Kolsch help - should I intervene?

[roxbob]

Hi Folks,

Would appreciate your thoughts on a current batch of Kolsch I have going. I brewed it 3 weeks ago (8/8), mashed at 150, pitched with a fully swollen smack pack of WYeast 2565 into very well oxygenated wort, fermenting at 59 degrees. Visible fermentation took off within a few hours, and in less than a day it needed a blowoff tube. Fermented like crazy for several days, then began to slow down but was still visibly active for over a week. OG was 1.049

However, it seems to have pooped out a bit too early which has never been a problem with me before with 2565 - the FG seems to have stabalized at 1.016 and even though the yeast hasn't dropped out yet and it's still green, I can tell it tastes too sweet.

I've started the cold conditioning, but am wondering if I should instead warm it back up and re-pitch some more yeast to try to get the FG down a bit more first. Any thoughts on whether I should intervene, or just let it ride as is and see how it tastes when is clears and conditions in a few more weeks?

Thanks!
Bob

 

[BigRedHopHead]

Ive only done one batch with 2565 and here is what I can tell you. Fermentation took 3 weeks at 58 degrees. Mine got down to 1.010. Took FOREVER to clear up, 2 months lagering with gelatin added when it went on the gas. I let my ferm temp ramp up to 62-64 degrees the last week of fermentation. Kolsch needs a nice crisp finish so I would repitch at a warmer temp and see what happens.

 

[daksin]

Now that most of your yeast flavor is set, you could definitely warm it up a few degrees to help the yeast finish out. Swirling the beer to get some yeast back in suspension couldn't hurt.

 

[roxbob]

Thanks for the replies. Daksin, I transferred to a keg after a couple of weeks, so I don't think there's much of a yeast cake to get back in suspension. I was thinking of warming it up and pitching some US-05 - do you think that's a good or bad idea?

 

[edecambra]

I doubt that there is really anything a fresh pitch ca do for you. If it were me I'd let it ride at 1.016 and lager it for a month. That east is super powdery and I have had it suspended for a month even with gelatin. Once it cleared up though it was great.

1.016 is probably as low as it will go if your off the cake though. Only way to drop it lower IF there are any fermentables left is to rack on a fresh yeast cake and that seems like a big PITA.

 

[roxbob]

I do have a large mason jar with a good amount of washed Nottingham Ale yeast, pretty much most of a cake from a previous batch. Would anyone recommend just pitching that into the keg at room temp to see if it helps? Tasted it again last night - WAY too sweet. Tastes even higher than 1.016. Not sure if just lagering and settling out the kolsch yeast will do it...

The other question I have is, what the heck happened? Why would the Kolsch yeast just stop like that? I mashed at a temp that should have resulted in good attenuation, my fermentation temps were stable, and it took off like a rocket. Any ideas, to try to prevent this the next time?

 

[pjj2ba]

Don't add any new yeast. I'd just let the keg sit in the mid- to upper 60's for a week or so. As other said, this yeast does not settle out well, so there should be plenty left to drop the gravity the rest of the way

 

[roxbob]

Just thought I'd follow up on this. Waited a bit longer, still tasted too sweet, so I pitched the Notty, and cold crashed it a week later. Carbed it and served it at our Oktoberfest pary on 9/21, where everyone loved it and kicked that keg first. Bottled two bottles of it from the keg before it was gone, entered it in the NE Regional Homebrew comp, where it took 3rd out of 22 in light hybrids. Still don't know quite what happened, but I guess the intervention worked out OK!

 

[signpost]

Did you take a gravity reading to know how much more the Notty took it? I've generally had good attenuation with the 2565, so I have no idea why it stopped for you.

 

[roxbob]

It took it down to about 1.010, which was clearly what it needed. Not sure why it happened either - I used the 2565 yeast cake from the primary to ferment a dusseldorf alt, which worked just fine. I'm going to make it again soon, so hopefully it'll go a bit smoother then next time!