stuck fermentation....

[Veidog]

I brewed a 5 gallon batch of IPA beer, the OG was 1.067 and 2 weeks later it only dropped to 1036. A stuck fermentation I was told after I transferred it from my fast fermenter to two 3 gallon kegs. I forced carbonated both and tried the beer a few days later. Way to sweet for my taste. My question/idea is to use Co2 to prime the fermenter then transfer from the keg to fermenter via Co2, re pitch champagne yeast and hope to dry it out. Would their be enough oxygen in the beer for the yeast to do it's job? Would adding yeast nutrient to the beer help? Newbie questions I know... Thanks, Mark.

 

[tezcatlipoca]

All-grain? Mash temp? If all-grain, it is possible your mash temp was off and you have that much in fermentable sugar left. It's not exactly stuck as is finished everything it could.

Hmm, I would have never tried to keg something with that high of a SG for future reference. But now, I would try repitching the same yeast you pitched.

Did you make a starter? Oxygenate the wort? It is possible if there wasn't enough yeast that it just took that long to get to 36 and it wasn't stuck. Depends a lot on the viability of the yeast you pitched.

 

[Subdivisions]

Either the fermentation was done and there was no sugar left to eat at 1.036 or it was going extremely slow for whatever reason (bad yeast health, not oxygenated well, etc.). You're at a crossroads here. Don't transfer it again. I'd put a gas in connector on the gas post and run a tube from it into some sanitized water like a blow off. Add more yeast and see what happens. Don't oxygenate it. The yeast might need it but you'll certainly ruin it if it can't ferment any further.

Your last resort is amylase enzyme. It will break down complex sugars to simple sugars that the yeast can eat. The downside is that it could dry out to a really low FG.

 

[Calder]

Hydrometer or refractometer. Refractometers are inaccurate after fermentation; the alcohol screws up the reading.

Do not use Champagne yeast.

 

[Subdivisions]

Hydrometer or refractometer. Refractometers are inaccurate after fermentation; the alcohol screws up the reading.

Do not use Champagne yeast.

Good point. Although he said it was very sweet.

 

[Veidog]

extract brew.Did not make a starter. I oxygenated by shaking. I pitched some pure pitch ale yeast then after 4 days all airlock activity stopped took gravity reading it was 1.040, waited a few more days then I pitched a packet of dry ale yeast (did not hydrate it) on top of the existing wort . Waited another week, took another gravity reading was 1.036.

 

[bransona]

I'd go amylase. I had a stuck ferment go from 1.040 to 1.018 from some fresh enzymes.

 

[tezcatlipoca]

Yeah, if it's been two weeks, I second the amylase. It could turn out dry but that's better than that much sweetness.

My guess is your mash temp wasn't quite right and some sugars converted to unfermentables. If this becomes a regular occurring problem, I'd ask questions like, is your thermometer giving the average pot temp? Is the thermometer too close to the top, and your bottom of the pot is much hotter?