Fermentation Temp Schedule

[TastyAdventure]

How do you do your standard ale fermentation temps?
Not Belgians or any super unique strains, but something like a pale ale where you don't want too many (if any) fusels and such.
I know it a lot depends on the strain, but I just kinda to wanted to get a conversation going so I can get different ideas.

Here's what I just did with my latest English brown ale. I'm pretty happy with it but feel like there might be a better way.

Nottingham yeast
Pitched at 61.
1 day: Set STC to 61.5 F
Day 5: set to 64.4
Day 6 bumped to 65 F
Day 6 1/2: bumped to 65.8
Day 8: bumped to 66.5 F
Day 11: took gravity reading. Left at 66.5
Day 20: cold crashed for 2 days, bottled

I imagine slowly ramping it up encourages more attenuation without getting the yeast so excited they spit out fusels and such. But I may be wrong... Before I had real temp control I had some bad batches that I assume we're due to lack of good temp control, so I'm a little cautious. Only had my STC for 3 batches...

Please discuss your what works for you with different strains and styles. On second thought any strain or style...

 

[Natdavis777]

I pitch most ales low (58-60F), let ride for a few days (usually see activity <24 hrs due to high oxygenation and overpitching) and will slowly ramp the temp up during fermentation... Each beer is different, but starts out the same. When krausen starts falling, I ramp to 70F for a d-rest (I d-rest all beers, first beer ever was a butterbomb).

 

[motobrewer]

Pitch at 64. Ferment at 64. Drink at 64?

 

[BlueHouseBrewhaus]

Your temps look fine. I wouldn't worry about ramping up so slowly. I usually wait until the krausen is just starting to decrease and then ramp up about 1F every 12 hours until I'm at around 2/3 - 3/4 of the max temp range. Once fermentation is done, I'll bring it back down around 1/4 of the temp range and let it sit for a couple of weeks. I've never detected fusels. I think you only need to keep your temps in the low range for the first few days when the bulk of fermentation is done. The only time I ever got phenols was in my early impatient days when I went straight to the top of the temp range for the yeast at the beginning of fermentation. Now I stick about 2F or 3F above the bottom range in the beginning. No phenols, fusels or other boogeymen.

 

[phyllobeddo]

For most of my ales so far it's been 65 degrees for two weeks in the fermentation chamber (wine fridge), room temp for one week and then bottle or keg.

 

[Natdavis777]

Pitch at 64. Ferment at 64. Drink at 64?

.

 

[wdwalter]

I think as long as you oxygenate properly and pitch the right amount of yeast you can hold your temps within the specified range. For a normal strain that recommends 68-72 I will pitch at 70 and hold there for a week, then transfer to secondary and let it sit for about 10 days @ 72 before cold crashing and fining. No problems.

 

[BigFloyd]

Using Nottingham as you are, your temp profile is solid.

By keeping it low at first, you're gaining a nice clean flavor. Ramping it up later encourages the cells to clean up some of the natural by-products of their little feast. You've got precise temp control. Keep using it to your advantage.

Notty prefers cooler temps (I've started it as low as 55*F for a few days) much more so than most other ale yeast strains and is less tolerant of fermenting too warmly. For example, I'll pitch US-05, BRY-97 and S-04 at 63-64*F and finish them up at 68-70*F.

 

[TastyAdventure]

Nottingham yeast
Pitched at 61.
1 day: Set STC to 61.5 F
Day 5: set to 64.4
Day 6 bumped to 65 F
Day 6 1/2: bumped to 65.8
Day 8: bumped to 66.5 F
Day 11: took gravity reading. Left at 66.5
Day 20: cold crashed for 2 days, bottled
.

This was actually a 10 gallon split batch. One had Notty, the other had Kolsch 029.
The only difference in the 2 was that with the Kolsch, I steeped 1/2 lb of chocolate malt separately and boiled, then added to the fermentor once all was cooled.
The Kolsch finished at 1.014 and the Notty at 1.011. OG was 1.056.
I expected more attenuation from the Kolsch. I understand it had more unfermentables, but didn't think it'd be that different. Do you think if I would have made it warmer faster that Kolsch would have attenuated more?