The Never Ending Krausen
- Thread starter DRonco
- Start date
Help Support Homebrew Talk:
Slainte-brew
Well-Known Member
I am just going to throw some stuff out there since no one has replied. Maybe beers with lots of adjuncts/ non base malts, like stouts, there ends up being a lot of proteins. They can make a thick krausen that will stick around. Possibly a slow and very steady fermentation temp keeps the krausen slowly going. I just had a long krausen with a kolsch though, but I kept it around 60. I usually will swirl it for 5 seconds for a few days and it will fall after awhile. That yeast might not floc very well. It won't negatively effect the beer.
DRonco
Well-Known Member
That makes sense. I was just surprised since the other brews I've done had fallen within a few days. I was much more specific with my temps this time around. Pitched it at 66 and let self rise to about 68 then once most of the fermentation slowed down I bumped it to 70 thinking it might cleanup a but faster. I'm gonna let the stout sit in primary for at least another week before bottling it.
Thanks for the reply.
Thanks for the reply.
1469 is a top-cropping yeast. It will develop a sort of "secondary krausen" after fermentation finishes. That's the yeast rising to the surface, which it does instead of settling out at first. That second krausen will be doughy--like pizza dough--and it will hang around forever. Professional brewers will skim the yeast off the top at this point and reuse it. Some people claim that it's the ideal way to harvest top-cropping strains.
But what to do if you're a home-brewer fermenting in a bottle? Some people rack from underneath it, but I just let it go until the krausen drops. For me, this is usually after two weeks or so. If it's taking longer in your case, perhaps it has something to do with the recipe, as the other poster suggested. Or maybe it's just taking its time. That happens, too.
But what to do if you're a home-brewer fermenting in a bottle? Some people rack from underneath it, but I just let it go until the krausen drops. For me, this is usually after two weeks or so. If it's taking longer in your case, perhaps it has something to do with the recipe, as the other poster suggested. Or maybe it's just taking its time. That happens, too.
DRonco
Well-Known Member
krahm said:
That describes it exactly! And it smells super yeasty. I'll just wait another week than bottle it, racking under it if need be. It's certainly smaller then it had been, just persistent.
Thanks for your input.
![Craft A Brew - Safale S-04 Dry Yeast - Fermentis - English Ale Dry Yeast - For English and American Ales and Hard Apple Ciders - Ingredients for Home Brewing - Beer Making Supplies - [1 Pack]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41fVGNh6JfL._SL500_.jpg)
Yes, some people do that. I don't, but I'd guess two or three days in the fridge would work. If it's getting smaller, you could just wait it out. It will drop back into the beer eventually, though I can certainly understand if you're getting impatient with it. How long has the beer been in the fermenter now? Is it in a bucket? If so, you could just skim it off.
Gameface
Well-Known Member
Timely thread. I've got an ESB using 1469 and 10 days after fermentation started there is still a thick krausen and blow off activity. I was worried but figured if someone else posted fears about the same thing I'd tell them to relax and be patient. As long as it's krausen and not spider webs or big silky bubbles I'm just gonna RDWHAHB.
Gameface
Well-Known Member
Sound's like a plan
Same recipe a month ago but using white labs 007 yeast my fermentation was done in 3 days. Same fermentation chamber, same temps.
i'm using this yeast right now! 36hrs in, i'm gonna top crop the crap out of this thing. If you've never harvested yeast before, top cropping now would be the perfect time to learn. This is much easier than seperating trub afterwards, plus im digging this yeast so far and harvesting makes it cost that much less.
I've never top cropped before, only washed yeast after ferment is done. But from reading and this forum, its pretty basic. After roughly 36hrs you should see a trub filled krausen with hop particles and such. This should be skimmed off and discarded. After another 24hrs or so a thick creamy dense krausen should reform and this is what you want to skim and save.
i'm using buckets so its obviously easy. I've been using my metal spoon (sanitized of course) and skimming the junk off and discarding. When i get a nice thick yeast krausen to reappear, i'll use a little boiled and cooled water in mason jars to collect this part. Skim with spoon, pour into the mason jar with sterile water and seal. Sounds like it yields pretty decent results. I'll let ya know how the 2nd "skimming" goes after i'm there.
i'm using buckets so its obviously easy. I've been using my metal spoon (sanitized of course) and skimming the junk off and discarding. When i get a nice thick yeast krausen to reappear, i'll use a little boiled and cooled water in mason jars to collect this part. Skim with spoon, pour into the mason jar with sterile water and seal. Sounds like it yields pretty decent results. I'll let ya know how the 2nd "skimming" goes after i'm there.
if i was going to use it within days to maybe a week, that'd be enough yeast without a starter. any longer and yea then i'd store this in the fridge until im ready to use it, decant and yes, pitch it into a starter. I've used yeast that have been stored in the fridge like this up to 6 mos age with good results.
Ha ha ha.
I knew that this post would be about 1469 when I clicked on it.
I knew that this post would be about 1469 when I clicked on it.
good stuff! I've also made the Patersbier with 3787, and that sucker went nuts for about 3 days. You should def be able to top crop that. Use a blowoff if you don't have a lot of head room for sure. I fermented mine around 75F and it blew off like crazy in a 6.5 gal carboy
Similar threads
