High temp ferment surprising results

So, no need to berate me, I have already posted the "I EFFED up" thread.

This is results.

My "Forever will it Dominate Your Destiny" Stout began fermentation at 109F.....


12 lbs 2 row
1 lb chocolate
1 lb black patent
1 lb crystal 120
1 lb roasted

1 oz Fuggles 60 minutes

dry ale yeast in fermenter


Poured my 110F wort onto the yeast in my super chilled keg in my 0 F Keezer....

Within 60 minutes it was beginning to ferment add dropped a staggering 1 degree.

I set the keezer to 34F and went to bed.

Next morning fermentation was dormant. Warmed it up slowly to 60F. Fermentation restarted slow and low.

Beer now kegged and carbed. Tastes Perfect. No Fusel or "Banana"

I guess as a worst case:if you pitch too warm, get it cold as you can, way below ideal fermenting temps, slowly warm up.

I had an IPA that I was ready to throw out because I started the fermentation at about 82 and couldn't get it below 75 for about 48 hours. I was explaining to a friend that it could produce fusel alcohols so I decided to take the bung out of the top of my fermenter and smell the off gas. I almost fainted from the horrific harsh alcoholic smell. I left the beer on the giant yeast cake for and extra couple weeks before dry hopping and the beer came out great with a minimal bubblegum off flavor. I was so surprised. Some of the yeast strains we get to use are pretty good at cleanup. I am starting to love 1272 and 1056.

I am hoping that my experience proves that yeast can clean it up during primary fermentation.

I have found IPAs to be very forgiving. The high bitterness masks some flavors.

While everything you did was a little extreme you actually followed best practice for properly pitching yeast. It is recommended that you pitch yeast slightly colder than desired fermentation temperature and then allow to self rise to the desired temp. This promotes a slow, controlled growth phase of the yeast and proves to be beneficial for overall fermentation. Good Job!

duboman said:

While everything you did was a little extreme you actually followed best practice for properly pitching yeast. It is recommended that you pitch yeast slightly colder than desired fermentation temperature and then allow to self rise to the desired temp. This promotes a slow, controlled growth phase of the yeast and proves to be beneficial for overall fermentation. Good Job!

Click to expand...

Appreciated, but did you miss where I pitched at 110F? Lol.

It stayed above 100 for probably 2 hours or so, then cooled at a most likely an exponential rate until by morning it was 40 or so.

By no means proof, but at least anecdotal that cooling extremely during primary fermentation will forgive some early high temps.

cheezydemon3 said:

Appreciated, but did you miss where I pitched at 110F? Lol.

It stayed above 100 for probably 2 hours or so, then cooled at a most likely an exponential rate until by morning it was 40 or so.

By no means proof, but at least anecdotal that cooling extremely during primary fermentation will forgive some early high temps.

Click to expand...

Ha ha! Yes oops I certainly did miss that-Doh!!

Allow me to berate you, you freaking dolt:

That's too warm to pitch yeast.

/berating

tre9er said:

Allow me to berate you, you freaking dolt:

That's too warm to pitch yeast.

/berating

Click to expand...

Ouch!!!!! AAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!! OWY!!!!

Phew. Thanks. didn't realize that I actually needed that!

I think above 95F, the yeast mortality rate is pretty high. You may not really have done much fermentation at those temps, and instead underpitched at low temps.

kingwood-kid said:

I think above 95F, the yeast mortality rate is pretty high. You may not really have done much fermentation at those temps, and instead underpitched at low temps.

Click to expand...

That crossed my mind, but things that I have read, paired with the airlock activity exhaling despite dropping temps (indicating ACTIVE fermentation even at 109F) make me think otherwise.

Actually for dry yeast normal rehydration temp is 104F....so you effectively rehydrated then started fermenting in one fell swoop!! Glad it turned out well.

helibrewer said:

Actually for dry yeast normal rehydration temp is 104F....so you effectively rehydrated then started fermenting in one fell swoop!! Glad it turned out well.

