1 Day Fermentation

[Kelpie]

I started a 1 gallon batch(I cant afford a larger kettle) of Munich/Hallertau SMaSH on Friday. My hydrometer broke last week, so I didn't use it at all. I pitched about half of the packet of Wyeast German Ale after finishing my brew day around 1 a.m. and it was fermenting the next morning when I woke up. By the end of the day Saturday, there was no more bubbling in the airlock, although there was still pressure inside the carboy. It has been kept between 67-70F.
Does anybody have any suggestions on how to kick start the fermentation? Or is it just done super fast because its a little less than a gallon of wort and 50 billion yest cells?
The recipe was 2 pounds of Munich mashed at 150F for 60 minutes and a 45 minute boil with 3/4 oz of Hallertau hops. Any help would be appreciated, as this is my first beer not from an ingredient kit, so I really don't want to fudge it up. Thanks!

 

[BigFloyd]

Without any hydrometer reading, there is no way to tell if you need to "kickstart" anything. Give it another week, go buy a hydrometer, and check it.

 

[DSorenson]

2x what big Floyd said. Hydrometer tells us all. Though I do suspect that a small quantity of beer being over-pitched would finish faster than most. Again, no way to tell for sure.

 

[fartinmartin]

How do you know it's stopped?
Get a reading
Then another
Then another
Then we can have a discussion and will be pleased to help

 

[kh54s10]

What temperature did reach during fermentation? Too warm will ferment faster but will likely cause off flavors, the hotter the worse.

Also, just because the airlock is not bubbling does not mean that it is done fermenting. As already said wait another week or 3, get a new hydrometer and take readings. That is the only way to know for sure what is happening.

 

[BigFloyd]

How do you know it's stopped?
Get a reading
Then another
Then another
Then we can have a discussion and will be pleased to help

I've heard that before, but I've come to the conclusion that 2 readings, 4 days apart are fine so long as the numbers match. Also, it's one less disruption of the fermenter, especially for those who have to pry off lids. I pitch plenty of yeast, so I grab the first one at 10-14 days.

 

[fartinmartin]

Hi Bigfloyd, I am really just making the point , that the effort must be put in, equipment as basic as a hydrometer or refractometer are essential , or us guys who try to respond to questions are wasting our efforts due to the lack of effort of the op.

 

[Kelpie]

Hi Bigfloyd, I am really just making the point , that the effort must be put in, equipment as basic as a hydrometer or refractometer are essential , or us guys who try to respond to questions are wasting our efforts due to the lack of effort of the op.

I said in the original post that it broke. There's no lack of effort, I just don't have one this week and was wondering if there was anything else I could do. I guess I'll just leave it alone and see what happens.

Also, as previously stated, the temperature never exceeded 70F.

 

[fartinmartin]

I beg your pardon , I missed the broken hydrometer, sorry.

Another way to see fermentation is with a flashlight, if its in glass shine your torch at it real close ,looking at the brew rather than the surface, you will see up/down activity.

There is no hurry, even when fermentation stops, if you leave it a few weeks after fermentation has actually stopped it will just end up as wonderful clear beer, just prime and bottle when it's been sat for a good long spell.
It must be finished before next step.

 

[Kelpie]

Cool, thank you. I'll check it out with a flashlight. My red ale has obvious up/down stuff, so I know what to look for.

 

[jglazer]

Like said above, even if it was done fermenting in 1 day there are so many other beneficial things happening in there over the next week or two... only if you are fermenting a style like an IPA (among a few others) that needs to be consumed as soon as possible would you want to worry about bottling/kegging it sooner rather than later