for cold conditioning (if you don't, the CO2 won't dissolve into the beer properly, and you'll end up with a foamy mess, not to mention the fact that the tastes won't have properly mellowed and melded).

Darker beers can go much longer, 8 weeks++ in bottles plus fridge time. And keep in mind, these times are before the first one is cracked (so for a stout, about 2.5 months until the first cold beer is opened and consumed).

Like the former poster said, you can drink your beer whenever you want. Hell, you can drink it before it's finished fermenting. But as common sense dictates, it gets better with age. Granted, beer can get a little too old, especially in the case of hoppy beers, which should be consumed fairly quick after the proper conditioning time.

My basic rule is as follows: Regardless of style, 4ish weeks in the primary -- OR 3 weeks primary and 2 weeks secondary in the case of dry hopped/fruited beers.

Regarding bottle conditioning: For lighter beers and/or hoppy brews, 3-4 weeks in bottles, then 1 week in the fridge before the first one is cracked. Mediumish beers (reds, browns) 4-6 weeks in bottles, then 1 week in the fridge before the first is cracked. Dark beers (porters, stouts), 5-8 weeks bottles, 1 week fridge before the first is cracked. I should note that darker beers can age up to around a year and still improve, from what I gather. Barley wines can reputedly go decades or thereabouts. With the oatmeal and raspberry stouts I'm working on, I plan to put a few 22s away for 8-12 months and try them out.

All of the above considered, special occasions may make me bend my bottle conditioning rules a little bit, but the primary/secondary times are set in stone as far as I'm concerned, unless there's a specific brew that requires longer times, such as a barley wine. Bottles = no less than 3 weeks then 1 fridge under any circumstance, regardless of brew or occasion.
 
I don't ever open them until at least a month total 2-3 weeks fermenting, 2-3 weeks in the bottle, but the person who responsed suggested 12 weeks total for a blonde ale?

I find it hard to believe that most folks on here go 3 months before drinking something as light as a blonde ale. I guess I don't understand fermentation and conditioning quite yet.

My assumption for a beer like this was, 2.5 weeks max fermenting and 3-4 weeks in the bottle.

What will the extra 6 weeks get me with a blonde ale? I'm not being a smart a$$, I just thought if you're waiting 3 months you're starting to oxidize your beer.

I totally understand that you have to let BIG beers have their conditioning time.

Please explain. thanks.
 
You want your beers in bottles for a minimum of 3 weeks so that the CO2 properly dissolves into the brew, and it conditions well. 3-4 weeks in the primary for a blonde, and 3-4 weeks in bottles. That's anywhere from 6-8 weeks total from start to finish, and that's about as quick as it's gonna get if you're interested in top notch brew.

Regarding the hefe: there are exceptions, and my 3-4 weeks was set out as a general time for most brews. I, personally, am not big on continental styles, so I admit my times are bias toward English/Irish/American brews.
 
Regarding the hefe: there are exceptions, and my 3-4 weeks was set out as a general time for most brews. I, personally, am not big on continental styles, so I admit my times are bias toward English/Irish/American brews.

I have so far brewed a dunkleweizen and hefeweizen and both were not good until they had been in the bottle for at least 3 weeks. The hefeweizen was my 2nd ever brew and I was impatient. By the time I was most of the way thru the batch, about a month after bottling, it really hit its stride.

I tried the dunkelweizen 2 weeks after brew day, which was 1 week after bottling. It was fully carbonated, but tasted bad. Too much roastly malt flavor and the clove from the yeast was intense. 3 weeks later, i tried another and it was fantastic!

You can drink your beer at any time, but as other people said, the longer you let it age, the better it is. Hefeweizens are meant to be drank young, but this generally means within 6 months or so, not within the first couple months (like I originally thought)
 
I had a beer that wasn't doing anything after 48 hours so I pitched another packet of yeast. First time it was a nottingham but the second packet was Windsor.

The beer has now been very active for 4 days and I'm wondering if there is the possibility of off flavors or just a bad beer because of this.

It's a blonde ale, so I would have expected to calm down by now. I have a feeling that the second packet sparked the first one into action also.

Are there some things to be concerned as far as how this will turn out??

Hello, novice brewer here with the same situation on a first time all grain brew. Original added two nottingham packs (one starter) on a 5 gal IPA with a OG of 1.085, my beer wasn't active in the first 48 hours. Was worried and scared i got some bad yeast so i decided to add White Labs American ale and a dry pack (Brooklyn brew kit everyday ipa dry pack). Possible bad mistake on my part i'm guessing from what ive been reading.

Now I have 2 inch of foam on top of beer and lots of activity going on now! Nothing overflowing though. However I'm wondering did I over pitch? Am I expecting a batch thats going to have off flavors and not at its expected potential it would have been if i didn't pitch those two yeast?

Please someone tell me I didn't screw up for being such a worry newbie lol.
 
Hello, novice brewer here with the same situation on a first time all grain brew. Original added two nottingham packs (one starter) on a 5 gal IPA with a OG of 1.085, my beer wasn't active in the first 48 hours. Was worried and scared i got some bad yeast so i decided to add White Labs American ale and a dry pack (Brooklyn brew kit everyday ipa dry pack). Possible bad mistake on my part i'm guessing from what ive been reading.

Now I have 2 inch of foam on top of beer and lots of activity going on now! Nothing overflowing though. However I'm wondering did I over pitch? Am I expecting a batch thats going to have off flavors and not at its expected potential it would have been if i didn't pitch those two yeast?

Please someone tell me I didn't screw up for being such a worry newbie lol.

While you are busy worrying, read through this article. Note that their overpitch was about 5 times what is considered a normal pitch and their underpitch was about 1/7th of normal. http://sciencebrewer.com/2012/03/02/pitching-rate-experiment-part-deux-results/
 
Borrowing an old thread here...

...sssoooo accidentally pitching about 3/4 of a bag of S-05 to 9L of what will become a 10% 100IBU Imperial IPA isn't a problem then?

No, probably not. Particularly if you didn't rehydrate the yeast first (might even be an underpitch then)
 
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