Is my Yeast working?

[magnuson25]

Hello,

After all the books I read about distilling and how easy it seemed, I feel like I have forgotten everything that I learned and I am panicking now! So this morning, I pitched my yeast into my fermenter to get the process started after converting my starches to sugars. I am using Res Star DADY (Dry Active Distillers Yeast) for my batch of Rye Whiskey.

How I pitched my yeast:

I started with warm water, 1/2 cup per gallon that I was fermenting. In my case I was fermenting 5 gallons worth so I started with 2 and 1/2 cups of water. Then I added 10 grams of yeast (2 grams each gallon). I also added some Yeast Nutrients (1 teaspoon). I then stirred it all together and let it sit for about 15 minutes before adding it to my fermentation jug.

I am not sure if it is working, I have yet to see any bubbles through my air lock. I did open up the lid to my bucket and I saw foamy bubbles on the top of my stuff that is fermenting. Does this mean that my yeast is working, or do I need to pitch more yeast to add?

Thank you, and I have to say, you all are life savers! I do have to say I tried making a batch today and I made my first noticeable mistake and had to throw my entire batch away. I was heating it too high and I burnt my corn. Oh well, gonna make mistakes but i guess that means I am learning!!!

[MichiganCornhusker]

Well you learnt what scorch smells like.

Yeah, it's fermenting ok. Just let it go, it'll be fine on its own.
Check back in on it next weekend.

What rye recipe are you using? If on grain it will form a cap soon.

[rad14701]

Pitch more yeast... Don't be cheap... You're making a wash, not wine... All you're doing is extending the lag time and leaving an opportunity for potential infection... I pitch as much as 1 tbsp per gallon at times...

[magnuson25]

Well you learnt what scorch smells like.

Yeah, it's fermenting ok. Just let it go, it'll be fine on its own.
Check back in on it next weekend.

What rye recipe are you using? If on grain it will form a cap soon.

It was made with 6 Lbs of Flaked Rye, 3.5 Lbs of Flaked Corn and 1/2 Lb of Malted Barley. I am fermenting it on the grain. I found the recipe in one of the book I got to learn about distilling. I am currently cooking up a batch of the Carolina Bourbon recipe that is in the tried and true section of the forum. I will let you all know how that goes.

[magnuson25]

Pitch more yeast... Don't be cheap... You're making a wash, not wine... All you're doing is extending the lag time and leaving an opportunity for potential infection... I pitch as much as 1 tbsp per gallon at times...

So I should use 1 tbsp per gallon?

[rad14701]

Pitch more yeast... Don't be cheap... You're making a wash, not wine... All you're doing is extending the lag time and leaving an opportunity for potential infection... I pitch as much as 1 tbsp per gallon at times...

So I should use 1 tbsp per gallon?

Use as much or as little as you want... Some members here pitch even more... Maybe settle on 1/2 cup (8tbsp), which is not at all uncommon for a 10 gallon ferment...

[jb-texshine]

Rads point is,you are distilling the mash not keeping it intact as a beer or wine so overpitchin aint a problem.

[magnuson25]

Rads point is,you are distilling the mash not keeping it intact as a beer or wine so overpitchin aint a problem.

Sounds good. I am mashing NChooch's Carolina Bourbon right now. I will go with 1 Tbsp per gallon (5 Tbsp total). Should I also use 5 Tbsp of the Fermax nutrients or do I really not need them?

[rad14701]

Rads point is,you are distilling the mash not keeping it intact as a beer or wine so overpitchin aint a problem.

Sounds good. I am mashing NChooch's Carolina Bourbon right now. I will go with 1 Tbsp per gallon (5 Tbsp total). Should I also use 5 Tbsp of the Fermax nutrients or do I really not need them?

Don't over-pitch yeast nutrient with grain mashes... Just pitch in accordance with the directions although they may not even be needed...

[magnuson25]

Rads point is,you are distilling the mash not keeping it intact as a beer or wine so overpitchin aint a problem.

