QUICK HELP! Is it a problem to pitch too cold?

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JoppaFarms

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I lost track of time and my wort cooled down to ~50F. It's a Cream Ale. Can I pitch my Wyeast 1056 or should I wait for it to warm back up to the 60's?
 
It will be fine..just a slower start than if you had pitched at 60!
Go ahead and pitch it!
 
I am relatively new to brewing but I have had issues cooling my wort down too much as well. I would say wait for the wort to warm. Just make sure you keep your fermenter sealed while you wait. As far as I know there is no harm in waiting before pitching. But again I've only brewed 5 batches, so if anyone else has better info, I would go with what they say.
 
I lost track of time and my wort cooled down to ~50F. It's a Cream Ale. Can I pitch my Wyeast 1056 or should I wait for it to warm back up to the 60's?

It's not going to hurt anything. It might take a little longer to take off, but you're better off pitching colder than the desired temp and letting it warm up than vice versa. I would pitch and let it free rise into the low 60's.
 
It's always better to pitch a bit cold rather than too hot. However, pitching when there is more than a 10f difference in temperature between wort and yeast, can "shock" the yeast which could cause certain problems.

So, if the yeast and wort are within about 10f of each other you should be alright. If not, slowly cool down the yeast a little or warm up and readjust wort temp.
 
Check the ideal temps of the yeast. Wait for it to warm to about 1-2 degrees below that temp and pitch. Try to get the yeast to the same temp as the wort so you don't shock them.

I always cool to below the yeast temp range and let fermentation bring it back within range. Less likely for temp-related off flavors.
 
pabloj13 said:
It's not going to hurt anything. It might take a little longer to take off, but you're better off pitching colder than the desired temp and letting it warm up than vice versa. I would pitch and let it free rise into the low 60's.

+1

I'd pitch and let the yeast do their thing. A bit longer lag time should be fine.
 
Ive heard that its best for wort to ve the same temp as the yeast, or you can pitch cold yeast on warmer wort.

Warm yeast on cold wort can stress the yeast.

However, I have pitched yeast (approx 68°) on wort that was 59° and it turned out just fine. You can always pitch ypur yeast after the wort warms a little, or chill your yeast down.

Not a pro, but this is what I've recently read anyways. Good luck, and I'm jealous that you're brewing on a Thursday night :mug:
 
I have read on a few other threads that pitching too cold is generally not much of an issue. It will just take a little longer for fermentation to start as it gets up to temperature.

People do this in a sense when they make a starter and crash it over night. They take the starter out of the fridge and the yeast becomes active again as it warms up.
 
Ok, thanks for the amazingly fast responses! Y'all are the best. I went ahead and pitched the yeast. It had been sitting in sanitizing solution already so it was probably only a few degrees warmer than the wort when I pitched. Should be good to go (I hope). Thanks again!
 
So the last brew I made (2nd Brew ever). I made 2 "mistakes".

First I had a smack pack of yeast. I smacked it as I started getting all my supplies together and let it sit out. Once I filled my sanitizer bucket with hot tap water, I tossed the packet of yeast in not really thinking about the fact that the tap water was probably 90+ degrees.

Second mistake. I preboiled a gallon of water, and put it into the freezer in sanitized tupperware containers a few days before brew day. I moved my boil pot to an ice bath after the brew was over, whirlpooled and added it to a gallon of chilled top off water in the primary fermenter. By the time I added the ice the beer was already too cold to melt the ice! I pulled out the big chunks of ice melted them in the microwave and added the water back in but the beer was still below 60 degrees.

Pitched my yeast, sealed everything up and sure enough the beer started fermenting away after 36 hours or so... It has been a week and fermentation continues. I am starting to belive all the long time brewers who say that yeast will make beer in spite of all of our best efforts to disrupt the process.
 
tampa911 said:
So the last brew I made (2nd Brew ever). I made 2 "mistakes".

First I had a smack pack of yeast. I smacked it as I started getting all my supplies together and let it sit out. Once I filled my sanitizer bucket with hot tap water, I tossed the packet of yeast in not really thinking about the fact that the tap water was probably 90+ degrees.

Second mistake. I preboiled a gallon of water, and put it into the freezer in sanitized tupperware containers a few days before brew day. I moved my boil pot to an ice bath after the brew was over, whirlpooled and added it to a gallon of chilled top off water in the primary fermenter. By the time I added the ice the beer was already too cold to melt the ice! I pulled out the big chunks of ice melted them in the microwave and added the water back in but the beer was still below 60 degrees.

