Hey guys,
So as I wrote somewhere else in the forum, I brewed last Saturday and overshot my OG... by A LOT. My grain didn't come milled, so I borrowed my buddies. A beer that was supposed to end up at 1.045 with my previous 65% efficiency, ended up being 1.060!
Although this is a good thing which boosts my brewing confidence, it certainly didn't provide a boost to my S-05 yeast. I pitched one pack without re-hydrating (I was pressed for time and forgot), so I just sprinkled on top. Although that isn't normally as issue... it might be for a beer that is already too strong for a single pack of yeast. Since Saturday I haven't seen my airlock bubble, however the level of sanitizer in the airlock is offset, showing that there is SOME pressure buildup. I opened the lid for a peak and there is in deed krausen, so some level of fermentation is taking place.
However, my question is: should I go buy another pack of dry yeast, rehydrate it, and pour it in? It's been 5 days, so I have no idea how that would affect the brew. Hoping I can get a few expert opinions as this is only my 4th AG batch.
Also, I have another concern about the starter I just made for my IPA I'll be brewing on Saturday. It seems that there hasn't been much activity in my 2L Erlenmeyer, which is a little troubling. I'll outline my procedure, and hopefully someone can alleviate my worries or let me know where I went wrong/let me know if it's necessary for me to go buy more yeast
1. add 1L water, add 125g DME, fill up to 1300mL mark (aiming for a 1250mL starter). I did not sanitize the flask, just cleaned it. I brought this to a boil, then kept it boiling for 10 minutes. I then (stupidly) put on the airlock and submerged into very cold water. Now, you don't need to tell me the laws of physics here, cooling would reduce the pressure of the heated vapors inside the flask, and the differential pressure would pull what it could out of the airlock; and that's exactly what it did. About 1oz of 12ppm iodophore (about 1tsp to 1.57L) fell into my cooling wort. Once the wort was at about 75F, I grabbed some sanitized tin foil, took off the airlock, covered the top with the tinfoil, and shook the wort vigorously. I re-sanitized the airlock, pitched the yeast, put in the airlock, and then I was done. It's been 24 hours and I haven't detected any activity. In my last starter, there was activity within 8 hours, which is why I'm worried, because I think my sanitation practices have gotten better!
Thanks for listening me ramble on, and I know some of this is just some newb homebrewing jitters. I just don't want to pitch some non-viable, low count yeast to a big IPA, or have a beer which doesn't ferment properly and doesn't finish as dry and hoped.
Thanks again!
Cheers,
Jay
So as I wrote somewhere else in the forum, I brewed last Saturday and overshot my OG... by A LOT. My grain didn't come milled, so I borrowed my buddies. A beer that was supposed to end up at 1.045 with my previous 65% efficiency, ended up being 1.060!
Although this is a good thing which boosts my brewing confidence, it certainly didn't provide a boost to my S-05 yeast. I pitched one pack without re-hydrating (I was pressed for time and forgot), so I just sprinkled on top. Although that isn't normally as issue... it might be for a beer that is already too strong for a single pack of yeast. Since Saturday I haven't seen my airlock bubble, however the level of sanitizer in the airlock is offset, showing that there is SOME pressure buildup. I opened the lid for a peak and there is in deed krausen, so some level of fermentation is taking place.
However, my question is: should I go buy another pack of dry yeast, rehydrate it, and pour it in? It's been 5 days, so I have no idea how that would affect the brew. Hoping I can get a few expert opinions as this is only my 4th AG batch.
Also, I have another concern about the starter I just made for my IPA I'll be brewing on Saturday. It seems that there hasn't been much activity in my 2L Erlenmeyer, which is a little troubling. I'll outline my procedure, and hopefully someone can alleviate my worries or let me know where I went wrong/let me know if it's necessary for me to go buy more yeast
1. add 1L water, add 125g DME, fill up to 1300mL mark (aiming for a 1250mL starter). I did not sanitize the flask, just cleaned it. I brought this to a boil, then kept it boiling for 10 minutes. I then (stupidly) put on the airlock and submerged into very cold water. Now, you don't need to tell me the laws of physics here, cooling would reduce the pressure of the heated vapors inside the flask, and the differential pressure would pull what it could out of the airlock; and that's exactly what it did. About 1oz of 12ppm iodophore (about 1tsp to 1.57L) fell into my cooling wort. Once the wort was at about 75F, I grabbed some sanitized tin foil, took off the airlock, covered the top with the tinfoil, and shook the wort vigorously. I re-sanitized the airlock, pitched the yeast, put in the airlock, and then I was done. It's been 24 hours and I haven't detected any activity. In my last starter, there was activity within 8 hours, which is why I'm worried, because I think my sanitation practices have gotten better!
Thanks for listening me ramble on, and I know some of this is just some newb homebrewing jitters. I just don't want to pitch some non-viable, low count yeast to a big IPA, or have a beer which doesn't ferment properly and doesn't finish as dry and hoped.
Thanks again!
Cheers,
Jay