Mixing yeast strains?

I have an amber with a stuck fermentation. The original yeast was wyest smack pack Northwest Ale yeast.

I am going to try and ramp up the fermentation with a new yeast pitch, and I have some dried Nottingham ale yeast.

Is there any reason not to mix two yeast strains in the same batch? I realize that there are probably some flavor concerns, but at this point I am just trying to save a stuck beer.

nope, no real concerns. you may not get the exact yeast profile you were after originally, but beyond that you'll be fine, especially with something fairly 'generic' like nottingham.

No reason why you couldn't mix the two, but how do you know it is stuck what is the gravity at? And how long has it been there?

Cheers

Along the same lines at wop31's post - how do you know that it's stuck? Give us some additional information and we'll be able to help you determine whether it's actually stuck or not.

How long has it been in primary? What was the original gravity? How long after you pitched did you take a reading, and what was the reading? How often since you pitched have you taken readings and what were they?

Well, I decided it was probably stuck after chatting with a buddy that has a little more knowledge than me.

Here is the situation:

On August 4th I was looking to brew a stong partial mash Amber ale. Target OG was 1.069, but I only hit 1.062. 1.062 was good enough for me, so I put it in the primary.

Bubbling was good at 24 hours, 1 bubble every 3 seconds at the peak.

After 4 days (8/8) kreusen was starting to go down, so I racked out of the primary into a carboy. Gravity was at 1.032.

A little more kreusen formed in the secondary, about 1/2", so I might have racked a little early. Bubbling slowly continued for about 2 weeks, slower and slower, until I decided to try and bottle it on (8/24). Zero signs of fermentation at that point, but my sample was full of yeast. Beer tasted just fine, good hops flavor, but too sweet. Gravity at 1.025.

Posted question on Brewtak on Monday. Checked gravity monday night, still 1.025.

Time is of the essence, I just started making beer, and my buddies expect me to bring some brew to an upcoming dove hunt. I did several things to try and jump start the fermentation:

1) I went ahead and racked the beer into a sanitized container, then areated the beer as I returned it to the carboy. I know that there was a risk of contamination, but I think that I might not have started my yeast with enough oxygen.

2) Added yeast minerals. I did not do this at first, because I thougth that the PM grains would provide everything needed.

3) Watered down the beer a bit more with sterilized water. Since I don't return samples to the carboy, and I had taken about 6 samples so far, and left a decent amount of beer in the primary to avoid kreusen, I had about 2 quarts of room. My alcohol content will go down, but the bitterness profile was high enough that I think the brew could stand it.

4) I took about 2 cups of brew to make a starter for the nottingham and put it into a 2 liter bottle. The bottle expanded until it almost exploded, so I figured the nottingham would do good in the brew.

I realize at this point that I am not following a recipe, but really just making frankenbeer. However, I really want to have a finished brew in time for the dove trip. Hopefully it will still taste good.

I pitched the nottingham last night at 6 PM. Bubbling resumed by this morning.

I appriciate your help, and I will keep you guys posted.

BeerAg said:

After 4 days (8/8) kreusen was starting to go down, so I racked out of the primary into a carboy. Gravity was at 1.032.

1) I went ahead and racked the beer into a sanitized container, then areated the beer as I returned it to the carboy. I know that there was a risk of contamination, but I think that I might not have started my yeast with enough oxygen.

2) Added yeast minerals. I did not do this at first, because I thougth that the PM grains would provide everything needed.

3) Watered down the beer a bit more with sterilized water. Since I don't return samples to the carboy, and I had taken about 6 samples so far, and left a decent amount of beer in the primary to avoid kreusen, I had about 2 quarts of room. My alcohol content will go down, but the bitterness profile was high enough that I think the brew could stand it.

4) I took about 2 cups of brew to make a starter for the nottingham and put it into a 2 liter bottle. The bottle expanded until it almost exploded, so I figured the nottingham would do good in the brew.

I pitched the nottingham last night at 6 PM. Bubbling resumed by this morning.

I appriciate your help, and I will keep you guys posted.

Click to expand...

First I belive that you racked it way too early, for a beer with an OG 0f 1.062, it should have been in the primary for at least 7 days if not more.

1) NEVER aerate your beer after Primary fermantation has started unless you have an OG of like 1.200 and then only for the first day or two.

2)Won't make much of a diference

3) Don't water down beer, that's just wrong.

4) That would be a semi-right thing to do, but you really wouldn't have needed to do that had you been patient and just waited for the primary to finish.

The only way that you can finish a beer sooner (in time for a dove hunt) is to start it sooner, plan a couple of weeks (4-5) ahead of time if you know that you are going to need some homebrew for a certian event.

It should turn out, but next time just RDWHAHB and be patient and wait it out. I am sure that your buddies will understand if you have to bring some micros instead and tell them that they just have to wait, because you can't rush perfection.

Cheers