leechdemon
Member
Hey guys, first time poster here! Hoping you can solve my basic conundrum.
I've been brewing for about a year, entirely from brewer's best partial-boil extract kits. Until about 3 batches ago, I've never bothered to check/record OG/FG readings; I tried on our first batch and didn't understand it, so I never bothered. A few batches ago I started recording my readings, and I'm finding that the FG isn't usually getting as low as I'd expect. On my latest batch, I brewed from extracts but without using a kit; the OG was 1.066, which is a bit higher than I usually have been getting with the kit beers.
What I've noticed after taking readings is that I'm usually getting from around 1.050 to around 1.020; about a 30 point drop. Not terrible, but not great. On my latest beer, which had a higher OG, it went down from 1.066 to 1.042. I'm only 2 weeks into Primary, but I measured it after 1 week just to be certain, and haven't found a change.
What I'm thinking is that something in my process is limiting my fermentation to about 20-30 points, then I'm getting stuck on something. From what I've read, the common causes are lack of nutrients, temperature, or lack of oxygen. But I've also read that extract beers usually have enough nutrients, my temperature is 68º, and I've also read that partial-boils usually have enough Oxygen as well. Also, it's dry yeast (about a year before the expiration date) that I've added to warm water. One beer I used a starter, but the same results.
So my question is, what would you recommend I do to fix my routinely sticking beers? Add nutrients, agitate the beer, repitch, wait it out? It's happened on my last 3 batches, so I'm thinking it's a process issue more than specific ingredients, etc.
Thanks in advance!!
I've been brewing for about a year, entirely from brewer's best partial-boil extract kits. Until about 3 batches ago, I've never bothered to check/record OG/FG readings; I tried on our first batch and didn't understand it, so I never bothered. A few batches ago I started recording my readings, and I'm finding that the FG isn't usually getting as low as I'd expect. On my latest batch, I brewed from extracts but without using a kit; the OG was 1.066, which is a bit higher than I usually have been getting with the kit beers.
What I've noticed after taking readings is that I'm usually getting from around 1.050 to around 1.020; about a 30 point drop. Not terrible, but not great. On my latest beer, which had a higher OG, it went down from 1.066 to 1.042. I'm only 2 weeks into Primary, but I measured it after 1 week just to be certain, and haven't found a change.
What I'm thinking is that something in my process is limiting my fermentation to about 20-30 points, then I'm getting stuck on something. From what I've read, the common causes are lack of nutrients, temperature, or lack of oxygen. But I've also read that extract beers usually have enough nutrients, my temperature is 68º, and I've also read that partial-boils usually have enough Oxygen as well. Also, it's dry yeast (about a year before the expiration date) that I've added to warm water. One beer I used a starter, but the same results.
So my question is, what would you recommend I do to fix my routinely sticking beers? Add nutrients, agitate the beer, repitch, wait it out? It's happened on my last 3 batches, so I'm thinking it's a process issue more than specific ingredients, etc.
Thanks in advance!!