Autumn Seasonal Beer Thunderstruck Pumpkin Ale (AG and Extract versions)

[MMJfan]

BTW, I'm brewing round two of this over the weekend! :rockin:

 

[LateraLex]

I'm sorry if this question has been asked already. It probably has since there's so many pages to browse through. But I'm wondering about the size of the batch being 6 gallons.. I have 6.5 gallon fermenter buckets and I'm sure that only .5 gallons will not be enough to handle a vigorous fermentation. I have experience with a Tripel overflowing my fermenter and it was not fun. Since it's a bucket I can't really install a blowoff tube either, nor do I want to lose a lot of krausen.

Any way I can modify this recipe slightly to allow more fermenting room to say.. 5.5 gal? Or perhaps ferment a more concentrated beer and dilute in secondary? I highly doubt the latter option is a good idea. This recipe looks amazing but the 6 gallon part is holding me back. What to do

You should get yourself a vial of Fermcap. It costs $2, and will keep your fermentation under control, as well as prevent boil-overs. It has no side affects to your beer, so is a no-brainer for me.
http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/fermcap-s-1-oz.html

 

[brewski09]

I'm sorry if this question has been asked already. It probably has since there's so many pages to browse through. But I'm wondering about the size of the batch being 6 gallons.. I have 6.5 gallon fermenter buckets and I'm sure that only .5 gallons will not be enough to handle a vigorous fermentation. I have experience with a Tripel overflowing my fermenter and it was not fun. Since it's a bucket I can't really install a blowoff tube either, nor do I want to lose a lot of krausen.

Any way I can modify this recipe slightly to allow more fermenting room to say.. 5.5 gal? Or perhaps ferment a more concentrated beer and dilute in secondary? I highly doubt the latter option is a good idea. This recipe looks amazing but the 6 gallon part is holding me back. What to do

Alternatively, cool the beer before racking to the fermenter and let some tribe settle out beforehand over say an hour once cooled (covered of course). I've done this before and racked it just like you would off a yeast bed, only a little higher to avoid disturbing the loose trub bed, say starting halfway up the boil pot for my transfer. As long as the yeast is ready to go and gets a quick start, no problems. And the us-04 always gets a quick start for me. I would personally sacrifice a little beer and just make it stronger at the smaller batch size.

 

[mesa4234]

How much yeast did you all us for a 6 gallon batch? I have one vial..Should I get some more?

 

[BadBeagleBrew]

Make a starter, typically in dry yeast packets there is enough yeast for your 5-6 gal batch. For liquid yeast (your vial) you will prob need to make a starter to get the appropriate amount of yeast for your batch.

 

[MMJfan]

How much yeast did you all us for a 6 gallon batch? I have one vial..Should I get some more?

I used one Wyeast Smack Pack for mine and that did the trick...

 

[brewski09]

How much yeast did you all us for a 6 gallon batch? I have one vial..Should I get some more?

1 vial or smack pack should be perfect for gravities less than 1.060. I have done up to 1.090 with some yeasts before out of 1 vial with no problems and no starters. I would do it with a starter now though...

 

[Benedetto]

Hi,

So I just fermented this for two weeks in primary, opened up the bucket and there is still (what appears to be) a krausen over the entire top of the brew. When I made it, I racked it out of the brew pot, but there was still significant amount of solids getting into the bucket. Is this a real krausen or just the lighter solids (pumpkin?) floating on top. Thinking about giving it another week.

I didn't use a yeast starter. I used a packet of rehydrated dry yeast. Fermentation didn't begin to get vigorous until the 2nd day.

Please advise!

 

[BadBeagleBrew]

If hydrometer reading is stable for 2-3 days than it is done fermenting, rack away.

 

[Benedetto]

1.008

Is this even possible???! Must have messed something up

 

[BadBeagleBrew]

what was your sg, yeast used, did you do extract or ag, mash temps ferment temps. You know all the usual questions but in general yeast are living things that will surprise the sh#% out of you given the chance.

 

[Benedetto]

i made an extract. 6 lbs of DME, steeped the grains and flaked wheat at 155 - 160 degrees for half an hour. didn't take a gravity reading (I never do, until today when I ran into this problem.) I rehydrated and used Safale US-05. I don't have a temperature strip on the fermenter but it's in the basement so i figure it was at a pretty steady 65ish degrees.

but 1.008 is REALLY low, right? And I put in a TON of pumpkin. I figured that would have driven up the gravity like mad. If it remains the same gravity tomorrow I'll just rack it and add the vanilla and another round of spice tea. It tastes good! Just never seen the "krausen" linger for this long before. I'm starting to think that it was only the pumpkin floating on the surface.

 

[BadBeagleBrew]

Sounds good to me although the pumpkin will not really add any gravity points (not much for fermentables there). Start taking initial readings so you have a starting point for comparison. My sg was 1.068 fg was 1.018, so an attenuation of about 70% which is average /low for s-04. I've heard of people getting 90-100% attenuation with it so yeah yeast will surprise you. Cheers

 

[Benedetto]

OK, I think I need help with my pumpkin ale. That stuff I thought was Krasuen was clearly only pumpkin matter. As you can see, there is no typical "krausen stain" on the walls of my fermenting bucket. gravity is reading 1.008. did I even get a fermentation???? maybe the yeasts were not viable. Although, it was bubbling away happily for about 3 or 4 days after a slow start. (began bubbling on the 2nd day) should I re-pitch yeast?

