And Get out of the habit of thinking the airlock is anything other than a vent to release excess co2 and you will be much happier. Your beer will ferment whether or not the airlock bubbles. It a vent to release excess co2, NOT a fermentation gauge.
airlock bubbling, lack of airlock bubbling, stopped airlock bubbling, fast airlock bubbling, slow airlcok bubbling, heavy metal airlcok bubbling, or disco airlock bubbling really is not an indicator of what is happening to your beer, really isn't important, and it is NOT an accurate gauge of fermentation.
If your airlock was bubbling and stopped---It doesn't mean fermentation has stopped.
If you airlock isn't bubbling, it doesn't mean your fermentation hasn't started....
If your airlock starts bubbling, it really doesn't matter.
If your airlock NEVER bubbles, it doesn't mean anything is wrong or right.
Your airlock is not a fermentation gauge, it is a VALVE to release excess co2.
So get out of the habit of thinking that an airlock bubble it telling you anything.
Often co2 production/airlock bubbling winds down long before the yeast are done doing their thing. And if you rack to secondary, or even bottle based on that, you could end up with stuck fermentations or bottle bombs.
Especially with a big beer like that.....That is a beer where after a certain point the yeasts are going to slow down...but still chew through all the sugars, but not necessarily in any way that may blip your airlock.
The only way to truly know what is going on in your fermenter is with
your hydrometer. Like I said here in my blog, which I encourage you to read,
Think evaluation before action you sure as HELL wouldn't want a doctor to start cutting on you unless he used the proper diagnostic instuments like x-rays first, right? You wouldn't want him to just take a look in your eyes briefly and say "I'm cutting into your chest first thing in the morning." You would want them to use the right
diagnostic tools before the slice and dice, right? You'd cry malpractice, I would hope, if they didn't say they were sending you for an MRI and other things before going in....
Fermentation is not always "dynamic," just because you don't SEE anything happening, doesn't mean that any-thing's wrong,, and also doesn't mean that the yeast are still not working diligently away, doing what they've been doing for over 4,000 years..
