Is my beer dead?

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TigerMark89

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Only my 3rd batch so still a newbie. Brewing a shock top clone, cooked on Sunday afternoon, pitched Wyeast witbear 3944 at a Wort temp of about 65 degrees. Smack Pack swelled up good so assumed the yeast is good but I still have zero activity in the airlock. All of my previous batches started up within 24 hours so I'm starting to wonder. Is this a slow starting yeast or is it dead? BTW room temp is steady at about 69.

What is my next step if I don't see any activity. Neglected to check my starting gravity so not sure if checking that would be of any benefit.
 
Take a gravity reading. I bet the beer is done fermenting. Something as simple as a small leak in the seal of your fermenter will make a non active airlock. Never worry about bubbles. They don't mean anything.
 
+ 1 for taking a gravity reading. Go get a 3 piece plastic wine thief. Those things have saved me from the speculation i had about a couple of my brews. If the yeast was a little old it could take a long time to wake up but 3 days is usually a bit long. I would say that if the gravity hasnt changed and everything looks like it did on brew day, re pitch with some new yeast.

If you can, invest in the equipment to make a yeast started. You can get a really awesome stir plate made out of tupperware and a computer fan from stirplates.com I have two of them and they work great. Then just buy a 1L pyrex flask and you have everything you need to make super healthy yeast right from the start.
 
Hammy71 said:
Take a gravity reading. I bet the beer is done fermenting. Something as simple as a small leak in the seal of your fermenter will make a non active airlock. Never worry about bubbles. They don't mean anything.
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+1

pull the airlock and take a wiff, bet it smells like fermented wort. If so put it back on and wait a couple weeks and then bottle. A hydrometer reading would confirm it, but your nose is a good tool too.
 
Like others have said, the only real way to know is to take a gravity reading. Bubbles in the airlock matter less. Has your beer lightened or cleared from its original color? Most of the time the beer lightens as the yeast do their jobs.
 
You can check the gravity without knowing the starting gravity. As long as you got the volume right the extract brews will have the correct starting gravity that can be calculated or is given in a kit directions.
 
Being around here since Nov, you should have seen a million times discussions about how airlock bubbling or lack of bubbling means nothing, that how it's not a fermentation gauge, just a vent, and how it can bubble or not for various extraenous and atmospheric reasons just as easily as it could for fermentation. An you must have seen all the comments, including those in this thread about how the ONLY accurate gauge of fermentation is by taking a hydrometer reading.

If you want to know what your beer is doing, then take a hydro reading.....It's that SIMPLE....
 
Pulled the airlock and detected no off smells. Peeked through the airlock hole and it looked like foam on the wort so I am assuming some type of activity. I will check the FG tomorrow.

What do you end up with if you bottle an unfermented beer? Is it bad tasting, rotten, or just nonalchoholic????
 
TigerMark89 said:
What do you end up with if you bottle an unfermented beer? Is it bad tasting, rotten, or just nonalchoholic????
Click to expand...

I think what you mean is "what do you end up with if you bottle that hasn't finished fermenting?". Answer: too much carbonation/pressure. Best avoid that whole gag by checking gravity until it gets to a safe place for a few days.
 
TigerMark89 said:
Pulled the airlock and detected no off smells. Peeked through the airlock hole and it looked like foam on the wort so I am assuming some type of activity. I will check the FG tomorrow.

What do you end up with if you bottle an unfermented beer? Is it bad tasting, rotten, or just nonalchoholic????
Click to expand...

If you bottle beer that is still fermenting I'd say bottle bombs. Check the gravity and 3 days later check again. If is stable and is around where it should have finished you can proceed to bottling.
 
TigerMark89 your beer is not dead, it may be in limbo, but definitely not dead. I have been leaving my beers in the primary a lot longer than I used to. Even when there is no airlock activity, I assume it's "resting", and settling. Fermentation can be complete in a few days, but once it's done there is really no rush to bottle. If you check FG a couple days in a row, and it's the same, it's done, and you can bottle. Home brewing is fun, but you have to learn to be patient, take it slow, do the measurements (hydrometer) keep things clean, and RELAX. Worst case scenario, you don't like the way it tastes, you try again, and like any hobby, you learn, get better, and finally get good (or great) at it. I would say I'm at the pretty good at it phase. And I'll admit I am fairly easy to please, so I may only be at the almost good phase. I am getting more patient, and more relaxed. A hobby is supposed to be something that you get "lost" in. Something that reduces stress, and makes you feel that the rest of the world is on hold. I am totally enjoying my home brewing experience, and the knowledge, experience, camaraderie, and humor I find here.
 
CBXBob said:
TigerMark89 your beer is not dead, it may be in limbo, but definitely not dead. I have been leaving my beers in the primary a lot longer than I used to. Even when there is no airlock activity, I assume it's "resting", and settling. Fermentation can be complete in a few days, but once it's done there is really no rush to bottle. If you check FG a couple days in a row, and it's the same, it's done, and you can bottle. Home brewing is fun, but you have to learn to be patient, take it slow, do the measurements (hydrometer) keep things clean, and RELAX. Worst case scenario, you don't like the way it tastes, you try again, and like any hobby, you learn, get better, and finally get good (or great) at it. I would say I'm at the pretty good at it phase. And I'll admit I am fairly easy to please, so I may only be at the almost good phase. I am getting more patient, and more relaxed. A hobby is supposed to be something that you get "lost" in. Something that reduces stress, and makes you feel that the rest of the world is on hold. I am totally enjoying my home brewing experience, and the knowledge, experience, camaraderie, and humor I find here.
Click to expand...

Well said!
 
I made a helles with W1007 last Wednesday, the airlock didn't bubble much at all. But when I popped the lid to take a gravity reading I got a nice wiff of fermented wort and a nice krausen. I used a started so I was a little worried that I saw no bubbles. But the yeasties did their work incogneto I guess. Going to let it sit another week or so then bottle.
 
Sounds like you are using a bucket, which makes it difficult to see any activity other than the air lock. I had this happen once. Did not get a good seal and there was no air lock activity. I carefully removed the lid to find a thick krausen. I replaced the lid and soon thereafter, I had air lock activity. If you looked through the hole in the lid and saw foam, then you are OK. Give it a couple of weeks before you think about transfering.
 
Thanks everyone for the advice, I was never in panic mode, I never will over a hobby and after all its just beer. I was always taught to learn from someone with more experience so thats the only thing I was trying to accomplish. I understand lack of bubbling but after researching the yeast I was ultimately more concerned with blowing the airlock off, lack of evident activity was the least of my initial concerns.

One part of the instructions said that it made 5 gallons and the second said to top it off to 5.25 gallons so I wasn't going to place 100% accuracy in the FG. It looks like I have a nice Kraussen (sp?) so I think I will leave it alone for another week and then bottle it.

Thanks again for all the advice.
 

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