Help with DIPA fermentation issue

[hawgwild81]

I brewed a DIPA 3 weeks ago. OG was 1.096 and it seems to have stalled out at 1.026. I checked it last Saturday and today. Estimated FG was 1.018. Having tasted the hydrometer sample, it's still really sweet and has that alcohol burn. Is there anything I can do to get the final gravity down? Should I repitch? I have some 1056 I could toss in? I originally pitched 2 packs of US-05.
What should I do?


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[jekeane]

What temp is it at? You could try and bring up the temp a bit and give the yeast cake a swirl. Was this extract or all grain? It is currently sitting at 9.2% I think you would have little luck getting new yeast to do much work in that environment.

 

[invictusbrew]

Apparent attenuation of 71% if my math is correct. While somewhat on the low side for 05, still in its normal range. It's hard to say how much the 1056 will continue to dry this out as a lot of other factors come into play (unfermentable sugars from boil, >9% abv starting out, etc). But IMO it's a personal thing. If you want it to continue drying out then go for it and see what happens. Personally, I'd probably give it one more week in the fermenter and not worry about repitching anything. But maybe that's just me.

 

[hawgwild81]

What temp is it at? You could try and bring up the temp a bit and give the yeast cake a swirl. Was this extract or all grain? It is currently sitting at 9.2% I think you would have little luck getting new yeast to do much work in that environment.

Temp is at 72. I tried swirling it last weekend. I was worried that the yeast couldn't work in the high abv. environment. I may just have to go ahead and keg it and hope the carbonation and time may cool it off. I was hoping to dry it out more, but wasn't sure if it would be possible.


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[Yooper]

Temp is at 72. I tried swirling it last weekend. I was worried that the yeast couldn't work in the high abv. environment.


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Yes, I think at 9%+, it's about done. I don't know if you'd get it any lower, and I think you may have some trouble getting it carbed up if you're bottling.

 

[hawgwild81]

Do you think if I dry hopped the crap out of it that might help hide the alcohol? This is my first time brewing something this big so this is all new to me. Thanks for all the responses.


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[jekeane]

I have a 9% Belgian IPA that is 100% Citra 8oz total I did with 2 oz dry hop for 7 days I can't say that I notice the alcohol all that much. My guess is your residual sweetness plus a dryhop would cover up the ABV for awhile.

 

[hawgwild81]

I have a 9% Belgian IPA that is 100% Citra 8oz total I did with 2 oz dry hop for 7 days I can't say that I notice the alcohol all that much. My guess is your residual sweetness plus a dryhop would cover up the ABV for awhile.

Cool. I'll give the massive dry hop a try.



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[PGEduardo]

What was your initial fermentation temperature? You might be tasting fusel alcohols from fermenting too hot. Did you have the fermenter in water or a chamber? Ambient temperature does not equal liquid temp...

 

[kcmobrewer]

Just pitch some champagne yeast. Alcohol will mellow.


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[hawgwild81]

What was your initial fermentation temperature? You might be tasting fusel alcohols from fermenting too hot. Did you have the fermenter in water or a chamber? Ambient temperature does not equal liquid temp...

I have it in a fermentation chamber. Started it out at 68 for 10 days then bumped it to 70. Last weekend when I swirled it I bumped to 72.



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[PGEduardo]

Is your temp probe taped to the vessel or just measuring ambient chamber temp?

Might just give it more time to clean up the alcohol taste...

 

[hawgwild81]

Is your temp probe taped to the vessel or just measuring ambient chamber temp?

Might just give it more time to clean up the alcohol taste...

I've got the probe taped to the Carboy with a rag between the tape and the probe.




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[grittanomyces]

Do you think if I dry hopped the crap out of it that might help hide the alcohol? This is my first time brewing something this big so this is all new to me. Thanks for all the responses.


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Not sure how much it will hide the alcohol, but if it is sweet (which is not uncommon for a DIPA of course, as more malt, particularly less fermentable ones like caramelized are obviously going to taste sweeter), then adding more hops should probably help in balancing it out at least.

I've not brewed anything that high grav yet, but have gotten boozy (and sometimes overly sweet) tastes when sampling beers that haven't finished conditioning yet, and I assume it's fusel alcohols, because they fade by the time it's done.

 

[pdxal]

Nobody has asked for the recipe. What was it?
If you have a bunch of unfermentable dextrins, or hard to ferment wort, tired yeast in a high alcohol environment may not drop it any further.
At about 73% attenuation right now, which is pretty good anyway.

 

[hawgwild81]

17# 2row
2# Munich
2# Rye
1# table sugar

My efficiency was bad due to a busted BIAB bag. I lost a lot of wort. I was supposed to hit 1.110 I believe (I'm at work and don't have my notes in front of me) but it came in at 1.096.

Mashed at 156 for 60min

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[stevo4361]

I would think mashing at 156 and getting 1.018 out of that big of a beer is doing pretty good. Especially as you're using 05 rather than a Belgian yeast or similar.

 

[youreanimpulse]

High mash temp for that beer. My last one ended at 1.014 with 150 mash temp. It might be done. I don't know your feelings on tons of hops, but hitting it with 4-5 oz dry hop won't hurt. I would do it anyway, but I'm a hop fiend. That's my standard DIPA dry hop (split over two separate additions). An IPA that big you usually get some alcohol flavor.


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[Yooper]

17# 2row
2# Munich
2# Rye
1# table sugar

My efficiency was bad due to a busted BIAB bag. I lost a lot of wort. I was supposed to hit 1.110 I believe (I'm at work and don't have my notes in front of me) but it came in at 1.096.

Mashed at 156 for 60min

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The high mash temperature is responsible for a lot of unfermentable, long-chained sugars. The beer is done. The good news is that the yeast is probably not that pooped out, even at 9%, as there are a lot of unfermentables in there so it should bottle carb.

 

[hawgwild81]

I threw in 2oz before I came to work. I'll probably throw in another 2-4oz in 4-7 days.


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[73standard]

I've done several beers like this and I think it's probably done. Ipas are really hard to judge when they're warm and uncarbonated. I thought my last oak aged imperial ipa tasted too sweet and off in other ways too at bottling but when it was cold and carbonated, it was great. It was the best one I ever made.