Ballast Point West Coast Pale Ale - 1st Batch

[Mke_bke]

Hello,
I am currently fermenting my first batch but, need some help and suggestions...I am fermenting an all extract West Coast Pale Ale from Ballast Point using Safale-05 dry ale yeast, 2 oz of cascade hop pellets and 3-lbs of both Amber and Light DME.
Thursday (8/23) after I cooled down the wort and brought down the temperature of a wort sample to 60-deg, I obtained a gravity reading of 1.056. I pitched the yeast on at 75-deg in the carboy. The first couple days there was no activity in the air stop. The only activity was in the carboy thay showed a thick foam, on top.

On Sunday (8/26 2.5 days later) someone suggested to shake the carboy to liven the yeast, I did...well that took away the foam on top and nothing occurred for the next 24-hours. The wort kept a temperature of 79-degrees. Then I was told to get another package of dry yeast and pour it in there...I did and nothing occurred, temp in carboy is still 79-deg and there's still no foam, bubbles and carboy has a light brown sediment in the bottom...

Any suggestions to get this fermentation going would be appreciated. Also, when do I start the 2-week fermentation count down? What can I do to improve my next batch in the future?

Thank you!
Miguel
@BikeNBrew
Www.facebook.com/BikeNBrew

 

[Newgene]

What is your gravity now? I think in the range of 75 to 80, you likely fermented out in the first few days. This was evident in the thick foam. You likely didn't have a good seal at the stopper. You should have had bubbles in the air lock if you had foam. Adding yeast at this point does nothing if you are already fermented out. The SG will tell the story.

I guess I have a few questions/comments. Why didn't you pitch the yeast when it was in the low 60's? Pitching at 75F is hot. Shaking the wort again is not bad idea if you knew it wasn't already fermented. If you were completely fermented, all you did was oxidize the beer. If you truly are done fermenting, my thoughts are you didn't have a good seal from the stopper. However, I use buckets over carboys. So, I'm not sure how common stopper leaks are compared to bucket seals.

 

[WiscoMan]

The foam forming in the carboy is normal I believe (if we are talking about the same thing). However, not seeing any bubbling in the airlock is strange. You did put water in the airlock right?

And there really is no formal "count down" for fermentation. I leave my batches in primary for a little over a week then transfer to a secondary for 2 weeks. Many brewers on here will tell you to leave it in the primary anywhere from 2-3 weeks to 4-6 weeks then bottle. It really just depends what you like to do.

Hope that helps

 

[Mke_bke]

What is your gravity now? I think in the range of 75 to 80, you likely fermented out in the first few days. This was evident in the thick foam. You likely didn't have a good seal at the stopper. You should have had bubbles in the air lock if you had foam. Adding yeast at this point does nothing if you are already fermented out. The SG will tell the story.

I guess I have a few questions/comments. Why didn't you pitch the yeast when it was in the low 60's? Pitching at 75F is hot. Shaking the wort again is not bad idea if you knew it wasn't already fermented. If you were completely fermented, all you did was oxidize the beer. If you truly are done fermenting, my thoughts are you didn't have a good seal from the stopper. However, I use buckets over carboys. So, I'm not sure how common stopper leaks are compared to bucket seals.

Hello Newgene,
I haven't taken a reading, I can post the gravity reading tonight. Can a beer ferment in 2-3 days? I did have water in the air-lock, it seemed to have a tight seal as I struggled to put it in the carboy. I was only able to bring down the carboy temperature down to 75 with ice in my sink, that night was very hot and humid (without AC in the house) and my lack of knowledge was a major factor...I learned I need to control the wort temperature but, what is ideal wort temperature for an Ale? I have kept this one at 78-79 deg. Are all beer styles fermented at the same temperature? Thanks for your comments, as soon as I take a gravity reading, I will let you know.

 

[Mke_bke]

The foam forming in the carboy is normal I believe (if we are talking about the same thing). However, not seeing any bubbling in the airlock is strange. You did put water in the airlock right?

