A quick cold crashing question...

[Pharmacisticus]

Hi All,

I'm about to embark on my first cold crashing adventure with a Coopers European lager.
I'm going to crash down to 2*c for about 2 days, this is just personal preference.

My question is this, I'm told I can crash in the primary fermenter (which is a bog-standard 23L).
Will the tap be clear enough of the trub so that it doesn't all go into the bottles?

Also, if you do crash into a secondary container how do you fill from it?
Do you decant out again or siphon out?

Please remember I'm only a novice and this is my first go at it!

 

[MHB]

Couple of questions for the price of one, so here goes

2oC for 2 days might not be enough. Depends on a lot of variables but if its a Lager and you want to chill proof (get rid of the protein/polyphenols that can cause haze) the beer you will need a lot longer. There is a pretty good rule of thumb for chill proofing (Lagering) it goes "seven days at minus one and seven days for every degree above minus one". That being the case you would be looking at three weeks to do the job at 2oC.
Different answer if you are just trying to get the yeast to drop faster, again 2 days might not be enough, short answer is chill it till its clear then package or rack.
If you did a full Lager there might not be enough yeast left in the beer to condition it in bottles (not a problem if you are force carbonating in kegs).

Cold crashing in primary is probably ok, the amount of extra sediment will be minimal (4-6mm), have a look if its too close to the tap, prop the front (where the tap is) up on a bit of wood or similar, give the fermenter a bit of a shake and the trub cake will settle toward the back, giving you more room under the tap. If you have a sediment reducer fitted (one of those little slotted things and you have the slot pointing up) it shouldn't be a problem.

Most people have a secondary container (often just another fermenter) with a tap on it so filling from secondary is the same as filling from the primary... If not yes you are looking at syphoning or similar but take the time and effort to get your secondary set up properly and it will make your life a lot easier.

I would want to "Bulk Prime" in the secondary, add the right amount of fermentable (plenty of calculators on line) and if you have done a hard lager some yeast, rack, stir and just fill your bottles.
Plenty of good info on bulk priming out there, probably a YouTube video or two, worth looking at and planning your process before you start.
Oh, remember to rack cold if you are lagering, if you let it warm up you will let a lot of what you have settled out redissolve and undo the lagering process.
Mark

 

[razz]

You will find that when you have cooled the beer then the sediment will be more compact than say at higher temps. It's fine to chill in the primary, when you are happy with the clarity then bottle. As for the trub, run off a small amount of beer to clear the tap and then keg. If you use a secondary fermenter then you need a means of bottling, either a tap or syphon, no different to the primary fermenter.