Gusher?

[skunkfunk]

I brewed from extract a belgian saison, and I was a bit under on the OG. It was 1.04, whereas I was hoping for at least 1.048. After a week in primary, the gravity was lower than I wanted, and I moved it to secondary to clarify. This was about a week ago.

I'm a little surprised that it's still bubbling after all this time. I'm reluctant to open it up and risk infection at this point, but it's still got a pretty healthy foam on top.

Am I right to be worried about it? What should I do? Bottle it?

 

[chickypad]

Don't bottle it until you're absolutely sure it's done! It may just be off gassing but some saison yeasts can take a while to finish, and some can go quite low. No need to rush it. What yeast did you use? What temp is it at now and during early fermentation?

 

[skunkfunk]

I used the dry yeast that came in the Brewer's Best kit. Because I didn't know any better, I made a starter with it before pitching. I've been storing it in a room that has stayed between 61 and 66 degrees.

 

[BigFloyd]

You likely pulled it off the yeast too soon and slowed the process. Kit instructions that tell you to do that are just plain wrong and have misled many a new brewer.

Give it an extra couple of week before bottling. That extra time cannot hurt and will only help.

 

[boydster]

Just because the gravity was lower than you wanted it when you checked, that doesn't mean the yeast is done. They don't know, or particularly care, what your target FG is and they will continue consuming fermentable sugars until they run out. The best thing to do right now is keep it warm and wait for the activity to stop, then wait another 3-5 days. Take a gravity reading. Wait 2 more days, then take another gravity reading. Hopefully they match, then you can bottle it up. Don't worry if you forget about it for a couple weeks, either, it won't hurt it a bit.

 

[JLem]

I am not familiar with the yeast you used, but Saison yeasts attenuate really well and create a nice, dry beer - which is appropriate for the style. As it is, I imagine everything is fine - just leave it alone for another week or two and check to see if the gravity is stable before you bottle. That said, you might want to get a blow-off tube ready, just in case things look like they might start to get out of control in the carboy.

 

[skunkfunk]

Well, about 10 hours after that last picture was taken, and it's more foamed up now. Still smells good, but has a little bit of brown crud on top of the foam.

What is this blow-off tube? It sounds like something I may need soon.

 

[skunkfunk]

I just checked the gravity again. When I first moved it to the secondary, it was 1.006. It is now 1.003. It tastes decent, but has a little bit of an alcohol-like taste. Doesn't taste as good as my last couple of brews did at this point, but then again I've never done a belgian saison before. There's also a little bit of brown stuff on the top of the foam now.

 

[skunkfunk]

So, another update. The gravity hasn't changed, it still tastes good, but it is still bubbling a bit. I can see little bubbles coming up and it forms just a bit of krausen. Am I ok to bottle?

 

[JLem]

So, another update. The gravity hasn't changed, it still tastes good, but it is still bubbling a bit. I can see little bubbles coming up and it forms just a bit of krausen. Am I ok to bottle?

What is the gravity? I'm a bit concerned by the bubbling and foam...though that just might be co2 offgassing and not fermentation - might be from temperature changes or from moving the carboy.

Also...just saw your question about the blowoff tube...basically it is a sanitized plastic tubing stuck on the airlock with the other end in some sanitary liquid so that if the fermentation gets "violent" you dont get a beer fountain and can continue to keep everything sanitary.

 

[cullen]

If it's still bubbling out the airlock in a noticeable way when it's undisturbed, I would hold off on bottling.

 

[skunkfunk]

Thanks for replies! The current gravity is 1.005, which is higher than last time. Makes me think dissolved co2 is the culprit. It looked done so I moved it into the kitchen last night, and it started bubbling like crazy. I haven't noticed the airlock bubbling, however.