Do darker beers ferment stronger

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raf1919

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so i'm brewing my first stout (coopers stout extract kit) was xmas gift. well i have coopers fermenter which is pretty large. i have brewed about 10 batches i've never had one come close to blowing out. But this stout the foam started to go into the airlock it just hit the tip and than came down over night.

But i was just surprised to see that. so not sure if its the stout? or the dry coopers yeast? i usually use the liquid yeasts.
 
Its the higher gravity beers.

Not necessaryly. I have had low gravity beers go crazy and blow off and high gravity beers just chug along. The biggest blow off I ever had was a stout that was only 1.042 OG. But of course I also had some big beers go crazy too.

Each fermentation is diffferent. Big beer do tend to blow off more often , but small ones can too.
 
Gravity; fermentation temperature; viability of yeast; style of yeast; nutrients available; size of pitching culture; etc. All of these plus many others can affect the strength of the fermentation action. Take precautions because you never know how a fermentation will act when it first starts.
 
Dark beers are dark because of adding darker roasted grains and that has nothing to do with the alcohol content of a beer. Like the guy above who said he made a stout that had an OG of 1.042. Alcohol content is decided by how much fermentable sugar is available for the yeast to eat. You can make high alcohol content beers made entirely of lightly roasted grains and dark beers with small grain bills that have low alcohol content. Color has nothing to do with alcohol content.
 
I just did my second attempt. An oatmeal stout. It started bubbling hard within 7 hours. and slowed waaaay down within 2-3 days. I am trying to figure out why Im not getting vigorous fermentation. Im guessing not a good enough aeration. Any thoughts?
 
I just did my second attempt. An oatmeal stout. It started bubbling hard within 7 hours. and slowed waaaay down within 2-3 days. I am trying to figure out why Im not getting vigorous fermentation. Im guessing not a good enough aeration. Any thoughts?

Think about it. Yeast are living creatures . Everyone is different. Ever had a girlfriend that F*****d like a mink sometimes and sometimes was like a dead fish. Yeast can sometime do the nasty really well and sometime are just lazy and just lay there. Depends on mood they are in. Did you do the dishes or buy them jewlery? Crazy wild monkey sex. Lay on the couch and fart... nothing.
 
Dark beers are dark because of adding darker roasted grains and that has nothing to do with the alcohol content of a beer. Like the guy above who said he made a stout that had an OG of 1.042. Alcohol content is decided by how much fermentable sugar is available for the yeast to eat. You can make high alcohol content beers made entirely of lightly roasted grains and dark beers with small grain bills that have low alcohol content. Color has nothing to do with alcohol content.

I don't think he was talking about alcohol levels. I believe he was referring to how vigorous the fermentation is. That being said, your statement is correct.
 
Any other variables? Amount of yeast used, different temperatures?
 
Think about it. Yeast are living creatures . Everyone is different. Ever had a girlfriend that F*****d like a mink sometimes and sometimes was like a dead fish. Yeast can sometime do the nasty really well and sometime are just lazy and just lay there. Depends on mood they are in. Did you do the dishes or buy them jewlery? Crazy wild monkey sex. Lay on the couch and fart... nothing.

THIS explains everything!!!
 
Any other variables? Amount of yeast used, different temperatures?

Others have already been listed but the head space in your fermentation vessel makes a difference for blow outs too. I always use a blow off tube just to avoid the mess in case of vigorous fermentations. Since I've increased my pitch rates and been brewing big beers recently, all have been throwing stuff into the blowoff lately
 
Think about it. Yeast are living creatures . Everyone is different. Ever had a girlfriend that F*****d like a mink sometimes and sometimes was like a dead fish. Yeast can sometime do the nasty really well and sometime are just lazy and just lay there. Depends on mood they are in. Did you do the dishes or buy them jewlery? Crazy wild monkey sex. Lay on the couch and fart... nothing.

point taken haha..

but i usuaully get like wyest or american labs... which is like pornstar yeast and this time i used coopers that was inside can yeast which is like masterbating.

but i get the point tho.. i think next batch i will dry using dry yeast again.
 
I just did my second attempt. An oatmeal stout. It started bubbling hard within 7 hours. and slowed waaaay down within 2-3 days. I am trying to figure out why Im not getting vigorous fermentation. Im guessing not a good enough aeration. Any thoughts?

The yeast was probably almost done with the majority of work. I had a stout that finished--from 1.050 to 1.011 in one week. It went hard for two days and then the Krausen fell and it just did light bubbling for the rest of the week. It may look like not much is happening but the little monkeys are doing their thing and don't care if you are impressed with the show. I guess kind of like Beergolf with his girlfriend.
 
I've got an Irish stout that has been going for about three weeks in primary. It had a really slow start. Nothing for 48 hours really, then a crazy period for about three or 4 days. Then a bubble every 30 seconds or so since. I haven't messed with it or taken any hydro readings yet. Might let it go 4 weeks total then bottle it.

It all just depends on temps, yeast type, fermentable sugars, etc. Who cares, let it do its thing in its own time. Always give 3 to 4 weeks to condition, bottle and enjoy it in another 3 to 4 weeks.

Most stouts tend to be in the 4.5-6.5 range. I prefer the ones that aren't super HG but that's just me. Good luck!
 
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