Pitching and cold break

[comicsandbeer83]

I am pretty new at brewing and I have been reading up on the process of it and whatnot. I have done one batch so far and the way i did the yeast was i just let the wort cool over night and i pitched the yeast the following morning. However, i have been reading John Palmer's How To Brew book and he says you should cool it down immediately to assist in the cold break. Now i didn't have any problems doing it the way i did and in fact that is how i was taught. my beer fermented just fine and i bottled a little over a week ago. What are some of you all's opinions on cooling the wort? do you run it through a ice bath or let it cool on its own or what?

 

[larrydcarter]

Right now I use an immersion chiller. But an ice bath of counter flow chiller both work well. You want to cool the wort rapidly to facilitate a cold break. It causes a permanent change in the chemical profile of some of the proteins in the wort. This change makes them not want to stay in solution. The overall effect is that you get a clearer beer with less chili haze and a longer shelf life.

 

[TexanRudeboy]

I'm an extract, partial boil brewer. I cool my wort in my sink with a few changes of ice water. Usually takes 30-40 min to get it under 80. Then I strain and mix with cold bottled water. It usually ends up at 60 when I pitch.
That being said my beers have a definite chill haze that clears as the glass warms slightly, so I guess its not chilling fast enough.
I'd read that cooling quickly isn't as much of a concern for extract brewers so I'm waiting till I go all grain (sometime next year as I accumulate equipment) before making a wort chiller.
My, admittedly limited, 2 cents.

 

[comicsandbeer83]

by the way, i failed to mention that by letting it cool over night, i mean i poured 3 gallons of cold water in my fermenter, then the hot wort, which i then sealed so it would cool faster.

 

[BigFloyd]

by the way, i failed to mention that by letting it cool over night, i mean i poured 3 gallons of cold water in my fermenter, then the hot wort, which i then sealed so it would cool faster.

Since you're doing a partial boil with top off, you can chill pretty quickly and easily. Have those jugs of top off water already chilled to just above freezing. Cool the kettle of wort in an ice bath in the sink until it hits about 85*F. Combine it and the cold water in the fermenter. It ought to end up around 60*F which is an ideal temp for pitching most ale yeast.

 

[jtratcliff]

I typically do overnight chills as well. I dont usually have overly hazy final product.

Take a look at the "no-chill" method for some testimonials for clarity.

You do get cold break with slow chill, it's just that the protein chains are smaller so the break material is more fine.

My slow-chill method works for me. But if could've gotten in on that home depot copper tubing clearance,I would be using an immersion or counter flow chiller on my next brew.