Anyone else NOT brew in the winter?

I brewed a few times last winter, and it was not enjoyable. I live in the North and we have 5-6 months of snow/winter. I don't have a garage, so I'm forced to brew outside.

This year I think I'm going to brew like hell for the next 2 months, and see if I can get myself through the winter.

Kitchen? Makes it a little messy, but my first 3 brews were in MN during the winter. At least I got to keep all that heat in the house.

I'm with you though, outside, deck, or garage is much better.

Do partial boils on the stove top in the winter.

The thing about winter for me is that my basement gets to the perfect temp for fermenting......

Fall is such a great time to brew, so I usually brew enough while its still nice out to last me through. Usually an ale or two then some lagers that will be ready later in the winter.

Yeah.. I guess I could do extract or partial mash. My wife hates the smell when I brew.. so that could prove interesting

North Texas summer was BRUTAL this year, so we didnt brew much at all. Looking very much forward to winter brewing, trying to brew 2 or 3 times a month until springtime.

I guess it depends on where you live. I'm in Florida and it gets hot like the African Congo here in the summer. So winter is my PREFERRED brewing time.

Seven said:

I guess it depends on where you live. I'm in Florida and it gets hot like the African Congo here in the summer. So winter is my PREFERRED brewing time.

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I'm only in the NYC area and I stop brewing during the summer, but that's because the temps in the house are too warm to ferment most styles. I have no room for a fermentation chamber so that's out.

As far as brewing outside, I'm just about to start, hopefully this weekend, with my new 10 gallon kettle and Blichmann burner. However, the last two years here were horrendous with blizzards dumping many feet of snow. When that happens I will definitely be doing partial boils on my stove like I'd been doing with my 5 gallon economy kettle. It's certainly better than nothing.


Rev.

I stop brewing in the summer as well. I hate the 110F temps in my garage and the 85F+ cooling water. I obviously prefer Fall/Spring brewing but I'd rather suffer through a winter brew any day. It's hosing the pots out that stinks when it's sub freezing. I just pick days when it's going to be a little warmer than usual and make sure that I get an early start.

I built a brew room in the basement to get out of the kitchen and not have to brew outside in the cold cold winter winds blowing snow in from Lake Michigan...

I do partial mashes as my normal brewing process as my brew pot is only 5 gallons and I don't have an outdoor propane burner. My wife doesn't mind when I brew indoors during the winter as it warms up the house with all the boiling. Actually, my last winter brew was during a snowstorm that was dumping over a foot of snow outside while the windows were wide open because it was so hot in the kitchen.

I agree with beergolf, my basement is the perfect temp during the winter months for fermenting, actually it tends to be the warmest room in the house. At least for me, I find it harder to regulate temps during the summer as the basement is too cool, and the house is too warm, and most people in Maine don't build homes with central air conditioning since we only get about a week or two of really hot weather.

I hate brewing in the cold, so I always brewed indoors. I did all of my brewing in the kitchen, until a couple of years ago when I got my all-electric brewery in my laundry room.

I still do a batch in the kitchen from time to time! Whenever I'm doing a 5 gallon batch with a decoction for example, I'll be back in the kitchen.

I guess I'm in the minority here lol. I love the cold. Enjoy brewing outside in the winter. It's a simple concept, dress warm and it doesn't affect you. Sure, washing everything is not as easy, but that's a small price to pay.

Hell, i can't wait for winter brew days. Warming myself while hovering over the burner, not dealing with unrelenting Asian tiger Mosquitos, super cold ground water and snow to use for recirc through the pond pump etc.

I much prefer cooler to cold weather brew days.

Unless it's real bad, I brew in the garage. When it gets real cold I mash in the kitchen and boil outside the door on the patio. But except for Late December-February, I can make do in the garage.

I prefer to brew during the winter. I brew inside and even my basement during the summer is too warm for most fermentations. In the winter, it gets into a much better range.

Seven said:

I guess it depends on where you live. I'm in Florida and it gets hot like the African Congo here in the summer. So winter is my PREFERRED brewing time.

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You guys are atleast far enough north to have a winter, we just have a not summer.

I brew in the winter time when I have the time. I think it is funny that the people who live in the northern states complain about the winter time brewing outside.

I am actually working on a super portable 3 gallon AG system so that I can brew while I icefish on a frozen lake and in some pretty obscure areas. It is just in the design phase now as money is tight and the need is low...

"Can't clean my kettles"...really? I clean them out the best I can and then take them over to the car wash to blast them out the rest of the way. (I talked with the owner and as long as I am not dumping grain in quantity down his drains he has no issues and welcomes the money. I love taking my keggles there as I do not own a power washer that would blast hot water.

This doesn't even touch the fact that it is a PRIME time to enjoy hot drinks like mulled wines and such.

GL

Love winter time brewing. Perfect fermentation temps in my basement! Plus Denver winters really aren't that bad.

Monstar said:

Love winter time brewing. Perfect fermentation temps in my basement! Plus Denver winters really aren't that bad.

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True. When winter outdoor cooking comes up, I always brag about the time that I helped my brother smoke some trout the day after a 2 foot snow storm. The pictures make us look pretty burly, as we have a huge hole dug out for the smoker, and snow up to our thighs. What the pictures don’t tell you is that it was a classic Denver post-blizzard day: bluebird sky and 50 degrees. Stick some beers in the snow drift, put on some sun block, and enjoy a nice day off of work.