 

[moscoeb]

OK, I think I need help with my pumpkin ale. That stuff I thought was Krasuen was clearly only pumpkin matter. As you can see, there is no typical "krausen stain" on the walls of my fermenting bucket. gravity is reading 1.008. did I even get a fermentation???? maybe the yeasts were not viable. Although, it was bubbling away happily for about 3 or 4 days after a slow start. (began bubbling on the 2nd day) should I re-pitch yeast?

I had very little krausen stain on my carboy too. Does it smell like beer/fermentation? You should be able to smell the alcohol. Also, what was your OG? If it dropped, I would assume you had fermentation.

 

[Benedetto]

didn't check an OG. Yes, it definitely smells like a normal fermentation. I got a whiff of that offensive sharp smell as soon as I took the lid off.

 

[moscoeb]

I'd say you are good to go. Take a sample and taste it.

 

[mesa4234]

I just brewed up an extract today. I threw in the spices with 5 minutes to go in the boil, so we will see how that turns out. The OG was a little lower than expected at 1.050, but everything seems fine. I am looking forward to watching this thing brew!

 

[Benedetto]

oh, it tastes wonderful! i added two vanilla beans in secondary. thanks for the reassurance i am less worried than i was this morning.

 

[Brewskier]

A couple of questions.... please forgive me if this has already been asked, I don't want to go through all 116 pages....

Is there a partial mash version, or can someone attempt to convert it to partial mash? I have a new 3 gallon mini mash tun I've been dying to try out.

I was considering adding 2 vanilla beans to primary and letting it sit for the last week before kegging. I'm also considering throwing a half pound of lactose into the keg just to give it a little bit of sweetness and mouthfeel. Anybody have experience adding these two ingredients to this recipe? I definitely want it to be noticeably sweet, but not cloyingly so. Just a subtle sweetness to give it that "pumpkin pie in a glass" taste that I've found lacking in my previous recipes for pumpkin ale.

Thanks.

 

[whitehause]

Pitched a new pack of S-04 (use by date of 7-13) nothing...not a bubble in the airlock, not a point in gravity change after 16 hours. Warmed and pitched a jar of Bell's yeast that I had just washed 2 days before(luckily), and got airlock activity in 2 hours. 12 hours later I've got bubbling,I know that's not the best indication, but it's not real vigorous.

Has anyone had problems with S-04 lately? I use mostly liquid, or harvested, but I've never had a problem with dry until now.
Og was 1.060 and pitching temp was about 68. I've heard this is a real crazy fermenting beer, but I have yet to see it.

 

[BadBeagleBrew]

It was prob fine, 16 hours isnt really long enough to know if your yeast has stb. Can take up to 72hrs to show signs of fermentation. Just my 2 cents.

 

[bradford0113]

OK, I think I need help with my pumpkin ale. That stuff I thought was Krasuen was clearly only pumpkin matter. As you can see, there is no typical "krausen stain" on the walls of my fermenting bucket. gravity is reading 1.008. did I even get a fermentation???? maybe the yeasts were not viable. Although, it was bubbling away happily for about 3 or 4 days after a slow start. (began bubbling on the 2nd day) should I re-pitch yeast?

My bucket looked EXACTLY like this when I transferred to the carboy.

 

[whitehause]

It was prob fine, 16 hours isnt really long enough to know if your yeast has stb. Can take up to 72hrs to show signs of fermentation. Just my 2 cents.

In all my brews since I started years ago, I've never had a fermentation take anywhere near 72 hours to start. If the yeast is healthy and pitched in the proper amount at the proper temp, it should never take that long.
Have you had a 72 hour lag in fermentation?

 

[Mojzis]

Made this over the weekend. With a pound of rice hulls the mash was still a PITA.

Pitched on a wlp550 yeast cake for something different. Thanks for the recipe Yuri.

 

[BadBeagleBrew]

I have not had 72, on the other hand I have had a 48 hour lag time that once going fermented out fine. I do understand the concern though do to 99% of fermentations starting in the 12 hour range.

 

[brewski09]

I have not had 72, on the other hand I have had a 48 hour lag time that once going fermented out fine. I do understand the concern though do to 99% of fermentations starting in the 12 hour range.

Petty sure white labs and wyeast both say fermentation should start within 24 hours...

 

[silverbullet07]

Since this recipe call for 6 gal batch, would this be best fermented in a 7.5 gal bucket?

 

[flyingfinbar]

Since this recipe call for 6 gal batch, would this be best fermented in a 7.5 gal bucket?

That'll give you plenty of headspace, so yeah, why not?

 

[thrust]

Brewed this on Saturday and hit 1.059 OG. My batch differed from the 6 gallon AG recipe a bit. I ended up using just over 100 oz. of freshly pureed pumpkin, 75 oz. in the mash and 25 oz. in the boil. Tasted a sample today (Gravity currently @ 1.021 . . .I hope this continues to drop) and it was phenomenal!