2nd batch, still hope?

[thrust]

While my first batch, an Imperial Russian Stout, appears to have been successful, my second batch is questionable.

Sunday, I brewed a Brewcraft Farmhouse Saison extract kit.

Pitched the yeast when the wort was ~75F, but forgot to take an OG. Doh!

Anyway, the airlock bubbled vigorously for two days, but now all activity has ceased. I know airlock activity isn't a sign of fermentation, but on Wednesday morning the wort reach a temperature of 60F, due to really cold overnight lows.

I have since brought the temp up to around 70F, but after more reading discovered saison yeast prefers even higher fermenting temperatures.

Yesterday I checked the gravity, which read 1.022.

Should I repitch some WY3711 if the gravity remains unchanged after a few more days?

Can you "over-yeast"?

 

[AmandaK]

What did you pitch originally?

I'd raise the temp to 75ish and rouse the yeast by shaking the carboy around a bit to get everything in suspension again. Wait a few days and take a reading. 1.022 is high for a saison, but I've heard that 3711 (if that's what you pitched in the first place) is a bit of an animal in terms of getting it to finish quickly.

And if you're going to pitch more yeast, make a starter and pitch a metric ton of it. Don't expect a smack pack to be enough.

 

[unionrdr]

Yes,you can over pitch. Just look to see if there's any krausen activity on top of the beer. And make sure you keep it near minimum temp for that yeast. It'll taste cleaner that way.

 

[thrust]

Original yeast was Safale S-33.

I should note, probably 12 hours after I pitched, the temperature of the wort shot up to around 80F, which coincided with the vigorous airlock activity.

 

[JLW]

What did you pitch originally?

I'd raise the temp to 75ish and rouse the yeast by shaking the carboy around a bit to get everything in suspension again. Wait a few days and take a reading. 1.022 is high for a saison, but I've heard that 3711 (if that's what you pitched in the first place) is a bit of an animal in terms of getting it to finish quickly.

And if you're going to pitch more yeast, make a starter and pitch a metric ton of it. Don't expect a smack pack to be enough.

Also, I would place the fermenter on a folded towl and then wrap a couple of towls arounf the fermenter. This will keep the temp up for a few more days. Wait 48 hours or so and take another hydro reading to see if your getting any more drop in gravity.

I also add that based on my reading and advice from this forum Saison's can take awhile to finish especially at lower fermentation temps. To answer your question, I would say your beer will be fine give the right amount of patience.

Here is a thread that may have some useful info:

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/belgian-sasion-fermenting-temp-229485/

 

[thrust]

Thanks for the great information! This forum is a valuable resource. I will try the suggestions mentioned above before I try adding any additional yeast. It's disappointing, however, to learn lower fermentation temps affect the ability of a saison to be, well, a saison. Ha!

Brew and learn, I suppose.