Another FG post- What counts as too high?

jilldct03 · 10-29-2010, 05:32 PM

First, thank you for all the helpful advice given on these forums- I wish I had found them before I started this batch. I bought a Fat Tire clone at my LHBS and am supposed to bottle this weekend according to the directions. I’m just concerned about the FG. It should be between 1.010-1.013. Mine is 1.016. It was in the primary for 7 days, and then in the secondary for 3 weeks. It was at 1.020 when I racked it. It’s been sitting in a dark closet at about 60-62 degrees.

I’m terrified of “bottle bombs” and was hoping someone with more experience could tell me if the .003 difference will be problematic. I’m trying to have it ready to serve by Thanksgiving so I can share it with relatives. Any input would be very helpful!

Not sure if it’s important, but the ingredients as follows:

8 oz US 80L crystal malt
6 oz German Munich malt
4 oz Victory Malt
3 oz Belgian Biscuit malt

4 lbs Alexanders Pale malt extract
2.5 lbs Muntons Extra light DME
5 HBU Yakima Magnum (bittering hop)

Irish moss
Hersbrucker hop
Willamette hop

Wyeast 1762 Belgian Abbey II.

PS—I didn’t take an OG reading (forgot) and I also did not use a starter, only because I had never heard of starters.

therealrsr · 10-29-2010, 05:40 PM

Nope, but if you are really worried cut back just a bit on your priming sugar before bottling. Make sure you get the caps snug. By practice I cap, turn 90 degrees and do it again.

**Yooper** · 10-29-2010, 05:41 PM

Well, my first question is "who says?"! Who says what the FG "should" be? The recipe? That's a very good guideline.

But there are so many things that go into the actual FG. Such as: the attenuation of the yeast strain; the fermentability of the ingredients; yeast health and pitching rate; temperature; etc.

Some ingredients are less fermentable than others, like crystal malts. Some ingredients are nearly fully fermentable, like table sugar. Some extract brands are lower in fermentables than others.

Another issue is racking BEFORE you've reached FG- if you're not at FG, racking after a week can stall the yeast. Next time, don't rack until the SG is unchanging over at least a three day period.

A key to knowing your FG is to consider all those variables, and to know if your FG is a reasonable number.

Once the SG stops changing, that's when you're at your FG. If you've taken SG readings over several days, and it's still at 1.016, that's the FG.

Anyway, with all of that said, 1.016 isn't too high for that style of beer.

**snowveil** · 10-29-2010, 05:42 PM

1016 sounds like you're pretty on target. With extract it's harder to get your FG that low because you don't really know the conditions of the mash that the extract vendor used.

Your best bet is to take a gravity reading 3 days in a row and make sure that it stays the same. As long as it does, you're fine. Also after a month of fermentation on a *normal* beer (no wild yeasts, not super-high OG) you're most likely to be done.

at 1016 I'd go ahead and bottle

jilldct03 · 10-29-2010, 06:05 PM

Wheee! Thank you for the replies. It's been at 1016 for 3 days...I'm very excited now for this weekend! Yooper- yep, the recipe said that what it should be- I was following it exactly, and it called for moving it to the secondary after 7 days. Next time, I think I'm going to skip the secondary altogether from the advice I've read on these boards.

Thanks again!