Gravity Reading way low???

I made a batch of wheat beer yesterday and siphoned my cooled wort from kettle to fermenting bucket as usual. I put two gallons of distilled water in bucket, pitch yeast and then siphon 3 gallons of wort into bucket using tubing that sits on the bottom of the bucket under the water (to prevent aeration). I typically do not stir the beer after siphoning.

When I took the gravity it measured way lower than the prediction (and this is a kit recipe from Austin Homebrew so should have been pretty accurate). I took the sample from dipping the test jar into top of liquid, which I understand may not be best method. After getting low reading I tasted the sample from test jar and it tasted almost like water...very weak even for beginning product!

Is it possible that my siphoning method leaves the heavier wort sitting on the bottom of the mixture with the plain water rising to top? Could this result in the low reading and watery taste? Has anyone had this issue? Any advice or insight would be appreciated!

On a side note, I have read different views about stirring the wort after siphoning. Some say to "stir vigorously" to activate yeast and some say not to stir at all to prevent aeration. I'd love to hear your viewpoints.

Yes, if the beer/water mixture isn't "mixed" well, then your original gravity reading will probably be off. Aeration is a good thing before fermentation starts in the fermenter. After fermentation is complete it is a bad thing. So stirring vigorously, will not only help your yeast, but also help with your hydrometer readings. In the meanwhile (I'm assuming your doing an extract brew), I'd just use the OG that is suggested in the recipe/instructions. Extract brewing is a known efficiency, so your OG should be pretty darn close to the suggested one.

HomebrewNate said:

I made a batch of wheat beer yesterday and siphoned my cooled wort from kettle to fermenting bucket as usual. I put two gallons of distilled water in bucket, pitch yeast and then siphon 3 gallons of wort into bucket using tubing that sits on the bottom of the bucket under the water (to prevent aeration). I typically do not stir the beer after siphoning.

When I took the gravity it measured way lower than the prediction (and this is a kit recipe from Austin Homebrew so should have been pretty accurate). I took the sample from dipping the test jar into top of liquid, which I understand may not be best method. After getting low reading I tasted the sample from test jar and it tasted almost like water...very weak even for beginning product!

Is it possible that my siphoning method leaves the heavier wort sitting on the bottom of the mixture with the plain water rising to top? Could this result in the low reading and watery taste? Has anyone had this issue? Any advice or insight would be appreciated!

On a side note, I have read different views about stirring the wort after siphoning. Some say to "stir vigorously" to activate yeast and some say not to stir at all to prevent aeration. I'd love to hear your viewpoints.

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During the initial part of the fermentation the yeast need oxygen to help them in the reproductive process. Don't worry about aeration before fermentation starts, work to increase it. Some brewers working with liquid yeast in high gravity beers will use pure oxygen to help the yeast.

Once the beer is fermenting you don't want aeration.

Great, thanks for the input!