Stalled Fermentation / Too Cold / 12 Days In

[StateStreetBrewhouse]

First post here at BS while trying the new software. 

My plan was a Mocktoberfest with California Lager yeast. The supply store was out of the Cali yeast so I moved to White Labs WLP029 German Ale/Kolsch yeast. I just purchased a "CoolBrewing" cooler to keep it into the low 60's while fermenting. I've since read that WLP029 does not do well below 65 degrees. Great timing. So after 12 days in the primary I check gravity on a new refractometer, because I broke my hydrometer, and the new hydrometer I bought is apparently a dud (it floats way beyond all of the readings in water and in beer), and I'm at 1.035. OG was 1.056. I should be around 1.012. Temp for the first 12 days was averaging 61 degrees. It started bubbling on day two with the wort temp around 68, then I placed it in the cooler, the temp dropped to 61 and bubbling slowed to nothing after that.

Is there a way to drop my final gravity or am I toast?

[StateStreetBrewhouse]

Okay, so here's the answer to my problem posted above. In case someone has a similar issue in the future.

I posted the same question on AHA forum, and two of the responses helped to solve the dilemma. First and foremost, I didn't know that a refractometer will only give a Original Gravity reading, without needing a conversion, BEFORE any alcohol has been created, in other words, when it's still considered wort during your brew process. AFTER the wort changes to alcohol, after fermentation occurs 4-7 days in, the refractometer reading has to be entered into an online calculator to convert your number into something close to what you're looking for as Final Gravity (http://seanterrill.com/2012/01/06/refractometer-calculator/ as an example). Evidently this is obvious to many, but I didn't have a clue! And my instructions for the newly purchased refractometer didn't mention it either. So, my 1.035 refractometer reading translates to a Final Gravity around 1.016 on a beer hydrometer. I was in good shape.


Secondly, make sure when you buy a BEER hydrometer that it's not a "Proof and Tralle" hydrometer. The P & T hydrometer that I unknowingly bought, is worthless when used in beer. It's only good for distilled alcohol, those with specific gravities LESS than 1.000.

[GigaFemto]

BeerSmith has a refractometer tool that will do the correction for fermenting wort, and in BS3 it has been integrated so that next to fields for gravity readings there is a button that will pop up the refractometer tool.

--GF

[StateStreetBrewhouse]

That's good to know too Giga, thanks. I've yet to explore more than 25% of what BS3 can do I'm sure.