help me answer a friend's question

Now normally i would tell him RDWHAHB. and a bit about sanitation and how hard it is to ruin a beer. Now i know That you can have a bit of a run away fermentation from the high temperatures, But if it gets stuck how can you restart the fermentation. And obviously the answer to his off flavors is esters and possible fussel alcohols.

THE PART I DON'T KNOW is about the bottle carbing. I force carb everything. Anyone have input on that part?

hey. i'm making a cream ale. i had VERY rapid fermentation for 2.5 days then stopped cold. i was trying to keep it warm. could i have gotten it too warm? is it possible that it just finished that fast? OG was 1.050. i dont want to open to check FG cu i dont want to contaminate. this is the stuff i want ready for st patties day... thoughts?

i read somewhere that too high of a fermentation temp may result in off-flavors, but i have not seen anything that says my beer would be ruined. i've also read that it may still be going just very slowly, but the floater in my airlock is glued down (no pressure, in fact maybe even a mild suction going on). if you dont think it is ruined, how son do i need to prime and bottle in order to hvae it carbonate in 2 weeks? (st patties day weekend)

You are still going to need to check the Gravity right now to know for sure.

I asked this same question and it was pretty clear that the CO2 that was release from the first 2.5 days of ferment is heavier than the Oxygen. This means that you can open the lid and take a sample without worrying about contaminating the beer.

And obviously, make sure to sanitize everything that touches the batch.

If the gravity is too low, then you could add more of the same yeast.

how long is it going to take him to bottle carb these things?

If you're just asking how long it takes to bottle carb, it depends on the beer and how long you want to condition them. If you just want carbonation, it could be between 2-3 weeks. If your beer benefits from conditioning, you may want to keep it in the bottles a little bit longer.

My hef that I just bottled only took two weeks and tastes very well carbonated.

If the fermentation hasn't completed, I would still try to re-ignite the yeast before putting into bottles. Make sure the FG is near what it is supposed to be.

You still should have him/her check the FG. I wouldn't make any decisions until you have checked that. I believe that 2 and a half days may actually have been enough time for the alcohol conversion (Lowering of the gravity).

My airlock stopped bubbling on this batch (Irish stout) after 2.5 days also. I took a gravity reading and it is fine...

cream ales are fairly dry. like .008-.012?

Elfmaze said:

...i read somewhere that too high of a fermentation temp may result in off-flavors,

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Yes, true. Best if he learns to slow down a bit, use lower temps. Depends on yeast strain how the flavor profile will change, but there is a good chance it will taste alcohol "hot" and the possibility of headaches definitely exists.

...if you dont think it is ruined, how son do i need to prime and bottle in order to hvae it carbonate in 2 weeks? (st patties day weekend)

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The consensus of most members will be that he started too late. St. Paddy's day just two weeks away? - it hasn't been in the fermenter long enough to condition and age properly - THAT would be 2 more weeks. Then 3 weeks in the bottle. I suggest he give up on this being ready for mid-March. Especially with the hot ferment. All the more reason for it to sit in the fermenter even for another month!

As far as priming, there will be enough yeast in suspension that about 4oz (weight) of dextrose (corn sugar) at bottling time will result in good carbonation over 3 weeks.

HAHA, sounds like he infected somethign somehow

"ok. the beer is bad. i'll give you an hour or 2 to change my mind on dumping (rather than bottling) but the beer tasts like a sour, half rotten bannana peel. there is a thick green slime around the top of teh bucket (i assume the Krousen) and at the bottom its tan and green. after transfering the beer to the bottling bucket i swear the krousen smelled better than the beer itself. oh well. "

So do you know the ferment temp?
I cannot imagine a beer going bad like that without some major mishap like maybe a sanitizing issue.
"Green slime", yucky!!
Hopefully someone has potentially good news about the batch, seems like such a waste!!
Good luck!