Anyone ever ferment at 100 F?

Just out of curiousity, has anyone ever fermented at 100 degrees? Just to see what would happen?

I live in a zone where the temps range between 95 and 105 degrees all summer (all 4 months of it). I never tried brewing during these months... Maybe there are some Aussies out there who have a couple stories.

After I got into all grain, a friend of mine gave me a kit he had bought some 2 or so years prior that he was never going to make. I had no real interest in it (was just two cans of wheat extract) but figured I'd see what would happen if I threw in some noble hops, bavarian wheat yeast and let it ferment in the middle of august (which was averaging 90-100 most days that year). I didn't care for it personally (and the issue may have been the old extract more than temps) but I brought to a family reunion and it was a huge hit. It had some unusually funky flavors that overpowered the typical wheat beer clove/banana, to me it was almost like a bad-tasting caramel finish in the mix, but yeah, according to my family it was good (and I even warned them I thought it was bad!)

I've made a Saison and fermented at near 90. The yeast and the style kind of called for that, and the beer wasn't bad. You have to understand that what is appropriate in that style generally not expect, or wanted in most beer.

I'd imagine it would have to be a style where esters are generally acceptable, and a yeast that will do a good job of cleaning up any unwanted flavors.

Dunno, might work for a stout

No, haven't tried it. Styles where it might work, Saisons and Belgians, are not on my hit parade.

My first beer ever was a Brooklyn Brew Shop AG kit- 1 gallon. Not knowing any better, I tossed the thing in my closet- this was winter, mind you. Regardless, it was a hot week in SD, and the fermentor hung out around 95. That was pretty great. Painful to drink- it gave me headaches even after months in the bottle.

Saisons. If you can get your pitching temp to 60f, pitch, and let free rise to 95, you'll get some interesting results. Also, include some odd adjuncts like spelt, rye, etc.

I also suggest saison blends and personal blends.

I'm a HUGE fan of pitching a high krausen 1.060 starter of DuPont yeast, then, a just smacked pack of 3711 at pitching.

I was actually thinking on using the no chill method this time around.

You know, do things they tell you not to do...

I was thinking of fermenting in the garage when it's 90 F during the day and 70 F during the night. Would that work for anything?

Actually, I just made an imperial american stout fermenting between 70 and 90. Maybe a little lower during the first two weeks, but most of the fermentation (2nd and bottle) at those temps.

It is the best stout I have ever had. Somewhat sweet, but with bitterness to balance. About 9 percent. More of a beer to contemplate than to guzzle with food.

I'll post the recipe if you are into stouts. If not, I aldo have a decent American wheat.

It really depends on what temp your yeast starts making fusel at. Many Belgian's and Sasons will do great, but if Nottingham gets up over 80 you're looking at drinking nail-polish remover. I had one batch before I put together my ferm chamber that was really bad.

Could be a question of yeast though. I've tried enough to know that there are touchy yeasts and flexible yeasts.

Recently I had a beer that started out with a medicinal alcohol taste to it after 3 weeks in the bottle, but was perfect after 5.

I routinely brew with an ambient temperature of 88° F. Summers in north Texas are in excess of 100° F day and 80° F at night. I’m unwilling to pay $300-$400 for electricity. An extra ‘fridge won’t fit in my tiny apartment unless I get rid of a desk or couch or something.

My experience is that the temperature is critical for the first day or two, not so much after that. What you don’t want is for the reaction to run away. Yeast metabolizing sugar produce a lot of heat. You need to be able to absorb that heat or the whole thing will cascade.

What I do is throw ice at it. I have a big tub that I put the carboy in and add ice bit by bit. I measure the temperature of the ice bath and keep it a few degrees below my target temperature. I use 10-20 lbs of ice, tapering off as the fermentation slows. After that it doesn’t seem to matter.

Son of a fermentor or a swamp cooler will bring down temp 20-30F from ambient...

You can ferment that hot after the first few days of fermentation, but even Belgian and Saison yeasts will produce fusels if you get them too hot too quickly. Be careful of taking the advice that Belgians and Saisons can be fermented hot.

When I first started I made a Belgian using the advice that Belgian yeasts like to be fermented hot...... Not good, a ton of fusels. After that I figured out that the temp does need to be controlled for the beginning of the fermentation, then you can let it go hot after that. Now I always pitch in the low 60's, hold it there for a couple of days and then slowly let the temp ramp up. Good flavor without the fusels.

I've pitched there twice before I knew about fermentation temps. Both batches actually turned out fine.

Awesome advice from everyone.

In the next couple of months I'll make a couple batches and ferment hot, making sure the first couple of days the fermenters stay a bit cooler.

I want to try out the no chill method anyway so a chance to experiment will be good for experience. I think I'll do a hoppy saison with my regular safale us-05.

I pitched my saison at 80 and then took it outside in the full summer sun with a black tarp over it...It loved the heat, fermented dry and spicey.

Saison likes heat.

With a saison it doesn't matter if it is all wheat or all one kind of malt, right?

sentfromspain said:

I think I'll do a hoppy saison with my regular safale us-05.

Click to expand...

i don't think that will work - US-05 isn't a high-heat yeast. you should use a belgian or a saison yeast. i believe that wyeast 3724 is the highest-rate yeast out there (95*F), but i could be wrong.

sentfromspain said:

With a saison it doesn't matter if it is all wheat or all one kind of malt, right?

Click to expand...

saisons are never all wheat, at least not traditionally. saisons should be based on pilsner malt, with *a little* vienna or munich (maybe some wheat for head rentention) thrown in. at least that's the standard, feel free to improvise.

You're probably right about the yeast. I may go ahead with us-05 anyway just to see what comes out since I know it so well, and will be able to taste where it differs... Of course, if it doesnt attenuate enough it wont fit the profile.

I have been looking at a lot of recipes for saisons, and so far it seems that a lot of people just put whatever they feel. As long as it fits the ibu, og/fg profile, color, and finishes dry. I've seen a couple all wheat ones too (one had honey as another sugar source). And since wheat does pretty well in hot fermentations, it could work out.

When we brewed our last pumpkin ale, temp spike in our area for only the days the beer was fermenting. Try as we might to keep it cool in a cooler with ice, it didn't drop below 95. Came out fine, but there was so many spices involved I don't think it really mattered.

I once fermented a batch at probably 104 surface, probably 110 internally. I was attempting to ferment at 75-80. It tasted like bread dough, raw. Problem is, I don't like raw bread dough. It very much tasted of yeast. It was certainly less than ideal.

I have done a few pale ales with Cooprs and Mauribrew at 32C-36C and had ok results, nothing that a loads of hops and some more dry hops couldn't sort out.