Double IPA

[jtrux]

Brewing a double ipa from a true brew kit. Directions said to pitch and 72 hrs later formation should be done then to dry hop. By day 10 yeast had finally fallen to btm and bubbles stopped. Beginning gravity was 1.065 and on day 10 gravity was 1.018. I racked to a new carboy that was sanitized with star San and added hops for dry hopping. Directions said to dry hop for 7 days. Today is day 7 after dry hopping. Looks like formation started back up. I have bubbles on the surface of the beer and my blowoff tube is bubbling (end is submerged in a bottle of water and star san). I have been out of town for previous 7 days so I don't when formation started back up. Can hops start fermantation back up?

Is this normal? Do I wait till formation stops again before adding priming sugar and bottling? What is taking so long (17 days) thus far? Temp is 80-85 during the day and 60-70 at night. I put the glass carboy in a laundry basket half full with water to help stabilize the temp. It has been in this basket of water from day one. thanks for your help.

 

[Kaz]

Take a gravity reading, its the only way to know if it is still fermenting. If it is the same over 2 or 3 days, no more fermentation, if it drops, then it is still going. Did you dry hop with pellets or leaf? Sometimes air trapped in the leaf hops will eventually come to the surface and may look like fermentation.

 

[jtrux]

I dry hopped with pellets. I will take a gravity reading tomorrow. Thanks for the reply

 

[McGarnigle]

It would have been abnormal for it to finish completely after three days. You should have checked gravity twice to make sure it was done. Sometimes it is still going even if bubbles stopped. The hops didn't re-start it, it just never finished. Even now, make sure you get two identical gravity readings a couple days apart. Can't hurt to leave it for 3-4 weeks total no matter what, though can you remove the hops, or are they loose?

You need to worry about leaving the dry hops in there too long. On the other hand, if it was still bubbling, it took away some hop aroma with it.

Hopefully it wasn't anywhere near 80 degrees in the basket. Was this a plastic or wicker basket? If wicker, that might not have been the best choice.

 

[jtrux]

Basket was a large plastic laundry tub. I did not take a temp of the water in the tub but it is very cool to the touch.