Cold Conditioning Belgian Strong...enough yeast

Hello all!

I made a Belgian strong ale a few months ago. I bottled one bottle of it with some table sugar a week ago just to see how it tasted carbonated (it was excellant BTW!!). Anyways, my question is: I want to cold condition it to help it clear a bit more...will I have enough yeast to bottle ferment after two weeks or so at 45°F? The beer is at about 9.2% (SG 1.083, FG 1.012) and I used Wyeast #1388 yeast.

Thanks guys!
Paul

Anyone? From what I've read, there should be enough yeast, but I'm also at the upper limit of the yeasts alcohol tolerance.

so, if i understand correctly, it's already been sitting at room temp for a few months, and now you'd like to chill it for a few weeks before bottling?

If it were my beer, I'd throw in a pack of dry yeast at bottling time to be safe. You've got nothing to lose by doing so, and the risk of not doing it is having a bunch of flat bottles of beer that you have to open, add yeast, and re-cap.

After all, as you said, you are on the upper limits of the yeasts' tolerance anyway... so you've got some pretty worn-out yeast as it is.

You understand correctly!

What type of yeast would you suggest that would be able to continue bottle fermentation at 9%+ ABV?

For a Belgian strong, Wyeast 3787 Trappist High Gravity.

I brewed a AHS Delirium Tremens clone kit. WLP530 (~3787) went from 1.082 to 1.010 in two weeks. I cold conditioned for a week at 45 and (oops) bottled it straight after. It took several weeks, but it did finally carbonate.

Adding yeast at bottling seems like it would defeat the purpose of a clarifying step....

Thanks guys.

I'm cold conditioning to remove the protien contributed chill haze, not to necessarily remove the yeast needed for bottle fermentation.