Fullers ESB - stuck?

[szm]

Sorry to ask a familiar question - I did a Fullers ESB for my first AG go. Have never had a stuck fermentation with kits etc. It began ok, OG 1054 and a good crust of yeast etc. After two weeks the airlock was bubbling say once a minute so I transferred to a glass carboy and measured it at 1020/1019. Is this too high? (the recipe says 1013)- should I just be patient (its still bubbles about once every couple of minutes) or do I need to do something? I was planning to bottle after a month in the secondary.

Thanks

 

[Netflyer]

Sounds like it's still going - What is the temp? I've had 1.054 stuff bubble for 2 weeks but I just primary for 3 weeks always regardless of bubbles. If it is still bubbling in the 2ndary and you were reading 1.019ish I would imagine it is still droppin' - Typically a blub blub every minute is unquestionably still fermenting. It will finish, and good luck with it, I'm a Fuller's ESB fan myself. Let me know how it comes out...

 

[Scut_Monkey]

1.019-1.020 is not too high for a finishing specific gravity. Make sure you are adjusting your gravity reading for temperature and the inaccuracy of your hydrometer. I always have to add 4 points to all my hydrometer readings because of the inaccuracy of my hydrometer. You might need to subtract points making your true gravity much closer than you think.

Test the gravity again 2 days after the reading you posted and if it is unchanged your fermentation is either done or stuck with it being done much more likely.

Edit: I also wouldn't rely on your airlock activity to determine when to transfer to a secondary as it's not an accurate approach unless you have experience doing this. If your fermenation was stuck in the primary transferring it to a secondary will have completely halted any further fermentation.

 

[szm]

Thanks to you both - thats really helpful (and reassuring!). I will give it another test in a couple of days. I should have said that stuff I tested tasted really promising. will keep you posted...

 

[szm]

Well its dropped a point or so in the last week so 1018 now. It tasted nice when I tested it last week and a bit less great after a week in the secondary - not off tasting but just a bit less fresh/clean. am a bit concerned I may have oxidised it

To be honest, in hindsight (notwithstanding months of reading before I went for it) I have probably made a number of schoolboy errors such as

- transferring the wort hot from the boiler to the fermenter so it would cool overnight (I had no cooler)
- using a two part syphon pipe connected by a short bit of piping (I am convinced it may have sucked a bit of air into the pipe join as the beer went through - which would be an unintentionally ingenious way of really oxidizing it)

 

[babalu87]

Need

Mash temps
Recipe
Fermentation temps
Yeast

Not knowing anything though you can try warming it up a little as some English strains have a tendency to stall as they are so flocculant

 

[szm]

Thanks babalu87 - I have got myself comfortable on the fermentation now - it was Wyeast ESB which is a low attenuator so I think its gone far enough against a target FG of 1013. I am more worried now that I have murdered it through my cack handed transferring. I guess the question I am asking myself is how high a risk is oxidisation ie how sensitive is beer to it at these stages and whether its going to get better for a few weeks in the secondary.