Airlock

Thats not bad...what yeast?

 

An OG of 1.085ish is a high gravity. I doubt that the 7.9 gallon bucket would ‘work’ for this gravity of a beer.

My Dubbel was 1.065 and a little bit of krausen came out of the airlock hole.

It seems that your blow off method is working fine. I would just recommend that you keep an eye on it. A small diameter plastic tube seems like it could get blocked up with ‘goo’.

Cheers!

 

Ive done that for years, it works fine. You also have to cut the X off the bottom of the airlock or that will clog, however.

 

How are you controlling the fermentation temp, and what is it?

 

That may put your peak fermentation temp around 77-80, probably at the upper end of that range, for a big beer. This would be part of the reason for the blowoff. Also, at those temps, expect a lot of esters and possibly fusel alcohols.

 

Um...OK what was the OG? 1 smack pak wasn't enough.

Thats about 10deg higher than I ferment. Not trying to rain on the beer but there are some process opportunities here.

 

No. What I'm saying is that 73F is generally too high, because peak fermentation temp may be 4-7 degrees higher than the ambient temp, because fermentation generates heat. And a peak fermentation temp of 77-80F, with most yeast strains, will produce off flavors. In general, you don't want the wort/beer getting warmer than the recommended temperature range for the strain you are using. For Wyeast 1099, that's 64-75F. And I would say that even 75F is probably too warm.

 

Below is the description that Wyeast provides for 1099:

YEAST STRAIN: 1099 | Whitbread Ale™
A mildly malty and slightly fruity fermentation profile. It is less tart and dry than Wyeast 1098 British Ale. With good flocculation characteristics, this yeast clears well without filtration. Low fermentation temperatures will produce a clean finish with a very low ester profile.

Origin:
Flocculation: Medium-High
Attenuation: 68-72%
Temperature Range: 64-75F, 18-24C
Alcohol Tolerance: 10% ABV

So, the highest recommended temperature for fermentation (this is the temperature of the fermenting wort inside the bucket) is 75°F. With an ambient (room) temperature of 73°F the temperature of your fermenting wort is higher than 75°F; the fermentation process is an exothermic process which means that it generates heat.

Higher fermentation temperatures will result in increased ester production and it could also lead to fusel alcohols being produced. Fusel alcohols will be perceived as being a ‘hot’ taste and it can cause hangovers.

You really want to keep your fermentation temperatures within the recommended range. The absolute highest temperature that you should ferment 1099 with is 75°F.

One way you could cool down your ferment is to place your fermenter within a Rubbermaid type container which you could fill up with water and then place ice (or refreezable blue cubes) to cool things down.

Cheers!

 

Below is something I posted in a previous thread:

“My homebrewing area (utility room in my half basement) is a bit too warm now (ambient about 72-73°F). My preference is to ferment my Wit beers around 70°F (although 72°F would be OK). So, since fermentation is an exothermic reaction (it produces heat) I need to ‘manage’ the fermentation temperature. Right now I am able to do that by simply placing my bucket on the basement floor; the basement floor operates like a heat sink drawing the ‘excess’ heat away. I will just use the ‘floor method’ unless the fermentation temperature exceeds 72°F. If that occurs I will place my fermenter in a shallow Rubbermaid pan (about 5 inches tall) and put water in the pan. The presence of water increases the heat sink effect by cooling a couple more degrees. If I should need even more cooling I will place a towel (or a T-shirt) around the bucket for evaporative cooling. If even more cooling is needed I add a fan to the mix. If even more cooling is required I add some ice to the water; refreezable blue ice blocks.”

Cheers!

 

At this point I would not recommend adding more yeast, unless you find you are having trouble with attenuation. Underpitching would have caused more propagation than is ideal, but it (the propagation of cells) is probably pretty much done by now.

 

I would also not recommend that you add yeast at this point in time. Your fermentation is going gang busters right now.

So, it appears that you pitched one activator pack for a beer of OG around 1.085/1.090. You very much underpitched; it would have been better if you made a starter for a beer of this very high gravity. Aspects that can occur with underpitching are increased esters and potentially producing fusel alcohols. Since you also had your fermentation at elevated temperatures for a period of time this also increases your chances of having increased esters and the presence of fusel alcohols. Keep your finger crossed and hopefully there will be no (or minimal) fusel alcohols and the ester levels will be palatable.

Cheers!

 

“Claims its at 72F.” That is great news! That is within the recommended temperature range of Wyeast 1099.

I am assuming that this is the reading after you placed the fermenter in your tub with some ice in the tub.