PresidentJFJ
Member
Hey all. So I returned to extract brewing after about a year using beer in bag kits. Haven't had a beer stop fermenting EVER until my last 2 batches, and they both have. The first was an ESB with steeped specialty grains. Used all light DME for the extract portion. Hit the exact OG of 1.055. Wyeast 1968 yeast. Fermentation took off within 24 hours and there was a strong krausen.
Stopped around 1.036 after 3 weeks. Took hydrometer readings after 2 weeks every 2 days and there was no movement. After attempting to rouse the yeast etc. I got more yeast. No dice. After waiting and waiting and waiting I had to go out of town for a month and didn't want to leave my wort alone. No amylase enzyme was available where I live so I crushed and threw in 3 beano tablets. When I got back from vacation the beer was still fermenting at 1.017. Left it until last weekend then cold crashed and now it's kegged. "Final gravity" was 1.008. It's drinkable but tastes like a beer made with dextrose instead of proper amounts of extract. I imagine this is because the beano ate sugars it normally wouldn't.
Anyways, brewed a pale ale on Feb 3 that was simply light DME and Amarillo hops. OG on this beer was 1.053. US-05 yeast. Good fermentation and hoppy krausen again. After 1 week the gravity was 1.037. Today I checked again and it's 1.035. Still a hoppy yeast suspended mess. It looks like a still fermenting beer, but it seems to be either moving eternally slow or stopped just like the last beer.
The extract I'm using is from a local home brew store called the Noble Grape, and they sell their own branded extract. Would you guys imagine this is just horrible extract? I buy all my other homebrew supplies from them as well and they've always been excellent. Temperatures on both beers never exceeded a range lower than 64 degrees or higher than 74 degrees farenheit. I would hate to have to salvage this beer with beano again, as it tastes really nice apart from being unfinished and sweet. I could pitch more yeast but this seems too uncanny to ignore. Even when I was a total beginner and fermented beers above 90 degrees they at least finished. Never had a single fermentation problem except these last 2 beers. My pale ale is still just sitting in primary doing next to nothing/nothing at all. Should I try their liquid extract instead of dry next time? Find another store? I'm really hesitant to continue trying the same thing, as these are recipes I've used in the past and never had an issue. The only different variable is the extract.
Any thoughts/opinions/advice would be much appreciated.
Thanks!
Stopped around 1.036 after 3 weeks. Took hydrometer readings after 2 weeks every 2 days and there was no movement. After attempting to rouse the yeast etc. I got more yeast. No dice. After waiting and waiting and waiting I had to go out of town for a month and didn't want to leave my wort alone. No amylase enzyme was available where I live so I crushed and threw in 3 beano tablets. When I got back from vacation the beer was still fermenting at 1.017. Left it until last weekend then cold crashed and now it's kegged. "Final gravity" was 1.008. It's drinkable but tastes like a beer made with dextrose instead of proper amounts of extract. I imagine this is because the beano ate sugars it normally wouldn't.
Anyways, brewed a pale ale on Feb 3 that was simply light DME and Amarillo hops. OG on this beer was 1.053. US-05 yeast. Good fermentation and hoppy krausen again. After 1 week the gravity was 1.037. Today I checked again and it's 1.035. Still a hoppy yeast suspended mess. It looks like a still fermenting beer, but it seems to be either moving eternally slow or stopped just like the last beer.
The extract I'm using is from a local home brew store called the Noble Grape, and they sell their own branded extract. Would you guys imagine this is just horrible extract? I buy all my other homebrew supplies from them as well and they've always been excellent. Temperatures on both beers never exceeded a range lower than 64 degrees or higher than 74 degrees farenheit. I would hate to have to salvage this beer with beano again, as it tastes really nice apart from being unfinished and sweet. I could pitch more yeast but this seems too uncanny to ignore. Even when I was a total beginner and fermented beers above 90 degrees they at least finished. Never had a single fermentation problem except these last 2 beers. My pale ale is still just sitting in primary doing next to nothing/nothing at all. Should I try their liquid extract instead of dry next time? Find another store? I'm really hesitant to continue trying the same thing, as these are recipes I've used in the past and never had an issue. The only different variable is the extract.
Any thoughts/opinions/advice would be much appreciated.
Thanks!