Fixing a Stuck Fermentation with Brett?

So, I've got a black imperial ipa that has been stuck at 1.050 (og 1.108) for two weeks, and i've been trying everything to get it going again but I'm losing hope fast. So lately i've been wondering about just adding some brett, something like wyeast 5526, and then putting it away for a year... or two.

So, my question is first, will this work/ is it a decent idea? And will it drop my gravity/produce a drinkable beer? Also, how should I go about doing it? Can I just add the wyeast pack straight to the secondary? or should I make a starter?
I have no experience using wild yeast, and this is only my third batch ever... So any advice or input would be much appreciated!

Also, here is a thread I posted a few weeks ago with what I've been doing to try and get it going again and my recipe: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f163/stuck-fermentation-help-301411/

Have you tried pitching a neutral sacchromyces strain like US-05 first? I would go that route before you think about finishing it with Brett.

Disregard, I didn't read your other thread first. I guess go for it then, it looks like you e tried most everything you could.

I would wait a little longer though and see how far it drops. According to your thread it dropped to 1.047 so it could just be moving slow. What was your target FG?

This could totally be a personal preference thing, but black imperial ipa actually sounds like one of the few styles I wouldn't think would taste great with brett. BUT, I've never tried an example so that's purely speculation.

I was going to suggest making a smaller session beer with something like us-05 and then racking this beer on top of that cake, but it looks like from your other threads that you've already been hitting it with lots of additional yeast.

The ph thing may be worth pursuing. Perhaps you could do a large starter like you did, but with the ph adjusted with the gypsum. I am a ph noob... just going off of that link you posted, really.

Burgs said:

This could totally be a personal preference thing, but black imperial ipa actually sounds like one of the few styles I wouldn't think would taste great with brett. BUT, I've never tried an example so that's purely speculation.

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Looking at your hopville recipe, this was my first thought as well. With a 100+ IBUs of Citra, I don't think I'd want to let that sit for months after brett'ing it. Have you considered using 3711; that recipe profile might be pretty interesting as a hoppy, dark Saison.

weird, if 099 stalls thats not very promising. +1 on the 3711, that can usually tear up anything. you could try using some amylase from your LHBS as well. btw, pH of 4 isn't out of the ordinary

Is using 099 as a primary strain common practice? I thought it was something people used in conjunction with some of your more common Sacch strains.

From the White Labs WLP099 info page...

Notice to brewers: This can be a difficult-to-use strain and we recommend the following::
1. Needs heavy aeration.
a. Aerate very heavily, 4 times as much as with a normal gravity beer. Less oxygen dissolves into solution at high gravity. Aerate intermittently during first 5 days of fermentation (30sec-1min).
2. Needs nutrients
3. To obtain higher ABVs (16% +)
a. Pitch 3-4 times as much yeast.
b. Add 2 times the normal nutrient level
c. Begin Fermentation with wort that would produce a lower alcohol beer (6-8%) and then add wort each day for the first 5 days (wort can be concentrated at this point).

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Coff said:

Is using 099 as a primary strain common practice?

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more often than it should be. some think its necessary on bigger beers, but chico and some other yeasts can easily do 12% and up to 15%. 099 doesnt always give the best flavor profile as a primary strain either, which is another reason it gets used in conjuction with others.

Thats kind of what I had figured, I guess I would have went with 001 and maybe saved the 099 for later in the ferment if at all.

Awesome, thanks for all the info. I actually really like the sound of 3711, i'll probably give that a go. I may try doing a basic saison with it and then racking on top of the yeast cake. Anyone have a good extract saison recipe?

Ya i definitely won't be using 099 again, I had a friend who had really good luck with it, but after this its just not worth it...

Try the Saison recipe from Brewing Classic Styles, and if you dont have the book its basically a must own imo.