Pitched my yeast, sealed everything up and sure enough the beer started fermenting away after 36 hours or so... It has been a week and fermentation continues. I am starting to belive all the long time brewers who say that yeast will make beer in spite of all of our best efforts to disrupt the process.

Ha! As hard as we try, those littles bugs will prove us wrong and make beer almost every time.

Glad it worked out for you in the end and hopefully you can at least learn something from these "mistakes" and make the next one even better.

Cheers!
 
Hey guys i have a similar question. Just finished a Kolsch and i could not get my wort below 76 or so. So i put it in my fermenting frig until morning and did not pitch.

The thing is my smack pack is already fully inflated . it was at room temp and ready to go. I thought i had better wait until i get that wort cooled down so I put it AND the smack pack in the frig so they will both me the same temp by morn.

Do i have to let me smack pack warm back up to room temp again in the morning or pitch while they are both the same temp?
Please advise. Thanks
 
You can pitch cold but there may be a longer lag time. You really don't want a huge temp difference between yeast and wort so I would make sure everything is sanitized, pitch, seal it up and let it work. Use a blow off tube, Kolsch fermentation can get crazy.

Cheers
 
naplesbrew said:
Hey guys i have a similar question. Just finished a Kolsch and i could not get my wort below 76 or so. So i put it in my fermenting frig until morning and did not pitch.

The thing is my smack pack is already fully inflated . it was at room temp and ready to go. I thought i had better wait until i get that wort cooled down so I put it AND the smack pack in the frig so they will both me the same temp by morn.

Do i have to let me smack pack warm back up to room temp again in the morning or pitch while they are both the same temp?
Please advise. Thanks

Here's the problem... The more time that passes while the wort is under 120 degrees and doesn't have active yeast in it the more prone it is to infection! I have pitched yeast up to about 82 degrees without adverse effects.
 
ya I usually pitch my (ale) yeast around 76/78 and wait a few hours for it to get going and then chill it down to about 68. I swamp bath it so generally it's cooled off a few more degrees when I drop some ice packs in. I noticed folks saying pitching a little hot was bad, curious why besides shocking the yeast?
 
Thanks for the quick feedback. I always use a blowoff tube. I have always pitched my ales at around 76 and let it go. Never had an issue really just want to get a little more tuned in the process. Getting wort down in the 60s seems to be the norm in everything i read so that is what i was shooting for.

First thing in the morning i will pitch the smack pack yeast by then both will be at about 68. You think i will be good?

Everything sealed and sanitized, in my fermentation frig tonight controller set to 68.

Pitch first thing in the morning you think or let yeast warm up to room temp first? I thought the closer the wort and yeast temps the better right?

I appreciate that fast responses by the way.
 
naplesbrew said:
Thanks for the quick feedback. I always use a blowoff tube. I have always pitched my ales at around 76 and let it go. Never had an issue really just want to get a little more tuned in the process. Getting wort down in the 60s seems to be the norm in everything i read so that is what i was shooting for.

First thing in the morning i will pitch the smack pack yeast by then both will be at about 68. You think i will be good?

Everything sealed and sanitized, in my fermentation frig tonight controller set to 68.

Pitch first thing in the morning you think or let yeast warm up to room temp first? I thought the closer the wort and yeast temps the better right?

I appreciate that fast responses by the way.

Yes you'll be fine. It won't become infected just because it sat overnight below 120 degrees if its sealed and clean. Many people "no chill" over night and for even longer with no ill effects.
 
My last batch I had 10 Gal in the fermenters in my ferm chamber and when I checked on it the next morning noticed the yeast packets just sitting there on top of the fermenters. Pitched and they took off just fine. If the wort is protected from nasties taking hold (covered) you should be fine. Also, yeast appreciate being pitched at about the same temperature as the wort. Saves them from temperature shock.
 
Update on my Kolsch. I pitched the yeast the next morning with wort and yeast at 68. Next morning good bubble activity in my blow off jar, and on day 2 bubbling smooth and steady. At least i know that the yeast is active. Boy you were right about Kolsch it is very active!

Everything was sealed in frig overnight so dont think i have anything to worry about will report back. Thanks for the input guys much appreciated.
 
I just checked my blow off jar in my frig on the kolsch...it is all brown and has yeast sediment in the bottom! Must have been an active yeast process.

Should i change the starsan water with new or just leave it as it until finished? Dont want that crap to back up into my brew. Hose has been in the water the whole time. It is settling way down now but the kruesen film is all the way to the top of my 6.5 carboy.
 
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