Residual co2 or infection

[slippery]

Yet another question for all the talent within this forum....am not to sure what to think of this so I thought I'd ask the experts.
Been brewing for couple years now and haven't came across this , To make it quick....have a wheat ale (0g 1.60)fermenting for its 2nd week in the secondary ( 4 weeks total) 3 days of continued similar gravity readings indicated that it was complete. Dry hopped last night and when I dumped the pellets into the carbon it immediately started fizzing and bubbling like it was already carbonated ?? So much so that I put a blow hose back on it and it foamed over and bubbled and fizzed like nobody's business. This lasted about 20 mins then it calmed right back down. What do ya think?? A little background about this brew ..the fact is I have been worried that it was infected early on because of a off smell in the starter that has passed over to the brew.. I stepped this yeast up from dregs so the chance of infection is there for sure.
Any advise would be awesome
Thanks


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[RM-MN]

I'd say it's time for a taste test. Also, similar gravity reading isn't quite the same as identical gravity readings so you should post what you read too.

 

[slippery]

Taste is slightly off ...i did miss speak. I had identical readings in a three day span of 1.014
Does this reaction to the hops seem off to you?



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[RM-MN]

It does seem strange but it certainly is likely that the hops formed nucleation sites for the CO2 and caused it to off gas. The stable gravity at what seems like the right amount for a final gravity says you probably don't have an infection but some of them can act pretty slowly so taking another gravity in a week would be my suggestion.

 

[jalmeida]

I have had a few that carbonated in the fermenter. But they were not infected. Just consider that some fermentations are more vigorous than others even causing blowoffs. Why would it not be possible to carbonate early? When dealing with living organisms their is no such thing as identical results 100% of the time.

I would just rack to secondary(if you do that) and taste before you keg. No sense in worrying at this point.


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[m1batt1]

I haven't had a reaction like you described but when I've added dry hops in the past I end up with a krausen like layer for a day or two even though the surface was completely clear prior to dry hopping.

Another thing to consider is the temperature of fermentation and at the time you added the hops. If it was on the cooler side of fermentation the whole time then there's a lot more co2 in suspension compared to warmer temps or fluctuations in temps.

 

[slippery]

Thanks for the info. Much appreciated ... As for the temp. It has been in my chamber for two weeks at 69 degrees. The top side of the yeast range. There was never any signs of an infection in primary or yet in secondary but I have yet to have one to my knowledge . So am not sure what to look for.
If it is infected will the gravity change In A couple days ?
Like I said earlier, there is no doubt an of flavor / smell. Not horrible but noticeable
I will let this ride out for a bit.....time always seems to be the best bet.



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[Yooper]

It sounds like you had a bit of carbon dioxide in the fermenter. Adding the dry hops created thousands of nucleation points. It doesn't mean it's fermenting.

Adding any solid to a carbonated beverage creates those nucleation points.

 

[slippery]

Thanks for the reply yooper... Am a big fan of yours! Actually brewing your pale tomorrow . ...so you would think that this brew in question is safe to bottle ?


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[Yooper]

If the gravity is unchanged, over the course of at least three days, then yes it would be fine to bottle.