Drying out beer to get the ABV up for longer ageing

[Likefully]

I have an imperial stout in the fermenter at the moment.

It has reached what looks like a FG of 1.011, which gives it an ABV of 11.5%. I used WLP 530 and think it may take a while to flatten out properly, but can't see a major change happening.

I added a bit more sugar than in the recipe as I was hoping to get a higher final ABV - closer to about 13% mainly because I want to make something that can age for a few years.

The sample i pulled for measuring the gravity with the refractometer tastes really good.

So my question: - is it worth adding some champagne yeast to bring the gravity down a bit (and dry it out) and the ABV up so that it can age for a long long time...or is the difference between 11.5% and 13-14% not that significant when it comes to ageing beer.

 

[cannman]

You've got a good thing going there. You can give it some more time and let it finish up. What was your OG for this beer?

 

[ong]

I wouldn't think you'd want an imperial stout to be any lower than 1.011! Even that sounds quite dry for a big, big beer. I'd call it good and move it to bottles when you're ready. I'm still opening bottles of a 12% barleywine from 2012 and they're doing great.

 

[Likefully]

What was your OG for this beer?

1.103

I say the FG "looks like" 1.011 because I use a refractometer and haven't measured it with a hydrometer yet, but i do find the formulas for the refractometer to be quite accurate.

I initially got the champagne yeast because fermentation didn't start for a few days and I read that 530 doesn't do cold so thought i needed to implement an emergency plan. I gave the fermenter an almighty shake a few days in and then it took quite quickly.

 

[joshesmusica]

Yeah I agree that 1.011 is gonna feel quite dry with that high an OG. I know you trust those refractometer adjustments, but I wouldn't. I personally don't see why 1.5% will make that much of a difference in aging it when it's already that high.

I would personally get a hydrometer reading, wait a few-several days (only because you have the time to wait, and if you're gonna long-term age it, you wanna be sure it's done) and check again. Then bottle once it's stable.

 

[cannman]

1.103



I say the FG "looks like" 1.011 because I use a refractometer and haven't measured it with a hydrometer yet, but i do find the formulas for the refractometer to be quite accurate.



I initially got the champagne yeast because fermentation didn't start for a few days and I read that 530 doesn't do cold so thought i needed to implement an emergency plan. I gave the fermenter an almighty shake a few days in and then it took quite quickly.

I'd be safe and bust out the hydrometer. Alcohol can distort the readings... I know there are conversion formulas, but you lose resolution.

 

[peterj]

I agree with others that there won't be much difference between 11.5% and 13-14%. I also agree that 1.011 sounds like it might be too dry already. I would maybe carbonate this a little on the lower side if I were you.

Also, adding champagne yeast isn't going to dry it out any more. Champagne yeast is more adapted to fermenting simple sugars found in grape must and it doesn't do as well as beer yeasts at fermenting the more complex sugars found in wort.

I believe the more alcohol present in the sample, the more the refractometer reading is skewed, and the less accurate those compensation formulas are.

 

[kh54s10]

I also agree that you have a dry beer already. (if the compensation app is accurate).

I would leave it as is.

The alcohol percentage does not really have any effect on how long to condition the beer. It is more the recipe and whether the flavors created benefit from aging to mellow or blend together.

 

[Likefully]

Thanks for the comments - the trigger for action would be the difference the ABV makes on ageing, which doesn't sound like it does.

There is a thread on HBT about using champagne yeast in beer. Someone used it to bring down the FG and got it to drop from 1.018 to quite a dry FG (he regrets it because the final beer was too dry). So I am not 100% convinced about this simple vs complex sugars argument (which i have seen elsewhere). In theory it sounds logical, but that guy had a different result in practice.

either way, I won't be adding the champagne yeast to my beer!

 

[joshesmusica]

It's likely he had a stuck fermentation due to a strain that couldn't handle the high alcohol environment, but that there were still simple sugars left when he added it. It's usually the suggestion for a stuck fermentation, not a suggestion to dry out one that has hit FG.

 

[k1ngl1ves]

I believe the "safe zone" for aging is anything over 10% abv.

