Wheat beer gravity question

[PeterEllis]

Hi guys,

First off, I'm really sorry if this question is an oft-repeated and oft-answered with a sigh, but I had trouble finding an adequate thread that answered my question.

SO I've been fermenting a wheat beer, a leffe blonde clone, for around 13 days now. It started with an OG of 1.060, and now has a gravity of 1.021, and has had for around 6 days... Is that alright to bottle? The labels all over everything say NOTHING less than 1.020 is alright to bottle, but I've just got a feeling that after having such a high initial gravity reading, and given the length of time without change, that I'm probably alright... Is this a good train of thought for me to have?

I just had one other question which I'm going to slip in when I shouldn't: I'm keen to start doing secondary fermentation, because I don't want to half-ass around - is a glass carboy the one for me, or if I wanted could I just use another plastic fermenter? I have two fermenters, and as much as I've enjoyed using both at once, I'd rather make one excellent batch at a time instead of two good ones.

Thank you for any and all help,
Peter

 

[porterpounder]

A few questions on your issue:
What kind of yeast did you use and did you use a starter?
Have you tried a new yeast pitch?
What is the fermentation temp and do you have temp control?
Usually letting a beer like that finish warmer will keep the yeast awake and allow it to finish out if there is residual sugar. Sometimes if a beer sits at a gravity for a week or so and appears finished out, adding a bit of oxygen via the bottling process could wake the yeast up and cause over carbing issues in the bottle.
Is this an extract recipe or all-grain?
If extract it may not finish out depending on the type and age. If all-grain maybe the mash temp was too high.

As for secondary, why bother? Secondary doesn't make better beer. I stopped using using secondaries many years ago and letting the yeast do its work in a properly controlled temp environment makes better beer than subjecting it to the stresses and hazards of a secondary fermenter. Unless it's a keg, there is no need.

 

[Pie_Man]

Apparent attentuation is only about 65% which is low for most Belgian strains (assuming you would use a Belgian strain for a Leffe clone). This idicates low wort fermentability and/or issues with fermentation like yeast health, pitch rate, oxygentation, and/or fermentation temperature. As porterpounder points out, more information is needed.

It seems like your gravity is stable which indicates fermentation is over. I personally do not bother with a secondary. I am curious as to why you think not using a secondary is half-assing things? In my opinion, secondaries increase the risk of oxidation and infection (more transferring, more equipment for the beer to touch). Plus there is more equipment to clean. If the beer tastes good, I would bottle/keg and enjoy. You can also leave the beer on the yeast for a little longer and see if anything changes. No harm in doing that.

Also, I am curious about your recipe. I don't think Leffe Blond uses any wheat, if they do, I would think it's a very small percentage.

 

[PeterEllis]

Hey there porterpounder,

I used a Safale K-97 yeast, I pitched at 21 Celsius, and I've kept it consistently between 19-21 Celsius since then. I've not pitched any more yeast since.

Thanks for the advice re secondary. I assume the advice is different for lagering? (which I've not tried yet)

Thanks again for any and all advice,
Peter

 

[PeterEllis]

Sorry Pie_Man, working in my pub and using my phone to check the forums, and it didn't show your reply earlier! I'm a TOTAL noob to this game and I'd just read, on the FAQ of these forums in fact, that a secondary fermentation is always a good idea.

Thank you for replying, I really appreciate the help!

 

[Pie_Man]

The prevailing wisdom has certainly changed since the first post of that FAQ in 2006 and is reflected in the subsequent pages of the FAQ. The question about secondary usage if often asked and debated in many posts on this forum. I posted a few of those for you below. In general, take advice about homebrewing with a grain of salt. There are multiple ways to do everything and different people have different opinions, or prefer different methods for certain situations. With experience, you will find the methods that you prefer and will be able to weight the pros and cons of various techniques.

Recommended reading related secondary usage:
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/when-go-primary-secondary-if-all-43014/
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/second-ferm-racking-128440/#post1438252
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/dennys-quick-dirty-faq-153729/#post1766281

Related to your current brew, if you post the recipe and basic process, we can probably assist you further or give you advice for future brews. Cheers.

 

[PeterEllis]

http://tims-brew.blogspot.com.au/2007/10/2-leffe-blonde.html?m=1

That's the same recipe.

Thank you for the reading, I have a few questions but I'll save them for another time. Also yes, no wheat... How embarrassing... That notwithstanding, what do you think I should do? Pitch again or bottle? It tastes good!

 

[Macdonald87]

Definitely recommend secondary do it for every beer I make. Most people I brew with does it to. If you properly clean and sanitize and do it thoroughly no real risk of infection. Cheers


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[Pie_Man]

The gravity is stable and you like the taste, bottle and enjoy. If you are concerned about clarity, you can cool the beer to near 0C for a few days. The cold temperature helps to settle things out.

Pitching extra yeast often does not produce a better beer when facing a stuck fermentation. First, you are adding yeast to an alcoholic enviornment which is stressful to the yeast. Additionally, you cannot oxygenate the wort for the yeast without causing some level of oxidation in your beer. In your case, you like the taste, so enjoy your brew. Congrats.

For future brews, you may want to research pitching rates and follow a pitching rate calculator like yeastcalculator.com or mrmalty.com. Sometimes, one than one package of dry yeast is needed and liquid yeasts almost always need a yeast starter.