WLP002 Short Activity

[shaneritz]

Hey I was wondering if anyone has had an issue with the White Labs English Ale WLP002 yeast? I pitched it in a Winter Ale wort at 68 degrees. There was no action for 24 hours then it went crazy for 3-4 days and then pretty much stopped. The ferm temp have varied between 65-70 degrees. My OG was 1.053 and I checked it 10 days later and it was 1.030. I was just curious if the activity from the yeast was too short and didn't ferment enough of the sugars? If anyone has any comments or critiques that would be great. This is my 4th all grain batch. I am going to let it sit for a week and check it again. Cheers

 

[Riot]

That strain is notorious for giving up early and restarting later. Warm it up and rouse the cake daily until you're sure. You could also put a sample on a stirplate to establish real final gravity

 

[shaneritz]

Great! Thanks for the advice. I will give it a shot and see where I'm at in a week.

 

[BigFloyd]

WLP002 (ESB1968) is notorious for dropping out early, especially if you get some temp fluctuation. Also, it is nearly impossible to rouse by swirling because it forms such a firm, almost rubbery cake.

If it hasn't budged in a week, warm it to 70-72*F, use a sanitized plastic or metal spoon to gently (no splashing) lift the cake off the bottom of the fermenter and re-suspend some of it. Give it another week after that at the warmer temp.