Fermentation advice needed

[MoveMaine]

I'm at the 2 week mark for fermentation of a Bavarian Hefeweizen.

BSG's Bavarian Hef extract kit:

• 2 x 3.3 lb cans Wheat LME
• 1 oz German Hallertau hops
• 11.5 g Fermentis WB-06

My gravity's at 1.012 (1.010 being the goal), but I still have a lot of crud floating on the top.

Which leads to my question(s):

• How do you balance all the variables to determine when fermentation is complete? Between gravity and clarity...who wins?
• The beer is tangy/sour, which I read means it still has a lot of yeast - is this correct? (I read if it was vinegary, then it might be due to a bacterial infection - but it's not vinegary). Will the sour flavor subside?
• When I reach final gravity 3 consecutive days, but I still have crud, do I let it sit longer?
• When should I cold crash & for how long?

 

[flars]

Quote "Which leads to my question(s):
How do you balance all the variables to determine when fermentation is complete? Between gravity and clarity...who wins?
Stable Specific Gravity always wins as to when fermentation is complete. After FG has been reached, clarity is the deciding factor for bottling. Wheat beers, like a Hefe, will be slightly hazy after the yeast has settled and CO2 in solution is no longer suspending particulates.

The beer is tangy/sour, which I read means it still has a lot of yeast - is this correct? (I read if it was vinegary, then it might be due to a bacterial infection - but it's not vinegary). Will the sour flavor subside?
The sour, if not from infection, will diminish when the majority of the yeast has dropped out. The yeast will drop out if given enough time.

When I reach final gravity 3 consecutive days, but I still have crud, do I let it sit longer?
Time is the factor for clear beer. My beers are typically clear at three weeks in the primary. The hydrometer sample is your check for clarity. I don't take my first sample until about day 12, after active fermentation had begun. I'll take another about day 18, this is usually FG.

When should I cold crash & for how long?" End Quote

You often do not have to cold crash if sufficient time in the primary has been allowed. Like I said, my beers are usually clear in 21 days, after the beginning of active fermentation.

 

[ColoHox]

The primary determinant of a complete fermentation is the gravity reading. However, there is continued yeast metabolic activity after fermentation is complete, for better or worse. A lot of people do FG + a few days (or a few weeks) in primary. At 2 weeks in, I would guess that you are finished, even at 1.012.

You might try and swirl your fermenter a little to get those yeast rafts off the surface. They may not just sink on their own. If you are cold crashing, leave your beer at primary ferm temps for 1-3 weeks, the cold crash will drop most things out of suspension. You can rack your beer from under the floaties, if they don't eventually drop out.

Your beer should not be sour, vinegary or otherwise, unless on purpose of course. I've never really thought that yeast in suspension gave a tangy flavor...more yeasty and bready. Evaluating beer flavor out of primary fermentation is hard, wait until bottling to decide for sure. That said, sourness is usually a sign of infection. It is hard to say where that infection came from, but you may need to go over your sanitation procedure.

After 2-3 weeks in primary, I cold crash at 34 degrees for a week. At minimum, a few days should do it.

Good luck

 

[dude3516]

I brew a lot of wheats, and I always seem to have some sort of stragglers floating after a 2 week primary. If your OG is stable just rack from underneath. 1 week in the keg will perform the same thing as a 1 week cold crash. Just dump the first glass, or get a spoon if you're into yogurt. If you're bottling then moving it to your bottling bucket would still help with clarity, and sediment will drop to the bottom of the bottle like any good Hefe should have.

 

[duboman]

IMO, you should not be tasting anything sour with this style or the yeast used. I would agree that the beer is most likely finished but because you are reporting a sour taste there may be an infection that hasn't fully taken hold yet. I would wait another week and take another gravity reading. If it still dropping and still tastes sour or even more pronounced I'd say it's infected.

