Adding Wort During Fermentation

Discussion in 'Homebrewing' started by HerbMeowing, Jan 5, 2015.

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  1. HerbMeowing

    HerbMeowing Maven (1,295) Nov 10, 2010 Virginia
    Trader

    There was more than a little clear wort volume 'lost' recently in the break after chilling to the pitching temperature.

    Chilling the 'lost' volume for a few days recovered about half of it as clear wort.
    Added the recovered clear wort to the fermentor ... increasing the batch size by ~7% ... three days in ... just after the old stock ale's Hi-K.

    My question: should the wort addition have been aerated?

    ----
    As an aside: this type of clear wort loss happens typically when Whirfloc® is added to the kettle instead of Irish moss.

    TIA
     
    #1 HerbMeowing, Jan 5, 2015
  2. FATC1TY

    FATC1TY Pooh-Bah (2,564) Feb 12, 2012 Georgia
    Pooh-Bah

    I wouldnt have aerated that small amount myself. I would consider it fine
     
    #2 FATC1TY, Jan 5, 2015
  3. FeDUBBELFIST

    FeDUBBELFIST Pooh-Bah (1,765) Oct 31, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    I wouldn't have either as your fermentation has been underway for several days at that point and you would have been introducing oxygen to the rest of the beer/wort. If it was within twenty four hours, I'd feel better about doing so but probably still wouldn't have oxygenated the leftover wort.

    What kind of OG are we talking about by the way?
     
    #3 FeDUBBELFIST, Jan 5, 2015
  4. pweis909

    pweis909 Grand Pooh-Bah (3,250) Aug 13, 2005 Wisconsin
    Pooh-Bah

    If I remember right, aeration is important for yeast growth. Your yeast should be all grown up, well beyond their teenage years. They are of legal age to make homebrew, which they have been doing for the past 3 days. :slight_smile: No need to add air.

    I like the idea of chilling the break to get more clear wort out. It doesn't seem like that much effort and might squeeze a couple pints our of a 5 gallon batch. Did you by any chance taste the wort before adding it? I wonder about the flavor.
     
    #4 pweis909, Jan 5, 2015
  5. VikeMan

    VikeMan Grand Pooh-Bah (3,067) Jul 12, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    I too think you made the right decision by not aerating the second wort.
     
    #5 VikeMan, Jan 5, 2015
  6. HerbMeowing

    HerbMeowing Maven (1,295) Nov 10, 2010 Virginia
    Trader

    @FeDUBBELFIST - OG: 1.106
    @pweis909 - did not taste but the smell was OK.
    @VikeMan - much obliged

    ---
    This isn't the 1st time Whirlfloc has performed this way.
    I find more clear wort volume is lost using (1/2 tab) Whirlfloc than (1/2 tsp) Irish moss (recall my batch-size is 2.5G).
    The density of IM break >> density of WF break ==> more clear wort with IM.

    Figured there was nothing to lose by cold-crashing the break to see how much clear wort could be recovered.
    Turns out ... it was well worth the effort.
     
    #6 HerbMeowing, Jan 6, 2015
  7. HerbMeowing

    HerbMeowing Maven (1,295) Nov 10, 2010 Virginia
    Trader

    Here's an example of how chilling kettle break material can recover lost wort.

    The canisters hold 2 liters.
    After the chilled clear wort was transferred from the kettle to the fermentor ... the break was transferred to the canisters and refrigerated overnight.

    Next day ... over 1 liter of clear wort was recovered.
    The recovered wort was boiled briefly ... chilled ... and added to the fermentor on Day 2

    [​IMG]
     
    #7 HerbMeowing, Jan 12, 2015
    Last edited: Jan 12, 2015
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