Trouble in fermentation

[goin2brew]

I'll do my best to try and make a long story short......

I am brewing a pumkin ale from canned puree (Libby's) and I added half to the boil and the other half to the primary as the recipe directed.

Q1 - Should I have baked the puree before adding it?
Q2 - Is the puree contaminated or is it pretty safe in the can?

I prepared the pack of Nottingham dry yeast as directed while the wort was cooling. This is where it gets fuzzy. (It was getting late and I had a few too many homebrews... ) I think I pitched the yeast when it was too hot. (not 100% sure) I swore I heard millions of tiny screams as I pitched. Anyway I closed up the fermentor and put it in the usual place.

After a day or two of no airlock activity I assumed I was a mass murderer and pitched some more yeast that I had saved from a prior ferment a few days before. It started a very small amount or airlock activity, but not enough IMO so I pitched some more saved yeast and that seemed to kick it up a notch.

Now, at first it was puching a nice pumkin aroma out of the airlock, but it seems to have evolved into a tomato like odor now and I am becoming concerned. Its not a horrible smell, but not a nice pumkin one either. Its been a steady ferment for a couple days now, but not like the vigorous ones of all my other batches.

Q3 - Is this a sign of infection? OR
Q4 - Is this the smell of murdered yeasties? OR
Q5 - Is this normal for a pumkin ale and I'm just panicking?

 

[JonK331]

Q1 - you can and I do but Dogfish Head doesn't so....
Q2 - It's pretty safe, I wouldn't worry about it.
Q3, Q4, Q5 - There's nothing you can do about it now, only time will tell. I wouldn't worry though, fermentation can produce some funny smells. I wouldn't judge a beer based on the smell coming from the airlock.

 

[goin2brew]

You're right, its all out of my hands now and we'll see what the final product yields. Thanks for the reassurance.

 

[TheWeeb]

it is out of your hands now, but of note, I think that DFH used the pumpkin right out of the can at boil, not primary as OP said half of it went. I would be more concerned over the can opener as a source of contaminants; I know mine gets pretty cruddy. Unfortunately, i do not remember what my pumpkin ale smelled like while fermenting, but as JonK said, it is all done now so no sense worrying during the wait. As revvy says all the time, yeast are pretty hardy creatures and get the job done most of the time.

 

[goin2brew]

UPDATE:
As of now it has picked up to a vigorous bubble in the airlock and what is being pushed out is smelling sweeter and less like tomatoes than before.

I'll NEVER doubt the yeast again

 

[goin2brew]

I just transferred from primary to secondary... it stunk like a chemical. Tasted just like it smelled. In fact the taste stained my tongue and was hard to get off.

So I did what any homebrewer would do. I boiled the spices and threw everything into the secondary like the recipe said. I will let it sit 2 weeks in secondary and then see what's going on. I'll transfer it to another carboy, drop more spices and do a 3rd bulk conditioning phase if I have to.

OG = 1.051 (Target 1.055)
FG = 1.012 (Target 1.014)
ABV = 5.12% (Target 5.3%)

So it's definitely beer. I guess one lesson I learned here is that the yeast have the final say how it will taste no matter what else is in it.