Adam Booth
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- Nov 3, 2018
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Hello All. First post here. I scoured previous posts, and learned quite a bit, but I believe my question to be fairly specific.
So here I am!!
Back in July I brewed my first Imperial Stout. It is a kit from the dreaded Northern Brewer. Recipe is here: https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2...ialStout-1532544620216.pdf?487624729713520424
Brew went fine. As I recall (incomplete records for yeast back then) I pitched two packs of S-04, without re-hydration. OG was 1.084 as I tend to go a little heavy on water, especially before I used a hop bag.
All readings taken with a hydrometer.
Transferred to secondary (because recipe said to) after 19 days. I did NOT check gravity like an idiot. I had recently learned not to transfer after 2 weeks regardless of gravity, and I also stopped using dry yeast around that same time and started making starters. It has been in secondary ever since. Temp has been around 66-68 consistently.
Today I went to bottle ASSUMING it would be done, and the FG is 1.030. NB comments state 1.020 is normal for this brew, and the batch I brewed a week after this with a starter of S-04 is at exactly 1.020.
Taste is fine. A little sweet, but I added 4 oz of ground cocoa nibs, and it is not bad. Math says 7.09 ABV.
I would bottle it right now, but my primary concern is creating bottle bombs. I had intended to add CBC-1 to carb as it has been in secondary for so long, but I do not want to do anything until I get some feedback.
My main question, that I feel is different from many other threads, is whether I can restart fermentation after it has been in secondary for so long. Would I be better off bottling it? Or should I transfer back to a primary, warm and pitch some S-05 or something else, and give it a month or so?
So here I am!!
Back in July I brewed my first Imperial Stout. It is a kit from the dreaded Northern Brewer. Recipe is here: https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2...ialStout-1532544620216.pdf?487624729713520424
Brew went fine. As I recall (incomplete records for yeast back then) I pitched two packs of S-04, without re-hydration. OG was 1.084 as I tend to go a little heavy on water, especially before I used a hop bag.
All readings taken with a hydrometer.
Transferred to secondary (because recipe said to) after 19 days. I did NOT check gravity like an idiot. I had recently learned not to transfer after 2 weeks regardless of gravity, and I also stopped using dry yeast around that same time and started making starters. It has been in secondary ever since. Temp has been around 66-68 consistently.
Today I went to bottle ASSUMING it would be done, and the FG is 1.030. NB comments state 1.020 is normal for this brew, and the batch I brewed a week after this with a starter of S-04 is at exactly 1.020.
Taste is fine. A little sweet, but I added 4 oz of ground cocoa nibs, and it is not bad. Math says 7.09 ABV.
I would bottle it right now, but my primary concern is creating bottle bombs. I had intended to add CBC-1 to carb as it has been in secondary for so long, but I do not want to do anything until I get some feedback.
My main question, that I feel is different from many other threads, is whether I can restart fermentation after it has been in secondary for so long. Would I be better off bottling it? Or should I transfer back to a primary, warm and pitch some S-05 or something else, and give it a month or so?