Too cold to brew outside

I originally thought I could brave the winter on my covered porch. But when the high has been 20F...

So right now I'm mashing a smaller AG batch, so I can do everything on the kitchen stove. Shooting for about 3gallons...enough to make it worth my while.

I still have to split the boil to two 12qt stockpots, but its not that hard to manage with a decent scale for weight .25oz of hops for each addition per pot.

Anyhow, its a Belgian Wit, 3gallons into the fermenter (hopefully). A little corriander, a few grains of paradise. 3lbs 2-row and 2.66lbs wheat malt, which actually seemed to crush perfectly in my default gap Barley Crusher.

My smack pack was already 75% inflated when I bought it, so I carefully cut it open (sanitary and such) and sure enough it was fermented inside, however my starter from yesterday is chugging along, with noticable yeast cake activity. Pays to make a starter

I'm doing a stepped mash, the goal was 122F for 30, then 50 mins at 153F (does this qualify as a protein rest for the wheat? or just a cooler beta rest?)

Anywho, SWMBO made me take the dogs out, so my strike water was too high, and my 5gal MLT doesn't loose near as much heat, so my first rest is 129F.

I'm not too worried. It'll be beer, and probably pretty tasty.

Hops are some hallertau for bittering and saaz for flavor at 15 mins. I almost went cascade for bittering, for the citrus, but figured out that wasn't really proper for the style.

WOW - high of 20 !

I feel your pain ! I have the same plm at times.. now I am faced with driving snow etc .. nothing new to you ..

I usually defer to the weather (wimp!) .. but chilling is alot easier !

Merry Christmas !

It is never too cold to brew outside, I actually enjoyed brewing outside in Nebraska in winter, the wort cooled really fast.

I've brewed when it's been in the mid-teens before ...... it's not so much the actual temperatures as it is the wind !!!

Merry Christmas !!!

- GL63

Bah!

never too cold. Ask Bradsul...



I don't have any picture of my setup yet so I posted his. I admit, I do mash indoors. Then I have been boiling just outside the back door. In the single digits to teens. I have not rigged up a heat shield like Bradsul's yet. So far I have been digging out a spot in the snow. I then lined my dugout with cinder blocks to sort of help retain the heat. It helps with wind too. I tend to watch the boil from the back door too. So I admit I do not stand over it the whole time. Then I take it in to my new utility sink ban: ) and chill.

Go for it!



When it gets to be January/February I might be singin' a different tune (-20 degrees or lower )

33F and 2" of fresh snow on the ground. i've got a double batch planned for the day, so this might be the first time i wasn't dreaming of a white xmas! fortunately my garage is drafty enough that i can leave the door closed and it gets up in the 40's when i've got both flames on.

Bleh, couple years ago I brewed in Omaha the high was like 7 ... It was a clear day and a planned brew day.. only a wimp lets temperature canx a brew day.. Blizzard yes, heavy rain yes.. but a little cold? I think not

what can I say, sitting outside doing nothing in the cold kinda sucks.

regardless, other than running a little high on my alpha/protein rest, everything went well. I slightly exceeded 70% efficiency. I had some lag time, but that's due to a low pitch and lots of O2 pumped into the wort (starter issues, weak smack pack).

Man, I feel bad for yall, 70 and sunny today. A great great brew day! (Wish I had stuff to brew!) At least I already have multiple cornies full and ready for drinkin today!

I like brewing in the winter too. I just did one last weekend. It was about high 20s.

I brew in the garage with the door closed. I have enough draft in there to not worry about fumes, yet it still holds at about 40 degrees or so.

As long as my feet stay warm, I'm fine. A couple of pints, and a good cigar sometimes helps time go by.

Wuss. If I can brew outside when it's 13 below, you can brew outside when it's 20 above. Grow a set, willya?

The winter can really put a damper on brewing. I live in Wisconsin and feel your pain. Once in a while for brewing in winter, I need to don the sorels and other hunting gear, just to go stir the mash! I've even had my homebrew freeze in about 15 minutes, sitting on my workbench.

(very heavy sigh...nice to know some things never change... wish they would though some times)

I think a change of method is in order thats all. Like Rich's PM that is floating somewhere here. He really had the method down. I have been doing full mashes.... yes... 5 galons.... in my kitchen.... in a SMALL APARTMENT. It's no biggie at all. Here is where I learned to do it from: http://www3.telus.net/sockmonkeysandbeer/beer/HowIBrew/howIbrew.html

Here is pictures of my very first mash. Equiptment has changed a little but its the same process. Nothing has changed.
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=8276

Your brewing realy does not have to change and if you live on the second or higher floor your taste of full mashes dont need to either. Just your method.

Well I brew when ever I can and like the gent from Wi said " I feel your pain!" I live in central MN and the winters are cold more often than not so you do what you have to do to make it work. I have brewed in sub zero conditions and I will do it again because you can't let the cold ruin a perfectly good brew day. S.

