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First time bI just made a rewing help needed

J

joseph_os

I just made about five gallons of beer and its been 9 days.  The fermentation seems to be over with but my alcohol percentage has never topped roughly 2 %.  My house is cold.  The temperature of the beer has been around 60 F which I know is low.  Is this my problem though, and is there anything I can do about it at this point?  Heating my place does no good because my slumlord never insulated this dump.  Help please!
joe
 
So you know I didn't write the title like that.  I can't say what happened.
joe
 
You're right; that temperature is a little too cold to get a strong ale fermentation. There are yeasts that handle 60° well: Kölsch, Alt, Scottish yeasts, Pacman (I hear), others. You'll need to pitch more yeast generally speaking than if you ferment at 70°, and be sure to oxygenate/aerate as well as you're able. Also, give it two weeks at this temp rather than 5 days or whatever.
For future beers, if you pitch at a good temp (say, 65-67°) and keep covered in blankets,the yeast will create their own heat - in fact you may find yourself in the opposite dilemma.
As for this brew on your hands, you may need to revive the yeast. My recomendation (which may or may not work for you depending on how much equipment you have) is to make up a quart of starter wort (1qt water, 1/2c DME, boiled for 15m, cooled), then rack your beer to another carboy and put it in a warm bath (rubbermaid tub with warm water, e.g., with fishtank heater ~$5), and pour the yeast sediment on this starter wort (or vice versa) and put it in a warm bath for a day. The next day, pitch the starter beer into the carboy, and make sure to keep your carboy warm enough to ferment.
In the last 9 days while your yeast have been trying to do their work, all the other bugs that get into wort on brewday have been trying their best to survive as well. So getting the yeast going is no guarantee that your beer will be drinkable after all this. That is the importance of a short lag time (12-24hr).
Some higher-tech options include a refridgerator with a temp controller and light bulb (painted black to keep light from hitting the beer.) You set the fridge to somewhere lower than you want to ferment, and the lightbulb keeps it warm. Then you use the temp controller to turn the fridge on whenever it gets above 70° or whatever.
Good luck and happy brewing!
 
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