Sounds good. I am mashing NChooch's Carolina Bourbon right now. I will go with 1 Tbsp per gallon (5 Tbsp total). Should I also use 5 Tbsp of the Fermax nutrients or do I really not need them?

Don't over-pitch yeast nutrient with grain mashes... Just pitch in accordance with the directions although they may not even be needed...

Alright, I will leave it right out. Thanks rad,

[HDNB]

Pitch more yeast... Don't be cheap... You're making a wash, not wine... All you're doing is extending the lag time and leaving an opportunity for potential infection... I pitch as much as 1 tbsp per gallon at times...

So I should use 1 tbsp per gallon?

Use as much or as little as you want... Some members here pitch even more... Maybe settle on 1/2 cup (8tbsp), which is not at all uncommon for a 10 gallon ferment...

man you guys are throwing yeast around like it's free!

i got an initial 50 grams of fleishman's to go just over a year through something like 26 or 28 generations of UJ.

Hell, that must have cost damn near a whole dollar!

[rager]

i dont messure much anymore with the yeast but i would say its about 1/4 cup per 5,6,7 gallon ferment. bakers yeast is cheep , and normally make a starter as well to increase te yeast colony....

[rad14701]

man you guys are throwing yeast around like it's free!

Yep...!!! At 2 pounds for ~$5.00, it is darn near free...

[shadylane]

I am not sure if it is working, I have yet to see any bubbles through my air lock. I did open up the lid to my bucket and I saw foamy bubbles on the top of my stuff that is fermenting. Does this mean that my yeast is working, or do I need to pitch more yeast to add?

It's fermenting, the bucket lid is leaking and you could have pitched a little more yeast.
Some of the bacteria and wild yeast that was on the malt will survive the mashing
So you want to pitch enough distillers yeast to outcompete it.

[magnuson25]

Thank you. This morning I pitched a little more yeast and added to it. Once this one is done, I am going to have to replace the air lock fitting because the rubber piece I believe is broke because it doesn't hold in their very well. However with my S shaped air lock, it is pushing the water to one side of it, so Im hoping it will start bubbling soon.

[Kegg_jam]

I used to worry about the airlock bubbling.

Then I got tired of blowing out the damn thing. Went with a bigger fermenter that doesn't really have a lid. I just throw a towel or board over it.

I still use a carboy with an airlock for sugar washes that are gonna sit around for a while.

[HDNB]

i put 20 grams ( 2tbsp) in a 120L 6+% ag mash last sunday at 100*F. left it to go in a 70* room, went to look yesterday (thursday) after reading this post...the cap had fallen and it's almost done.

[magnuson25]

Without checking the SG, is there a way to tell if my wash is done fermenting and ready for a stripping run? My bubble's through the airlock now are few and far between.

Thanks

[MichiganCornhusker]

SG is best, but if cap has fallen and beer looks still and clear its ready.

[magnuson25]

SG is best, but if cap has fallen and beer looks still and clear its ready.

Just an update. I checked both of my mashes this morning after I got off work. One has a SG of 1.006. The other had a SG just below 1.0. The air lock is still bubbling but from my understanding these are both ready to go, or should I wait til they stop bubbling?

[skow69]

Wait if you can. If they are left alone the yeast will finish off the sugar, fall asleep, and sink to the bottom of the fermenter. Then the beer will go from opaque to clear and you can siphon the clear liquid off the lees into your boiler and have a nice clean charge to distill. Or you can cold crash it to hurry the clearing process.

Some guys jump the gun and filter the wash before it clears naturally. The main issue is that the yeast and other solids can settle, especially on an electric element, and scorch. Real bad news, as you already learned. Also, some say they get a cleaner taste from a clear wash.

Others will just run it dirty, or distill on the grain, so they have lots of solids in the boiler. But that generally requires a rummager or some way to keep things moving to avoid the dreaded scorch.

So you can run it right away if you want to. It's just a matter of what hoops you are willing to jump through and what chances you are willing to take.

I'll bet you thought that was a simple little yes or no question, huh?

[freefall]

I rack it to a second vessel after fermentation is done.