Cheat Sheet for Extract Kits?

[agbrewer03]

I was browsing the brew catalogs for my next extract kit purchase as well as reading the brew books (joy and How to) and had a few questions.

Is there a cheat sheet for the different beer types and what is necessary?

For example, which beers ferment best in 75* temps, which ones need longer to ferment or bottle before consuming, short times, etc. etc.

It would be nice to have a cheat sheet that I could browse for lets say, the shortest prep time or which one prefers the temperature my dungeon is set at, etc.

Thanks

 

[mk9252]

Most extract kits will say how many weeks or months the kit takes. Also they come with step by step instructions and when to move to the next step whether it be moving to a secondary or bottling. I would recommend checking out northernbrewer.com they sell pretty good kits and there instructions are posted online

 

[beergolf]

The yeast you use determeines the temp. The fermenting temp is usually several degrees warmer than ambient, especially during active fermentation, so take that into consideration.
The closer you are to the upper end of the temp range for a yeast the more the temp rises. For example is a yeast gives a temp range of 60-70 degrees, and you are at 60 the temp rise may be only a few degrees, but if you are at 70 degrees the temp rise may be as much as 10 degrees warmer.

75 degrees is too warm for almost all yeasts except for a few of the Saison yeasts. There are a lot of people that will say Belgian yeasts are good at 75, but I find that they get too hot fermenting at that temp and can produce fusels 9Ask me how I know this) Belgian yeast do best when started low (65ish) and then held there for a few days and then you can ramp up the temp to finish them out.

Generally the lower the gravity the faster you can turn a beer around. On the other hand big beers can take many months to ferment and age properly. I have done a lot of high gravity Belgians that get several months in the fermenter and several more months in the bottle before I even tast them.

I have also done a lot of low gravity brews that are ready to bottle in a couple of weeks and ready to drink after about three weeks in the bottle.

 

[roastquake]

I don't know of a cheat sheet, but you can make a few deductions: regular strength ales have the shortest turnaround, they ferment in the 60-75 F range. Strong ales ferment longer, in the same temperature range. Lagers ferment longer yet and they work in the 45-60 F range, lagers also require 3 months or more of cold aging (lagering) at about 32 F

I second beergolf on this comment about 75 degrees, It will make beer if you ferment at 75 but it may not be great. the highest I let mine go is 72, but even then I'm trying to get it down to 69 at the hottest

 

[masterfool101]

Your LHBS might have a "cheat sheet" for kits they keep on hand.

You can always call or email one of the larger outlets like Midwest or Northern Brewer to see what they have.

 

[BigFloyd]

I don't know of a cheat sheet, but you can make a few deductions: regular strength ales have the shortest turnaround, they ferment in the 60-75 F range. Strong ales ferment longer, in the same temperature range. Lagers ferment longer yet and they work in the 45-60 F range, lagers also require 3 months or more of cold aging (lagering) at about 32 F

I second beergolf on this comment about 75 degrees, It will make beer if you ferment at 75 but it may not be great. the highest I let mine go is 72, but even then I'm trying to get it down to 69 at the hottest

The upper ends of these stated temperature ranges are too high. I've tasted ales (not saisons) that others have allowed to actively ferment in the 72-75*F range. They don't taste right at all to me. The last one, an Irish red, I dumped after just one sip. Unless you're fermenting in a 60*F area, you'll have to take measures to cool the ferment down for the first few days.

For most ales, if you want a nice result, you've got to pitch and keep the beer temp (which can get up to 8-10*F warmer than ambient air) in the low-mid 60's the first 3-5 days. After that, you allow it to creep up into the 68-70*F range to finish out and clean up.

60*F is too hot for most lager yeasts unless it's 80-85% done and you're purposefully upping it into the low 60's for a few days of diacetyl rest. Also, with a few exceptions, 6-8 weeks in the middle 30's suffices for a cold lagering period (which reduces phenolic compounds).