 

[MoveMaine]

IMO, you should not be tasting anything sour with this style or the yeast used. I would agree that the beer is most likely finished but because you are reporting a sour taste there may be an infection that hasn't fully taken hold yet. I would wait another week and take another gravity reading. If it still dropping and still tastes sour or even more pronounced I'd say it's infected.

I read this over at Beersmith, and it is a fruity/sour taste:

Wild Yeast Infections in Beer

Bacteria is not the only cause for sour off flavors. Brettanomyces (also called Brett for short), a wild yeast, causes a sour off flavor sometimes also combined with estery (fruity) flavors. Brettanomyces is a wild yeast that often thrives on the skins of fruit, and it is not uncommon to have some Brett added when you add fruit to beers. Brett is also available as a liquid yeast culture from major suppliers and used primarily in fruity sour beers such as Lambic and Gueuze.

Other related wild yeasts can certainly cause sour off-flavor,often with hints of fruity esters. Again proper sanitation is your best defense.

 

[duboman]

Well, yes that's true as well but you didn't pitch Brett and you didn't add fruit and a Bavarian Hefe should not taste sour so its been infected most likely with something creating the sour taste

 

[MoveMaine]

Well, yes that's true as well but you didn't pitch Brett and you didn't add fruit and a Bavarian Hefe should not taste sour so its been infected most likely with something creating the sour taste

Whoops - I need to edit my recipe. I just remembered that I threw in some orange peel during the boil (one orange's worth and I scraped off all the pith).

 

[duboman]

While you may still edit your recipe, being in the boil negates any bad things that would cause souring, its only after you chill and pitch that something might cause infection

 

[MoveMaine]

Any other opinions? Is the beer shot?

 

[flars]

Are you sure it is sour, or could it be tart? Two weeks is way to early to make a decision. Give the beer a couple of more weeks for the remainder of the krausen to settle and the majority of the yeast to drop out.

 

[m00ps]

Also, its cold outside. Try letting ti sit out there for a few hours and the yeast may drop. I;ve had this happen with a few notorious top cropping strains where 3-4 weeks down the line I still had to punch through a layer of krausen to take a sample

 

[MoveMaine]

Are you sure it is sour, or could it be tart? Two weeks is way to early to make a decision. Give the beer a couple of more weeks for the remainder of the krausen to settle and the majority of the yeast to drop out.

Tart might be the right adjective...hard to describe.

 

[flars]

Tart can be very good, especially with yeast still in there.

 

[ColoHox]

Tartness has been mentioned by other users of WB-06

 

[MoveMaine]

Tartness has been mentioned by other users of WB-06

Thanks for this tidbit. I'll see how it turns out after bottling. I plan to leave it in the primary a while longer, cold crash and let it (hopefully) mellow in the bottle.

If it's still sour, it looks like I'll be avoiding that yeast.

 

[MoveMaine]

IMO, you should not be tasting anything sour with this style or the yeast used. I would agree that the beer is most likely finished but because you are reporting a sour taste there may be an infection that hasn't fully taken hold yet. I would wait another week and take another gravity reading. If it still dropping and still tastes sour or even more pronounced I'd say it's infected.

I think you may be right.

I'm now at 3 weeks in the fermenter and the astringent flavor has gotten worse with each week. It's unbearable now...it's vinegary with a citrus twist.

It's almost exactly like chewing on the pith of an orange...bittery sour

Lost cause?

 

[duboman]

I think you may be right.

I'm now at 3 weeks in the fermenter and the astringent flavor has gotten worse with each week. It's unbearable now...it's vinegary with a citrus twist.

It's almost exactly like chewing on the pith of an orange...bittery sour

Lost cause?

Sorry for the late reply, yes, it's infected so you can either let it ride for a long 6 months or more and hope it turns into a really great mistake or dump it if you haven't already done so.

 

[MoveMaine]

Sorry for the late reply, yes, it's infected so you can either let it ride for a long 6 months or more and hope it turns into a really great mistake or dump it if you haven't already done so.

Dumped it, shed a tear, and started a new one. Thanks for all the help.