Neipa with Wyeast 1968 ESB...Stuck fermentation?

[Swamp Donkey]

Hi all. I have only been brewing for a few months now and I have only been doing one gallon batches. For my 6th brew, I decided to try a NEIPA and wouldn't you know they were out of London III so I grabbed the 1968 ESB because I wanted to brew in short order. My brew went well and I treated my water for the first time. This was also the first time I used a smack pack. I popped the nutrient about 3 hours before pitch.

My OG was about 2 points high (1.056), but nothing crazy. I pitched 2/3 of the pack at 64 degrees into a climatized freezer and the pack was swollen from the nutrient. Here I am 20 hours later and I noticed that it sucked a couple ounces of star san water into the fermentor and there is no sign of active fermentation except a decent cake at the bottom of the fermentor and a small Krausen. I decided to take a reading and my corrected value was 1.046.

I guess I was expecting to see a lot more activity at this time from a yeast that was primed with nutrients and was ready to go. I'm concerned that it just petered out. My other brews were all very vigorous at this point. I was looking to dry hopping at the back end of primary so now I'm just looking for thoughts.

I appreciate your help.

 

[IslandLizard]

What did you use to measure your gravity?

WY1968 is a very high flocculator, it settles out like egg drop soup and forms a thick rubbery sheet on the bottom. But it should ferment quite well before doing that. You could try to gently rouse it. Use the back end of your long plastic brewing spoon, it has a small paddle on it, and give it a gentle stir without whipping air into it.

Maybe rise the temps a few degrees, say to 66F or 68F.

At least you've got a decent yeast cake now to ferment a nice batch of ESB.

WY1318 is my favorite for NEIPAs. WY1272 works well too, accentuating citrusy flavors and aromas.
I think it's worth scoring some 1318 and keeping it around. Make a starter and save out what you don't pitch for your next batch or make a new starter from.

 

[Swamp Donkey]

Thanks for the suggestions. I was a bit premature. 4 hours later and it's starting to bubble. I just assumed it would start quicker with the smack pack...

 

[IslandLizard]

Good to hear! I should have said: RDW...

Even when pitching into small batches, making yeast starters can still be useful. They ramp up cell count, so you can save a lot out for pitching in subsequent batches, but also raises vitality of the cell population. Depending on how old that yeast pack was when you pitched it and how it was handled during that time, the cell count and vitality can be quite low. Use a yeast pitch calculator to estimate cell count. In small batches the risk of over pitching can become reality.

At least you knew it was working because the pack swelled, and 2/3 of a pack in a gallon is a fairly large pitch if all cells were at their peak.

Did you oxygenate/aerate the wort before pitching? That helps a lot getting it going faster, although some lag time is always to be expected. The yeast does what it does to reign supreme in your beer.

 

[Swamp Donkey]

I aerate the wort like crazy prior to pitching. I have a freezer that is climate controlled but I am noticing that when I put the fermentor on the floor of the freezer, it will drop two degrees past the threshold temp because the floor is the coldest component. I will try a towel under it next time to see if it holds temp better.

The yeast was manufactured in March so I felt pretty good about the cell count.