First, this is my FIRST ever brew so maybe this is normal. I am surprised that the yeast activity did NOT last as long as I thought it would. It started bubbling about 8 hours after pitching yeast (slight krausen on top) and a CO2 bubble every 20 sec. (1 blow-off tube being used). Then at the 16 hour mark after initially pitching yeast more krausen and a CO2 bubble every 2-3 seconds. Then at the 24 hour mark a bubble every second and you could see in the carboy everything swirling around, up and down, etc. This flurry of activity lasted only 28 or so hours and now every 12 hours when I check the activity is slower and slower. Today (this morning) is day 4 in primary and I can still a bubble pop now then on top of the krausen and a bubble in the airlock about every 8-9 seconds.
Considering how much ingredients were in this batch and the initial OG, I thought the crazy activity would have been longer. Is this normal and as long as there is still bubbling in the airlock does that mean fermentation is still occurring? Should I pitch a second dose of yeast into the primary? Following is the ingredients and brew steps which are from the Midwest Pumpkin Ale kit with some tweaking on my part:
Pumpkin Ale:
6# Gold malt extract (100% Barley Malt extract).
116 oz. Libbys Pure Pumpkin.
½#specialty grains
2 oz hops (1 oz Mt. Hood for bittering and 1 oz. Cascade for aroma)
1 cup light brown sugar
1 # Clover honey
1 tsp Irish Moss
1 tbsp cinnamon
1 tbsp pumpkin pie spice.
10 cloves
1. Added 5.5 gallons Spring Water to boil pot and heated to 160⁰
2. Steeped grains and ½ (58 oz) of the pumpkin (grain in muslin bag, pumpkin in nylon grain bag) at 156⁰ for 40 mins. stirring every 5 mins. After the 40 mins. removed from burner and let rest for 10 mins.
3. Add 25% of Malt & 1 cup brown sugar
4. As soon as boiling bubbles were seen, added 1 oz. Mt. Hood bittering hops.
5. Started 60 min. boil (Note: boiling temp. for Chicago is 211⁰
7. At 15 min. left, add 1 tsp Irish Moss.
8. At 10 min. left, added remaining pumpkin (58 oz. in a muslin bag)
9. At 5 min. left added remaining 75% Malt, 1 oz. Cascade aroma hops & 10 cloves
10. At flameout, added 1 TBsp cinnamon, 1 TBsp pumpkin pie spice & 1 lb. Honey
Wort was quickly chilled with counterflow wort chiller and yeast (Wyeast 1056 American Ale Activator Wyeast) was pitched at 70°. Carboy oxygenated and gravity reading taken with initial OG being 1.055
I greatly appreciate anyones feedback on my fermentation questions above or ANY input on my first batch. Thanks everyone. .. Ed
Considering how much ingredients were in this batch and the initial OG, I thought the crazy activity would have been longer. Is this normal and as long as there is still bubbling in the airlock does that mean fermentation is still occurring? Should I pitch a second dose of yeast into the primary? Following is the ingredients and brew steps which are from the Midwest Pumpkin Ale kit with some tweaking on my part:
Pumpkin Ale:
6# Gold malt extract (100% Barley Malt extract).
116 oz. Libbys Pure Pumpkin.
½#specialty grains
2 oz hops (1 oz Mt. Hood for bittering and 1 oz. Cascade for aroma)
1 cup light brown sugar
1 # Clover honey
1 tsp Irish Moss
1 tbsp cinnamon
1 tbsp pumpkin pie spice.
10 cloves
1. Added 5.5 gallons Spring Water to boil pot and heated to 160⁰
2. Steeped grains and ½ (58 oz) of the pumpkin (grain in muslin bag, pumpkin in nylon grain bag) at 156⁰ for 40 mins. stirring every 5 mins. After the 40 mins. removed from burner and let rest for 10 mins.
3. Add 25% of Malt & 1 cup brown sugar
4. As soon as boiling bubbles were seen, added 1 oz. Mt. Hood bittering hops.
5. Started 60 min. boil (Note: boiling temp. for Chicago is 211⁰
7. At 15 min. left, add 1 tsp Irish Moss.
8. At 10 min. left, added remaining pumpkin (58 oz. in a muslin bag)
9. At 5 min. left added remaining 75% Malt, 1 oz. Cascade aroma hops & 10 cloves
10. At flameout, added 1 TBsp cinnamon, 1 TBsp pumpkin pie spice & 1 lb. Honey
Wort was quickly chilled with counterflow wort chiller and yeast (Wyeast 1056 American Ale Activator Wyeast) was pitched at 70°. Carboy oxygenated and gravity reading taken with initial OG being 1.055
I greatly appreciate anyones feedback on my fermentation questions above or ANY input on my first batch. Thanks everyone. .. Ed
