Help with DFH India Brown Ale

Hello all,
A few weeks back i brewed the IBA recipe from the extreme brewing book.
The OG listed in the book was 1.070. I started with a 6 gallon boil and ended up with about 4.75 gallons and never topped it off with more water. My OG was 1.077. I left it in the primary for 2 weeks and took a reading while transferring it to the secondary and it was still at 1.022. After about 2 weeks in the secondary it is still at 1.022, and now its down below 4.5 gallons after leaving the sediment behind and the taking of samples. I have another pack of the ringwood ale yeast that i plan on repitching with, but would like some input before i do. I was also thinking of adding more water to bring it closer to the 5 gallon mark and maybe adding a little extra brown sugar as the recipe called for 8oz at the end of the boil. Any info helps.

Thanks, James

Why are you repitching? 1.022 seems reasonable without knowing what FG you are trying to get.

Repitching isn't going to lower your gravity. Adding sugar will add a bit more alcohol, but the un-fermentable sugars in there are still not going to ferment, and you will end up with a lower apparent FG, but it will still be sweet. 1.022 isn't really that high for an extract high gravity brew.

sorry forgot to mention FG was sopposed to be 1.015.

I am assuming its an extract brew, so correct me if that assumption is incorrect. I have never had good attenuation with an extract brew, so that is pretty much in line with my experiences. I have made a couple high gravity extract brews and never seem to get below 1.020, even with high attenuation (Nottingham, US-05) yeast. Having never used Ringwood, I can not comment, but I have read that it is tempermental.

What temps did you pitch/ferment/now? Maybe try warming it up?

Yes, it is an extract with steeping grains recipe. I pitched at 70, fermented at 68-72 and is currently at 70. Am I correct in assuming that even if I made it warmer I have transferred it to secondary so I have already lost most of the yeast that had settled?

I'm not sure this has anything to do with being an extract brew or not. I have never had problems with attenuation and extract.

Ringwood ale has an attenuation range of 68-72%. You are currently at 71%, going from 1.077 to 1.022.

I was reading this recipe today, when I saw this thread. The book has 1.070 to 1.015, an attenuation rate of 77.6%... above the range of the yeast. I'm not sure what they are doing to get that type of attenuation...

Did you use a starter? My first two batches, before using a starter, finished high at ~1.020. The two batches since then, with a starter, have finished where Beersmith predicted (one was even a point lower).

However, it sounds like you got the attenuation the yeast could handle according to the above post.

I did not make a starter. I'm not sure how, if someone would give me some info how I would appreciate it. Also if I repitched with the same yeast would it continue to ferment and get the same 71% attenuation

You have already got the 71% attenuation. Pitching the same yeast will not really do anything unless the yeast is stalled instead of finished. People seem to think your yeast is finished. To be sure, rouse it up a bit and raise the temp to the upper level of the yeast's range and see if you can get it to drop a few more points.

I transferred it to secondary, there is zero sediment I don't think there is anything to rouse. I'm thinking I might caramelize a tiny amount of brown sugar and add about 1/4 gallon of water cooling it and aerating it and add that and repitch more yeast and put it in a warmer place. Does this sound like an ok idea or will I ruin it?

jigidyjim said:

I'm not sure this has anything to do with being an extract brew or not. I have never had problems with attenuation and extract.

Ringwood ale has an attenuation range of 68-72%. You are currently at 71%, going from 1.077 to 1.022.

I was reading this recipe today, when I saw this thread. The book has 1.070 to 1.015, an attenuation rate of 77.6%... above the range of the yeast. I'm not sure what they are doing to get that type of attenuation...

Click to expand...

That's the answer – the yeast. 71% is very reasonable. You can get 75-77%, from what I've read, but that's really pushing its limitations. I'm fermenting my first ringwood at the moment. Keys to getting ringwood to fully attenuate include:

-Open fermentation, by resting a bucket lid on top until krausen falls, then seal it up.

-Rouse the yeast by giving it a gentle stir, once or twice a day.

-As you get closer to your FG raise the temp to about 70F for several days to perform a diacetyl rest and knock out a few extra gravity points.

jmancuso said:

I transferred it to secondary, there is zero sediment I don't think there is anything to rouse. I'm thinking I might caramelize a tiny amount of brown sugar and add about 1/4 gallon of water cooling it and aerating it and add that and repitch more yeast and put it in a warmer place. Does this sound like an ok idea or will I ruin it?

Click to expand...

Too late. Your done. The yeast are not going to clean up anymore. Don't add any sugar or repitch, your beer probably won't improve by doing this. IMO adding anything will make it worse. You are probably going to end with great beer, I wouldn't screw with it. That ringwood yeast is awesome. Just leave it alone.