I am making a 1.143 OG beer with 3 packets of Nottingham. The recipe contains 4 pounds of sugar but I left that out of the boil so that I could use it to feed the yeast during fermentation. Is there a process to step-feed? When should I add the sugar to the primary and how much should I add at a time?
step-feeding yeast in fermenter
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I just did my first big beer and asked the same question here. The answer I got was to skip the sugar initially and then when active fermentation slows way down--then pitch the sugar. I guess if you add the sugar too early the yeast eats it and then has trouble downing the more complex carbs in the grains. Due to work schedules I think I ended up waiting like 5 or 6 days to add the sugar. It worked like a champ for me. I just pitched all the sugar at once.
In that case I think I pitched the first pound of sugar a little too soon. I'll wait a while for the yeast to eat through that sugar and the malt sugars before I put in the other three pounds of sugar.
What was your over all OG?
I took another gravity reading today and the beer is at 1.046... It was 1.050 yesterday. It's been almost a week since I pitched the yeast. Do I need to worry about a stuck fermentation? I'm worried that if I add the remaining 3 lbs of sugar, and I have a stuck fermentation then I'll just have a sweet mess of a beer.
Any thoughts?
Any thoughts?
Good idea. The current specific gravity is close to 1.04. I'm thinking about adding another pound of sugar with some yeast nutrient. I have one nutrient capsule that was intended for five gallons. Should I just put the entire thing? Or just sprinkle some?
The simple sugar mixture was so thick that I couldn't get it to boil. But the temp went all the way up to 220F. So I'm sure everything alive had died.
Oh dead for sure good luck on your brew, hope it attenuates down to you're desires level. Also how did you oxygenate your wort? I may have misses it but at around 12 hours after fermentation starts you could always introduce more oxygen with no ill effects. Im sure ive read that even 24 hours later its still safe ans beneficial for high gravity brews.
Thanks! I don't have oxygen stones or whatever so I just swished the wort back and forth between two buckets many, many, many times. I hope that is enough!
Hows the brew coming a long? taken any gravity readings?
I finally feed the last ~lb of sugar two days ago and the airlock is still bubbling. Before adding this last pound, the gravity was at about 1.034. I mixed the sugar in and it jumped up to like 1.046, which is where I would expect it to go after adding a pound in 5 gallons. I'm suspecting the yeast will eat through that with no issues. I also have the ferm temp at 67F. I'm going to go measure the gravity now to see where it is at.
Imno expert in the subject but i read something interesting about someone who did something similat. He had lots of wort already boiled that he added like you did with sugar and also he added beano tablets to break down dextrins and lower the fg. If im not wrong he got to something like 20 %. Just quoting what i read. Keep posting. Safe brew.
Thanks! Airlock is still bubbling so I'm hopeful I'll at least get close to the FG I want: 1.020. If it settles out at 1.030 I'll be happy.
Do you know what yeast he used?
Beer is currently sitting at 1.030. That's 15.3% ABV! There is still bubbling activity in the airlock but it has slowed down, so it will probably go down a few more points. I'm guessing I'm close to the limits of Nottingham at this point.
I tasted the uncarbed beer a bit and the alcohol doesn't taste hot. However I don't taste a strong malty flavor like I expected it to. Maybe it needs to age before the maltiness comes out more.
I tasted the uncarbed beer a bit and the alcohol doesn't taste hot. However I don't taste a strong malty flavor like I expected it to. Maybe it needs to age before the maltiness comes out more.
I did this once with a black ipa. Fed it 4# as well I believe.
But, the yeast died just before it finished and it didn't carb.
If I ever do it again, I will try to use pacman, maybe even pitching some fresh yeast near the end. Then re pitch champagne yeast at bottling.
Mine kept bubbling as well, but I now think it was just offgassing.
But, the yeast died just before it finished and it didn't carb.
If I ever do it again, I will try to use pacman, maybe even pitching some fresh yeast near the end. Then re pitch champagne yeast at bottling.
Mine kept bubbling as well, but I now think it was just offgassing.
Yeah, mine may be off-gassing as well. I will be kegging this beer because I am going to age it for many, many months. I will also age it on french oak chips (probably a week or two) and american oak cubes (for a while). Bottling won't be an option anyway because I doubt I'll be able to naturally carb it at this ABV with Notthingham.
I took a very small sip and I can taste the alcohol for sure. It didn't taste as sweet or malty as I thought it would. I'm hoping those flavors will develop more over time as it settles out. I'm going to keep in the primary for like another week or so to let the yeast clean itself up then move to secondary to start oaking.
What was your final gravity? I was hoping to get a slightly sweet and malty barleywine with a lot of dark fruit flavors.
