Mega Krausen

[billybushcook]

Mashed another AG yesterday, with the usual grain bill.
3.5Kg pale pils malt
1Kg flaked Maize
.5Kg wheat malt.

Using S-04, re-hydrated 24hrs in advance with aerated boiled water at 20 deg, shake the T@TS off it often then add a pinch of dextrose at "mash in"

Went to check it first thing this morning & it had blown the clingwrap lid off & was starting to spill, so I stripped it off & replaced it.

Two more times I replaced it without it showing any signs of slowing down, in fact it was going even harder.
OK, time for action....sterilise the lid, a 2L bottle & hose for a blow off tube!

It is now threatening to foam it's way out of the blow off bottle????

Yeast was pitched at 22 (2 deg warmer than I would like) & the brew box set at 16, brew is currently running at 20, aiming to bring it down to 18 ASAP.

Any ideas as to what might be the cause??

I have used this yeast for months in kit beers with no problems, this is the first AG with it & it's going nuts!!!

Cheers, Mick.

[warra48]

AG fermentations tend to be somewhat more vigourous than kit or extract brews.
The .50 kg of wheat would also contribute.

I brewed an AG hefeweizen last Friday, 49% Pils, 49% Wheat, 2% Carahell.
I pitched a starter of WY3068 at 18ºC and set the TempMate at 17.5ºC.
The darn thing went nuts, and crawled out of the top of the fermenter. It's only just slowed down today.I reckon I lost at least 1 litre of beer.

Beyond that, maybe others might have a better idea.
It's usually wheats like mine, or dark beers which tend to do this.

[Bizier]

It might help if you are able to get it cool before the yeast takes hold. Because I'm lazy I often pitch onto twenty-something degree wort, but have my tempmate set on bringing it down to 16 or so. My thoughts are that this will allow the yeast to rehydrate at a warmer temp, but be cool once they are thinking about getting their metabolism going. It is very easy to raise it from that point to finish the ferment out in a clean and civilised manner.

[billybushcook]

I pitched a starter of WY3068 at 18ºC and set the TempMate at 17.5ºC.
The darn thing went nuts, and crawled out of the top of the fermenter. It's only just slowed down today.I reckon I lost at least 1 litre of beer.

Maybe I'ts our weather Warra,

All but one of my AG's have been Lager yeast n'till now & that, One was with US-05 (It was sh#t, ...Infection, I think)

It might help if you are able to get it cool before the yeast takes hold.

I'm hear"n ya,


Thx for the feed back, Mick.

[billybushcook]

Well, fortnight later, same brew this time pitched @ 18 deg & the bloody thing has gone nuts again?????
The other thing I changed was my starter, just a simple re-hyd at mash in with no sugars.

Could it be the protiens from the grain?

How can I tame it?

Anyone else had this with AG & S-04?

Mick.

[warra48]

I'm not sure just how to calm these things down.
Maybe lower the temp a bit more, and use a blowoff tube.
I'm not sure a vigourous fermentation is a bad thing if the temp is OK, as you then obviously have a healthy wort and yeast.

[Bum]

I'm using s-23 for the first time at the moment and it has been climbing out of the airlock for 3 days now. Been at 12degC since about a day after pitch. Dropped the temp setting on my fridgemate a tiny bit but I'm not sure it is doing anything helpful. Sick of cleaning it up. Definitely be sorting out a blow-off tube if I use it again.

[billybushcook]

I'm not sure a vigourous fermentation is a bad thing if the temp is OK, as you then obviously have a healthy wort and yeast.

I'm sitting here sampling a bottle of the first one & it is not bad (as good as a less than fortnight old beer can be!)

So I guess I'm gunna have to make a habit of using the blow off tube (& lid....Uh!) for the first 2-3 days on each of these brews until I can get back to Lagers again.

Cheers, Mick.

[Tipsy]

I'm using s-23 for the first time at the moment and it has been climbing out of the airlock for 3 days now. Been at 12degC since about a day after pitch. Dropped the temp setting on my fridgemate a tiny bit but I'm not sure it is doing anything helpful. Sick of cleaning it up. Definitely be sorting out a blow-off tube if I use it again.

S-23?

[Bum]

Yep. However, I'm not sure if you're asking whether I'm sure it is S-23 or if you're asking what S-23 is. Looking at your postcount I am assuming the prior but in case it isn't, here's a link: http://www.fermentis.com/FO/pdf/HB/EN/S ... -23_HB.pdf

Not meaning to take the piss either way.

[billybushcook]

I'm using s-23 for the first time at the moment and it has been climbing out of the airlock for 3 days now. Been at 12degC since about a day after pitch. Dropped the temp setting on my fridgemate a tiny bit but I'm not sure it is doing anything helpful. Sick of cleaning it up. Definitely be sorting out a blow-off tube if I use it again.

Bum

Is this a K&K, K&bits or what?

I used S-23 in a Coopers Lager with Dextrose & got the Fartiest smelling beer ever (Sulfur) Yet, while using it in my AG beers, it produced the most consistantly good beers I have ever made & never had any problems with Mega Krausen, in fact I don't remember any of them even rising enough to touch the cling wrap cover.

Mick.

[Bum]

It is actually a strange ginger beer experiment. I'm not worried about it - I just would have expected it to have died down by now (it is still climbing out of the airlock).

[Tipsy]

Yep. However, I'm not sure if you're asking whether I'm sure it is S-23 or if you're asking what S-23 is. Looking at your postcount I am assuming the prior but in case it isn't, here's a link: http://www.fermentis.com/FO/pdf/HB/EN/S ... -23_HB.pdf

Not meaning to take the piss either way.

Sorry, I meant that every time I use S-23 I don't have much of a krausen, it seems unusual.

I shouldn't post pissed

[Bum]

Well, hopefully the issue is the ginger beer thing and not something more insidious.