A first, for me

**psymonkey** · 10-05-2011, 04:00 AM

My wife and I brewed a 5 gallon batch of a pumpkin ale this weekend and I've witnessed behavior over the last 72 hours I haven't seen in my dozen or so previous batches. It was quite contrary to what I was expecting.

We brewed on Saturday, pitched at 70 degrees at about 11pm. I used White Labs London Ale Yeast and had something of an explosion when opening the vial. I figure I lost a third of it at minimum, it just kept coming. I've had them do this before, but not like this one.

Anyway, the beer was visually inactive for about 18 hours which I half expected as the yeast got it's count up, then I started to see foam. By Monday, it looked like a hurricane in the carboy with probably three inches of kreusen in a 6.5 gallon carboy and chunks flying all over the place in the beer. The most intense activity I've seen yet!

So today I came home from work and the Kreusen had completely settled. It looks like most of my beers do after 6-10 days. This one is about 8% and I'd figured it would be a slow starter due to the lost yeast and would roll on visually for longer than most of my beers, but not so. There is also a ton of sediment which stuck to the sides of the carboy everywhere there is a rounded indentation from the ribs on the side, which I've never seen. The carboy was well sanitized.

Any thoughts on the normalcy of this? I've never brewed a pumpkin ale or anything with that much crap in it (8lbs pumpkin, 4 cinnamon sticks, whole nutmeg, whole allspice, six lbs of grains, 3 oz of hops and 10lbs of malt extract - IIRC)

I'm not really concerned, just confused

ziggy13 · 10-05-2011, 04:56 AM

I am curious to know what people have to say about the yeast exploding out of the vial. I have had this happen to me the last few times I've opened a vial to get a starter ready and it really puzzled me because my first year or so of brewing it never happened, but the past few months it has been happening.

I don't think your fermentation seems out of whack to me though. I've had a lot of fermentations done that quickly. Never used that particular strain of yeast though.

greatschmaltez · 10-05-2011, 11:46 AM

I just open it real slow like a coke that's been shook up. I've had this happen recently as well, just open slow and it won't explode everywhere.

**EdWort** · 10-05-2011, 11:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by greatschmaltez

I just open it real slow like a coke that's been shook up. I've had this happen recently as well, just open slow and it won't explode everywhere.

+1 Yep, it only takes one time and after you end up wearing 1/3 of the vial, you get real careful when you shake it up.

**psymonkey** · 10-05-2011, 04:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ziggy13

I am curious to know what people have to say about the yeast exploding out of the vial. I have had this happen to me the last few times I've opened a vial to get a starter ready and it really puzzled me because my first year or so of brewing it never happened, but the past few months it has been happening.

I don't think your fermentation seems out of whack to me though. I've had a lot of fermentations done that quickly. Never used that particular strain of yeast though.

Cool, I wasn't sure what to make of the rapid initial stages of fermentation. I guess I figured it would be long and drawn out since there was so much fermentable sugar in the wort. I'll check the gravity in a few days and see where it's at. I'm still planning on at least three weeks for this one between the primary and secondary regardless of the unusual pace of the events, in my experience anyway.

So you had an excessive White Labs experience too eh? I don't think I've ever opened one without it being tense in terms of wanting to gush out, but this was definitely unlike all of my others. I do try the super-slow opening I'd use on a heavily shaken soda. This one just wanted to be in the beer, NOW!..well that and on my hands, shirt and counter