1 or 2 Pack of US-05

[mm1473]

So I am brewing up a strong ale because I have always wanted to try and brew a bigger beer. My plan was to make it a 3 gallon batch to keep costs down. I converted a recipe and it looks, if all goes well, my SG will be 1.122 with and ABV of 12ish%. I ran the numbers through a calculator and the recommended pitch rate for US-05 on this beer was 12g--of course one packet is 11g. In searching past threads I saw guys getting 12+% out of this yeast by using 1packet and "nursing it" but I cant find a single thread where they say how to "nurse it". I have temp control, yeast nutrient, yeast energizer etc... Anyway--here is the recipe if that helps:

11lb 2-row
.5lb Crystal 60
.25lb peated malt
.25lb chocolate malt
.25lb special B
.75lb dark candi sugar
2oz Kent Goldings at 60min

Anyway-do you think it would be ok to try with one packet or should I get a second. Or--should I just add an extra gallon of water at the mash/sparge to bring it up to 4gallons and drop the abv to 9ish%.

Any advice would be appreciated as this is my first try at a bigger beer. Thanks in advance

 

[rhys333]

Just going off your description and without running the numbers, I'd say you are fine with one pack. If you're only doing 3 gallons of your high gravity beer, just make sure to rehydrate it properly beforehand. Also aerate the wort well.

 

[andrewf1985]

Add the candi sugar when the yeast has got through some of the fermentation, like step feeding it. There will be more then enough cells in there to munch through that lot. Good conditioning time for sure though

 

[MindenMan]

Yeast is cheap; I would use two packs, aerate and add a little DAP.

 

[daksin]

For a beer over 1.1? I would use 2, or even 3. MrMalty says 2. If you're not rehydrating, use 4.

 

[mm1473]

Copy that--guess I will go grab an extra pack--it is just a PITA because the nearest shop opens at 0930 and I get off shift at 0800 so I will have to figure out a way to waste an hour and a half. I was hoping I could get by without it but I would be better safe than sorry. At that abv will I have to at an extra yeast at bottling? I have a packet of ec-1118 laying around and can throw it in if you guys think it will be necessary. Thanks for all the info.

 

[slym2none]

I have brewed a 2.5 gallon batch of a high-gravity (11%) beer before, using US-05. I pitched one packet and it not only reached the high-ABV percentage, but had no problem carbonating the batch after I bottled it.

You have the yeast nutrients, so I think you'll be fine using one pack of yeast for a 3-gallon batch.

All IMHO, of course.

 

[Michael_K]

Maybe consider revisiting the idea of .25 lb peat malt - a little goes a long way...

 

[douglasbarbin]

Maybe consider revisiting the idea of .25 lb peat malt - a little goes a long way...

Unless you want your beer to taste like a campfire...

 

[BrewHound]

Unless you want your beer to taste like a campfire...

While peated malt is quite a strongly flavored addition, it's only 2% of your malt bill and it's character will fall back with age. I vote for your recipe as is! Add a second yeast packet if you can but I wouldn't say it's critical to success.

 

[Beerswimmer]

I added 3 packs of US-05 to a 1.088 beer and went to 1.010 in about 4 days....I'd use 1 1/2.

 

[daksin]

So, mea culpa, I didn't read carefully and missed the bit about a 3 gallon batch. You should be fine with 2 packets, but you won't need to add extra yeast at bottling unless you age it for months, which it probably won't need anyway. If it goes crazy clear (which is unlikely with US-05), you can kick up a bit of sediment when racking to your bottling bucket and that should be fine.

 

[Owly055]

One packet hydrated in cool water is plenty..... aerate well and feed the sugar into the brew after fermentation is well under way. I've made normal gravity brews as "starters" for higher gravity brews a few times when I wanted a really heavy pitch. It works great if the first brew is an extract brew (minimal trub)......... You get to drink your "starter" as well as your other brew ;-)............


H.W.