Did my beer ferment?

[brgrant]

I'm a noob to this and in my inexperience forgot to take the initial SG of my batch. I'm doing a Black Rock Whispering Wheat with an additional can of malt extract. It's been 8 days and I have yet to see any foaming really? My SG is 1.03 which seems high considering the can calls for a finishing SG of 1.012. I'm not using an airlock and have just been peeking in every few days.

Is it safe to say my beer has not fermented? If so, what do I do to save my batch of beer?

Thanks in advance for your help!!

 

[Aristotelian]

Are you measuring with a hydrometer or refractometer? If the latter, you have to use a calculator to account for the presence of alcohol.

Any reason to think your yeast may be defective?

 

[brgrant]

Are you measuring with a hydrometer or refractometer?

Hydrometer. It's old, but I tested it on normal water and it was close.

Any reason to think your yeast may be defective?

Mainly the high specific gravity and the fact I did not see any foaming.

 

[Aristotelian]

Does it taste like beer? Definitely sounds like some kind of stuck fermentation.

 

[Pariah3j]

Last time my fermentation had stalled, the LBS had me put some Bru Vigor in, it reawakened the yeast and helped bring me down those last few points.

 

[brgrant]

Does it taste like beer? Definitely sounds like some kind of stuck fermentation.

I have not tasted it. Should I?

 

[brandonnys]

So, let me get this straight (so I can hopefully help you along on this one)...

You brewed a beer (recipe unknown) and prior to pitching yeast, you neglected to take an OG (original gravity) reading. Since pitching the yeast, you've taken a reading using an old, but tested accurate, hydrometer and the gravity reading was 1.030.

A few questions:

1. What was your recipe? We can use a calculator to approximate what your OG should have been.

2. How many days since pitching has it been?

3. What are your fermentation conditions like?

4. Which yeast strain did you use?

A few notes:

- Airlocks shouldn't serve as an indicator of fermentation activity. Depending on the headspace in your fermentation vessel, the airlock may never move, or it may move a whole lot. A lot of brewers don't even use them, so they use the gravity to figure out where they are in the process.

- As Pariah3j stated, you could have a stalled fermentation. This could be for a variety of reasons (yeast viability, low fermentability in the wort, improper fermentation environment, low yeast nutrients, etc). Bru Vigor could help, but if your yeast was dead to begin with, it may not help.

 

[brgrant]

Happy to answer any questions to get this sorted!

You brewed a beer (recipe unknown) and prior to pitching yeast, you neglected to take an OG (original gravity) reading. Since pitching the yeast, you've taken a reading using an old, but tested accurate, hydrometer and the gravity reading was 1.030.

Correct

1. What was your recipe? We can use a calculator to approximate what your OG should have been.

Recipe was a can of Black Rock Whispering Wheat along with a can of Black Rock Amber Unhopped Malt Extract. I used the yest that came with it.
http://www.blackrock.co.nz/brew-kits/item/27-whispering-wheat
http://www.blackrock.co.nz/malt-extracts/item/37-unhopped-amber

2. How many days since pitching has it been?

10 days

3. What are your fermentation conditions like?

Stored inside, consistently 20 degrees C, been in the primary the whole time with pail lid gently on, no airlock.

4. Which yeast strain did you use?

The one that came with the Whispering Wheat Can .

- Airlocks shouldn't serve as an indicator of fermentation activity. Depending on the headspace in your fermentation vessel, the airlock may never move, or it may move a whole lot. A lot of brewers don't even use them, so they use the gravity to figure out where they are in the process.

I wasn't using a airlock. Headspace was about 4 inches between pail and lid.

- As Pariah3j stated, you could have a stalled fermentation. This could be for a variety of reasons (yeast viability, low fermentability in the wort, improper fermentation environment, low yeast nutrients, etc). Bru Vigor could help, but if your yeast was dead to begin with, it may not help.

If I just add more yeast, and the least isn't dead, would this ruin the beer? Make it too starchy or have a yeasty smell to it? What are my options?

 

[GHBWNY]

Was yeast fresh? Sometimes the generic yeasts that come with a kit are outdated. Did you aerate wort well? Sounds like it could be a case of sleepy yeast. You'll know by giving ferm vessel a VERY gentle stir with a sanitized spoon and moving it to a slightly warmer spot. This should wake up the yeast and FG should drop to close to where it needs to be. If it doesn't do the trick, you may have to re-pitch another packet of yeast (Palmer suggests a different variety). But don't re-aerate; at this point your beer is very susceptible to oxidation.

The real test of your beer being done with ferm is consecutive FG readings a couple days apart. I let mine ferm a minimum of 3 weeks, take an FG reading; take another 3 days later. If they are the same, beer is done and ready to package without fear of bottle bombs.

 

[brgrant]

Was yeast fresh? Sometimes the generic yeasts that come with a kit are outdated. Did you aerate wort well?

It was not fresh, but from athe packet on top of the can. I gave the wort a good stir to try and mix it up then just sprinkled the yeast on top.

Sounds like it could be a case of sleepy yeast. You'll know by giving ferm vessel a VERY gentle stir with a sanitized spoon and moving it to a slightly warmer spot.

I did that 4 days ago. Gentle was more like vigorous for about 45 seconds haha

The real test of your beer being done with ferm is consecutive FG readings a couple days apart. I let mine ferm a minimum of 3 weeks, take an FG reading; take another 3 days later. If they are the same, beer is done and ready to package without fear of bottle bombs.

Is a consecutive reading of 1.030 too high tho?

 

[lumpher]

1.030 would be cloyingly sweet. The generic yeasts on top of the cans are not the best quality in the first place, and you don't have any idea how old the yeast is. Close the lid and put an airlock in place, then gently swirl the bucket and give it a couple more days. If the gravity doesn't drop, add fresh yeast. Next time don't use the yeast taped to the top of the can; it's rarely the best yeast for the type, and no idea of age or quality. Use a packet of fresh yeast from the start.

 

[BeerAddikt]

I'm not using an airlock and have just been peeking in every few days.

Any particular reason you're not using an airlock? You could be introducing oxygen. I've read that at some point the yeast will start consuming O2 if it's there and stall fermentation in the process (not sure if this is 100% true). Although this most likely happens way below a 1.030 SG.

 

[brandonnys]

My guess on this is the yeast wasn't as viable as it could have been, so the yeast is dormant or dead.

Lumpher's comments mirror my thoughts. I've begun only using fresh yeasts with my beers, or yeasts that I've cultured myself, to ensure maximum attenuation. There are too many possibilities here to speculate an answer.

My suggestion would be to go to the LHBS and get a packet of US-05 and throw it in there. It will not ruin your beer. Give the US-05 maybe 4-5 days and it should clean up down to at least 1.012, maybe further.

 

[brgrant]

Lumpher's comments mirror my thoughts. I've begun only using fresh yeasts with my beers, or yeasts that I've cultured myself, to ensure maximum attenuation. There are too many possibilities here to speculate an answer.

My suggestion would be to go to the LHBS and get a packet of US-05 and throw it in there. It will not ruin your beer. Give the US-05 maybe 4-5 days and it should clean up down to at least 1.012, maybe further.

Sounds good, will do. I'll pick some up and let you know how it turns out. I'll get some fresh yeast for my next batch. Thanks for you help!