Safale s-04 alc. tolerance

Hi all,
Just started fermenting a mock-ish export 80 about 3 days ago. I only have till wednesday before I leave for spring break, and have used safale 04 once before with awesome results. but I wanted a big beer this time. So I used 8lbs briess gold liquid extract, and 2lbs northwestern extra light dry. The alc. should be around 8%, though I dont have any sort of software to calculate what it should be, and I was in such a rush that I didnt take a gravity reading.

The thing Im nervous about is if this is too much extract for safale s04? Ive read that it can slowly get up to 8.5% if you give it time, which I can do if necessary. But I was thinking that if it stops fermenting soon, and I wanted to be on the safe side, that I could transfer to carboy, then pitch a danstar nottingham in with it to make sure that all the malts are eaten up. The safale would have given a nice flavor profile for the majority of the sugars, and the nottingham would tag team in to just finish up whats left, and not really give any flavors at all because thats just the profile of that yeast.

Anyone think that itll get to 8% on its own, or if my extra pitching of the nottingham sounds safe/logical?

Other suggestions?

thanks for all your help,
tb

For a beer that big, leave it in the primary over your Spring Break, and check it when you get back. When I plug those ingredients into BeerSmith, I get 7.3% abv, which the S-04 should handle fine, but you need to give the yeast time to work and clean up after themselves anyway.

FYI BeerSmith is a free download for 20 days and only $20 to buy. Its great for all the calculations you want to do.

should I even transfer to the carboy before I leave, or just let it be? ill be back the 15th, so thats 2.5 weeks total ferment. Already tnit, it has slowed way down on the bubbling through the airlock.

I have a feeling its gonna have a nice flavor, my basement is a pretty consistent 64 degrees, which is probably contributing to the slowing of the fermenting.

btw, what is s-04 capable of attenuating to? Provided you throw in the directed yeast nutrient, 1 T per gallon?, can it go higher?

2.5 weeks in the primary is no issue. That beer is big enough that the extra time will do it good anyway.

Today I moved an ESB made with S-04 to secondary. Without a starter (pitched dry) or yeast nutrient, it dropped from 1.054 to 1.013 in 7 days at 66 F ambient (probably a little warmer in the carboy). That was one of the best hydro samples I've had in a long time, too.

As far as beersmith goes, I can't really recommend it enough. I'm really happy with it; as an extract brewer, it was the first software I found that could properly account for late malt adds and that helps out in recipe creation/conversion.

You can leave a beer in the primary for months as well as it is well sealed (airlock) and the temp is not to high. Standard fermentation temps will be OK.

I haven't used a secondary for 3 years. A secondary is primarily for clearing.

Leave it in the primary but make sure it isn't going to be in an area where the temps drop to much as that can slow or stop fermentation (conversely you don't want it to warm either).

Some of the older commercial descriptions of S04 list it as "A dry ale yeast derived from the Whitbread strain." They Wyeast descriptions for Whitbread does fall right in line with what I've seen from S04:

Wyeast Laboratories. Whitbread Ale™ 1099
YEAST STRAIN: 1099 | Whitbread Ale™
A mildly malty and slightly fruity fermentation profile; not as tart and dry as 1098 and much more flocculent. Clears well without filtration. Low fermentation temperatures will produce a clean finish with a very low ester profile.

Origin:
Flocculation: High
Attenuation: 68-72%
Temperature Range: 64-75F, 18-24C
Alcohol Tolerance: 10% ABV

cool,
well thanks for all the info guys...and girls if there happen to be any here...but one last question. If I aerate it with a big sterilized spoon before I leave, just a couple good plunges down, will that kick the yeast back into action for a little more?

My brother had told me to do this once before because he was afraid that the temp I was fermenting at this one particular time would create some butterscotch flavors. he told me that it would help the yeast start up again for a little, and also to eat up any butterscotch flavors that might be present. Im not worried about off flavors, like the bubblegum everyone seems to get from this yeast, but I do want to make sure that this yeast gets as much out of those malts as possible. If the week and a half that im gone is enough for the yeast to eat all that it can, then screw it. is it worth it?

again,
thanks everyone ur all awesome

Keepthedrive said:

If I aerate it with a big sterilized spoon before I leave, just a couple good plunges down, will that kick the yeast back into action for a little more?

