Hefe aroma from Nottingham?

[hopvine]

The following brew of mine has been in primary for a week and a half:

6.00 lb LME Pilsen Light (Briess) (2.3 SRM) Extract 75.00 %
1.00 lb LME Sparkling Amber Liquid (Briess) (10.5 SRM) Extract 12.50 %
1.00 lb Caramel Malt - 10L (Briess) (10.0 SRM) Grain 12.50 %
0.40 oz Centennial [10.90 %] (60 min) Hops 14.3 IBU
0.25 oz Centennial [10.90 %] (30 min) Hops 6.9 IBU
0.25 oz Cascade [8.70 %] (15 min) Hops 3.9 IBU
0.25 oz Cascade [8.70 %] (5 min) Hops 1.6 IBU
1.00 tsp Yeast Nutrient (Boil 15.0 min) Misc
1 Pkgs Nottingham (Danstar) Yeast-Ale

Estimated Original Gravity: 1.054 SG (1.045-1.060 SG)
Measured Original Gravity: 1.050 SG
Estimated Final Gravity: 1.013 SG (1.010-1.015 SG)
Estimated Color: 5.6 SRM (5.0-14.0 SRM)
Bitterness: 26.6 IBU (30.0-45.0 IBU)
Alpha Acid Units: 9.3 AAU
Estimated Alcohol by Volume: 5.31 % (4.50-6.00 %)

Three days ago I took a gravity reading and it came out to 1.018, and tasted VERY much like a Hefeweizen; a very spiced/clove flavor. I figured I was probably just tasting suspended yeast, and decided to give it a few more days.

I just took another reading, a week and a half after pitching. While the beer has cleared considerably, my reading still came out at 1.018, and the hefe aroma/flavor is still there.

I rehydrated my yeast prior to pitching. My fermentation temp has been between 68 - 70F, and fermentation took around 60 hours to start. It's worth noting that after 34 hours of no airlock activity, I pitched a non-hydrated packet of Nottingham, bringing the total pitching rate up to 2 packets.

Any idea what's going on? It appears I have two problems, possibly related.
1) A stuck fermentation
2) A hefeweizen character from a supposedly clean fermenting yeast

Suggestions?

 

[malkore]

Any time a yeast is stressed, it can throw phenols (clove) and esters (banana/fruity).

Sounds like possibly a lack of aeration lead to a slow start, maybe stressed yeast.

Or the temp is too warm. 70F outside the fermenter could be 75-78F degree wort.

Hefe yeast just likes to throw phenols and esters at lower temp, and isn't as flocculent.

The batch isn't necessary ruined. These flavors may age out.

 

[hopvine]

Any time a yeast is stressed, it can throw phenols (clove) and esters (banana/fruity).

Sounds like possibly a lack of aeration lead to a slow start, maybe stressed yeast.

I aerated the hell out of it, a good 30 minutes with a 5 micron aeration stone and pump. My initial concern when fermentation didn't take right off was that instead of re-hydrating in 90F water, my thermometer was off or the water continued to heat after taking it off the burner, killing the initial yeast packet.

Maybe it was temperature that caused the phenols, but that doesn't explain why my gravity is so high does it?

 

[hopvine]

I just tested my hydrometer with 60 deg F water, and it reads 1.004. Does this mean I should subtract .004 from any reading taken? If that's the case, my FG is 1.014, which is pretty close to what I'm expecting.

 

[adfirmus]

I just bottled a batch of BM's Centennial Ale (great beer btw) that used Notty. I fermented at about 70 to 72 degrees on the sticky thermometer, but like someone above said it was probably a higher internal temp. I tasted one about 8 days after bottling. It had a slight flavor that you talked about, but it went really well with the hops and light grain flavor. It's still green, so I guess it's too early to really tell. But I've tasted slight esters and phenols from a water fermentation with notty. An Apartment can make it difficult for good fermentation temps

 

[double_e5]

I just tested my hydrometer with 60 deg F water, and it reads 1.004. Does this mean I should subtract .004 from any reading taken? If that's the case, my FG is 1.014, which is pretty close to what I'm expecting.

Yes, just make sure your hydrometer is calibrated for 60*. Some are calibrated to 68*.

 

[hopvine]

Yes, just make sure your hydrometer is calibrated for 60*. Some are calibrated to 68*.

Yeah it's definitely calibrated to 60 degrees (says right on the hydrometer).

 

[WorryWort]

+1 on the temp being your ester cause.

If I use notty and the beer temp creeps at all above 70 (beer temp, not ambient) I find it to be just awful.

 

[GAbrewer]

I found this thread because I experienced the same thing in a beer I brewed recently. The beer is a Brewer's Best Red Ale kit from the LHBS. The clove flavor is pretty mild and doesn't make the beer taste that bad, but it does seem pretty unusual for Nottingham yeast. It could be that I got an infection racking this onto the yeast cake from a previous beer, but I don't think so. Perhaps the yeast was stressed from brewing the previous batch.

But I tend to agree with those who suggest temperature is a factor, because the air conditioning hasn't been working very well and my temps are getting up to about 75 degrees or even occasionally a bit higher when I ferment. I've tried countering this on some of my latest batches by putting the fermentors in the fridge I usually use for kegging, and leaving the door open so that it doesn't get too cold. The fridge is terrible for kegging because it doesn't really get cold enough, but it seems like it will be almost perfect for controlling fermentation temps. We'll see how this works out when the beers I'm currently brewing are finished.

 

[hopvine]

Would dry hopping cover up the taste?

 

[craven_morhead]

I think us-05 has a wider friendly temp range. Might be worth a look in the future.

 

[GAbrewer]

I don't know about dry hopping. Judging from the previous responses of some of the more experienced brewers on this forum, you might do better to just let it sit for a while longer before drinking it and hope the clove flavor subsides a bit. Or in my case I like wheat beers and don't really know what the hell a "Red Ale" is supposed to taste like anyway, so I'm just going to enjoy mine as it is.

In the case of your gravity reading, I wouldn't worry too much about it. As you noticed it reads a little off in 60 degree water so the calibration might be a bit off. Or maybe the higher fermentation temps affected your attenuation as well.

 

[malkore]

I'd let it hang out in secondary a little while. If it doesn't mellow you could try some dry hopping.
Patience is your friend on this one. Its hard to tell what beer/wine/mead will do when aged, since it contains living yeast cells that continue to interact...not to mention chemicals degrading and melding, etc.