I've been lurking for my first few batches, but this is my first post. I started a gf black ipa saturday. It's off to a very slow start. 3rd day and I get one bubble in the airlock every 30 sec or so. Yeast is s-04, og was 1.072, ambient temp is 59 constant. Grain bill is malted pale millet + dark unmalted millet +flaked corn + d180 candi syrup.
I did a non-gf black ipa the same day. It is off to the races. 80 bubbles per minute day 2. Blew the bung off and put wort on the walls and ceiling. Yeast is recycled s-05 mixed with white labs ale yeast #? harvested from past batches. Og was 1.072. Grain bill was 2-row + carafa iii. Same ambient 59 temp but carboy is 62-64.
So, why the difference...
-Yeast variety?
-Sugar profile?
-Oxygenation (a little better in non gf)?
-Different pitch rate (same day hydration+proof with 1 pkg of s-04 in the gf but 750 ml starter of s-05+white labs)?
and what to do?
-wait?
-add more s-04?
-move to 70 deg space?
Hope it works out, that gf wort was drinkable at the start!
I did a non-gf black ipa the same day. It is off to the races. 80 bubbles per minute day 2. Blew the bung off and put wort on the walls and ceiling. Yeast is recycled s-05 mixed with white labs ale yeast #? harvested from past batches. Og was 1.072. Grain bill was 2-row + carafa iii. Same ambient 59 temp but carboy is 62-64.
So, why the difference...
-Yeast variety?
-Sugar profile?
-Oxygenation (a little better in non gf)?
-Different pitch rate (same day hydration+proof with 1 pkg of s-04 in the gf but 750 ml starter of s-05+white labs)?
and what to do?
-wait?
-add more s-04?
-move to 70 deg space?
Hope it works out, that gf wort was drinkable at the start!
In theory as long as the wart has sugar, the yeast should not care if it came from barley or millet, but there is some affect. My extract batches with sorghum syrup were always slow and had tame fermentation while the all grain batches get going faster and have more violent fermentation. 
