Crash Cool How To

I've been trying to gather more info about crash cooling. I haven't found anything definitive on it. Can someone list the procedure and the reasons for doing it? Maybe it nothing more than throwing your fermenter in the fridge for a few days? But how long and what effects does it have?
Thanks if you have any info.

You're right. Crash cooling is simply chilling your carboy or keg to sub 40 degrees. I usually drop my kegs into the chest keezer at around 37 degrees.

Crash chilling helps to drop the yeast and some protein solids so your beer clears quicker.

I wouldn’t crash cool your beer until full fermentation and conditioning has completed (3-4 weeks). If you crash cool too soon, you stall the slight conditioning and CO2 production that the yeast wants to complete. This can lead to gushers if the beer is primed and then returned to normal room temperature for carbonation.

Can you crash cool your beer in bottles?

Say bottle crash cool a few days then allow to carb at room temp?

You sure can! However, you'll still have the sediment in the bottles that could have left behind in a carboy. The purpose of crash cooling (besides what biermuncher said) is to get as little sediment at serving time as possible. If there's more sediment in bottles then it's more likely you'll get some in the glass.

BM.
if you crash cool in a corny do you re rack out of it? Or just carb it?
If you are dropping things out of solution would you not get that back in your beer if you draw off a couple of pints?

T

tgrier said:

BM.
if you crash cool in a corny do you re rack out of it? Or just carb it?
If you are dropping things out of solution would you not get that back in your beer if you draw off a couple of pints?

T

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I just carb the keg. That sediment is minimal if you've let it ferment/condition long enough. I also have gone in and bent my dip tubes a bit more sharply so they are not scraping the bottom. If the tubes were straight, I cut of about 1/8th of an inch.

The cold really compacts that sediment tightly so it's not really an issue...unless you move the keg. In which case, it resettles pretty quickly.

if you have extra cornys why not cut the dip tube in one and use it as a bright tank. After a couple of days either rack it into another corny as a serving tank. Crash cooling with the help of gelatin works well too.

Eastside