Yeast situation/dilemma

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Flike01

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Alright, let me first start off by saying this extract batch was a complete and total experiment.

I used an Imperial Blonde Ale kit from Brewer's Best to host my attempt at creating a high ABV flavor packed beer, and seeing how the end result came about.

I knew I was going to be shooting for +10% ABV, so before I started brewing, I picked up an extra pound of Golden DME from the local brewstore. After brewing, I added about 1.5lbs of boiled table sugar 3 days later. 3 days after that, I added a pound more. 3 days after that, I added around another 1.5lbs to that as well. I have transfered to secondary, but I'm worried that my yeast now won't have the constitution to keep up with all of the added sugar, and I'm also afraid it won't be able to survive in such a high alcohol setting. I used Safale US-05 dry yeast.

I'm at a point now where I can either just hope for the best, and pray that the yeast is still strong enough to carbonate when I rack to bottles. Or I'm also trying to figure out if there is a way I can assist the yeast without doing more damage.

Something else I'm thinking about, is maybe adding a different strain of yeast (a high grav yeast), but something tells me that this would probably be a horrible, horrible idea. Though I am looking for any advice that anyone has on this because for better or worse, it's still an option in my mind.
 
Well, most of what you wanted to do should have been done already. US05 can handle that high of an alcohol, but I wouldn't go any higher if you want to bottle carb as the yeast is rated up to about 12%.

You might have wanted to pitch 2 packs of yeast at that high an alcohol level, and also the addition of yeast nutrient and possibly also some energizer would not have hurt.

You say you transferred to secondary. Was the beer done fermenting? Hopefully it was, because with that much alcohol you definitely did not want to get the beer off the yeast cake until it was finished. If you transferred before it was finished the fermentation is going to slow way down as you have taken much of the yeast away.

Adding another higher attenuating yeast is difficult. The problem is alcohol is toxic to yeast, and during a fermentation they gradually build up their tolerance to alcohol as they ferment. Pitching a fresh yeast into a high alcohol environment often makes it difficult for the yeast to even begin fermenting, and usually does not produce good results.

If your fermentation is not done, your best bet is to feed them some nutrient, give the fermenter a swirl and give them a constant temperature in their range, say 68 ish and hope for the best. In the future leave the beer in the primary until the gravity is no longer dropping as measured over 2-3 consecutive days.
 
Thank you! That is basically what I was looking for, honestly.

For a little clarification, I transferred to secondary because with the additions of the "syrup" to the wort, the liquid level basically was around 6.25 gallons in my 6.5 fermentation bucket, and the airlock was filling up with wort...not because of a super-active fermentation, but because it was too full. Instead of CO2 bubbles coming out of my airlock, it was just wort so I wanted to give it a different environment in the carboy where maybe it could breathe a little better. So it definitely was not done fermenting, especially seeing as I added the last batch of sugar within the last 48 hours. I just needed to do something about the situation.

So in this situation, would it have been okay to transfer some of the trub to the carboy? (even though it would be a ***** to clean after it's all said and done...) And also, would it be worth buying another pack of US 05 and a pack of yeast nutrients? Or should I just keep aerating the bottle a little each day and wait out the fermentation? It is still showing signs of fermentation...just as you'd expect, not very active signs.
 
If you racked while it was actively fermenting, then you will have taken across lots of yeast - you are OK on that point.

Do not aerate at this point.

It would help if you provided a list of all the sugars, the total volume of the beer, and any gravity measurements you have made. It is difficult to know what the alcohol level is to be able to say if the S-05 is still OK, or you need something else.

All I can tell is you used a kit and added an extra 3.5 lbs of table sugar and 1 lb of DME, and your total volume was about 6.25 gallons. These additions will increase the gravity of the wort by .033 (potential 4.3% abv).

I just looked up BB Imperial Blond kit, and in 6 gallons, that would give you a gravity of about 1.053 (6.6 lbs LME, 1 lb DME, and 1 lb corn sugar; the honey malt will give you nothing). So unless you have added anything more than I have listed here, your overall effective OG would have been around 1.085.

I don't know what your FG is, but will guess at 1.010 (due to large amount of simple sugar). This will give you almost 10% abv.

If my estimates of the fermentable ingredients are correct, you do not need any more yeast or nuttrient; S-05 should be fine for that beer.
 
Your analysis is virtually spot on Calder. I did rack while it was actively fermenting, however unfortuantely I did give it some swirling for a minute or two twice today just going by the advice of the first post...so we'll see what happens.

My OG actually was 1.089 I believe, which is pretty much right where you guessed it would be, and the OG before racking to the carboy was 1.020 BUT that was definitely NOT at 60F -- it was closer to around 80F. I will keep on monitoring fermentation in the carboy (a plus of moving it...I can see it), and come back to here if there are any sort of emergencies that arise! Otherwise I will let it finish fermentation and probably add some fining gelatins after that seeing as it's so, so, so murky.

Thanks again for your input!
 
Alright so I have been having CO2 coming through the airlock slowly but surely since I made the post about racking...so I -think- I'm going to be safe. The wort is still extremely brown and murky...but i'm starting to think that's because of the cinnamon :) I added two sticks to the carboy when racking (which was part of the plan all along). So now that it looks like it's going to ferment alright and the yeast is still healthy enough to do its job, I have two more questions if anyone would mind fielding them:

1) There is a krausen-like foam on the top of the wort that isn't really getting bigger or smaller. Is this normal?

2) Will the cinnamon ever clear up from sitting? Should I use fining gelatin to try and clear it up? I have used the gel on a previous batch that worked awesomely, but I put it in when I racked. Is there a too soon/too late time to use the fining gelatin?
 
1: yes this is normal and the krausen will eventually drop out of suspension

2: leave it alone and everything will settle out as well

No worries!
 
The brown and murky appearance is due o he yeas working and churning all the wort/beer. When the yeast finally finish, everything will settle out. It might take a week or 2 to slowly clear.

Kraeusen is normal and will eventually drop.
 
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