yeast and oak chips question! please help!

[Eltenchiz]

Hi all,
I have two questions. I just brewed a 5gal Imperial Stout yesterday and put it in the fermenter. When I was buying the grains just before my brew, i was talking to the employee at my local brew shop about the process of an imperial stout because i have never made one before. He was telling me that when I go to bottle the beer I should pitch an extra packet of dry yeast in the bottling bucket because the beer is going to have such a high ABV(the O.G. was 1.10). I am afraid that if i do this my bottles are going to explode. Is this possible? are there any other affects this may cause that will be harmful to my brew?
My next question is Oak Chips. I am going to add some Oak chips to the secondary and i just wanted to know if I soak them in whiskey, how long should i soak them prior to adding, about how long into the secondary should I add them and if should pour the actual whiskey in the beer.
I know this is actually more then two quest but i really appreciate your help.
happy memorial weekend everyone
Mike

 

[WilliamWS]

Repitching will not cause bottle bombs. Adding too much priming sugar or bottling before fermentation is complete causes bottle bombs.
With a big beer like that the yeast definitely will be stressed. I've done beers that big though that carbed fine without repitching but if you are going to age it in the fermentor for a very long time or if you crash cool it prior to bottling it's probably not a bad idea to repitch. I wouldn't pitch a whole pack of dry yeast, though. That's a lot of yeast. Maybe more like a quarter of a pack, rehydrated.

As to the oak chips, I'd boil or pasteurize them then add them. Then add whiskey to taste later. You'll have more control over the whiskey flavor that way.

I've tasted more beers where the whiskey flavor was over done, ruining a nice beer than I have beers that struck a nice balance with the whiskey flavor.

 

[Eltenchiz]

thanks a lot William, i really appreciate your help

 

[Golddiggie]

Needing to pitch more yeast when priming/bottling depends a good amount on what yeast you used to ferment and how the brew finished (ABV%). IF the brew is at the listed tolerance of the yeast, it could be a good idea to pitch some higher tolerance yeast for carbonation. If you still have even .5% ABV 'wiggle room' for the yeast, I wouldn't bother. The additional sugar provided when you prime it will wake up the yeast left in suspension and get them to carbonate the brew. It could take a while, since the yeast will be sluggish and in a harsh environment, but it can do it.

This is one of the times where I wouldn't expect the brew to be carbonated in 3 weeks. I wouldn't bother to check a bottle for at least a couple of months (or longer).

For soaking the chips, you don't have to, but you can if you want. You can also add some of the whiskey directly when you're adding the chips. Pretty much same effect will be reached.
For how long to keep the brew on the chips, I would go at least 1-2 months before even pulling a taste sample. I would probably go even longer (3-6 months) before thinking about bottling. This is due to how much the addition from chips can change over time (even a short amount of time). Cubes are MUCH more stable with their contribution.

BTW, you really don't need to boil the chips/wood to 'pasteurize' them... Especially with a high ABV% beer, it's already a hostile environment for other organisms. Provided you follow brewers normal sanitation practices you shouldn't have any issue. IF you're concerned, I would simply boil some water, put the chips in a high temp tolerant container (with a good lid) that's already sanitized, and pour the water on top of them. Let the entire thing sit until it's cooled (covered/sealed of course) then pour everything into the vessel. That way you lose none of what the wood will give you.

 

[Eltenchiz]

Thanks gold! I used 2 packets Nottingham dry yeast and holy crap did the cork blow off. I have never seen yeast so active. It's actually really cool beside the mess. I just hope with all this foam pressure exiting the fermenter it doesn't contaminate

 

[TimTrone]

Thanks gold! I used 2 packets Nottingham dry yeast and holy crap did the cork blow off. I have never seen yeast so active. It's actually really cool beside the mess. I just hope with all this foam pressure exiting the fermenter it doesn't contaminate

Make sure you control the temp with notty in big beers. It can really get away from you if you're not paying attention. I find the best flavor using notty in high gravitys comes from fermenting at 60-62

 

[Eltenchiz]

So I am trying to keep it cool enough by putting it in water but I think it's way too active to stay cool. Thanks for the heads up tho

 

[Golddiggie]

You need more water and either ice, frozen bottles of water or ice packs in it. Wrap a towel around it too, and have that in the water (soak it). I used a plastic storage bin to hold the carboy of hard lemonade I started on Sunday. Helping to keep the temperature within the range the yeast likes.