Safe to Bottle/Possible Stuck Fermentation?

Hey everyone,

I hope to glean some knowledge/advice from you.

I'm doing a dry-hopped "Imperial/American", dry IPA. I'm calling it my "DRY-PA".

I added an Activator Package of Wyeast 1098, as well as 2, 6 oz. packets of Munton's Dry yeast to ensure full attenuation of the over 9 lbs. of malt extract (3.3 LME and 6 DME). It volcanoed for about 12 hours and settled down after that. I let is sit in primary for 10 days, racked it (gravity was ~1.024) to a secondary carboy with 1 ounce of Cascade leaf hops. It's been sitting there for another 10 days. I was planning on bottling it today but the gravity was still over 1.020. I've raised the temperature, and it bubbles a bit when I swirl it around; however it does not bubble when it settles.

Hopefully you followed all that.

Does this mean the yeast is done and it's safe to bottle even though the gravity is high? or should I give it a few more days at this higher temperature and take another gravity reading?

Thanks!

~MNHopHead

Anytime you change the temp or jar it, the airlock will bubble. Take a gravity reading tonight, and on Wednesday, if they are the same it is ready for bottling. Most likely 20 days is long enough, and extract beers often finish just above 1.020; but there is only one way to be sure.

Thanks for your reply pkleer. I've decided to add another 6 oz. package of dry yeast to try and bring the gravity and the sweetness down to where I wanted it in the first place: a very dry, hoppy IPA. Based on your response and my research, I've determined that the yeast is in fact done fermenting but I wanted this beer to be less sweet than it is now.

MNHopHead said:

Thanks for your reply pkleer. I've decided to add another 6 oz. package of dry yeast to try and bring the gravity and the sweetness down to where I wanted it in the first place: a very dry, hoppy IPA. Based on your response and my research, I've determined that the yeast is in fact done fermenting but I wanted this beer to be less sweet than it is now.

Click to expand...

I'm assuming you mean 6 gram packet of dry yeast... 6 oz is a LOT of yeast...

I hate to tell you this, but 6g more yeast is extremely unlikely to get you where you want to go. There are many many many times more yeast cells in your beer right now than there are in that packet.

What else is in the beer besides the 3.3 lbs of LME and 6 lbs DME? Just those ingredients should be an OG of 1.077...if you get 75% attenuation, with just those ingredients you'll be at 1.019.

I think you should be fine. I've made IPAs/IIPAs before with OG's in the same neighborhood as you and finished around 1.021 and have had it turn out just fine

Thanks for the replies, guys.

Yes, I did mean 6 grams of dry yeast.

I used a pound (16 oz.) of orange blossom honey in the boil for 60 minutes and a half pound of steeped CaraPils Malt; other than that, just my hops.

It hasn't done anything overnight, like PorterIDontKnowHer says would happen.

I believe the honey would raise my OG to just above 1.080 (per BeerTools.com; I forgot to take an OG reading!). Would this then also mean my FG would be higher too?

This forum is great! I really appreciate the replies!

More yeast is really never the issue. The yeast are not tired or dead, they simply have eaten everything they can. I think what you made is going to be plenty dry and anyone would be hard pressed to tell the difference between your beer and one that finished at 1.016. However, if you are hell bent on reducing FG, 8 oz-1 lb of sugar would reduce your FG. But more dry yeast is not going to do anything.

Yes the higher your og goes the higher your fg goes.