Brewing with adjuncts

Bowhunter64

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I brewed a cream ale actually I've brewed it 5 times the recipe calls for both corn and rice but every time I do after it's done fermenting a thick cottage cheese like layer remains on top.at first I thought the beer wasn't done but I hit my FG and it remained the same for 2 weeks it's like a krauesen that won't fall it doesn't happen with any other beer I make without adjuncts anyone ever have this happen?
 
Is it possible you're mashing insufficiently to completely convert the gelatinized starches from the adjunct? If there's not enough diastatic power in your malt or if the mash time is too short, the starches in the rice and corn won't convert. I've done a couple of adjunct lagers (1# rice in 5 gallon batch) and have had very clean fermentation and very normal krausening.
Maybe post your recipe to see whether there's something about the grain bill or mash that could point toward a problem.
 
I've read stories from other folks describing a similar phenomenon, and generally the consensus was that the thick stuff on top of was just a persistent layer of krausen. Out of curiosity, what kind of yeast did you use and how long did you leave the beer in the fermenter?
 
I've used 3 different yeasts in this brew Nottingham,us-05 and us-04 all with similar results all fermented in my basement at about 62 deg. 14-21 days the last batch I secondaried to try to settle some of it out before I kegged it. The beer always turns out great once you get past the sludge which is a PIA!
 
What's your mash schedule?
 
I'm mashing 1.5 qt per lb at 152 deg for 90 min thru a RIMS, fly sparge to BG.the recipe I got off here is 13lb 2row,4lb flaked corn,2lb flaked rice ( which my LHBS does not carry so I use regular rice boiled to a pulp)
 
I don't know if your mash is giving you trouble, but you might try using Minute Rice instead of boiling plain rice. A lot of people use that in place of Flaked Rice (it's the same thing). Maybe if there are unconverted starches, it's contributing to extra sticky break material that won't let the krausen loosen up.
The Minute Rice is probably worth a try.
 
I don't know if your mash is giving you trouble, but you might try using Minute Rice instead of boiling plain rice. A lot of people use that in place of Flaked Rice (it's the same thing). Maybe if there are unconverted starches, it's contributing to extra sticky break material that won't let the krausen loosen up.
The Minute Rice is probably worth a try.
I use minute rice, mostly because it's easy to find and because flaked rice can go rancid so quickly. I grind it into a flour before adding it to the mash (along with 4 ounces of rice hulls per pound of minute rice).

I have had conversion problems with as little as 20% rice, but I was using Wyermann Pilsner malt. According to the diastatic power, it should have converted it, but it never passed the iodine test even after an hour in the RIMS.

Did you try an iodine test? If it passed and still created the weird krausen, you can eliminate poor conversion as a source.
 
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Just a hunch, and I don't mean to step on any toes here, but if you used a reliable calculator (Brewer's Friend, for example :-D) and you hit your projected gravity, I think conversion (or lack thereof) is probably not the main issue. If it were me, I'd drop the temp for sh*** and giggles and see what happens. It's a cheap and easy solution if it works and, if nothing else and correct me if I'm wrong, even if it doesn't drop it might be easier to rack your beer from underneath it afterwards.
 
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Thanks for the input guys I'll try minute rice run thru the flour mill n some rice hulls next time.
 
You shouldn't need to do anything to the Minute Rice except dough it in with the grain and give it a stir a few times during the mash. I've used flaked rice a couple of times and it works like a charm.
Rice hulls will keep things from getting too gummy if you're got a traditional tun. I've never used any because stuck sparge is not an issue with BIAB, even though I transfer to a spigoted bucket and sparge through.
 
I grind Minute Rice into a flour before adding it to the mash. It converts quicker and more complete that way. I add rice hulls because the powder Minute Rice can gum up the mash.

You can add the Minute Rice directly "as is" to the mash and you won't need any rice hulls, but you may lose a little efficiency.
 
Update! This last batch I brewed I ran out of Irish moss and it didn't develop the inch thick scum on top so it must have something to do with the moss! The beer was cloudy when I kegged it so I'm chilling the kegs and I'll fine them with gelatin tomorrow to clean it up! See how it goes!
 
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