alcohol content

[Dionustra]

Hi All - Newbie here - very much appreciating all the knowledge in these threads. My question is about alcohol content. I did an ale that should have ended around 10%, but my hydrometer read only 6%. I'm wondering if I didn't let it ferment long enough? I did a week in a primary and another 2 weeks in a secondary. I was getting 3-4 bubbles per minute from the airlock at the end, but I was impatient to bottle, and now I'm worried that I didn't let it go long enough and that I'm going to have exploding bottles. Should I move these out to the garage just in case? Also possibly relevant is the fact that I fermented around 63 degrees F. Too cold for full fermentation? I've copied the recipe below, in case that helps. Thanks in advance for any help.

(from Clone Brews, p. 54)

14 oz German crystal malt
4 oz Belgian aromatic malt
3 oz Belgian Cara-Munich malt
2 oz Belgian biscuit malt

11 lb. M&F extra light DME
1 lb. M&F wheat DME
1/2 lb. Belgian clear candi sugar
1 oz Brewer's Gold @ 9.0 AA

1/4 oz Styrian Goldings
1 tsp Irish moss

Wyeast's 1388 Belgian strong ale yeast

bottled with 1 1/4 C M&F extra-light DME

 

[hoppymonkey]

What was your Orginal gravity versus final gravity reading? That is sure way to tell. If it was a 5 gallon batch it should have been around 1.108 and final should have been ~1.023. If the final was much higher than that you could end up with bottle bombs.

 

[Dionustra]

I must admit sheepishly that I forgot to take an OG reading. FG was 1.050, but I guess that doesn't help without an OG.... For what it's worth, FG was supposed to be 1.020-1.026.

 

[hoppymonkey]

You need to uncap those bottles NOW! I have a nasty scar on my hand from a bottle bomb so trust me. You didnt wait long enough or your yeast stalled.

 

[Dionustra]

So this batch is a goner, I guess? They've been capped for about 2 hours. Uncap, pour down the drain, and do better next time? Might 63 degrees have been too cold for the yeast?

 

[mdgagne]

Hand grenades! Hit the deck

 

[hoppymonkey]

You may can save them my adding back to fermenter and perhaps repitch a sizable starter tommorow. Do it as quickly/cleanly as possible and minimize splashing. The temp depends on the yeast type itself. Its worth a try to save the batch though. Try adding a High alcohol tolerant variety like nottingham or wlp099 to finish it with.


Sorry, didnt notice the yeast you used. That type should be good enough, and may rouse itself back up

 

[flabyboy]

Ya. You are in danger if you leave them in the bottles. The hardest and most important aspect of brewing is patience. The hefty beer should have been left in a fermenter for 6-8 weeks at least.

Did you make a starter for your yeast? It would explain a stalled fermentation if you didn't.

 

[hoppymonkey]

+1 on flayboy . You need a big starter for a big beer

 

[Dionustra]

Awesome - thanks so much everyone. I'm going down now to uncap and pour everything back in the carboy. My brew shop is closed on Sundays (tomorrow), so I won't be able to repitch anything until Monday afternoon. So my questions now are, (1) should I wait until I see if it restarts itself fermenting, or definitely go ahead and pitch more yeast on Monday? (2) Is my 63 degree basement too cold for ale fermenting? My house is around 78 in the summer, which I assume is too warm. If necessary I could do some research and find a middle ground temp somewhere in the house, if it's worth the trouble. (Sorry - now seeing your note that the temp depends on yeast - I'll check with the folks at the brew shop for that....) Thanks again for the help, guys!

 

[janivar123]

63 seem a bit low
Should still ferment but sinse you removed most of it i think you should try making whats left happy

wyeast say 64-80 on 1388 (even if i would personally avoid getting too close to the top)

 

[NWMOBrewer]

Bottling means 3 days if hydrometer readings. What I do is make sure some yeast goes into suspension on day 1. If stalled happens, I will know by day 3. Good luck and don't dump

 

[flabyboy]

I would leave it in the warmer area after transferring to carboy. You may find the oxygen and the added DME from bottling that it was exposed to may jumpstart your beer. It may also ruin it, but what other choice do you have. If that yeast can go up to 80 according to wyeast than you should be ok