First Wit, fermentation seems over too soon

[maestro_wu]

Hi all,

I've got my first Wit in primary fermentation now, and the fermentation seems to have slowed considerably after just under a week. If this keeps up, it'll be all quiet by Sunday (1 full week).

From some reading here (and from the recipe proper), I had the idea it would take at least the usual 2 weeks.

Any ideas?

Additional information that may or may not be relevant:

- Used a Wyeast smack-pack (or whatever it's called) that was no longer cold by the time it arrived in the mail. (I'm in Hawaii, so stuff takes longer to get here and is warmer once it does.) The inner yeast-nutrient pack was unbroken.

- Smells a bit more sour/less hoppy than I'm used to.

- Fermentation seemed to take longer than usual to get going.

- The recipe was from the Extreme Brewing book by Sam Calagione.

I would appreciate any suggestions. (Though I am guessing the advice will probably be "don't worry, let it sit for the full 2 weeks" or such.)

Thanks!

 

[duboman]

You are correct, let it sit and finish. By finished I mean you checked for final gravity and confirmed it is stable with at least two readings over three days. Once you get that, then let it sit an additional week to condition and clean up a bit and clear.

BTW, whenever you use a liquid strain of yeast you should be making an appropriately sized starter to ensure yeast viability and proper pitching rate for the beer you brew

 

[unionrdr]

While wheat beer sgenerally finish sooner,they can also give off some really funky odors while frmenting,depending on the yeast. Wait till the 2 week mark to do a hydrometer test & taste/aroma sample. And liquid yeast usually needs a starter to get sufficient numbers to start fermenting sooner. Otherwise,you get more lag time while the yeqst goes through a reproductove phase till sificient numbers can give visible signes of fermentation.

 

[maestro_wu]

Thanks for the replies and the advice.

Honestly, I'd never read about a yeast starter, and the Wyeast package doesn't mention it either. Did I botch it by _not_ doing this?

Thanks!

 

[squeekybobo]

Thanks for the replies and the advice.

Honestly, I'd never read about a yeast starter, and the Wyeast package doesn't mention it either. Did I botch it by _not_ doing this?

Thanks!

What was the OG of this one? Over 1.060, I'd say a starter would have been ideal. Under that, you'll be fine. I've never made a starter for any of the smack packs when I've brewed anything under 1.060. Either way, you'll still make beer, and it'll be tasty.

 

[billl]

" Did I botch it by _not_ doing this?"

No, you didn't botch it. You'll still get perfectly good beer. If you want to optimize your fermentation, there are various calculators online that will tell you how much yeast is ideal for a give batch based on OG.

If you are brewing "normal" strength beers, the smack pack is close enough. If you intend on brewing some big beers, you'll definitely want to find out how much yeast to pitch.

 

[brycelarson]

What yeast? I just kegged a WLP400 yeast Belgian Wit. That yeast just gobbles the sugar. It's about 10 days from pitching, stable gravity and at target.

It's one of my quick turn beers. You can drink it about 14 days from brew day.

 

[maestro_wu]

All,

Thanks for the advice & reassurance.

I bottled it late last week, and have had a few (premature?) samples to make sure it was, in fact, not botched.

All seems well, and it tastes pretty good, actually. *whew*

Thanks again!

 

[brycelarson]

I had my last belgian wit crank from pitching yeast to keg in 8 days, 5 days in the keezer and it's getting good.

 

[helibrewer]

What yeast? I just kegged a WLP400 yeast Belgian Wit. That yeast just gobbles the sugar. It's about 10 days from pitching, stable gravity and at target.

It's one of my quick turn beers. You can drink it about 14 days from brew day.

I am fermenting Brewing Classic Styles Wittebrew using WP400. It is now 16 days in the fermentor at 72F and I can just start to see the surface under the Krausen. I figure to start lagering after the weekend...we'll see.

 

[brycelarson]

I am fermenting Brewing Classic Styles Wittebrew using WP400. It is now 16 days in the fermentor at 72F and I can just start to see the surface under the Krausen. I figure to start lagering after the weekend...we'll see.

wow, what's the grain bill? I usually let the WPL400 get warmer - on a belgian wit I'm looking for the esters anyway. The last batch I ran at 72 ambient. That prob means 74-ish in the ferm. At the top end of the range - but it's a pretty low gravity beer, so I like the extra flavor from the yeast.

http://www.whitelabs.com/beer/strains_wlp400.html