Fermentation Stopped then Restarted

So I brewed my first beer two weeks ago (a 1gal all-grain IPA kit from Brooklyn Brew Shop). Everything looked good at first- got it brewed, stuck it in the fermenter, and got some good fermentation a few hours later.

Lots of kraeusen and whatnot for the first few days, then things started settling down. At this point, everything is still good.

Then about four days later, fermentation stops (again, normal), and its looking like I'm going to be bottling on schedule on January 9th.

However, three days before the bottling date it starts fermenting again, with streams of tiny bubbles shooting up the sides of the glass carboy. It's still going strong today, now 16 days after brew day.

Is this normal? I think it's weird that the fermentation stopped and restarted.

Temps have been pretty consistently between 65-70F. I have a hydrometer, but a one gallon batch is really too small to mess around with samples unless I can pour the sample back in the fermenter.

Thoughts?

 

I didn't take any OG measurements since I didn't have my hydrometer at that point.

The kit says it should come out to about 6.8% ABV. Online it sounds like most people get final gravities between 1.012 and 1.010 and ABV between 4.2% and 5%.

I'm hesitant to do a hydrometer sample since the one gallon kit is only going to make about 10 bottles.

As for the yeast, I pitched what came in the kit. It didn't specify type, but it was dry and called for the whole packet to be pitched. Then I aerated the hell out of it and let it do its thing for the last two weeks.

 

Thanks for the advice! I'll definitely take a few hydrometer readings.

 

Cool beans. Thanks!

 

I just did a hydrometer reading. 1.011 or so. Based on what I've seen online that's what a lot of other people are getting with this kit.

I'll take another one in a few days and see what happens.

Sample tasted good though! Massively bitter, but hopefully when it's cold and carbonated that doesn't come through as much.

 

Yeah, but I don't have the space to do bigger batches. The one gallon batch took up most of my stove and counter space. Plus I'm moving to a small apartment in fall, so space is still going to be an issue.

I want to see if I can manage 2.5 gallon batches on an apartment stove, so then I make about a case every time I brew.

 

At home I have gas, but I'd be surprised if I can find an apartment with a gas stove. I'd prefer gas since it's easier to control the temp and I cook a lot, so temp control is important, but I'm not going to be picky on a poor grad student budget.

2.5 gallon batches sound pretty doable. And if you get about a case it's way more cost effective too. I liked the one gallon thing, but I'm probably only going to score about 8 full bottles after these hydrometer samples which makes it more expensive than buying a $10 sixpack of world class beer.

I thought that the temperature probably went up. We kicked up the heat in the house when it was -20F in the mornings early this week, which coincidentally correlated with when I noticed the resumed bubbling.

 

Wow, lots to think about.

I'll definitely look into the refractometer, especially if I won't be able to move up to a 2.5gal system when I move places later this year.

Thanks for all the tips! I can't wait to keep brewing.