A beginner's fermentation woes...

[WinoBob]

Hello all,

I know these forums overflow with questions about yeast and fermentation, and yet I find myself writing my very first post on her on that same subject...

Ok, so here's the thing; I'm a relative beginner - brewed two 1 gallon kits, this is my first "own" recipe, and also first time ramping up from a gallon to 9 liters.

The beer is an IPA. I dissolved just under a gram of Wyeast Yeast Nutrient in warm water and added with 10 minutes left of the boil. Cooled the wort to 20 centigrade and poured through a sanitised strainer into the fermentor and shook it well to get it aerated and then pitched a vial of Vermont Ale yeast (slowly brought from fridge to room temperature during the brewing process). Fitted the airlock and set in the closet at 20.9 centigrade.

It's now been around 45 hours, and I can't really see or hear any action at all, and I'm getting antsy. I did notice yesterday when checking, that the water level in the airlock was just a little bit low, so I carefully topped it up to the "fill to here" line. If I carefully flick the airlock with my finger, I do hear a little *cluck*, but I am used to see a lot more action, and a lot sooner (around 12-24 hours).

This beer is a bigger batch than I've ever brewed before, and it is higher OG (1.063), so maybe that plays a role as well? I'm attaching a video I just shot. I didn't want to open the lid, but there does seem to be some sort of thing on the top of the wort there (forget what you call that), but again it's a bigger fermentor than I've used before, and am used to seeing a bigger mess on the top

I guess I would just want you more knowledgable on here to say "chill, it's all good" or "dude, repitch NOW!"

This forum has been unfathomably helpful in my process and I'm really thankful for all the knowledge available here.

Thanks in advance!

Cheers,
Örjan

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

Chill, its all good.

crack the top open and take a look. Not going to hurt.
If you see anything foam like on top thats the beginning of fermentation. It will get way more over the next couple days then drop. I didnt do a conversion but ferment around 68F

 

[kh54s10]

You can pull the airlock, look through the hole. If you see foam it should be ok. It looks like there is some, looking at the side of the bucket.

Bucket lids are notorious for leaking so your airlock may never bubble. The co2 is just getting out elsewhere.

 

[ncbrewer]

I agree with the posts above, but I also understand your concern. I would expect more kraeusen by this time. It's probably just a case of yeast doing what it wants instead of what we expect.

 

[CascadesBrewer]

I see a little bit of white along the top, which is a good sign. At 45 hours, it could be almost done fermenting if it took off fast. These buckets are prone to leak. I agree with advice to take a peak, and you can take a gravity reading if not sure. Is this dried yeast? What temp was the wort at when you pitched the yeast. It sounds like you did the right stuff.

 

[WinoBob]

Thanks for the feedback, guys. I feel a lot better now. In fact, just before going to bed last night, I took another peek and noticed that little layer on top was three times as thick as just a few hours earlier. And this morning, it had really taken off!

I think this puppy just took its sweet ol' time getting cooking.

 

[HTH1975]

Nothing wrong with that beer - you can see the krausen-ring through the bucket.

 

[CascadesBrewer]

Yea...Beer!! Hopefully it turns out well. A lag of 12 to 24 hours is a good sign that your yeast are multiplying, eating up oxygen, and building up their cell walls. Too early can be a sign there was not enough oxygen, or too much yeast was pitched. 48+ hours is sign that something was not right. I hear about off flavors from "stressed" yeast, but I could not identify those flavors.

Was this a dried yeast pack? Did you mix it with water first? I usually just sprinkle dried yeast on top of the wort. Your process and temps sound correct. I would wonder if the yeast packet was old or stored under bad conditions (though dried yeast seem pretty tough).

It may have been fermenting all along, and you reset the seal and now see airlock activity.

 

[WinoBob]

Too early can be a sign there was not enough oxygen, or too much yeast was pitched.

Yeah, since all my previous batches have been 1 gallon, and I've pitched the same amount of yeast as this 10 liter batch, I'm used to activity way earlier. So this time it took 45+ hours, but it's really lively at the moment!

This was a vial of liquid yeast (The Yeast Bay Vermont Ale) with a BBD 04/17, kept in the fridge and brought up to room temperature before pitching. I'm quite hopeful and thirsty now

Amazing how mesmerising it can be staring at a plastic bucket, listening to the bubbles and knowing there are living things in there, munching away at the sugars....

Thanks for the feedback!

 

[WinoBob]

BBD 04/17

That's 04/17/2019, obviously!

 

[Druman07]

Amazing how mesmerising it can be staring at a plastic bucket, listening to the bubbles and knowing there are living things in there, munching away at the sugars....

Thanks for the feedback!

It is pretty cool to see the activity. I do1 gallon batches exclusively and watching all that activity in the fermenter is pretty awesome.

 

[WinoBob]

Hi guys,

Thanks for all your feedback, it's much appreciated. Quick follow up; 10 days have gone by and the activity seems to have stopped. I took a gravity reading just now, and it was down to 1.012 (from an OG of 1.063). If I take another reading tomorrow and it's the same, can I be pretty sure fermentation is done, or should I wait for a few more readings to be the same before bottling?

Cheers!

 

[kh54s10]

It would probably be better the day after that. But it is probably done. Is the beer clear? If not I would give it more time.

 

[WinoBob]

It would probably be better the day after that. But it is probably done. Is the beer clear? If not I would give it more time.

Yes, the beer looks beautiful. I guess I'll wait an extra day before taking the next sample, just to be sure. What's another day...

 

[stevieb_81]

As a noob, I found this thread extremely useful. I'm about to start my first batches tonight and as I scrolled and saw the topic - first thing I clicked on. Already not worried lol.

 

[Home_alone1]

I’ve got around 16 batches under my belt and I still stress about my yeast not taking off , never have had it happen but I worry myself way to much over it . Waiting on some Wlp029 to get started on my Gose as we speak.

 

[kh54s10]

I’ve got around 16 batches under my belt and I still stress about my yeast not taking off , never have had it happen but I worry myself way to much over it . Waiting on some Wlp029 to get started on my Gose as we speak.

Relax... I have done 106 batches over 7 3/4 years and have never had yeast not take off. The longest lag time was about 36 hours. The normal is - pitch in the afternoon, activity by morning. One stalled fermentation in all those.