I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure that's the threshold to get past...

 

[Likefully]

I believe the more alcohol present in the sample, the more the refractometer reading is skewed, and the less accurate those compensation formulas are.

This is true. I trust the refractometer with lower ABV beers (less than 7%). Every time I have double checked it has been spot on. According to this site my SG is 1.008, but my hydrometer shows me it is 1.012 ... not a major issue, but certainly not as accurate as I am used to.

either way this beer is dry enough and when I am sure it has reached terminal I will be bottling without adding any champagne yeast!

 

[bobeer]

You chose wisely! IMO 1.011 is too dry for an imperial stout. I wouldn't want it go down any further. I made an imperial red one time that was almost 9% and it was way too dry and boozy. I couldn't drink but a few sips before I got tired of the alcohol nose. I didn't age them for a very long time though. Maybe a month or two at the most. That booze nose takes a while to age down. Good luck and report back how the beer is when you age it for a bit!

 

[peterj]

This is true. I trust the refractometer with lower ABV beers (less than 7%). Every time I have double checked it has been spot on. According to this site my SG is 1.008, but my hydrometer shows me it is 1.012 ... not a major issue, but certainly not as accurate as I am used to.

either way this beer is dry enough and when I am sure it has reached terminal I will be bottling without adding any champagne yeast!

You could add the champagne yeast to help it carbonate faster. Beers that big can take a while to carbonate on their own. I have an 11% RIS that is just starting to carbonate after almost 4 months in bottles (bottled after 4 weeks with no added yeast). Though the extra conditioning time will only benefit beers this big.

 

[Likefully]

You could add the champagne yeast to help it carbonate faster. Beers that big can take a while to carbonate on their own. I have an 11% RIS that is just starting to carbonate after almost 4 months in bottles (bottled after 4 weeks with no added yeast). Though the extra conditioning time will only benefit beers this big.

I am glad to hear yours carbonated. I want to age this for a while and don't intend tasting it for 6 months, so time is not an issue!

 

[tennesseean_87]

I am glad to hear yours carbonated. I want to age this for a while and don't intend tasting it for 6 months, so time is not an issue!

I would add the yeast anyway. I had a BDSA that I used 3711 on (a beastly strain) but it didn't carb because the high alcohol and all the work of bringing a 1.090 beer down to 1.008 had just done it in. A bit of notty slurry added to uncapped bottles before recapping did the trick. You might as well mix a wine yeast slurry up and add it to your cooled priming solution or just a drop or two to bottles to ensure adequate carbonation. As Yooper says, it's cheap insurance. If your yeast half-carbonates and you have to uncap, there's only half the priming sugar left for your added yeast.

 

[Likefully]

You might as well mix a wine yeast slurry up and add it to your cooled priming solution or just a drop or two to bottles to ensure adequate carbonation.

How much yeast should I add for about 20L of beer? And can I just rehydrate it in water (no sugars) and add it to the priming solution?

 

[tennesseean_87]

You can use just half a packet or something. I rehydrate in water and have found that sometimes the slurry doesn't mix well in the priming bucket, so I have a santized syringe that I use to put a few drops in each bottle. Whatever you do, just don't add it to 200* priming solution before it cools.

 

[Likefully]

I made an imperial red one time that was almost 9% and it was way too dry and boozy. I couldn't drink but a few sips before I got tired of the alcohol nose. I didn't age them for a very long time though. Maybe a month or two at the most. That booze nose takes a while to age down. Good luck and report back how the beer is when you age it for a bit!

I made a 7.5% stout a while back, at 3 months the booze smell was still there but by about 6 months it had mellowed out completely, so it does go with time.

I keep my fermenters in a big tub of water for temperature control. It fits 2. I made an AAA this weekend and put it next to the stout so the temp has come up a bit and that seems to have sparked some activity in the stout so may come down even more...hot hot hot!

 

[joshesmusica]

if you know you're at FG (confirmation readings a couple days apart), then it's likely that the activity you're seeing is just off-gassing from it warming up.