2 newbie questions

I have had an ESB in the primary for 5 days at about 61 F. I used Nottingham yeast. Air-lock bubling has slowed to about 2 air bubbles per minute. So far so good. Should i let my wort warm up now or keep it at lower temps? Room temp is about 66 F.
Second question, can i keep my bottled beer at room temp (68F) until i am ready to drink it?

No need to warm up the wort, but you should take a gravity reading to be sure it is done. Those last few SG points fall slowly.

If you are priming and bottling, they will need to be kept as close to 70F as possible. Fortunately, ESBs have a low carb level so it shouldn't take long.

I usually throw a bottle in the fridge overnight to test the carb level the next day. But they don't "have to" be refrigerated.

Thanks for the reply. I have 2 batches that are carbed, just wondering about longer term storage. One is a brown ale and the other is a steam style beer.

55F(cellar temp) is ideal for long term storage. Although, the ABV will determine how long it should really be stored. Low ABV ales (4-8%) do not age well, especially at room temp.

Ok, could i store it a bit colder say 40F? Also, will 10-15 degree changes during storage cause any problems?

40 would be fine, probably better for those beers. Temp changes do affect beer. Going warm to cold makes the yeast dormant and slows carb and conditioning rate. Cold to warm can reactivate yeast and over carb (if you added too much sugar).

It's not a big deal though. I accidentally left some out overnight and they froze. After they thawed and warmed to 50, they were still delicious.

BrewU said:

I have had an ESB in the primary for 5 days at about 61 F. I used Nottingham yeast. Air-lock bubling has slowed to about 2 air bubbles per minute. So far so good. Should i let my wort warm up now or keep it at lower temps? Room temp is about 66 F.
Second question, can i keep my bottled beer at room temp (68F) until i am ready to drink it?

Click to expand...

Yes and yes. The critical time for your beer during the fermentation is the first 2 to 4 days as the yeast eat through the easy sugars. now that your beer is beyond that stage letting it warm will help encourage the yeast to complete the more difficult compounds and bring you to FG.

Once you have the beer bottled you can store them at room temperature or below. I have mine at 72F and have stored lots of them for over a year.