Click to expand...

People frequently talk about fusel alcohols when pitching high but the main reason I care about pitching low (usually 62*) is lower production of diacetyl, and better cleanup at the end when you do finally raise temp.

kanzimonson said:

People frequently talk about fusel alcohols when pitching high but the main reason I care about pitching low (usually 62*) is lower production of diacetyl, and better cleanup at the end when you do finally raise temp.

Click to expand...

Honestly I am one of the more obnoxious proponents of pitching low and keeping it low.

This mistake was a culmination of several things resulting from a divorce.

Mainly: NO ice maker, new Keezer, new fermentation in corny technique, horrible miscalculation.

I pitch a lot of my yeast at 80F or a little under, depending on how far I can get it down with my wort chiller. In the summer here the tap water is so hot sometimes I can't get it below 90. I then just move it to the place where I'm going to ferment at and it will cool down in a few hours.

kanzimonson said:

People frequently talk about fusel alcohols when pitching high but the main reason I care about pitching low (usually 62*) is lower production of diacetyl, and better cleanup at the end when you do finally raise temp.

Click to expand...

Due to the cooler weather my brew has been sitting at a nice 67 degrees for a few days. I have it sitting in a water filled tote as a swamp cooler, but i was wondering if I should take it out after day 4 or 5 and let it heat up a little bit. I have read that letting it go up a few degrees at the end of primary fermentation will help in the clean up, Im just not sure of when and by how much. Btw this is an amber ale using american 1056. Any advice??

Definitely pull that sucker out when you see fermentation slowing down. I use a $15 heating pad made for injuries to heat my carboys. I just put it on the side, wrap a towel around, and turn it on low. I aim to at least exceed my fermentation temp by about 5 degrees but to be honest I don't care if it gets as high as 80 during the cleanup phase. 72-75 is the generally accepted "cleanup temp"

kanzimonson said:

Definitely pull that sucker out when you see fermentation slowing down. I use a $15 heating pad made for injuries to heat my carboys. I just put it on the side, wrap a towel around, and turn it on low. I aim to at least exceed my fermentation temp by about 5 degrees but to be honest I don't care if it gets as high as 80 during the cleanup phase. 72-75 is the generally accepted "cleanup temp"

Click to expand...

Ok thanks. When you say slow down, do u mean after its hit its peak at day 4, or do you mean a week or so after? My airlocks are still bubbling away, and its day 4. They have slowed but im not sure if its time to heat up yet.

Here's how I would describe fermentation visually:

1) lag period where nothing happens
2) slow, foamy uptake
3) swirling disgusting vortex
4) bobbing chunks (this is when I start heating it)
5) hazy settling
6) clear

I don't measure the gravity or anything - it's just that moment when you go to check on the fermentor and think to yourself, "Hmmm, this has definitely slowed down since the last time I looked."

I have a friend who's a great brewer and won lots of medals and he actually does something even more drastic. He pitches similarly low to me, but once he sees the beer starting to actively ferment, he goes ahead with the heating regimen. I can't blame him - they say that something like 90% of the flavor that we call "beer" is created during the lag phase and the slow uptake. Once you get through that you might as well speed the beer along so you can drink it sooner!

But I'm sticking with my method for now.

kanzimonson said:

Here's how I would describe fermentation visually:

1) lag period where nothing happens
2) slow, foamy uptake
3) swirling disgusting vortex
4) bobbing chunks (this is when I start heating it)
5) hazy settling
6) clear

.

Click to expand...

Mine goes(visually):

1)White bucket no activity
2)White bucket some airlock bubbling
3)White bucket lots of bubbling
4)White bucket less bubbling
5)White bucket almost no bubbling
6)White bucket



It is neat to see, but as I become more of a veteran, I feel no need to see or take readings.

Haha, well done. In either case, #4 is where you start heating it up!

I still like to see inside the carboy but I don't feel like it's worth my time to take gravity readings during fermentation.