WLP-005 what should I expect?

Ingredients
1

I’m using WLP005 for the first time, in a smoked porter.  I’ve made a small batch (12L), currently sat in a 30L bucket in my fermentation fridge @ 18.5c.  I’m not seeing any airlock activity, and I can sort of see a small krausen ring (about 5mm height).  I’m not particularly concerned about the airlock activity given the head space above it, but having mostly used belgian yeasts recently, I was expecting a higher krausen (as it behaved in the starter).

Am I seeing normal behaviour for this yeast?

2

How much did you pitch and when?

3

Between 1-1.5L, on Sunday afternoon.  Starter was begun on Thursday

4

I just used this yeast in an Irish Red and had a similar experience. 1.5L starter and I saw very little airlock activity/high krausen ring. But the beer turned out great, down from 1.051 to 1.011 in about 11 days. You should be just fine.

5

This is the sort of response I was hoping for.  Cheers Hickory.  This is the first time I’ve used this yeast, the recipe, and a fermentation fridge, so plenty that could go wrong!

6

diacetyl

7

In a couple of days, let it warm up to 21-22c for at least a week.  That should clean up any diacetyl and allow the yeast to finish up.  Did you aerate well?

8

I gave it about 15-20 minutes of air (not O2) through an airstone, and it had already frothed up pretty good from the trip from kettle to fermenter.

9

I will say that I also did a diacetyl rest of sorts. After fermenting around 62* for about a week or so I pulled the carboy out of the fermenter and stuck in in my closet which was a nice 68*. I’ll say that I never tasted any diacetyl during the process, but I’ve found this helps most yeasts clean up. I bottled this beer last night and harvested the yeast. I was very pleased with the taste out of the bottling bucket.

10

Cheers guys.  I’ll take a gravity sample over the weekend, and then raise the temp to 21c for a week.  The wonders of a fermentation fridge!

11

Took a gravity sample today (1.018 down from 1.050), and have increased the temp to 20.5c.  Maybe it’s because I’m making a smoked porter, but I can’t make out any buttery taste or mouthfeel.  It’s a couple of points off the expected FG, but if it didn’t change at all, I’ll be well pleased with this beer.