mindcrime
Well-Known Member
I'm planning on brewing a strong american brown ale this upcoming weekend, and I was planning on using Nottingham yeast. I got to thinking last night... I have an IPA that I was going to rack to secondary to dry hop tonight that used Nottingham as well. If I held off and racked that this weekend, just before brewing the brown, could I simply pitch the brown on top of the cake/trub from the IPA?
I know its theoretically possible, and I know its reccomended to go from a lighter beer to a heavier one. That is what I would be doing, from an IPA at about 50 IBU and an OG of 1.055 to a brown with an expected final IBU of about 45 and an expected OG of nearly 1.08. I figured the extra yeast in the cake couldnt hurt with such a high gravity beer as well, so hopefully overpitching wouldnt be an issue.
However... I've never pitched on a cake before, and have a bit of trepidation. The brown is due to be my thanksgiving beer, big and slightly sweet to pair with turkyday fixings, and will be served to a bunch of my family members, so its a fairly important batch.
Is it worth it to try this new (for me) technique? What problems might result?
Thanks for your thoughts!
I know its theoretically possible, and I know its reccomended to go from a lighter beer to a heavier one. That is what I would be doing, from an IPA at about 50 IBU and an OG of 1.055 to a brown with an expected final IBU of about 45 and an expected OG of nearly 1.08. I figured the extra yeast in the cake couldnt hurt with such a high gravity beer as well, so hopefully overpitching wouldnt be an issue.
However... I've never pitched on a cake before, and have a bit of trepidation. The brown is due to be my thanksgiving beer, big and slightly sweet to pair with turkyday fixings, and will be served to a bunch of my family members, so its a fairly important batch.
Is it worth it to try this new (for me) technique? What problems might result?
Thanks for your thoughts!