Click to expand...

You're already well into fermentation...it's a pretty fast yeast to begin with so I wouldn't go mucking around and try to introduce any oxygen. Take a hydro reading and then another before you leave to see where it is. Have you taken any gravity readings to see where it's at?

no, the day of brewing i was in a hurry to get to the airport and then to work, so I didnt take a reading

Keepthedrive said:

no, the day of brewing i was in a hurry to get to the airport and then to work, so I didnt take a reading

Click to expand...

I'm talking about a reading now....to see what the current gravity is.


FWIW, you can back into your SG if you add up the gravity points of all your ingredients.

I used the S-04 yeast on some barley wine. It made it just shy of 8% alcohol before the yeast lost its zip. I'm finishing the process with some wine yeast.

I'm getting a really yeasty taste from my Safale 04 cider, even after racking, etc. Anyone else had this issue?

just used s-04 in a chocolate stout i saved the yeast in my flask but it like JELLY... not the usual consistancy..

any thoughts?

Dr1nkBeer said:

just used s-04 in a chocolate stout i saved the yeast in my flask but it like JELLY... not the usual consistancy..

any thoughts?

Click to expand...

Doing some searching, dug up this old thread, which got refreshed recently.

I see on one post, that S-04 is good for up to 10%, another that said it died out at 8...

I just made a "big beer" whiskey barrel stout that I added an extra 6 lbs of LME to, as well as a pound of lactose.

original gravity was around 1.100-1.105 it went like crazy the first day, spit krausen all over, then settled down. I cleaned up the airlock, top of the carboy, etc. and re-set the airlock.

it sat for 2 weeks now, and all activity is pretty much done.

Gravity now was 1.050.

one calculator says ABV is 7.22%, but another "more advanced" calculator says it's 8.26% I was kind of hoping that by doubling the fermentables, I would double the target alcohol. original target gravity was 1.050, and I pretty much doubled that. target alcohol was 5-6%, so I was shooting for around 10%

so...did my S-04 yeast die off in the alcohol? or did it really consume all the sugars?

Another question... on this stuff... since it's whiskey stout, I put the wood chips into a sanitized carboy, and added a few ounces of my favorite scotch for some more flavor and to help make sure the wood is sterile, and I'm going to leave it in the secondary for a couple months, maybe bottle in mid-March.

Do I need to worry about such a long lag time and having the yeast go dormant? or if they are dead, adding more, higher tolerant yeast, to be sure they can bottle condition and carbonate properly?


WHEW....is that enough questions in one post?!

By the way, the sample tasted pretty good even with just 2 weeks in primary. a tad sweet, but very malty and rich, which is what I wanted (and why I added some non-fermentable sugar too, for a touch of sweetness)

my biggest concern is if the yeast are dead or not, because I bottle condition.

@Cuda, I brewed a brewers best “whiskey barrel stout” kit I had sitting around last weekend. I added 3lb of DME and 1oz of magnum to bitter on top of the kit. OG was 1.090 (biggest I’ve brewed yet) and after 5 days in the primary I’m at 1.040 tonight. Using S-04 I hope it drops more!
As far as the oak chips. I boil mine for about 5 min and then marinate them in bourbon for a few weeks. I’ve been told to sample the beer periodically to not let the oak take over. I’ll rack into the secondary next week and let it sit on the oak for 7-10 days.

Just did an Imperial Rye IBA with an og of 1.083. After one week with S04 it is sitting at 1.014 ~9%. Made a tiny starter 4 hours before i pitched. Fermented like crazy the first four days and then dropped off. Very pleased with the yeast - seems like it could be pushed much further.

Edit- Decided to post a new thread as that makes more sense I think:

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f163/safale-s-04-isoamyl-acetate-bubblegum-514125/#post6659603