Hot Ferment

[BRAD T]

Hi all,
I started a Pale Ale on Monday, used SO-4 yeast, was fermenting @ 18deg however yesterday was quite warm here in Canberra and I had an unknown problem with my temperature control and the brew went up to 27deg.
I have since brought it back down to 20 deg and it is still fermenting away happily so the yeast survived the high temp.
Does anyone have any idea what this temp hike may do do the flavour etc?

Cheers
BradT

 

[Bilph]

Hi all,
I started a Pale Ale on Monday, used SO-4 yeast, was fermenting @ 18deg however yesterday was quite warm here in Canberra and I had an unknown problem with my temperature control and the brew went up to 27deg.
I have since brought it back down to 20 deg and it is still fermenting away happily so the yeast survived the high temp.
Does anyone have any idea what this temp hike may do do the flavour etc?

Cheers
BradT

[post="88015"][/post]​

27C doesn't present any problems as far as yeast survival is concerned. They will survive happily beyond the mid-30'sC.
The warmer ferment temps start to introduce some funky flavours- fruitiness mainly depending on the yeast.
The fact that you got the temp back down reasonably quickly should have little impact on the final taste. Maybe just a hint of sweetness compared to a brew fermented all the way at 20C.
RDWHAHB.
:chug:

 

[devo]

I've been having the same problem this week in Melbourne. Temp here has been all over the place. Gotta get a fermenting fridge :angry:

 

[user 384]

Hi Brad

It depends on what stage of the fermentation the beer was at. As a generalisation, in the early stages it will have the greatest impact. It can produce a range of flavours, from simply increasing the fruitiness, to funky phenolics like more associated with Belgian beers, to nasty solvent like aroma and taste from an increased level of fussel alcohols.

If the beer was almost finished fermenting I would say don't worry, it probably had little flavour impact. It's not ideal but it's certainly not a disaster.

This gets back to a number of related topics that are often discussed like pitching temps, particularly lagers. My standard practice is to ensure I always pitch at the correct temp for the yeast. Even if this means leaving the beer overnight in the fridge to drop the temp before pitching. As I said at the start, my experience suggests that temp is most important at the start and early stages of fermentation.

Cheers
MAH

 

[T.D.]

I have an APA in secondary at the moment that refused to go below 25degC the entire time. And I couldn't put it in my brew fridge because I had a lager in there (had to get my priorities right). Anyway, I have done a few taste tests on it and its prefectly fine - I can't detect any differences in flavour, at this stage, compared to other beers I have done closer to 20degC. I am hopeful it works out ok. Its meant to be like LCPA, which I think is quite fruity anyway, so I am not overly concerned.

 

[apd]

Brad,

I've had the same problem. I started a Porter with s-04 on Monday. I don't have a chiller and I did a full boil so I thought I'd try the overnight cooling method. Wort was down to 26*C in the morning. I pitched the yeast and then Tues and Wed were 30* days. Finally got off my arse last night and bought a couple of bags of ice to make an ice bath last night. Got it down to 22*C.

I've also got a wheat beer in secondary suffering through this little heat wave. Hopefully it won't harm it too much.

 

[DrewCarey82]

Whats the best yeast to use in this heat my brews are constantly @ 26 degrees.

I've stuck with the yeasts under the kit tins so far as there recommended temps are 21 degree's to -27 degrees recommended.

@ this temp is it likely to cause rough flavours?

I mainly do ales and draughts.

 

[Steve]

Drew
Get yourself a big plastic storage box ($15 from K-mart). Put your fermenter in, fill container with water and freeze 4 two litre coke bottles with water. Put two frozen bottles in at a time and keep changing them around as they melt. This will keep your temps down and its cheap and effective.
Cheers
Steve

 

[Samwise Gamgee]

never listen to kit instructions in regards to fermenting temps.

27C is not an ideal temp to be fermenting at.

You would want max of 22-23 for ales. Ideally fermenting them at 18-20, depending on what flavours you want present etc

I haven't seen any yeast recommended for hot temp fermenting.

Do a search on here for tips on temp control, like ice baths etc

 

[DrewCarey82]

I live in a unit, so space is limited I have a garage but yeah....

Not ideal.

 

[DrewCarey82]

Drew
Get yourself a big plastic storage box ($15 from K-mart). Put your fermenter in, fill container with water and freeze 4 two litre coke bottles with water. Put two frozen bottles in at a time and keep changing them around as they melt. This will keep your temps down and its cheap and effective.
Cheers
Steve

[post="88041"][/post]​

Mmmmmmkay will have to give a whirl sounds like my best option :super:

 

[T.D.]

Drew, the beauty of using a tub of water is that you can cool your wort to the right temps during summer, as has been mentioned, but also you can use an aquarium heater to keep the temp up in the winter, thereby avoiding stuck ferments. A pretty good "multi-purpose" solution! :super:

 

[vlbaby]

Watch out for a hint of banana flavouring in your beer. SO-4 likes to make the banana esters when its fermented hot. However, you shouldnt have too much problems because it was only a short burst of heat

vlbaby.

 

[BRAD T]

Thanks for the feedback guys, Vlbaby I will certainly look for the bananas, it seems fitting as I was going ape when I found out that Junior SWMBO had played around with my temp control.

Cheers
BradT

 

[Steve]

Brad - when its bottled send half of em over to me and I will be more than happy to do an extended taste test over a few weeks?

 

[pint of lager]

Drew, you say you have a garage. Depending on the construction, location and siting of your block of units, the garage may be a good spot to ferment in.

If it is an undergorund style garage, put a thermometer in there and see what temps the garage runs to. The far dark corner on the concrete may turn out to be a good spot to put a fermenter.

If it is on the west side and above ground, it may be less than ideal.

 

[BRAD T]

Wel I have just had a wee taste from the test jar when checking the gravity and everything seems fine, i couldn't detect any "funky" flavours. will rack to secondary and leave it for a couple of weeks.

Cheers
BradT

 

[peas_and_corn]

I ferment under the staircase, and that keeps the temperature pretty constant at about 20-22C, and lower during winter (when I use my heating pad).

However, I'm going to stop using it soon, when I getmy freezer cooling at the right temperatures!

 

[BRAD T]

P&K,
I would have to build a staircase, but it would have nowhere to go!

Cheers

 

[peas_and_corn]

lol, I can see your problem!

Do you have tiles?? I use the tiles to help cool the fermenter down a little as well; acts like a bit of a cooling pad to keep the temperature consistent and cool(er)