Stuck Triple Question

[zeptrey]

We have given this brew a good month and a half to ferment. The hydrometer has read 1033 the last couple of times we've checked. We tried pitching a pack of dry yeast on the batch after racking to a secondary. Still after a week no airlock action. So the ABV is around 7 is supposed to be between 10 or 11 and its still really sweet. What would you all do? 2 things working against us is high alcohol and lack of O2. Should we make a well aerated starter and pitch that and cross our fingers? The last dry yeast we tried was leftover lager yeast from a kit my buddy did. Its all we had. This is my buddies brew just trying to help him figure it out.

Or trippel. Or tripel...before anyone comments.

 

[eastoak]

if you racked it to a secondary before fermentation was complete that would pretty much slow fermentation to a very slow crawl. you (or whoever's beer this is) can avoid this problem next time by leaving the beer on the yeast so they can complete fermentation. what happened to the yeast cake? you could pour some of it back in.

 

[zeptrey]

if you racked it to a secondary before fermentation was complete that would pretty much slow fermentation to a very slow crawl. you (or whoever's beer this is) can avoid this problem next time by leaving the beer on the yeast so they can complete fermentation. what happened to the yeast cake? you could pour some of it back in.

We checked the gravity twice in a week the gravity never budged. The brew sat a month and a half in the primary. Another thing I forgot to mention and is probably the cause (and we should have swapped the yeast out) was the kit came with the wrong type of yeast. I can't remember what type exactly I just remember it was a lager yeast and thinking this can't be right for a tripel kit.

Yeast cake has been flushed.

 

[eastoak]

tough one. i wouldn't mess with a beer this long unless it was a sour, i would dump it.

 

[Cyclman]

Best chance is to pitch a starter when it's at high kraeusen, with a proper yeast. It might restart, better than just dumping it.

With the wrong yeast, it won't likely be very tripel like.

 

[zeptrey]

Best chance is to pitch a starter when it's at high kraeusen, with a proper yeast. It might restart, better than just dumping it.

With the wrong yeast, it won't likely be very tripel like.

At this point drinkable will pass but I whipped up a starter tonight and will pitch it tomorrow evening. So don't cold crash the starter and dump off the wort? Pitch the full starter at high kraeusen. Cool, we will give it a go.

 

[tgmartin000]

You're not using a refractometer, are you?

One option could be to pitch some brett into it, maybe. I've never used it, but it will eat anything.

 

[BuckSwope]

You're not using a refractometer, are you?

One option could be to pitch some brett into it, maybe. I've never used it, but it will eat anything.

Love where this guy's head is at! That will definitely take your gravity down real low. If you're already looking at a 7% beer @ 1.033, you'll be looking at a 10-11% beer once the brett is done. Not sure if you're into brett beers, but if you need help picking a strain, holler my way.

 

[Calder]

if you racked it to a secondary before fermentation was complete that would pretty much slow fermentation to a very slow crawl.

Why would it? If it is still going you would carry over all the active yeast with it. The problem would come if you crashed it before racking.

To the OP. I had one stick at 1.018 once that was targeted for 1.010. My conclusion was the yeast had reached its alcohol limit (11.5%), but the beer was too sweet for me. I made a half gallon starter with a higher alcohol yeast. To the starter I added a half gallon of the stuck beer. Once that was going, I poured the starter into the stuck beer, and it worked great.

Another option, is to brew another beer with a better yeast, and then move this one onto the cake of the new beer once it is done. This beer is at 7%, it will keep provided you keep an airlock on it.

Good luck.

 

[eastoak]

Why would it? If it is still going you would carry over all the active yeast with it. The problem would come if you crashed it before racking.

To the OP. I had one stick at 1.018 once that was targeted for 1.010. My conclusion was the yeast had reached its alcohol limit (11.5%), but the beer was too sweet for me. I made a half gallon starter with a higher alcohol yeast. To the starter I added a half gallon of the stuck beer. Once that was going, I poured the starter into the stuck beer, and it worked great.

Another option, is to brew another beer with a better yeast, and then move this one onto the cake of the new beer once it is done. This beer is at 7%, it will keep provided you keep an airlock on it.

Good luck.

he moved the beer at 1.033 and it's stuck, according to the OP, so was it stuck before he moved it or did it stop because it was moved off of the yeast?
i don't know but i can't imagine moving a beer to a secondary before it's reached FG.

 

[zeptrey]

All very good suggestions and ideas. I made up a starter yesterday with a good alcohol tolerant yeast and pitched it at high kraeusen. I wish I would have thought to use the stuck beer, the batch is at my buddies house anyway. Just drove the starter over around 5 today and pitched. He tells me it is already working its mojo and the airlock has bubbles. I hope it is working and continues to work for however long it takes to drive that gravity down. I'll try and post back updates as I get them.