I did a 10 gallon batch a few weeks ago where I boiled in the garage (door open) and mashed, chilled, etc. in the kitchen. I just used a flat dolly to transport the kettle back and forth as necessary. It worked really well - didn't take much more time than walking back and forth, really. Of course, my garage is exactly the same level as my first floor, so rolling 13-14 gallons of hot liquid around was pretty simple.

In the past, during my Canadian winters, I've occasionally observed that I was colder than what is comfortable, which would sometimes stop me from doing things outdoors (eg barbecue). I've since found a pretty good strategy: if it's below -20˚ centigrade, or below 0˚ Fahrenheit, I put on a sweater. It helps my body retain heat which would otherwise radiate unproductively.

malkore said:

what can I say, sitting outside doing nothing in the cold kinda sucks.

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Why sit around doing nothing outside? I mash in the house then transfer the wort to the garage to boil. I can see the boil pot from my kitchen so I can glance at the steam coming off of the pot to estimate when the boil will start. I go out to ensure the hot break won't cause a boil over, then once my hops are added I can retreat back inside with a timer until the late hop additions.
Worst thing is dragging my hose outside and hooking it up for cooling. So far I have mostly cleaned up outside but when it gets below 20F I will bring every thing in for cleanup.

Craig

malkore said:

what can I say, sitting outside doing nothing in the cold kinda sucks.

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You've obviously never been ice fishing.:rockin:

I think the 20F-40F temps we've had lately is more than perfect brewin' weather. Now when we're at -20F below, I'll be singin' a different tune.

Thank gads I've got me covered porch, though, it takes the bite out of any temp. I can brew there and within an hour, I'm an ambient 85F. 'Course in the summer it turns into 110F, but then I just have to open the windows.

I have been putting off my brew day 'cuz it's getting into the upper 30's at night! It has been really windy, though! Steady 20 mph, gusts to 40. I'm gonna try to boil in the garage for the first time tonight. If I don't post tomorrow, I either burnt the house down or succumbed to the fumes.....

quickerNu said:

I have been putting off my brew day 'cuz it's getting into the upper 30's at night! It has been really windy, though! Steady 20 mph, gusts to 40. I'm gonna try to boil in the garage for the first time tonight. If I don't post tomorrow, I either burnt the house down or succumbed to the fumes.....

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Yeah, but you're from Texas. Y'all aren't used to the cold temps that the rest of the country sees. I have a friend from Tx that wears a jacket any time it's under 75 outside.
G'luck with the fumes, but you should be ok as long as you keep a window or something open.

zero said:

Bah!

I admit, I do mash indoors. Then I have been boiling just outside the back door. In the single digits to teens. I tend to watch the boil from the back door too. So I admit I do not stand over it the whole time.
Go for it!

)

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Yeah me too. Being frostbitten a number of times will soon take the wind out of your sails.

I made the mistake last winter of complaining that it was "too cold to brew," and was branded a big wimp.

This year, though, I've refined my winter brewing process so that only the boil has to take place outside. I put the burner near the back door to the house where it is pretty much sheltered from winds. I heat my mash and sparge water on the stove inside and hook up my wort chiller to the sink next to the washer in the basement.

Actually, sitting outside watching my kettle boil while sipping a couple of homebrews is very enjoyable.

McCall St. Brewer said:

Actually, sitting outside watching my kettle boil while sipping a couple of homebrews is very enjoyable.

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I agree. There's something to say for sitting outside when it's in the 20s and massive flurries while you're drinking a couple pints watching your brew boil.

Maybe I'm a just masochist...

Kai said:

In the past, during my Canadian winters, I've occasionally observed that I was colder than what is comfortable, which would sometimes stop me from doing things outdoors (eg barbecue). I've since found a pretty good strategy: if it's below -20˚ centigrade, or below 0˚ Fahrenheit, I put on a sweater. It helps my body retain heat which would otherwise radiate unproductively.

Click to expand...

Yes, I do the same thing. Anytime it's much below 0, I put on some gloves. It really helps. If it's less than -10, I put on a hat. If it's less than -20, I wear boots. Colder than that gets a big jacket, too. You reallly have to dress for the weather, is my motto.

Edit- anyone who knows me knows I brew in my kitchen and don't even LOOK outside.

I actually prefer brewing in the winter. I can chill my wort from boiling to 70 in about 6 minutes. :rockin:

It's too damn cold but I'm going to figure out a way to brew sometime this week! I'll take photos so you can see my misery!

PPPHHHTTT. It's 30deg outside and I'm brewing in sweatpants and a sweatshirt.


The sun is shining, though, so that makes it feelwarmer, along with a couple homebrews.

I'm workin' on my RIS. 14F outside, but now that I've heated my dough in water, it's a lot warmer on the porch, probably about 55F. T-shirt and khakis temps for me.