What went right...so far? What about that low FG?

[J A]

Carbonation is hald at 72* F. I'm going with the yeast kill off for the batch in question (red ale), as a guess. I actually have 2 hydrometers of differing manufacturers, both of which read identically. In the red ale batch, prior to priming, the FG was 1.004 I then primed with corn sugar/water mixture which had been boiled for a couple minutes, then cooled prior to integrating into the wort. The gravity reading I took after 2 weeks of conditioning was 1.006, which to me shows 0 yeast activity during that period.
I'm still open to suggestions, and may even order a 3rd hydrometer.

Todd

If you're getting same reading with 2 hydrometers and you're confident of your sample temps and calibration, then that's where you're at. If it is the case that you're getting that attenuation then maybe the yeast is week.
One thing that does definitely happen with S-04 is that it can drop like a rock because of the intense flocculation. If you're racking really clear beer into your bottling bucket, don't hesitate to get some of the goods from the bottom to get some dormant yeast cells in there. I had good luck with bottle conditioning but there were definitely times early on that were frustrating. One solution that worked for me was to get on with the process and not let the finished beer sit for long periods. As soon as you get 2 or 3 gravity readings that are the same over a couple of days, get it into a bottle - with S-04, it's usually starting to drop and clear pretty soon after krausen drops.

 

[Bigbre04]

Carbonation is hald at 72* F. I'm going with the yeast kill off for the batch in question (red ale), as a guess. I actually have 2 hydrometers of differing manufacturers, both of which read identically. In the red ale batch, prior to priming, the FG was 1.004 I then primed with corn sugar/water mixture which had been boiled for a couple minutes, then cooled prior to integrating into the wort. The gravity reading I took after 2 weeks of conditioning was 1.006, which to me shows 0 yeast activity during that period.
I'm still open to suggestions, and may even order a 3rd hydrometer.

Todd

i just looked at safeale's website, us-04 is a high floc yeast so you may have drop most of the active yeast out of suspension. which is pretty crazy, but also at 1.004 you are damn low.

@J A i was just typing the exact same thing.

 

[Toddsgate]

To finish this thread off.....
The addition of the yeast to the previously capped bottles (which were re-capped right away) did nothing to further carbonate the beers. The control group also showed 0 signs of carbonation after 4 weeks of conditioning. This batch is ready for the drain......
I shall see how my next batch of blonde ale has conditioned in a couple days....

Todd

 

[Craigerrr]

To finish this thread off.....
The addition of the yeast to the previously capped bottles (which were re-capped right away) did nothing to further carbonate the beers. The control group also showed 0 signs of carbonation after 4 weeks of conditioning. This batch is ready for the drain......
I shall see how my next batch of blonde ale has conditioned in a couple days....

Todd

Sadness, hope the next batch works out.
It is frustrating after all of the time and effort.

 

[Zambi]

To finish this thread off.....
The addition of the yeast to the previously capped bottles (which were re-capped right away) did nothing to further carbonate the beers. The control group also showed 0 signs of carbonation after 4 weeks of conditioning. This batch is ready for the drain......
I shall see how my next batch of blonde ale has conditioned in a couple days....

Todd

Interesting.
If adding yeast doesn't work then there will have been no fermentable sugars to work on.
But you added sugar, didn't you?
Strange

 

[Toddsgate]

Interesting.
If adding yeast doesn't work then there will have been no fermentable sugars to work on.
But you added sugar, didn't you?
Strange

Yes, I added sugar (corn sugar dissolved in boiling water, then cooled) to the bottling bucket prior to transferring the wort, then bottled. I did not add additional sugar after uncapping and adding yeast, then recapping. The wort/beer must be a hostile environment, killing any yeast introduced.

Todd

 

[Megary]

Unless your caps didn’t seal the first time. Maybe whatever carbonation you created just leaked right on out, Adding more yeast the second time would have been pointless. Unlikely, but possible.