Kolsch WLP029 Ale yeast fermentation Temp.

[andrewb_1985]

Hey I just did my first batch of AG yesterday and I am glad to say that everything went quite well. I am now 24hrs into fermentation using German Ale Kolsch WLP029. Beersmith tells me to ferment at 67F while the yeast vile tells me 70-75F. Right now it is sitting at 66F and there is lots of activity. Should I leave it at that temp since it is working or should I follow direction on the yeast itself?

Also when I pitched the yeast the wort temp was 62F. Would that have caused any issues and would it be worth extending primary fermentation from 4 to 5 days? Let me know what you guys think I should do.

 

[masonsjax]

If the ambient temperature is 66, the beer is probably 70+ because yeast generate heat as they work. WLP029 is one of my favorite strains and I actually have a batch going right now at about 63F. You should be fine right where you are. Let it sit for 7-14 days then take gravity reading and another 3 days later. If it hasn't changed in those 3 days, bottle or keg it.

 

[CadillacAndy]

I try to stay at the lower end of recommended when I'm trying to get a cleaner fermentation. White Labs recommends 65-69F, like masonsjax above, I usually try to keep things in the 62-63F range. I'm not sure where you got the 70-75F numbers, but that's not what their site is saying - http://www.whitelabs.com/yeast/wlp029-german-ale-kölsch-yeast. You may want to make sure you read that right.

If you pitched on the lower end of the range and allowed it to ramp up during fermentation, I'd make sure to keep it at 66F+ to keep the yeast in suspension. WLP029 usually stays in suspension for a long time for me, but I still make sure to keep the temp from dropping off as fermentation slows. Since fermentation is an exothermic reaction, meaning it produces heat, as it slows down it will start to cool off, so making sure you maintain it's temperature is important.

 

[andrewb_1985]

Ok I may be misinterpreting the verbiage on the vial. It says "add to 5 gal of aerated wort or must at 70-75F. Keep at this temperature until fermentation begins"
Im not sure if "must" is a brewing term I have yet to learn?.

Also I am taking the temp from a glass of water placed beside the carboys. I didn't realize how much heat would be generated by the fermentation. I guess Ill put a thermometer inside next time. When you say you keep the temp around 63F, are you talking inside the carboy or the ambient temp?

My fermentation schedule as per beersmith is 4 days in primary, 10 days in secondary, then aging for 30 days. Is this recommended over a 1 stage 14 day fermentation? I have no idea what the different outcomes would be. I look forward to the experimentation.

 

[CadillacAndy]

Ok I may be misinterpreting the verbiage on the vial. It says "add to 5 gal of aerated wort or must at 70-75F. Keep at this temperature until fermentation begins"
Im not sure if "must" is a brewing term I have yet to learn?.

Also I am taking the temp from a glass of water placed beside the carboys. I didn't realize how much heat would be generated by the fermentation. I guess Ill put a thermometer inside next time. When you say you keep the temp around 63F, are you talking inside the carboy or the ambient temp?

My fermentation schedule as per beersmith is 4 days in primary, 10 days in secondary, then aging for 30 days. Is this recommended over a 1 stage 14 day fermentation? I have no idea what the different outcomes would be. I look forward to the experimentation.

"Must" is what they call wine while it's still juice. Must is to wort as wine is to beer.

Usually anytime a temperature is mentioned when talking about fermentation, we're referring to actual wort/beer temperature.

I would ignore this Beersmith schedule and go with primary for at least 10 days. 14 days would be fine too. Are you kegging or bottling?

If kegging, I'd rack to a keg and allow it to lager for a month of so under pressure, then drink. If bottling, I'd recommend racking to a secondary carboy and lagering for a month, then move to bottles for additional conditioning. I have minimal experience with bottle conditioning lagered beers, so someone else may want to chime in.

 

[stpug]

I also use this particular strain right at 62-63F. It has worked very well at those temperatures for me; huge top cropper and fast fermenter.

I tried to use it at 56-58-60 and it didn't kick into action until it hit 62F, so that's my low end for this strain.

 

[andrewb_1985]

Ok thanks for clearing that up. I will be kegging and planned on aging for 30 days at 65F while under pressure for 2.5v/v. that of course was out of secondary but I am not opposed to skipping the secondary for my first brew.

 

[masonsjax]

Skip secondary for all of your brews. Unless there's a good reason to do it (there usually isn't), you don't need to do it.

 

[DrBrew809]

Skip secondary for all of your brews. Unless there's a good reason to do it (there usually isn't), you don't need to do it.

As masonsjax said: Avoid secondary no matter what.

I did this batch from a Midwest Kit AG last January. It went 10 days primary, no secondary. 10 days bottle conditioning and after that cracked one open and
let me tell you it is the best batch i ever done.
The longer you leave them bottled the better they get. In the beginning they taste a little too much bitter but gradually becomes mild and very flavorful. That's probably because when you do AG it should have 20% less bittering hops than extract or partial mash (i've been told, but not sure if this is completely true) Anyway, I am very happy with this Kolsch and I bet you will be to.

 

[Catawampus]

WLP029 is pretty versatile in the temperature range. I've actually taken to starting it at 58 F and letting it warm to 65 F over the course of fermentation. I lager for 2-4 weeks after primary fermentation, but do so on the yeast cake.