No problems! It is a partial mash:
1.5# pale malt 2-row
1# 120L
12oz munich malt
.5# special roast
.5# victory malt
12# amber LME
2# corn sugar
2# turbinado sugar
I just took a gravity reading and its still at 1.030. This time I took a good taste of it and its definitely boozy and viscus. It is slightly bitter but I suspect it will fade away over time. I don't really taste a lot of sweet, malty, dark fruit but hopefully it will come in more as it ages.
I wonder how differently it would taste if I replaced the 4# of sugar with grains (of equal gravity).
I wonder how differently it would taste if I replaced the 4# of sugar with grains (of equal gravity).
Much more malty. I didn't realize you were using extract. That explains the higher fg.
If you repeat, maybe try more victory, and/or swap 2row for marris otter if you want it a bit maltier.
I don't think you will get much dark fruit. Need cadi sugar for that.
I used MO as my base malt and almost a # of centenial in mine, attempting to make everything bigger. Even though it never/barely carbed, I still enjoyed it. It did mellow after a bit of six weeks.
What style is this in? Never saw you mention or a hop schedule....
Yes, I'm using extract. I'm glad the FG didn't go lower otherwise I think the beer would be too "thin" for my taste. I read that turbinado sugar would give dark fruit tastes. We will see I guess.
Next time I try this, it will be all grain.
Hop schedule:
1oz sterling @60
.75oz columbus @30
I am going to oak this with french oak chips and American cubes soon. This is supposed to be an English style barleywine.
Just curious, how would you imagine all of this will taste like? To me, this is a heck of an experiment.
Are you currently aging yours? How it did it change over time?
I've never used turbinabo sugar before. I aged mine for a few months in hopes of it carbing properly, but it didn't happen.
To my suprise, my hops stayed very present. Probably the 14oz in the boil... The roast mellowed, but never distracted from the hops. The burn stayed present, to an extent. It always hit you on the first sip, but after the roast and centenial overtook it.
I still have a few in the basement. Keeping then until. ..?
I'm hoping to do a barleywine before years end and then doing a pale off the second runnings. Got a used Coleman extreme xl for real cheap a while back. Pretty sure I could get a whole sack in there and make it work.
I'll mash low myself. There will still be plenty of risidual sugars post fermentation.
I may split the batch and do a xl abv version by adding dextrose. Sounds like a fun exbeeriment to me! Plus it would free up my spiedel.
Taste wise, idk. It's a pretty straight bill. my only worry is if you have enough ibus to balance the abv and fg. It will still make beer. Keep us posted!
To my suprise, my hops stayed very present. Probably the 14oz in the boil... The roast mellowed, but never distracted from the hops. The burn stayed present, to an extent. It always hit you on the first sip, but after the roast and centenial overtook it.
I still have a few in the basement. Keeping then until. ..?
I'm hoping to do a barleywine before years end and then doing a pale off the second runnings. Got a used Coleman extreme xl for real cheap a while back. Pretty sure I could get a whole sack in there and make it work.
I'll mash low myself. There will still be plenty of risidual sugars post fermentation.
I may split the batch and do a xl abv version by adding dextrose. Sounds like a fun exbeeriment to me! Plus it would free up my spiedel.
Taste wise, idk. It's a pretty straight bill. my only worry is if you have enough ibus to balance the abv and fg. It will still make beer. Keep us posted!
I have a feeling mine isn't going to carb in a bottle either. I don't think Nottingham can do more than 15.5% alcohol. Therefore, I will just keg this. I need to bulk age this anyway so keg is it for me
You used 14oz of hops in the boil??????? How was that like???
Unfortunately because I used extract, I couldn't mash low as I would have probably liked but I think the 1.030 is a good FG for this beer and for me... especially since this is an english barleywine where the style dictates sweet maltiness. Therefore I"m not too worried about the relative low IBUs.
I am considering cold crashing this beer (never don it before) to try to make it as clear as I possibly could. Right now, its looks like copper colored mud. Actually, question, would cold crashing drop out the sugars that are in the beer? I'm wondering if the murkiness in the beer is from the sugar and malt? Would cold crashing this change the flavor and/or mouth feel? I'd love to keep it viscus.
You used 14oz of hops in the boil??????? How was that like???
Unfortunately because I used extract, I couldn't mash low as I would have probably liked but I think the 1.030 is a good FG for this beer and for me... especially since this is an english barleywine where the style dictates sweet maltiness. Therefore I"m not too worried about the relative low IBUs.
I am considering cold crashing this beer (never don it before) to try to make it as clear as I possibly could. Right now, its looks like copper colored mud. Actually, question, would cold crashing drop out the sugars that are in the beer? I'm wondering if the murkiness in the beer is from the sugar and malt? Would cold crashing this change the flavor and/or mouth feel? I'd love to keep it viscus.
Purge the keg? To prevent oxidation?
Yea. Really interesting info and points being made here in that regard.
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=554966
Co2 fill after kegging
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=554966
Co2 fill after kegging
Interesting chart in the thread. Thanks!
Wish the beer some luck during the long voyage! Similar threads
