S.G. 1013 for two days but....

[Roatan_Mark]

My original S.G. 1.057, 5# DME and 1# raw cane sugar.
7 days S.G. 1.013
8 days S.G. 1.013
but sample a bit fizzy, no airlock activity observed, but sample left to sit an air out and S.G. remains 1.013.
My question is do I go ahead and bottle or is it still fermenting as observed by the "fizzyness"?

 

[BeerJorge]

The beer is probably done fermenting, but that doesn't mean you should bottle right after that... yeast eat sugar during fermentation and that's why your SG reading drops... this stage is called attenuation...

When they eat the sugar they convert the sugar into ethanol and produce other by-products like diacetyl, acetaldehyde, Ethyl acetate, etc...

When there is no simple sugars left, the yeast will start eating these by-products... if you bottle early, you may taste some of these by-products... if you leave the beer sitting longer, they will clean up these by-products and you'll get a cleaner, crisper beer.

Some styles like Hefeweizens are actually better off bottled earlier, so it really depends on what you are brewing...

Airlock activity means nothing other than CO2 is escaping the fermenter... and the fizzyness you are talking about is probably just CO2....

 

[Roatan_Mark]

Thank you for the quick reply. It is a standard Ale, about the only thing I can brew here on the island due to temperatures. I guess if it sits for another day or two it won't hurt it.

Mark

 

[cvstrat]

I usually do 2 weeks at least regardless of readings, unless it's a hefe or I'm going to secondary to dry hop or add other ingredients.

Why take a chance and bottle it before it's ready? I would argue that adding some extra time to your primary stage would improve the overall quality of your beer.

 

[devilishprune]

My original S.G. 1.057, 5# DME and 1# raw cane sugar.
7 days S.G. 1.013
8 days S.G. 1.013
but sample a bit fizzy, no airlock activity observed, but sample left to sit an air out and S.G. remains 1.013.
My question is do I go ahead and bottle or is it still fermenting as observed by the "fizzyness"?

Fizziness doesn't indicate that fermentation is actively occurring.

Yeast produce CO2 during fermentation, which usually bubbles out the airlock. However, since the yeast are in suspension and they are producing the CO2 within the beer, a certain amount of the gas is going to dissolve into solution. Depending on the temperature, you will have more or less fizziness, but it doesn't mean that your beer is actually fermenting when you notice this.