Bottling question Vanilla Bourbon Stout

[tnbrewer371]

so i brewed a vanilla bourbon stout a while back and it sat in primary for at least two weeks and when i racked it over to secondary to add my vanilla infused bourbon it had only attenuated from 1082 to 1020 and i was hoping to get it to go a bit lower like 1018-1016 or hopefully even a bit lower than that. I used a large 1056 yeast cake to do the primary fermentation and was wondering what people though about leaving it in secondary for another month to mellow out, than about a week before bottling adding a packet of us-05 (i happen to have one lying around) my reason for doing this would be two fold, one to add a little yeast to allow it to bottle condition a little easier and two to help it attenuate a bit lower, im assuming it may have already dropped a point or two due to being racked over to secondary? think this will work, and or is a good idea?

 

[cvstrat]

The short answer is no, you shouldn't have done that. But here is the long answer!

Each yeast strain can ferment a certain amount of sugar. It's called attenuation. Champagne yeasts are close to 100%, while ale yeasts are often in the 70s. Some residual sugar is desirable depending on the style of beer. Some will be sweeter than others. Below is your yeast type:

YEAST STRAIN: 1056 | American Ale™

Flocculation: Medium-Low
Attenuation: 73-77%
Temperature Range: 60-72F, 15-22C
Alcohol Tolerance: 11% ABV


1.082 fermented to 1.020 is a 75.6% attenuation. (perfect fermentation)

1.050 fermented to 1.020 is a 62% attenuation (stalled fermentation)


There are calcs on the web that will let you put in an OG and a FG and will tell your what the attenuation is. You can tweak the FG until it gets into the attenuation range of your yeast and then you'll know what to expect the beer to stop fermenting at.

Also there is no need to add more yeast to bottle. Even with months in secondary, there will be enough yeast in suspension to bottle condition. Essentially you just wasted a packet of US-05.

If you were interested in increasing the ABV, I would recommend adding dextrose directly to the fermenter. I can't imagine needing to do that as 8% ABV (your current ABV) is pretty good for this type of stout.

When pitching on a yeast cake there is very little chance that you'll have a stalled fermentation. In other words yeast cakes tear through fermentation, and will ferment until fully attenuated. If it stops, it's done and it ain't going any lower for the most part.

My suggestion if you haven't already added the extra yeast, is to rack to secondary and let it mellow out for a few weeks to a month, bottle, let it condition a few more months, then enjoy~!

 

[tnbrewer371]

i already did move it to secondary, was just hoping if i added some yeast i could get it to drop a couple of points even though im aware it has attenuated pretty well, however I use 1056 all the time and my average attenuation with this yeast is around 80%! guess adding a bit of us-05 to help it condition faster and grab a couple points wont help. also i added about 16oz of vanilla infused woodford reserve, any concerns i should have about it knocking out some of the yeast and carbing ridiculously slow? im planning on bottling in all 22 oz bombers...

 

[cvstrat]

Unless the beer is filtered there will always be enough yeast left to condition.

I did a vanilla bourbon porter that I let sit 4 weeks in secondary and bottle conditioned for a few months. It was great.

Short of pasteurization there is no way you'd be eliminating the yeast.

Belgian breweries centrifuge the yeast out then inject a different strain for bottling and sugar directly in the bottling line. They have figured out exactly how many cells/ml they want for the optimal flavor.

for general homebrewers whatever is left is good enough. Don't worry about slow conditioning. You'll want to age this style of beer a good 6mo or longer before drinking!

 

[nikkormat]

all I can say about adding the US-05 is that i brewed an imperial stout with WLP028 and my LHBS actually recommended tossing in a packet of it (US05) once the 028 did its thing. had a pack laying around so i did it on a whim a week before i racked to secondary, can't tell you how it tastes yet cuz the beers still aging but they're a group of guys I trust, one of em brews professionally for a local pub.

keep in mind the additions more for the little extra bit of fermentation and flavor, not for enhanced carbing. just do your usual dextrose addition and you should be fine.

 

[tnbrewer371]

I junderstand there will be enough yeast to do it but my double ipa has taken forever to carb and its annoying to pop a beer to check on its progress and its nowhere close even after like six weeks?

 

[tnbrewer371]

Guess I will just bottle this as is with no extra yeast added just as everyone has suggested its coming up on a month in bulk conditioning so guess ill just throw it in some bombers and let em sit for four to six months than see where were at?

 

[tnbrewer371]

just an update i bottled this today after two months, first taste was amazing the bourbon might be a bit much for some people but i love it and am thinking a good six months in the bottlemay cure this