HerbieHowells said:

True. When winter outdoor cooking comes up, I always brag about the time that I helped my brother smoke some trout the day after a 2 foot snow storm. The pictures make us look pretty burly, as we have a huge hole dug out for the smoker, and snow up to our thighs. What the pictures don’t tell you is that it was a classic Denver post-blizzard day: bluebird sky and 50 degrees. Stick some beers in the snow drift, put on some sun block, and enjoy a nice day off of work.

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Exactly. I love it when it snows... you know the next few days are gonna be beautiful!

Here it's too hot to brew in the summer and without a fermentation chamber, you pretty much have to brew in the winter to keep temps low enough not to have too much esters.

A friend of mine brews out in the winter (as I live in Florida, winter is a foreign concept for brewing for me). He has a canopy set up (the kind you might picnic under or take to the beach) and attached a tarp to 3 of the 4 sides. This cuts the wind, keeps in much of the burner heat and he says a 20 degree day outside, in his little brew tent feels comfortable. I imagine that if you attached a tarp on the other edge, you could make a fairly toasty "brew lodge" outdoors, even in a MN winter.

cimirie said:

A friend of mine brews out in the winter (as I live in Florida, winter is a foreign concept for brewing for me). He has a canopy set up (the kind you might picnic under or take to the beach) and attached a tarp to 3 of the 4 sides. This cuts the wind, keeps in much of the burner heat and he says a 20 degree day outside, in his little brew tent feels comfortable. I imagine that if you attached a tarp on the other edge, you could make a fairly toasty "brew lodge" outdoors, even in a MN winter.

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I wonder how it holds up with 48 inches of snow on it?

I could see not brewing in the winter. Here in Florida, I don't understand why people don't brew in the summer. Well, lack of fermentation temp control I totally get, but no homebrew because it is too hot outside? My brewdays usually consist of lots of video game playing in the A/C during the mash and between hop additions during the boil. An alarm goes off telling me to add hops, I do it, and get right back to the 'splosions. To each his own, of course, but my love of homebrew on tap trumps horrible Florida summer every time.

BrewerinBR said:

I wonder how it holds up with 48 inches of snow on it?

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He sets it up every brew day. Only takes him 5 minutes or so as long as his wife helps him. Snow isn't much of an issue. Plus with the heat generated inside, snow pretty much melts on the roof.

But I suppose if you get 48 inches dumped on you in a 6 hour brew session, I might think about heading indoors.

TheDom said:

To each his own, of course, but my love of homebrew on tap trumps horrible Florida summer every time.

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HEAVY emphasis on HORRIBLE Florida summer. Just had to echo my disdain for the 7 month season in my state.

I couldn't go the whole winter without brewing or I would get brew balls and my stomach would hurt. And luckily I live in south ga so it doesn't get that cold its much better than brewing in the summer time here

JoeyChopps said:

I couldn't go the whole winter without brewing or I would get brew balls and my stomach would hurt.

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Brew balls go in your fermenter not your stomach...

TheMan said:

I guess I'm in the minority here lol. I love the cold. Enjoy brewing outside in the winter. It's a simple concept, dress warm and it doesn't affect you. Sure, washing everything is not as easy, but that's a small price to pay.

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I love the cold! I even tried to take a job as a cleaner in Antartica for 6 months before I started the police academy but the timing didn't line up so I had to pass. I brew WAY MORE in the winter than in the summer. Between my fondness for fall/winter styles, and my love of cold weather/snow, winter is my brew time, fun time, and forget about stupid summer time!

PS, I've taken my outside hose out of the equation though, so its a little easier for me to brew in the winter than others. I do all my clean up in an unused standup shower we have downstairs that I affixed a removable shower head to.

Winter is the best time to brew out here. Think of it. 60° and sunny, stout in hand...

I prefer to brew in the winter. Summer in Atlanta is usually near 100 degrees F. Winter is usually around 30-50 degrees. I usually brew a 10 gallon batch of my summer ale during late spring and one 5 gallon batch over the summer. From October thru March I usually brew at least once a month.

I think I'd enjoy brewing in winter a lot more. Even though I'm not a huge fan of most winter styles, I do enjoy beer more when it's cold out as opposed to when it's hot (heresy, I know). And not sweating my who knows what off in 100+ temps will be pretty nice.

cimirie said:

But I suppose if you get 48 inches dumped on you in a 6 hour brew session, I might think about heading indoors TO CALL A REALTOR!

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Fixed that for you. : )

TheDom said:

Fixed that for you. : )

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I dislike winter brewing, although it seems to help with boil off for some reason( perhaps I just like watching the pillar of steam rising from the kettle)

Last winter my immersion chiller hoses froze solid( I had to bring them inside - these are two 50 foot garden hoses - and soak them in the tub to thaw them)

but it kills me on propane refills. I am seriously thinking about switching to a 5500 watt element and being done with propane for a while.

Because of the nasty winters here, I just brewed a light ale this past weekend because of the warm weather. In previous winters I was still an extract brewer so it was not a big deal - but there's no way I am going to be in -40 C to make beer. It looks like I'll be a fair-weather AG brewer and a winter-season extract brewer.

B

It does get chilly sometimes, but I soldier through it. I think of our founding fathers and gain inspiration. Think of Washington at Valley Forge: they didn't complain. Think of Sir Edmund Shackleton, ice-locked in the antarctic, no sir, not a whiner amongst the group. Think of the Uraguayan soccer team lost in the andes, eating each other butts, no, no sireee, they persevered.

If I have to, I put socks on under my flip-flops, but we only get a week or two of that kind of weather (brrrrrr!)

passedpawn said:

If I have to, I put socks on under my flip-flops, but we only get a week or two of that kind of weather (brrrrrr!)

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Grrrrrrr. I'm geographically envious. LOL!

B