418Brewing
Well-Known Member
Okay, I've got a question for every/anyone.
I have a beer kit for a Dopplebock that came with Saflager S-23 yeast.
The instructions call for 60-65F for 1-3 days, then dropping to 48-60F for 7-10 days, letting it rise to "room" temperature for 24 hours, then racking to a carboy and letting it sit for 3-12 weeks at 36-45F.
Now I also happen to have a spare fridge that I've tested and with the built-in temp control set as warm as possible, a bucket with several gallons of water read 45-48F over several days.
So I have several temperature ranges I need to hit, no temperature controller, and if at all possible I'd like to avoid getting one for a little while. (Spent way too much money on other brew equipment and while my wife isn't exactly a SWMBO-type, and greatly enjoys the brewing hobby, if spending on brewing interferes with, say, clothes shopping I'm betting the SWMBO thing will kick in with a vengeance.)
The initial 60-65F is a bit annoying: The floors in the basement are 75-77F according to my infrared thermometer, and the fermenter sitting on it (previous batch) said 73F according to the sticker thermometer on the side. At the store they said "as cold as possible is fine" so I'm not really sweating that too much. I'm pretty sure I can get it under 70F at least for a few days.
The concern I have is the 48-60F range. How much of a problem, if any, would it be to have it around 45F instead?
Eventually I intend to get a small fridge (ideally something almost exactly the size of a single fermenter/carboy) for lagering, and install a temp controller on it, but as I said I'd like to put that off for a few months. And considering the amount of aging Dopplebock needs (and how delicious it is) I really don't want to put off brewing it that long.
So what do you guys think?
I have a beer kit for a Dopplebock that came with Saflager S-23 yeast.
The instructions call for 60-65F for 1-3 days, then dropping to 48-60F for 7-10 days, letting it rise to "room" temperature for 24 hours, then racking to a carboy and letting it sit for 3-12 weeks at 36-45F.
Now I also happen to have a spare fridge that I've tested and with the built-in temp control set as warm as possible, a bucket with several gallons of water read 45-48F over several days.
So I have several temperature ranges I need to hit, no temperature controller, and if at all possible I'd like to avoid getting one for a little while. (Spent way too much money on other brew equipment and while my wife isn't exactly a SWMBO-type, and greatly enjoys the brewing hobby, if spending on brewing interferes with, say, clothes shopping I'm betting the SWMBO thing will kick in with a vengeance.)
The initial 60-65F is a bit annoying: The floors in the basement are 75-77F according to my infrared thermometer, and the fermenter sitting on it (previous batch) said 73F according to the sticker thermometer on the side. At the store they said "as cold as possible is fine" so I'm not really sweating that too much. I'm pretty sure I can get it under 70F at least for a few days.
The concern I have is the 48-60F range. How much of a problem, if any, would it be to have it around 45F instead?
Eventually I intend to get a small fridge (ideally something almost exactly the size of a single fermenter/carboy) for lagering, and install a temp controller on it, but as I said I'd like to put that off for a few months. And considering the amount of aging Dopplebock needs (and how delicious it is) I really don't want to put off brewing it that long.
So what do you guys think?
