http://www.homebrewkorea.com/forum/discussions/tagged/yeast./feed.rss Tue, 21 May 13 16:58:36 -0600 Tagged with yeast. - Homebrew Korea en-CA http://www.homebrewkorea.com/forum/discussion/1218/wlp001-fermentation-temp Mon, 16 Apr 2012 07:26:06 -0600 gordsellar 1218@/forum/discussions
About a week ago --okay, six days ago -- I pitched a couple of IPA-ish beers* onto two-thirds and one-third of a yeast cake of WLP001 (California Ale Yeast) from a braggot I'd transferred to secondary. (The braggot was lower ABV, I think about 8%.) The OGs on the beers were 1.050-ish and somewhere in the high 1.070s or low 1.080s for the bigger beer, and they went respectively onto the smaller and larger portion of the yeast cake.

* IPAish by my standards! Probably more of a pair of underhopped coppery-hued ale by average HBK standards, though one is all-PAcific Gem, and the other Citra and Sorachi Ace FTW! :D

Anyway, the airlock activity has slowed down to a crawl -- a few bubbles a minute -- but there is still a really thick krausen on top of each beer. It's not too unusual, but I expected the lower-ABV beer to have fermented out completely by now, and that thick krausen suggests it hasn't. I'm wondering whether the temperature is just really low in the laundry room. I'd estimate it about low-60s (Fahrenheit) and WLP001 has a stated optimum temp of a bit higher than that.

I know lots of folks here use WLP001 a lot. So... I'm not panicking, just curious what people would do in this situation:

1. Has anyone here had problems with WLP001 at a lower-60s (F) temp?

2. Would you just leave it and wait a few more days, or what? I have a small heater I could turn on, but I only have rudimentary temperature control if I do turn it on. It might get into the mid-70s, though probably not higher if I set it carefully.

Also,

3. Do you find racking a WLP001 brew to secondary to help with clearing?

(I ask because the braggot stopped at about 1.020, so I racked it to secondary but nothing much happened -- fermentation didn't recommence much, if at all -- there are a few little bubbles on the surface, but it's still cloudy as heck, and the airlock is totally still now. I'm thinking I'll just have to keg it or bottle it and chill or let it age a bit.) ]]>