Fermentability issues w/ AG batches

Hey guys, 2 of my first three AG batches have turned out a little too fermentable. THe first one even contained dextrine Malt but I mashed too long at too low of a temp and I have since read where this will produce a very fermentable wort. It went from 1.053 to 1.004 so I'll have a slightly thin, high octane PA.

This is the recipe for an ESB and it went from 1.060 to 1.008 Talk about jet fuel!


12 lbs Briess 2 row
1 lb Crystal 60
1/2 lb Biscuit

Mashed by single infusion 1.25 Qts/lb @153 F
Sparged w/ enough 175 F water to collect 6.5 G
No mashout
Yeast: Wyeast 1056 fermented at @66-68F

By Tasty Brew my FG should have been 1.015

Is there anything in this recipe or method that would explain these low FG's?

I haven't tasted either of these yet (except hydrometer samples)as the PA is carbing in the keg and the ESB is in secondary but I'm afraid they will lack in body/mouthfeel. The Oatmeal Stout I did the same way BTW hit the SG and FG perfectly.

Any ideas?
Al

A couple of things I would try: Do a mash out. Mash at a higher temp (155F). Do a shorer mash (45min).

Dp..............

Do you have a significant temp drop during your mash? I second the mash out, may help keep the grain bed from dropping too low while sparging.

A wild yeast will drop the gravity lower than expected. When you taste it, if it has no flavor, not even hop flavor, and tastes just like carbonated water, it may be a wild yeast at work. They tend to scrub out all flavors from the beer.

BarleyWater said:

Do you have a significant temp drop during your mash? I second the mash out, may help keep the grain bed from dropping too low while sparging.

A wild yeast will drop the gravity lower than expected. When you taste it, if it has no flavor, not even hop flavor, and tastes just like carbonated water, it may be a wild yeast at work. They tend to scrub out all flavors from the beer.

Click to expand...

My cooler mash/tun does a pretty good job of maintaining the temps but I will try the higher mash temp and the mashout. I'm certain its not wild yeast as I haven't changed any of my techniques and I've never had a wild yeast issue before. The beer tastes pretty good as far as you can tell from flat, room temp green beer. Not that much different from my extract brews.

Thanks,
Al

I have the same problem- ALL of my beers tend to overattenuate. Great for big IPAs and Belgians, not so great for ESBs. I never did solve my issue, but kind of ruled out everything except water chemistry. Since this always happens to me, I just mash every single beer higher than I normally would. I'm not saying this would necessarily be your issue, but it may be something like water chemistry in your case too.

I tried using different yeasts, I tried thicker mashes, I tried shorter mashes, I ruled out wild yeasts, etc. I finally did some reading that suggested some water chemistry issues (and I've since forgotten exactly what they were) were causing the problem.

YooperBrew said:

I have the same problem- ALL of my beers tend to overattenuate. Great for big IPAs and Belgians, not so great for ESBs. I never did solve my issue, but kind of ruled out everything except water chemistry. Since this always happens to me, I just mash every single beer higher than I normally would. I'm not saying this would necessarily be your issue, but it may be something like water chemistry in your case too.

I tried using different yeasts, I tried thicker mashes, I tried shorter mashes, I ruled out wild yeasts, etc. I finally did some reading that suggested some water chemistry issues (and I've since forgotten exactly what they were) were causing the problem.

Click to expand...

I was wondering about the water. I've never bothered to look up the local water report but I think I will now. I also wondered about mash thickness as well. I guess mash PH would be based on ingredients used and obviously the water so i guess I need to think this a bit more than i have.

Have you had any issues w/ clarity w/ your AG's? I'm still waiting on mine but they haven't seemed to clear like my extract brews do. It may be a protein haze but so far my PA looks more like a Hefe. I'm hoping cold conditioning in the keg will clear it since it looks to me like the yeast just does'nt want to get outta my brew.

Thanks for the reply,
Al