Will It Ever End?
- Thread starter edds5p0
- Start date
Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:
What is the current SG reading?
Stauffbier
Well-Known Member
Just because the airlock is bubbling doesn't mean the beer is still fermenting. You should take a hydro reading if you really want to know!
yep, it could be done, just getting rid of excess co2 (offgassing), or it could be fermenting still. i had a 1.065 ferment for almost 4 weeks with s-04 (robust porter), and it came out great. that's why readings mean almost everything instead of bubbles
OP
OP
edds5p0
KN4SQH
- Joined
- Sep 21, 2012
- Messages
- 377
- Reaction score
- 55
You all are awesome for replying so quickly. I decided to put my fear of contamination aside and test it. I am at 1.012, which is where I hoped to finish. Upon tasting, the beer is fizzy and has a very thick, creamy head. I'm guessing the thick krausen is holding in the CO2. Me likey! I was a bit disappointed by the hoppieness as this is a pumpkin ale. Otherwise, a good brew. Should I go to a secondary or let it stay in primary for a while longer?
Stauffbier
Well-Known Member
Leave it in primary for a week or two, and then check to see if gravity is still stable. If so, bottle it up. The hoppiness will mellow after conditioning time..
kylevester
Well-Known Member
Let it go in primary for another week and then keg/bottle. If it tastes good now, it'll be ready by carbonation, else give it another week or more before drinking. If you transfer to bottles/keg this upcoming weekend, you'll be sitting pretty for Halloween.
at a week, i'd definitely let it sit longer. as kyle suggests, another week or so, then bottle, carbonate for a week or 2, and cold-condition
No, that's not typical at all.
Did you check your hydrometer in plain water, to make sure it's accurate?
I'd be worried to have a beer at 1.004. It normally wouldn't ferment that low.
Nope, not normal. There must be more than saccharomyces in there. If you thought it was bitter before, it must be doubly so now.
Taste it and let us know if you're getting any sour or "dank" flavors.
You didn't happen to add a lot of table sugar or dextrose did you?
OP
OP
edds5p0
KN4SQH
- Joined
- Sep 21, 2012
- Messages
- 377
- Reaction score
- 55
I added a cup of brown sugar and half a cup of molasses. Everything else was malt extract. The beer tasted good, but it has lost a lot of body and sweetness. There were no bitter, tart, or unpleasant flavors. My hydro is reading dead on at 1.000 in tap water. Could fizz possibly cause my density to read low?
It definitely could, especially if you have bubbles on the hydrometer. It seems more likely that the high nutrient value of the molasses, and the concentrated food of the sucrose, gave your yeast a kick in the but though.
kylevester
Well-Known Member
Don't add any non-fermentables unless you don't care for the flavor, and specifically the sweetness level. If it tastes good, then don't mess with it.
