petep1980

Recipes 

My upstairs is probably 67°F this time of year. I can go up to 70° within reason w/o the wife complaining.

My basement is probably 64°F which is just at the bottom end of the range per Wyeast's website.

In brew like a monk it says Orval pitches at 57 then goes up to 72. That's a bit difficult for me, but could be done.

Any advice. I'm looking for something like on Orval.

Skyforger

Recipes 

I would ferment at the basement temps. These yeasts tend to really drive a hot fermentation, so you should get a decently cool starting temp that way and once it takes off it should get plenty warm to produce lots of spiciness.

I've found, with Belgian yeasts, that spiciness tends to really come out with a period of cold conditioning. Strong aromas that cover the spiciness before really mellow out. I just put the primary in a cold shed/garage for a while.

petep1980

Recipes 

Thanks. The book touched on how hot the ferments get themselves.

Skyforger

Recipes 

Yeah, in the same book Hieronymus mentions how some brewers need to pay close attention so the internal temps don't get too high. Not usually a problem with homebrewing, fortunately, as the smaller volume allows for more heat bleed-off.

Still, it's likely a good idea to keep track of internal temps when they can swing so much. If it does nothing else, at least it gives you a good idea of how the yeast behaves at different temps and in different worts (if you use it more than once). Gaining familiarity with a yeast is, I think, really important to brewing great Belgians.