My Oktoberfest is not hitting FG after 3 weeks in primary. HELP!!!

My Oktoberfest is not hitting FG after 3 weeks in primary, should I repitch? I brewed this from a brewers German Oktoberfest kit. I dont have the equip to lager So i fermented this at around 68 deg. The kit instructions said it was fine to ferment at ale temps so I did. My OG was 1.052 took a reading today and is sitting at 1.020 after 3 weeks. Any suggestions????

did you use an ale yeast?

or did you use a lager yeast at ale temps?
how big was the yeast dump?

got a feeling its a lager yeast at ale temps.
maybe go out and grab some dry yeast to finish it off Safale 05
might want to wait for some advice from some lager guys who may have run into this issue before.

It was a lager yeast, but it said it would do fine at ale temps. I am getting the feeling I should not have bought that kit W/O the equip to lager

unionrdr said:

Wait another week or so. I've had ferments take 3.5-4 weeks to get down to a stable FG. & lager yeast at ale temps sounds more like a steam beer to me.

Click to expand...

Fill me in as to what a steam beer is

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steam_beer

you can try adding in some more yeast of the same type you put in previously, maybe. it might trigger fermentation again. you can also agitate the yeast so it kicks up again and hope it triggers fermentation to start again.

I guess to agitate it i would just give the carboy a good shake? if that failes to do anything repitch the brewferm lager yeast?

johnheather125 said:

I guess to agitate it i would just give the carboy a good shake? if that failes to do anything repitch the brewferm lager yeast?

Click to expand...

gentle shake or swirl with a large sanitized spoon - you don't want to introduce any more oxygen at this point

any idea how long the FG has been stable at 1.020? not uncommon for an extract beer to finish around there

at this point you are prob better off pitching a neutral ale yeast like us-05

I would repitch with the same yeast .

Hector

Don't lose sleep over using a lager yeast at 68 degrees. I use ale/lager yeast blends in the mid 60's for cream ales.

If the recipe was made with mostly amber and/or Munich extract 1.020 doesn't really surprise me.

I would NOT stir, slosh or otherwise agitate and it's common for extract beers to be finished at 1.020. You definitely don't want to aerate this!

Since this is a steam beer, you may notice a bit of fruitiness. If you ever want to do a lager-like beer again in the future, you may get better results with a clean well attenuating ale yeast rather than a lager yeast at room temperatures. I've had good results with nottingham at 60 degrees- it was very lager-like!

And that is what it was amber and munich

Then without looking at a hydrometer I can state with confidence that your ferment is complete. Still, leave it for another week to be sure.

Bob

I will leave it for another week and check gravity again. I dont have enogh bottles to bottle anyway

I have found several chest freezers on craigslist i just want one that i can fit 2 carboys in.

Let me ask this. If this is a stuck fermentation will this beer carb if I dont repitch?

Shouldn't need to. Priming sugar will wake those sleepy little guys up. Perhaps the experts will correct me if I am wrong. I am assuming the (stuck?) fermentation is due to lack of fermentables in the wort, rather than a problem with the yeast.

I see. I dont know that is what is wrong I was just curious hpe to get more input on it though

djfriesen said:

Shouldn't need to. Priming sugar will wake those sleepy little guys up. Perhaps the experts will correct me if I am wrong. I am assuming the (stuck?) fermentation is due to lack of fermentables in the wort, rather than a problem with the yeast.

Click to expand...

I agree. Corn Sugar will wake the yeast up and carb your brew. Lot of non fermentables in those extracts

Barry

would it hurt to throw somehoney in there as well if so how much could i get away with ? without bottle bombs that is ?

johnheather125 said:

would it hurt to throw somehoney in there as well if so how much could i get away with ? without bottle bombs that is ?

Click to expand...

Any extra fermentables beyond the priming sugar will either need to be considered as part of the priming sugar (lower the priming sugar) or allowed to ferment out first before priming.

I have no idea why you want to add honey, but if you want to do it, do it before you consider bottling. Then allow it to ferment out, and then add the priming sugar for bottle. Otherwise, yes, bottle bombs will be guaranteed.

How does it taste? If it tastes ok and not to sweet just let it go. Its fine. Chalk it up to experience.

I tastedwhen i took the SG i didnt notice any sweetness really and it tasted pretty good . this is only my second batch. one thing i did notice was a strong bite of alcohol.

A friend had mentioned useing honey in his, but now it seems like a bad idea. I will Taste again because the last time I really was not looking for sweetness.

It's not stuck. It's where it needs to be. Using extracts other than Pale/Light/Pils will often mean you end up above where you think your yeast will take you. It's the nature of the ingredients, not the yeast pooping out.

When we more experienced brewers talk about leftover fermentables in the extract, we mean fermentables that your yeast won't be able to metabolize no matter how long you leave it sit or how much yeast you add. Those unfermentables are what makes Amber and Munich extracts what they are; they also mean your FG won't go as low as you may calculate (or your recipe sheet tells you). Yeast can't read, nor can they understand English.

Say it with me: "I will stop worrying. I will leave my beer alone in the fermenter for another 7 days. Then will check the gravity with my hydrometer. If it remains the same (1.020), I will bottle using normal bottling procedure. Then I'll leave the bottles alone for three weeks in a ~70F cool, dark place."

Repeat.

Repeat.

Repeat.



Seriously - you're overthinking this. Do what I tell you and RDWHAHB!

Bob

will do