Odd stuck fermentation, lets pick an option

[Skacorica]

So, I have never had a stuck fermentation before, and I do mostly big beers. Belgian strong ale, triple IPA, etc no problems ever before. Well, my newest brew, a tripel, is just plain stuck.
OG: 1.092
Current: 1.048 (stuck for over a week)

I was using the wyeast high gravity trappist ale with a large starter and it had a crazy vigorous first fermentation and blew out like crazy. After that a sort of hard krausen crust formed on top and it just stopped. I stirred it up, warmed it up, nothin.

So now I have several options:

1: pitch some new trappist ale yeast
2: pitch some dry yeast
3: I have an american ale that I fermented with Saf 05 that is now ready to be racked to secondary. I could rack it to secondary and rack the tripel on top of that yeast cake.

Thoughts?

 

[GroosBrewz]

Any one of those should do the trick. If it were me, I would rack it onto the yeast cake just to use it up.. But if you really want to preserve the flavor that the yeast brings to the party, then pitch some new trappist yeast and see what happens.. I have never had a stuck fermentation either, but I know it's gonna happen one of these days.

Makes you wonder about why the fermentation stuck in the first place.. Perhaps we'll never know....

 

[Skacorica]

Any one of those should do the trick. If it were me, I would rack it onto the yeast cake just to use it up.. But if you really want to preserve the flavor that the yeast brings to the party, then pitch some new trappist yeast and see what happens.. I have never had a stuck fermentation either, but I know it's gonna happen one of these days.

Makes you wonder about why the fermentation stuck in the first place.. Perhaps we'll never know....

Yeah, its a mystery to me; there was literally nothing different about that beer from all others I have done. I actually one upped myself and pitched onto the yeast cake from my Pliny, I figured those yeasties are used to high gravity. Too bad my tripel is now going to be some sort of weird hybrid

 

[GroosBrewz]

Yeah, its a mystery to me; there was literally nothing different about that beer from all others I have done. I actually one upped myself and pitched onto the yeast cake from my Pliny, I figured those yeasties are used to high gravity. Too bad my tripel is now going to be some sort of weird hybrid

Or, it could be one of the tastiest brews you have ever done... Glass is half FULL, man! Some of the greatest inventions in history were discovered by accident.. I feel your pain, but like I said, it may be really, really good.. Here's to hoping for the best

 

[Yooper]

I'd put it on the SO5 yeast cake. It's stuck. Unsticking it now would require a big starter (it's already what? nearly 6% ABV?) and some heroic effort by even a high gravity yeast.

 

[bubbachunk]

Any one of those should do the trick. If it were me, I would rack it onto the yeast cake just to use it up.. But if you really want to preserve the flavor that the yeast brings to the party, then pitch some new trappist yeast and see what happens.. I have never had a stuck fermentation either, but I know it's gonna happen one of these days.

Makes you wonder about why the fermentation stuck in the first place.. Perhaps we'll never know....

A drop in temperature could have done it as some of the belgian yeasts are known to be finicky like that.

 

[SpanishCastleAle]

I vote Cake. Then perhaps, perhaps, perhaps it will go the distance.

 

[bknifefight]

I had a tripel stall out with the 3787 as well. I tried several things but my solution was to brew a low OG Belgian Pale Ale with 3787 and pitch the tripel onto it's yeast cake. That did the trick and it is just about done now (after 6 weeks!!) Did you do the incremental feedings WYeast recommends for this yeast?

 

[bknifefight]

I vote Cake. Then perhaps, perhaps, perhaps it will go the distance.

Ha! This is good

 

[Skacorica]

I vote Cake. Then perhaps, perhaps, perhaps it will go the distance.

It probably stalled because I left it all alone in its time of need

 

[Skacorica]

I had a tripel stall out with the 3787 as well. I tried several things but my solution was to brew a low OG Belgian Pale Ale with 3787 and pitch the tripel onto it's yeast cake. That did the trick and it is just about done now (after 6 weeks!!) Did you do the incremental feedings WYeast recommends for this yeast?

No, I actually didn't, I just did a big starter. I guess you could consider that one increment I wish I had a belgian around, I would have pitched onto it. How did yours turn out?

 

[Skacorica]

Or, it could be one of the tastiest brews you have ever done... Glass is half FULL, man! Some of the greatest inventions in history were discovered by accident.. I feel your pain, but like I said, it may be really, really good.. Here's to hoping for the best

Well, it seems to have unstuck using the pliny yeast cake (saf-05). I went downstairs and checked it this morning and it was bubbling away with a damn nice looking krausen on top. Lets see what happens

 

[bknifefight]

No, I actually didn't, I just did a big starter. I guess you could consider that one increment I wish I had a belgian around, I would have pitched onto it. How did yours turn out?

What I meant by the incremental feedings was adding sugar to the beer while it is fermenting. WYeast recommends this to maximize the attenuation and get your beer as dry as it can be.

I'll let you know how it turns out in a few months. I just unstuck it about a week ago and the krausen has almost completely fallen. I will probably take a gravity reading in a day or so once it seems to have stopped. With it being a 9+% Tripel, it will need some time in the bottle.

 

[paint_it_black]

I vote Cake. Then perhaps, perhaps, perhaps it will go the distance.

+1000 for three CAKE references in one sentence.

 

[Skacorica]

So, update, its now a week and a half later and its down to 1.030 but I have a feeling its stuck again, no airlock activity, so Ill check gravity again in a week and see where we are at. If this doesnt work I have no idea what Im going to do to dry it out. It was a VERY low IBU beer so I cant let it finish any higher than 1.015.

Eeek

 

[elmwood]

i have the same problem--used trappist ale yeast and have been stuck at 1.030 now for months. i live in AK and my house dropped into the low 50s while i was gone probably sealing the poor beer's fate.

i tried dumping it onto a belgian abbey 1 yeast cake which finished out. that may have worked if i was around to keep up the temp.

from what i've read, you shouldn't bother pitching a new yeast pack directly into it because the yeast won't be use to semi digested wort. either try and make a big starter culture and pitch that or better yet, brew another beer with same yeast and drop it onto the yeast cake when it's finished.

trappist yeast is problematic. you have to keep it warm at the very least--in the 70s. my house is never that warm, even in the summer.

 

[tedclev]

Ha! This is good

As Frank Sinatra sings Stormy weather, the yeast declare- I! I will survive!