old english bitter

[zehnernet]

Hi folks,

this time I made Old English Bitter with 1kg medium spray malt and half a spoon of beervit.
Because I haven't got any Safale 04 left I have to take the yeast coming with the kit. And I made a starter (water, spray malt and yeast), of course. Temperature was between 23° and 24° C. Now it has 21.something.
Fermenting starts at 1052 and should go down to 1014. After two days I had 1030, after 4 days (today) it was 1022. But today it stops fermenting.
I haven't got any other chemicals right now, only some other yeast packages of other kits.
I want to stir it a little bit as a first try. How long have I to wait until I know it won't work? And if it's not working, is it OK to make a new starter with one of the yeast packages I have left?

Thanks a lot for your help - and I promise to buy more Safale in a few weeks time, during my hols in Stockport .

[EDIT ON]
SORRY, HAVEN#T SEEN DAABS ADVICE !!!
[EDIT OFF]

[rjb222]

Keep a monitor on your hydrometer there are times that the ferment is going on but not obvious. If you are stuck then make a fresh yeast starter and give it a good feeding of yeast nutrient make sure it is really going draw off some of the stuck ferment and feed it to your yeast culture and let this get going when this shows that it is going really well pitch this into your stuck ferment. Make sure every thing that touched the brew or the yeast is sanitized and get this going as quick as you can.Your temperatures look fine try to maintain them.

[zehnernet]

Thanks to you both! I will proceed as you say. Sorry again for not reading your extra threat.

[zehnernet]

My extra threat

(I think there's a little translation error there )

@DaaB:

I'm a German blatherer who try to speak English . Vorgive me please .

[kenny850]

Your english is a hell of a lot better than my german

[zehnernet]

As I think you have figured give it a stir and wait about 12 hrs.

If that fails i'd pitch another 500ml starter when it's fermenting vigorously.

I'm so . Nothing helps. First I tryed stiring and than a new starter. After 24 hours nothings happens and it's stuck at 1022 (should be 1014 or less).
Anything I can do now? Or have I to pour it away?

Please give me a gleam of hope!

[zehnernet]

Try adding dry beer enzyme. I don't know what it is called in Germany but it's technical name is amylogucosidase enzyme . It allows the yeast to ferment more of the unfermentable sugars and produces a drier beer. Hopefully your homebrew shop will sell it. (It might work or it might not )

Hi DaaB,

it worked with the enzyme, it goes down now from 1022 to 1016 (start at 1052). However there were no bubbles meanwhile...
I tried a little bit today . A tiny little bit acescent and bitter.
I've had just a very little zip but it feels like much alcohol in it.
Do you think that the taste will change a little bit during second fermentation in the keg? Should I give more sugar in the keg (it's a metal one) to make it a little more sweet?

Thanks in advance!

[zehnernet]

Good news

It will improve as it ages in the keg. Sometimes dry beer enzyme can make a beer too dry but as it has stopped at 1016 there's nothing to worry about.

Just be patient and let it mature for a few weeks and hopefully it should be fine

@Daab and all:

Thanks for your hints. Now it's done. I waited until the 9th of August. Tryed it with some friends. And what happened? We were all drunk and half of it is gone allready. My friends loved it !

That was the first time I put the beer into a real pressure keg. And I can tell you: Waiting for 5 weeks produces more than enough CO2, flavour, alcohol and taste. It is so yummy. It's the best beer ever I made myself.
From now on I will make all beers with a pressure keg.
Sure, original it was an "old english bitter", know it is a dark one with 6% or more and tastes a little bit like Guinnes. But it is GREAT!!!

Thanks again!

[maxashton]

Sounds like you're having fun already.

You're going to have to try making some fine German beers. I loved my beer in München. I mean my holiday. Yes. Holiday.

[zehnernet]

Sounds like you're having fun already.

You're going to have to try making some fine German beers. I loved my beer in München. I mean my holiday. Yes. Holiday.

Oh no! Never I will make German beer! I am German, I live in Germany, I can buy German beer everywhere. And we (my wify an me) love Real Ale, so I will make ale like you guys have. 'Cause we can only drink real ale during OUR holidays while we are in England (and around). And that's mostly only once a year. BTW: That's the reason I started brewing my own !

[maxashton]

Hahah, i suppose you can. I can never find good commercial weissbier here, and beer gardens in this country are terrible....

Isn't it funny how so many English and American brewers strive to imitate German and Belgian brews, and now we have our very own German brewer who strives to imitate English brews!

Fantastic forum

[Graham]

Perhaps Stefan could go to the old market square, stare at the web cam, and wave to us all, and we could all wave back.

Linky to web cam

[zehnernet]

Hahah, i suppose you can. I can never find good commercial weissbier here, and beer gardens in this country are terrible....

Isn't it funny how so many English and American brewers strive to imitate German and Belgian brews, and now we have our very own German brewer who strives to imitate English brews!

Fantastic forum

Am I the only German in here? Than I have my very own english Home Brew Forum now .
AFAIK many pubs in GB have playareas and/or rear gardens for our children. In Germany they haven't. Thats mostly important for us, 'cause we have three children and want to got to a pub, have a nice pint (or two) and peace and quit while the children are playing in the garden.
So we are looking for smal villages with many pubs and play areas when we plan our holidays.

I really don't like Belgium beer. Many of the German beer, but only Pils (no Lager). But in the UK with your CAMRA in (nearly) every pub you have at least one guest beer of a local brewery, a real Real Ale . Every day different tastes. This summer I was in Stockport and a friend invited me into a pub with TWELVE different locals. Not on one day - but we have to taset them all .
That was - again - a great holiday!

[zehnernet]

Perhaps Stefan could go to the old market square, stare at the web cam, and wave to us all, and we could all wave back.

Linky to web cam

Yes, that's a nice idea . It's only three minutes away from our house. But how can I see u wave back?

I'll take a pint with me!

[Graham]

But how can I see u wave back?

You will have to trust us.

Refreshing to see that you have the same cloudy weather with intermittent bouts of sunshine, that I am experiencing here in High Wycombe.