Purpose of a cold crash

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robertbartsch

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There is no defination of this term in Wiki.

After fermentation and kegging, I place the keg in the fridge for 7-10 days before drinking. I assume this is cold crashing.

Anyway, this usually conditions the beer and makes it more clear.

Is this what cold crashing is intended to do?

Thx.
 
Cold crashing is where you refrigerate a flask of starter yeast before pitching to get the yeast to settle down and fall to the bottom. Also used to accomplish the same thing in a fermentor, make any yeast and sediment fall to the bottom before transfering the beer.
 
...so cold crashing should be done in the primary fermenter after the initial yeast pitch is finished? When you pitch the cold yeast in does this require stiring the wort/beer?
 
Cold crashing is a term typically used to describe the process of taking the temperature of beer in the fermenter down to near-freezing in order to precipitate yeast, break materials, what have you. The end goal is clearer beer.

It is also used to describe doing the same thing in other vessels - yeast starters, for instance.

Cold crashing is certainly not necessary, and whether or not you want to do it is up to you. I personally do not cold crash as I find letting the beer sit in the fermenter for 4 weeks provides beer that is very, very clear (except for things like hefeweizens, which should be cloudy).

Pitching cold yeast in to wort does not require any stirring afterwards. They'll wake up on their own.
 
So if I ferment in a bucket for 4 weeks, transfer the beer into a cornie with some suger and then after a week or so I refrigerate the keg for several days after which I then toss out a few of the first few glasses, then I have cold crashed the beer?

Thx...
 
Technically, yes. People usually cold crash it before kegging it so they don't have to toss as much beer on the first pulls. In my experience, though, letting it sit in the fermenter for 4 weeks before kegging results in hardly any precipitates coming out on the first pint - even when naturally carbonating.
 
I put a shot glass of beer in the fridge last night for tasting that I retained after a gravity test. After less than an hour, it had a good 1/4" of yeast on the bottom.

That is the purpose of cold crashing :D
 
Hmmm.

..So if you use kegs and after you refrigerate there is some trub/gunk at the bottom and you toss this using a few pulls, I suppose you have done the same as if you chilled the beer and then racked it off of what ever sinks to the bottom; right?

Thx...
 
..So if you use kegs and after you refrigerate there is some trub/gunk at the bottom and you toss this using a few pulls, I suppose you have done the same as if you chilled the beer and then racked it off of what ever sinks to the bottom; right?
That doesn't seem to work so hot for me. The problem is, you keep pulling off the bottom of the keg, where the sediment continues to collect.

I don't have a way (yet) to cold crash my fermenter, so I resorted to filtering. I keg, cold crash for 24 hours, filter to a second keg, force carb, and we're off and running. Works.

Of course, I'm impatient, and don't let the beer sit in the fermenter as long as I probly should.
 
So if I am lagering one in a fridge and have an IPA I want to cold crash I should get down to lagering temps and then stick the IPA in for a few days before bottling?
 
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