Can I bottle yet?(I have gravity readings)

[harrymanback92]

Hey guys!

I brewed an extract kit about 15 days ago and it's been sitting in primary for 15 days. It was the Shallow Grave Robust Porter from morebeer.com; I added some of my own ingredients (dark DME, and hops) to make the beer more my style, as I got the kit as a gift. Here's what I brewed:
Batch size: 5 gallon
Boil size: 3.5 gallon (topped off with water once in the carboy)

10lb Light LME
2lb Dark DME
8oz(.5lb) Black Patent
8oz(.5lb) Chocolate Malt
1lb Crystal 40L
Yeast: WLP002 (english ale yeast)

According to the recipe my (estimated) original gravity should have been between 1.065 and 1.070, the online calculator I used put the OG closer to 1.085 with the addition of dark DME, which the recipe did not call for.

I took a gravity reading before I pitched the yeast (with the water added) and got 1.060. The yeast took about 30 hours to really start fermenting, but once it did it fermented hard. There is no airlock activity, no krausen, and the yeast seems to have flocculated very well. I took a gravity reading today and got 1.021. I'm going to take another gravity reading tomorrow to make sure it's stayed at a consistent gravity. Tasted the sample, and it's ****ing delicious. Not to sweet, so it seems to have fermented all the sugars fairly well. So I'm curious if I can go ahead and bottle tonight or tomorrow? What do you guys think? I think my apparent attenuation is about 65%, which, if my math is right, puts me right in the middle of my yeast's attenuation range.

It's my bestfriend's 21st on March 11th so I'm hoping to have this bottled, conditioned and ready to drink by then, you guys think that's possible?
Cheers!

 

[unseenat17]

your good to bottle. TBH your adding sugar anyways to bottle condition so you dont have to worry about having every last sugar consumed by yeast. Once your airlock bubbles once ever 40 or so seconds your safe. Ive never bottle conditioned myself but i believe it takes two to three weeks. You should be safe! Cheers!

 

[BackwoodBrewery]

I would agree bottle away!

If you didn't make a starter that maybe the cause of the delayed start to the fermentation and the hight FG.

 

[RensBerserker]

your good to bottle. TBH your adding sugar anyways to bottle condition so you dont have to worry about having every last sugar consumed by yeast. Once your airlock bubbles once ever 40 or so seconds your safe. Ive never bottle conditioned myself but i believe it takes two to three weeks. You should be safe! Cheers!

While I agree that you are probably safe to bottle, I personally cannot recommend trusting airlock activity at all to determine the status of any fermentation. I agree that you should take another gravity reading tomorrow before you commit to bottling. Purists will insist it takes at least three consistent days of consistent readings to show halted fermentation, but a 2-week primary is probably sufficient.

That said, I have underpitched my fair share of beers that took more than 2 weeks to fully ferment, so it sort of depends on the strain and quantity of yeast that you pitched. I see that you used WLP002; assuming a fresh, full vial, you are probably ok... 1.060 isn't a super high starting gravity.

If you bottle condition until March 11, it will probably be carbonated just fine. It might still be a tad green (mostly depending on your hop schedule), but will likely taste just great by then.

 

[harrymanback92]

Awesome guys! I figured it was ok, and I agree with RensBerseker, I personally wouldn't use JUST airlock activity as a sign for finished fermentation, but I'm a cautious person and really don't wanna take any chances on making bottle bombs!

I did not make a starter; however, I'm brewing a high gravity partial mash this weekend and will definitely be making a starter, and will probably continue to make starters for the rest of my brews. I didn't like watching my beer have no activity for 30 hours, and hope to avoid that in the future.

I have to say, I'm very satisfied with WLP002! It took awhile to get it chugging, but once it started there was no stopping it! I was worried that the yeast would be overworked but I didn't pick up any off flavors from the taste I took. Seems to be a pretty clean yeast that provides a nice sweetness.

Once again, you guys at HBT have been a true help! It's Friday, you all better be drinking some homebrews!

 

[Slipgate]

That's a lot of fermentables! I would have though a higher OG. Also just get the yeast smack-packs. I get bubblage after less then 12 hours.

 

[CthulhuDreaming]

While I agree that you are probably safe to bottle, I personally cannot recommend trusting airlock activity at all to determine the status of any fermentation. I agree that you should take another gravity reading tomorrow before you commit to bottling. Purists will insist it takes at least three consistent days of consistent readings to show halted fermentation, but a 2-week primary is probably sufficient.

I pretty much agree with this, except that I'd wait until you do have three consecutive days of consistent SG readings to bottle. If it's ready, one less day of conditioning/carbonation isn't going to hurt much. If it's not ready, you're likely to have overcarbonated beer or bottle bombs. Personally, I'd rather have beer that's one day too young than gushers or bombs.