Another Fermentation Question

I have asked/discussed this in a previous thread, but I want to ask again for clarification.

Is it alright if fermentation is "over" after 24-48 hours?

My first batch was English Brown Ale. Fermentation was in full swing after 12-15 hours and then 30-48 hours later all bubbling had stopped. Nothing was touched until 7 days after brewing and a gravity reading was taken. Gravity is within the description of ending gravity (although on the high side) and is proportional to the start gravity (which was also on the high side). I tasted it and it was pretty good. I've left it in primary and plan to move to secondary tomorrow (11 days after brewing).

I was told this was OK.

But then I did a second batch of Pumpkin Ale. Starting gravity was almost perfect. Fermentation (bubbling) was even more prominent than the Brown Ale at 10-12 hours. At somewhere between 24-30 hours there was no more bubbling!

Why is this happening consistently? Is it ok? Am I heading for 10 gallons of crap? Would liquid yeast fix this?

What's your average fermentation temp? This will have some impact on how quickly the yeast works.

A pretty good rule of thumb is that if it tastes good after fermenting, it will probably just get better with age. At least, that's what I've heard. Can anyone confirm that?

I'd say that your good to transfer to the secondary. I use the 1-2-3 rule. 1 week primary, 2 weeks secondary, 3 weeks bottled. Most of my brews reach the FG within 3 days. It's normal.

uniconfis said:

I'd say that your good to transfer to the secondary. I use the 1-2-3 rule. 1 week primary, 2 weeks secondary, 3 weeks bottled. Most of my brews reach the FG within 3 days. It's normal.

Click to expand...

With regards to the temp question - The temp of the basement its in is never 100% the same, but slightly shifts between 67 and 71 degrees (average is about 68)

To uniconfis, thats a little comforting, but its more like completion in 1 1/2 days for me. I'd be alright with 3 days b/c I've heard that is the lower end of the average

OblivionsGate said:

...its more like completion in 1 1/2 days for me. I'd be alright with 3 days b/c I've heard that is the lower end of the average

Click to expand...

I think you'll be OK. The APA I am drinking now "finished" fermenting in about 1.5-2 days. That is, the kreusen had fallen and air lock activity stopped. (I didn't take a hydro reading until a few weeks later.) It tastes great. I used dry yeast - Safale US-05 I think.

Unless you are judging whether or not your fermentation is finished by taking hydrometer readings, you never really know for sure when it is done. I have had fermentations where all the activity had seemed to stop but the hydro readings kept dropping; I'll bet your fermentation is not actually done just because the bubbling stopped or krausen fell.

Even if your fermentation really is finished in a day and a half, you have nothing to worry about. Fast ferments happen to me all the time (I have noticed that Safale-04 works particularly quickly).

There is nothing wrong with a fast ferment and no reason to fix anything. My guess is you used the same type of yeast hence you had similar fermentations. If you want to switch to liquid yeast in order to take advantage of the number of yeast strains available, go for it, but you don't have to just to get longer fermentations (besides, some liquid yeast ferment fast too).

TheJadedDog said:

Unless you are judging whether or not your fermentation is finished by taking hydrometer readings, you never really know for sure when it is done. I have had fermentations where all the activity had seemed to stop but the hydro readings kept dropping; I'll bet your fermentation is not actually done just because the bubbling stopped or krausen fell.

Click to expand...

That's what I thought and that's why I left it in the primary for a few more days beyond my first gravity reading (that and the thread on just leaving it in primary till finish).

Well, its good to know this day of airlock activity is normal. I just got worried because I've seen threads and instructions that describe fermentation/airlock activity for a full week or more!

OblivionsGate said:

Well, its good to know this day of airlock activity is normal. I just got worried because I've seen threads and instructions that describe fermentation/airlock activity for a full week or more!

Click to expand...

Every fermentation is different, some will be fast, some will be slow. Yeast are living things and respond differently in different environments; big beers, for example, can take 2-3 weeks to ferment out.

Try not to worry too much about hitting the right time frames (since there is no such thing) and just let your brews do their thing.

OblivionsGate said:

.

Is it alright if fermentation is "over" after 24-48 hours?

Click to expand...

In my experience, you have had two perfectly good ferments. Many of the ale yeasts are wicked, and don't fool around. As an example, a few weeks ago, 4 hrs after pitching, movement began in the carboy. 12 hrs after, it was rolling inside the fermenter. The next day, it was all but over. The temp. was 68f.

just remember. it may finish in 2 days, but don't ever rack it in less than a week and you should never bottle before 3 weeks, IMO.

3 weeks fermentation/clearing, 6 weeks in bottle = tastier beer

DeathBrewer said:

just remember. it may finish in 2 days, but don't ever rack it in less than a week and you should never bottle before 3 weeks, IMO.

3 weeks fermentation/clearing, 6 weeks in bottle = tastier beer

Click to expand...

I absolutely agree with this sentiment. I have yet to try a beer that was any good before 6 weeks (with at least 2 weeks of conditioning time be it in the bottle or keg).

I'm kinda in the same boat...brewed a 1.076 Belgian and in less than 12 hours, the airlock was cooking! now, a day later...still some activity, but vastly reduced. ambient air temp is 70°F

I'd have bet that rigorous fermentation would have lasted considerably longer for such a relatively high gravity beer...but then, this is only my second batch.