Low attenuation with Windsor question

Hi all,

My father-in-law and I are currently waiting on a batch of smoked porter we started brewing last week and just racked to secondary. At racking we checked the gravity and it was a bit on the high side, which I expected from Windsor -- but not this high (1.028, from a starting gravity of 1.067). What would folks recommend?

Here's some details:

1) When we first filled the mash tun, the temp was a little on the high side after waiting 15 min for things to stabalize -- about 159. We added a touch of cold water that took things to 152, which we held it at till the end of the mash. Mash was a bit longer than usual, because we had to stop for lunch, about 2 and a half hours rather than the normal 60-90 min.

2) The grist had about 1 lb flaked oats, roughly 11% of the grain bill, and the boil had a cup molasses. Total recipe size was for 4 gallons.

3) Windsor began to take off after only 4 hours, and went for only about 24 hours.

4) Fermentation temp was between 65 and 70 deg F.

I've read that Windsor can give up at around 60% attenuation, so I'm not hugely surprised, but am worried about bottling this as high as it is, and was hoping to bottle it after only a week in secondary because some relatives are visiting in two weeks. Is it likely that the yeast will continue to take things down to a bottle-able range in time (or at all)? What is that range for these conditions? If not, do I need to pitch another yeast -- say Nottingham? If so, how do I do that? (I've never pitched a different yeast in secondary.)

Thanks for the advice!

On another note, the beer tastes pretty good to me even now -- for being green, that is. My father-in-law says it tastes "hot", though. Is that likely a property of the Windsor, or just a case of it being young? Again, thanks.

-- Matt

With a mash temp of 159, that porter is probably done. If it tastes good, and it's not budging, I'd call it finished.

If it tastes "hot" and it's not high in alcohol, I would consider that perhaps fermentation temperatures may have been a bit high. If the beer never got above 70 (what temperature did you pitch the yeast?), that should not be the case, though.

When ever I use windsor I'll mash around 149-150 so it will attenuate a little more.

60% attenuation with Windsor. Sounds similar to what other's get, especially if you mashed high.

Adding another yeast might get you down another 8 to 10 points, but you would need to build a starter and pitch when active

Thanks, folks!

If it tastes "hot" and it's not high in alcohol, I would consider that perhaps fermentation temperatures may have been a bit high. If the beer never got above 70 (what temperature did you pitch the yeast?), that should not be the case, though.

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It seemed odd he said it tasted hot, too. I tasted it, and it didn't taste hot at all. However, we did pitch at just above 70, so perhaps he's tasting that.

Thanks, again.