So I am fermenting a 3 gal and today is the 7th day it has been in primary. My OG was 1.086 and as per BeerSmith it says my FG should be 1.018 for 9.07% ABV. I checked the FG today and it is at 1.018. Should I cold crash at this point and stop the fermentation or continue to let it go until my FG no longer drops?
Hit FG in 7 days?
- Thread starter jivy26
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Lazer Wolf Brewing
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You really should wait until fermentation stops naturally. Especially if you're bottling. Reason being that yeast will clean up off flavors towards the end of fermentation. Also if you bottle beers that aren't done fermenting, you could be creating bottle bombs.
Reaching FG in 7 days is normal for some yeasts but you'll want to wait a couple days and take another hydro sample to confirm its still at 1.018 and done fermenting.
fermentation is done including production of ethanol and higher level alcohols at this point. The yeast does have the ability to uptake diacetyl and other compounds that can produce some off flavors so what I normally do when my fermentation is done this early is taste the beer and if I identify any off flavors I tend to give the beer more time or do a diaceyl rest. If the beer tastes good then I don't worry with waiting longer and keg.
Beersmith FG's are estimates. Lots of variables, including mash temperature, grain freshness, pitch rate, fermentation temperature, yeast strain, and so on can affect how far the beer ferments.
That said, many beers finish within a week, so it's possible your beer has indeed reached its FG. As @brewerdoc says, the yeast continue to work on the beer even after they've fermented all the sugars they're going to ferment, so it's good to give them another week or two to finish up, but there's a decent chance the FG won't change over that period.
That said, many beers finish within a week, so it's possible your beer has indeed reached its FG. As @brewerdoc says, the yeast continue to work on the beer even after they've fermented all the sugars they're going to ferment, so it's good to give them another week or two to finish up, but there's a decent chance the FG won't change over that period.
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