Stout Final Gravity way to High?

[johnsonbrew]

I am new to brewing kinda, some of you probably have seen some of my posts. I don't consider myself a novice as I have close to 50 brews under my belt but I have consistently had problems hitting my FG points. My latest was a vanilla bourbon stout. It finished after being in the primary at 1.025. It started at 1.063 so its right around 5% but pretty sweet in my opinion. I built a fermentation box and have a temp control in there with a small space heater so the temp in the box was always right about 68 to 70 F. The stick on thermometer never moved from 71F. In hind sight I should have shook it and let it sit a little longer but I am headed into my busy time of year and just need to get things done. I do primarily extract batches but only on a few occasions have I actually hit my FG points. What else can I do to bring these down to where they need to be?

 

[HopLife]

With an extract recipe you should be able to hit 75% attenuation with most yeast if they are healthy. If you are not pitching enough yeast, or if you are not providing enough oxygen when pitching that could lead to lower numbers.

 

[Damoxemus]

I had the same problem with extract batches finishing high. I found ramping the temp up and giving it a "rousing" helped a bit. That, and using a higher attenuating yeast (wlp001), with a starter, seemed to do the trick. I had a CDA finish at 1.022 before, but now most of my beers finish around 1.012 or .010.

So ya, better and/or more yeast.
Rousing
Temp control (maybe a Flex wrap as opposed to a space heater?).

 

[brewinginnc]

I never had a beer finish high after doing starters. If you are using dry yeast are you rehydrating it first?

 

[dbkdev]

I had the same problem with extract batches finishing high. I found ramping the temp up and giving it a "rousing" helped a bit. That, and using a higher attenuating yeast (wlp001), with a starter, seemed to do the trick. I had a CDA finish at 1.022 before, but now most of my beers finish around 1.012 or .010.

So ya, better and/or more yeast.
Rousing
Temp control (maybe a Flex wrap as opposed to a space heater?).

What do you mean by rousing? Shake the fermentor days into fermenting?

 

[johnsonbrew]

It was a dry yeast, I did rehydrate it, but it seems to happen with the liquid yeast as well. I felt I generally did a decent job of aerating the worth but I do remember skipping that step this last time. Do you reccommend shaking the wort after a bit to wake the yeast up after a week or so. I dont know about wrapping the carboy since the temps seem high enough and consistent, no real fluctuation taking place. I used safale 05 which has generally been a quality yeast. I guess I need to slow down and ensure every step is taken care of and be more diligent with the little things.

 

[Vigo_Carpathian]

Making a starter can make a big difference. If using dry yeast, then consider using two packs. You should also oxygenate the wort before pitching. At that OG you should be borderline ok without it, but you should get into the habit of doing it every time. With all grain, you can also control FG with mash temps, but with extract, unfortunately sometimes you get what you get.

 

[Damoxemus]

What do you mean by rousing? Shake the fermentor days into fermenting?

I wouldn't say "shake it", more like a very gentle rocking/swirling motion. Enough to get the yeast re-suspended, but not enough to cause splashing inside the fermenter.

 

[BigFloyd]

The first question that pops into my brain when someone says their stout has a high FG is ---- did it have any lactose in it?

One pound of lactose in a 5 gallon batch raises the FG by .007