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So...I've been using the same yeast (WLP007) for every beer I've brewed since going all-grain, with overall great results (high flocculation & >80% attenuation).
After over a dozen brews now, I have the feeling that it ferments consistently "slower" than I would've expected though. I am not sure if it has anything to do with the fact that I rack all of my brews into a secondary for dry hopping, but with only minor differences this is pretty much what happens with each brew....
1) I brew evenings. So, I generally end up filling the primary (no chill) roundabout 11pm-12am. I siphon off ~1/2l wort, cool to room temp, measure OG (e.g. last brew = 12.7°), mix with 1/2l H2O and add the yeast (liquid) for a starter.
2) 12-18hrs later (next afternoon) the starter is very active (1-2" krausen), so I add it to the now cool wort in the primary.
3) 3-5 days of very active fermentation, another 2-4 of consistently active (<30sec airlock activity). On the 9th day, regardless of activity (it is normally still around 1-2min between bubbles), I rack the beer into the secondary, measure SG (e.g. last brew = 3.3°) and add hops.
4) 14 days later, I bottle. FG is always about where it should be (e.g. last brew = 2.1°) but...
a) there is still a fair amout of airlock activity (~5-10min between bubbles)
b) the FG drops another 1-2 points in the bottle
...and depending on the beer, sometimes it still has a pretty green taste after 3 weeks.
BTW, I ferment and bottle condition at room temperature.
Is this normal, or should I be trying to get the fermentation to really finish before bottling? If so, any ideas how?
After over a dozen brews now, I have the feeling that it ferments consistently "slower" than I would've expected though. I am not sure if it has anything to do with the fact that I rack all of my brews into a secondary for dry hopping, but with only minor differences this is pretty much what happens with each brew....
1) I brew evenings. So, I generally end up filling the primary (no chill) roundabout 11pm-12am. I siphon off ~1/2l wort, cool to room temp, measure OG (e.g. last brew = 12.7°), mix with 1/2l H2O and add the yeast (liquid) for a starter.
2) 12-18hrs later (next afternoon) the starter is very active (1-2" krausen), so I add it to the now cool wort in the primary.
3) 3-5 days of very active fermentation, another 2-4 of consistently active (<30sec airlock activity). On the 9th day, regardless of activity (it is normally still around 1-2min between bubbles), I rack the beer into the secondary, measure SG (e.g. last brew = 3.3°) and add hops.
4) 14 days later, I bottle. FG is always about where it should be (e.g. last brew = 2.1°) but...
a) there is still a fair amout of airlock activity (~5-10min between bubbles)
b) the FG drops another 1-2 points in the bottle
...and depending on the beer, sometimes it still has a pretty green taste after 3 weeks.
BTW, I ferment and bottle condition at room temperature.
Is this normal, or should I be trying to get the fermentation to really finish before bottling? If so, any ideas how?
