Java Stout

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PatMac

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I brewed my third batch yesterday - one of the Java Stout kits from Midwest.

I put a little more in the kettle than the typical two gallons to try to disperse the flavor in the batch and put just over 3.5 gallons in the boil. It took a while for the boil to happen, but it did eventually.

The recipe used 6 lb. Dark liquid malt extract, 8 oz. Chocolate Malt, 4 oz. Flaked Barley, 4 oz. Caramel 60°L, 4 oz. Roasted Barley specialty grains, 1/2 Target hops, 1 oz. Tettnang pellet hops. I cooled the wert down and put used the Wyeast Activator smack pack and pitched directly.

When I took my SG it was very low (supposed to be 1.042-1.046 and it was 1.3). It's been about 15 hours and there is no sign what so ever of fermentation.

Any ideas as to why my SG was so low and why the yeast isn't happy? Suggestions to fix it?
 
The 1.30 SG is low compared to the target SG, but not so low that you wouldn't see signs of fermentation. However, your boil volume wouldn't be the problem regarding the SG. My guess is that the boiled wort wasn't thoroughly mixed with the top off water when you took your hydro sample, and your SG is actually higher than you think. I've done that a few times.

Before you pitched the yeast, did you give the smack pack enough time to swell? When I use liquid yeast, I smack it the night before and allow about 8 hours for the yeast to start working inside the pack. If the pack hadn't swelled up, you're going to have some lag time before the yeast have replicated enough to really get going.
 
The instructions on the back of the smack pack said "allow to swell for 3 hours or more OR pitch immediately into the wert"

I pitched immediately.
 
In extract brewing, the only ways a starting gravity can be off is due to poor mixing or excess top-off water.

Yeast has a growth period before fermentation starts. Give it 72 hours.
 
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