And there really is no formal "count down" for fermentation. I leave my batches in primary for a little over a week then transfer to a secondary for 2 weeks. Many brewers on here will tell you to leave it in the primary anywhere from 2-3 weeks to 4-6 weeks then bottle. It really just depends what you like to do.

Hope that helps

Hi WiscoMan,
I had water in the airlock, yes and it seemed to have made a good seal as I struggled to set in the carboy. I was told to leave the wort fermenting for 2-weeks and 1-week in the bottles. Is the time range a matter of preferance or beer taste?
Thank you!!

 

[WiscoMan]

1 week in the bottles will definitely not be enough time and I think most people will agree that 2-3 weeks is a minimum for bottle conditioning. Many people wait months even...

I would say 2-3 weeks in primary and then if you go straight to bottling wait 3 weeks. Hope that helps.

 

[Newgene]

1 week in the bottles will definitely not be enough time and I think most people will agree that 2-3 weeks is a minimum for bottle conditioning. Many people wait months even...

I would say 2-3 weeks in primary and then if you go straight to bottling wait 3 weeks. Hope that helps.

Yeah, 3 and 3 are pretty much the default for primary and then bottle conditioning times.

 

[cmcgeehan151]

I'm a real newbie, but you want to get that ferment temp at least to 70 and below. Your wort is at the high end of ale ferment. You might end up with some esters from the yeast at that temp. I just brewed a red IPA and had to icebath and am rotating 4 frozen water bottles about every 12 hours to keep the wort temp at around 68-70.

 

[Mke_bke]

Thank you, how long do you ferment and how long do you leave in bottles?

 

[itsernst]

Duplicate post

 

[itsernst]

Thank you, how long do you ferment and how long do you leave in bottles?

I just did this same recipe. Ferment until your gravity readings are constant for 3 days or so. Use a sterilized turkey baster or wine thief and take a hydrometer reading. Finally gravity for this recipe should be about 1.010 to 1.013 you want constant gravity for a few days

Bottle when you achieve this and let bottles carb for 2 weeks or so. Test and when you have reached your carbonation liking, cold crash and enjoy.

 

[Mke_bke]

Ok, I took three days of readings and they were all at 1.014 FG and an OG of 1.056...the beer smells good, I can smell the hops and it tastes somewhat fruity and piney. Thanks for all your feedback!!

My next batch will be an IPA...anyone have any suggestions? A Pliney? Thanks!!

 

[Mke_bke]

Ok, I took three days of readings and they were all at 1.014 FG and an OG of 1.056...the beer smells good, I can smell the hops and it tastes somewhat fruity and piney. Thanks for all your feedback!!

My next batch will be an IPA...anyone have any suggestions? A Pliney? Thanks!!

Ok, after 15 days in the bottle, I am ready to try my first beer ever but, my only concern is I noticed that when I place a bottle ona light, I can see small particles floating in the beer. Do thos remain there after chilling the beer and what are they? I put one bottle in the freezer tonight to taste tomorrow...

 

[beerman0001]

Get it out of the freezer and put it in the fridge. You need to leave it a room temp for at least 2 weeks or more then refrigerate for a few days till you try them.

 

[Obliviousbrew]

Edit: deleted

 

[Mke_bke]

Get it out of the freezer and put it in the fridge. You need to leave it a room temp for at least 2 weeks or more then refrigerate for a few days till you try them.

Sorry for my confusion I meant fridge and not freezer...The beer has been two weeks in bottles and I just set one in the freezer to try tomorrow...are thosr particles showing because they need more time in the bottles?
Thanks!!
Miguel

 

[beerman0001]

Yes they should all fall to the bottom after they are chilled down.

 

[Mke_bke]

Yes they should all fall to the bottom after they are chilled down.

Thank you "beerman0001" what are they? The small particles floating around the warm beer...do they eventually go away, if not, how can I prevent from having them on future batches?
Thanks again!
Miguel