Looking for barley wine advice

Discussion in 'Homebrewing' started by Kmh8288, Jun 29, 2016.

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  1. Lukass

    Lukass Pooh-Bah (2,891) Dec 16, 2012 Ohio
    Pooh-Bah

    I've gotten around 15% abv with an extract barleywine about 4 years ago (still have about 20 bottles of it, too!). Stirring in that much malt syrup is a workout all in its own.

    My only advice here would be to aim for high IBUs, use a large amount of LME in the boil, and pitch a massive starter of WLP099. Feed it the brown sugar daily during fermentation. Good luck, and welcome to BA!
     
    #21 Lukass, Jul 27, 2016
  2. Lukass

    Lukass Pooh-Bah (2,891) Dec 16, 2012 Ohio
    Pooh-Bah

    Just saw above that you've already started this beer.. d'oh! Let us know how it turns out
     
    #22 Lukass, Jul 27, 2016
  3. Kmh8288

    Kmh8288 Initiate (0) Jun 21, 2016 North Carolina

    Well I pulled a hydrometer reading yesterday and today, and it is stuck at a 1.08g currently from a 1.151 og. I am going to give the WL099 until tomorrow. I was hoping two vials of WL099 would be enough to pick up the fermentation. At this point I am just trying to save the wort I guess. I am making a starter with some Premier Cuvee since (18% tolerance). Ill let that build over the next couple days, and if the WL099 doesn't start working by Friday Ill pitch the starter of Cuvee.

    Two things I wish I had done differently were to add yeast nutrient to the wort, and to have used a starter at the beginning. I did aerate my wort with pure o2 twice, though. once at pitching, and again 12 hours later.
     
    #23 Kmh8288, Jul 28, 2016
  4. CADETS3

    CADETS3 Initiate (0) Dec 3, 2014 Texas

    Wait, you didn't pitch a starter on an intended 18% beer? Shame on you.
     
    #24 CADETS3, Jul 28, 2016
    MrOH, kkleu357, Lukass and 1 other person like this.
  5. Lukass

    Lukass Pooh-Bah (2,891) Dec 16, 2012 Ohio
    Pooh-Bah

    Yea.... if I were you I'd make a large starter with both of those WLP099 vials. If you haven't done a yeast starter before it's super easy. I can't stress enough (no pun intended) on how important building up a healthy culture of yeast is before pitching into high OG wort, especially if it's 1.151! If you don't pitch enough you could be stuck with a 9% abv sugary beer. You can still add yeast nutrient to your wort when you pitch the 099, and add some yeast energizer too while you're at it. It'll be worth it in the end trust me
     
    #25 Lukass, Jul 28, 2016
    MrOH likes this.
  6. machalel

    machalel Initiate (0) Jan 19, 2012 Australia

    Not a suprising result so far to be honest. You will definitely need to make a large starter for a beer like this!
     
    #26 machalel, Jul 29, 2016
    LuskusDelph likes this.
  7. Kmh8288

    Kmh8288 Initiate (0) Jun 21, 2016 North Carolina

    This is my first beer ever over 10%, and I expected to have problems with it. I want to get a process down before I invest all of the effort in an all grain beer of the same size.

    So tonight I am making a starter that was recommended by my local brew shop to get the fermentation going again. 1/8 teaspoon of Fermax yeast nutrient, 1 package of Lallemand CBC-1 yeast, and 1/2 cup of DME.

    What I did not ask was if I should make a solution of yeast nutrient to pour into the wort when I pitch my new starter....any suggestions on that?
     
    #27 Kmh8288, Jul 29, 2016
  8. dmtaylor

    dmtaylor Savant (1,149) Dec 30, 2003 Wisconsin

    If you already used nutrient in your yeast starter, you don't need any more nutrient in the rest of the beer.
     
    #28 dmtaylor, Jul 29, 2016
    Kmh8288 likes this.
  9. Kmh8288

    Kmh8288 Initiate (0) Jun 21, 2016 North Carolina

    Thanks!
     
    #29 Kmh8288, Jul 29, 2016
  10. MrOH

    MrOH Grand Pooh-Bah (3,995) Jul 5, 2010 Virginia
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah

    A half cup of malt is around (if not less) than a quarter pound. Should add a bit of complexity, but with all the rest that will be going on, you might not even notice it, unless your water is iffy or the fermentation is too stressed (which may end up happening). Barleywines are great for brewing on the ones; keep it simple until you truly understand the process.

    Outside of that, yeah, you're basically trying to get yeast to make the beer you want without fucking up your beer. That champagne yeast you added is a killer strain, so you may not get any further fermentation of more complex sugars. That is to say, champagne yeast tends to not only ferment monosaccharides, but it also kills off yeast that would ferment disaccharides. It might stall out. In that case, your best bet might be to cold crash, rack off the trub, and then pitch a big, active starter of 3711 and Brett C. Maybe it'll turn out like a barley wine??

    Good luck and God speed, but be willing to chalk this one up to a learning experience
     
    #30 MrOH, Jul 30, 2016
  11. Kmh8288

    Kmh8288 Initiate (0) Jun 21, 2016 North Carolina

    Yeah my yeast starter was pitched 36 hrs ago, and it was a dud. I have started cold crashing the fermentor in my fridge, and will be taking your advice on racking off into a carboy, and pitching a new starter. How big of a starter/how much DME would you recommend?
     
    #31 Kmh8288, Aug 2, 2016
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