Fermenting Nottingham Cold

I just got my fermentation chiller working and tried it out on a pale ale using good ole nottingham yeast. The fermentation chiller worked great for two 80 degree days, keeping the ambient temperature inside the chiller at 65 degrees Fahrenheit (18.3 degrees C).

Then, a sudden, unexpected cold front rolled through, rendering the chiller useless and dropping the ambient fermentation temperature to 62 degrees F or so (16.7 degrees C). The majority of fermentation had completed before the drop in temperature, but I'm a little worried about attenuation.

The Danstar website says Nottingham can get pretty cold, but one may need to pitch more yeast than normal. I think it'll be fine, but I'm wondering if anyone around the forum has fermented Nottingham in the low 60's before. So have you?

I've fermenting Nottingham in the 58-60 degree range with no issues. But, it didn't start warmer and get cooler, that's about where it was the whole time. If the temperature reduced slowly, it shouldn't be an issue, though.

The temperature did reduce slowly because the fermentation chiller (a son-of-fermentation chiller encased in plywood) is very well insulated.

How did that beer turn out? The Danstar website claims that you can make a lager-like beer with Nottingham at cold temps.

That's a typical fermentation temperature for me, about 9-10 months out of the year! All of those fermentations are super clean, without esters. I 've used it in many of my "regular" recipes, like the DFH 60 clone and the Dead Guy clone.

I've had no issues with it down to around 12c.

Thanks for the Reassurance! I'll have to try starting at a lower temp. sometime.

Just finishing carbing up my summer ale fermented @ 60F with Nottingham. Very clean beer. It did take longer to ferment though. I buy Nottingham in 500 gram bricks, so adding more for cooler temps is no problem. I pitched 18 grams.







Conehead

I've fermented with notty around 56 F with no problems.

Anyone done something like that with Fermentis S-05? So far the main difference I've found between the two is flocculation.

mew said:

Anyone done something like that with Fermentis S-05? So far the main difference I've found between the two is flocculation.

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As a beginning brewer, I've used the S-05 for each of my first 4 completed brews. It stalled at about 55 degrees last winter on my first brew. It was day 3 of the ferment so the initial churning had already subsided. I brought it in out of the garage and it warmed back up to 62 degrees and finished up no problem.

Like you noticed, it flocculates well and adds very little flavor so your malt and hops can shine through. Good yeast for a beginner like me. No experience with the Nottingham yet though.

Cheers!