Forgot to aerate....

[cmaxwe]

I did my first extract brew and it seemed to go pretty well...until I moved from the boil pot to the fermenter. I used a siphon so I could try to leave behind the stuff at the bottom of the pot (hops, cold break). So like no aeration from that transfer.

Then I added water to my fermenter (did a partial boil), I don't remember being super careful about splashes but I definitely didn't pour in hard and definitely didn't stir very hard.

I pretty much hit my target temp perfectly was looking for 21c and got 21.5c. Was busy patting myself on the back about that and just put my dry yeast (Safale S04) in and immediately I thought it was kind of odd because it just sank to the bottom where past brews it floated on the top.

There was like 0 action for the first 24 hours and I wasn't too worried about that because I have read that sometimes it takes a bit to pick up. So I setup my DSLR and did a timelapse overnight expecting that it would pick up by the time I woke up.

Here is the timelapse video (~26 hours after pitch to 38 hours after pitch):
https://streamable.com/qfelc

The video makes it look a bright in the room (long exposure) but it is actually fairly dark.

After I stopped the video I gave the fermenter a shake/swirl and now there are lots more yeasty looking bits floating on the top which hopefully is a good sign. I am also going to let the temperature rise a bit (was between like 19.5 and 20.5 for most of that video).

Few questions...
1) Should I start to consider repitching or is the fact that it is slowly bubbling good enough?
2) Anything else I should be doing?
3) How will a slow start like this impact the brew? Will I not hit the target gravity? Will it add a particular off flavor?

 

[Larkin989]

I've recently brewed a couple brews with minimal aeration, and no matter the type of beer I ended up with a buttery/butterscotch off flavor. This is due to diacetyl build up.

Oxygen prior to the yeast pitch (8-12 ppm) is beneficial for the yeast. It strengthens the cell wall and also prepares it to feast on the sugars in the wort. I've read up on the topic and it seems that the yeast will absorb more diacetyl if properly aerated.

1. If it were me, I would not repitch. I believe that you would have the same off flavor regardless due to no oxygen concentration.
2. I would look into either converting an aquarium pump into an aeration system, or investing in a oxygen tank and regulator. If money is a factor then before the yeast pitch shake the fermentor very vigorously for a couple minutes.
3. I don't think the slow start will impact the brew. It should hit near the target gravity, but without proper oxygen the attenuation may be a little lower than with oxygen. I believe that a diacetyl (buttery) off flavor will develop assuming that other factors have been controlled.

I'm still new as well so I may be a little off concerning some things! To be honest the beers I brewed with the diacetyl off flavor were still drinkable and did not taste that bad. Sorry for the long answer! Cheers!

 

[cmaxwe]

I've recently brewed a couple brews with minimal aeration, and no matter the type of beer I ended up with a buttery/butterscotch off flavor. This is due to diacetyl build up.

Oxygen prior to the yeast pitch (8-12 ppm) is beneficial for the yeast. It strengthens the cell wall and also prepares it to feast on the sugars in the wort. I've read up on the topic and it seems that the yeast will absorb more diacetyl if properly aerated.

1. If it were me, I would not repitch. I believe that you would have the same off flavor regardless due to no oxygen concentration.
2. I would look into either converting an aquarium pump into an aeration system, or investing in a oxygen tank and regulator. If money is a factor then before the yeast pitch shake the fermentor very vigorously for a couple minutes.
3. I don't think the slow start will impact the brew. It should hit near the target gravity, but without proper oxygen the attenuation may be a little lower than with oxygen. I believe that a diacetyl (buttery) off flavor will develop assuming that other factors have been controlled.

I'm still new as well so I may be a little off concerning some things! To be honest the beers I brewed with the diacetyl off flavor were still drinkable and did not taste that bad. Sorry for the long answer! Cheers!

Thanks man...

 

[Kent88]

Just some quick notes:

I've heard that you can (carefully!) shake up the fermenter and try to get more oxygen in there and gauge yeast activity anytime before krausen. Many times you can get away with extra aeration within 18 hours even if there is krausen, especially with high gravity beers.

 

[cmaxwe]

Just some quick notes:

I've heard that you can (carefully!) shake up the fermenter and try to get more oxygen in there and gauge yeast activity anytime before krausen. Many times you can get away with extra aeration within 18 hours even if there is krausen, especially with high gravity beers.

Yeah that is what I did (swirl/shake).

Did it at about 38 hours which might be a little late... cross fingers and how dat krausen shows up.

 

[cmaxwe]

Checked it this morning and it was bumping along nicely. Not sure if the temp increase or the few shakes triggered it but it seems happy.

 

[Schreiner]

It is stated that aeration is not as critical with dry yeast.

What you may find beneficial to get your fermentation active quicker is to hydrate the dry yeast before pitching. It is much more gentle on the yeast as the cell walls rehydrate in water rather than wort.
Follow Fermentis' recommendations:
http://www.fermentis.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/SafAle-S-043.pdf

 

[cmaxwe]

Yeah I am definitely going to rehydrate next time.

Bit of a krausen on the go!

 

[A2HB]

You probably don't have the package anymore but how old was that yeast? I've never had S-04 take that long to start fermenting, usually it's at full krausen by 24-36 hours. I wonder if your yeast was old or getting to the end of it's life cycle?

 

[cmaxwe]

You probably don't have the package anymore but how old was that yeast? I've never had S-04 take that long to start fermenting, usually it's at full krausen by 24-36 hours. I wonder if your yeast was old or getting to the end of it's life cycle?

I got two packets at the same time and neither has a date on it.

 

[patthebrewer]

I think you'll be fine....