Trouble with my Pumpkin Ale... won't ferment

I brewed a pumpkin spice ale, which was based on a recipe i found on these forums, but I modified it to be higher gravity, higher alcohol, (wanted it to be really high) etc... this is only like the 5th beer i've brewed though, so I don't know if I messed something up or what.

pitched liquid yeast... waited 24 hours, no fermentation... pitched another, waited 8 hours, pitched another just now. nothing yet.

i read something towards the end of brewing about the spices getting "nullified" if added during the boil so i did add a tiny amount of additional mccormic pumpkin spice to the primary (in the boil i'd used separate spices according to recipe). i later saw someone talking about that pumpkin spice containing sulfiting agents... could that have ruined the entire thing? it was not much. could the gravity be too high? could 3 cans of pumpkin be too much? can't figure this one out. temperature is around 72-73.


on a more general note... i've seen a lot of people talk about how their brews start to ferment in like 2 hours and have violent fermentation that clogs the airlock, etc. i've NEVER had this happen... always takes at least 12 hours but usually at least 24... is this just a characteristic of liquid yeast or something?

Did you make a starter? Most of the violent ferments are when people have pitched a lot of yeast, either one of the big smack-packs or they have made a starter using a White Labs vial.

nope, didn't make a starter. but after three big smack-packs... surely that should be enough. they swelled too...

rcd said:

nope, didn't make a starter. but after three big smack-packs... surely that should be enough. they swelled too...

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You say you made it high alc%...what was your OG?
Three 125 smack packs should take care of just about anything but you never know.

well... i kinda didn't measure the OG

I don't know if this gives a rough idea but as far as fermentables... i had 6lbs light LME, 3lbs wheat LME, 8oz maple syrup.

rcd said:

well... i kinda didn't measure the OG

I don't know if this gives a rough idea but as far as fermentables... i had 6lbs light LME, 3lbs wheat LME, 8oz maple syrup.

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that's a big beer. did you aerate the wort well before pitching?

Yeast foremost need a healthy start and not a quick one. I look for good continued fermentation at the proper temperature range for the yeast and not necessarily a quick start and it is finished in 2 days or so. I would think that part of the problem you are having is a lack of aeration for the amount of fermentables you have there. It may take 24 hours or more to develop a good start. Is there any foam starting to develop? Keep it clean and wait. You might twist the fermenter to rouse some of the yeast. It's about all you can do after 3 smack packs. I use an aeration stone and on the last 2 brews it took a good 24 hours to get going but the yeast perks along for 5 days at 65-68 degrees.

thanks for the info. i hadn't thought about it being my first big beer, but yeah, I bet it's an aeration problem... I did aerate but not as well as I have in the past I think. Guess I should get an aeration stone or the like, for next time. Is there one that won't require an O2 tank? Like, hand pump or something?

If aeration is indeed the problem, will it eventually get started, but just take longer than it should? Or could it just completely fail to start even after 3 smack packs, if the aeration is lacking...

rcd said:

thanks for the info. i hadn't thought about it being my first big beer, but yeah, I bet it's an aeration problem... I did aerate but not as well as I have in the past I think. Guess I should get an aeration stone or the like, for next time. Is there one that won't require an O2 tank? Like, hand pump or something?
...

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A new aquarium pump along with new aquarium pump tubing, a dissuser stone and an inline sanitary filter works for aeration.

cool. fortunately, it started fermenting hard today. so it looks like it's okay for now. thanks again.