15 degree temp change

[remuS]

This is my first batch of beer, and I put the wort into the fermentation bucket on Sunday. Temps were at approximatly 74 at this time. Yesterday morning (Monday) I noticed they were then at 80 or above. What I did was went and bought a rubber bucket and put the fermentation bucket in there with some water and ice. I must have added too much ice as I noticed the temps were then down to approximatly 58. Will that ~20 degree change effect the brew? I wouldn't say the change was rapid, but it did take place in about an hour.

The airlock was really working when temps were at about 80, and now temps are around 68, and bubbles form every 10 seconds or so.

What are some thoughs?

 

[Yooper]

This is my first batch of beer, and I put the wort into the fermentation bucket on Sunday. Temps were at approximatly 74 at this time. Yesterday morning (Monday) I noticed they were then at 80 or above. What I did was went and bought a rubber bucket and put the fermentation bucket in there with some water and ice. I must have added too much ice as I noticed the temps were then down to approximatly 58. Will that ~20 degree change effect the brew? I wouldn't say the change was rapid, but it did take place in about an hour.

The airlock was really working when temps were at about 80, and now temps are around 68, and bubbles form every 10 seconds or so.

What are some thoughs?

68 degrees is perfect! I assume that's the temperature of the fermenter, not the air temperature.

It takes a long time for the beer to change temperature, so it probably didn't fluctuate very quickly at all. Fermenting at over 75 degrees may cause some off-flavors, but it doesn't seem like it was up there very long. It should be ok.

 

[SmugMug]

RDWHAHB

You should be good. Just let it ride and take hydro samples after a week or so.

 

[davesrose]

It really depends on the yeast strain. Ale yeasts are going to ferment very slowly at 58 degrees. 80 is too high of a temp for fermenting, but that does encourage a fast ferment (and give off off flavors). Yeasts are dynamic, living organisms that are very hard to kill. They just are particular about what kind of environment lets them eat and process the wort in an effecient manor (too low of a temperature, and they are very slow or even go to sleep....too high of a temperature, and they like to binge). If you're keeping the actual wort 68 degrees, that's a pretty good temperature to stay at. But bare in mind that the wort itself is a higher temp than your ambient temperatures: make sure you're measuring its temp.

 

[carnevoodoo]

68 degrees is perfect! I assume that's the temperature of the fermenter, not the air temperature.

It takes a long time for the beer to change temperature, so it probably didn't fluctuate very quickly at all. Fermenting at over 75 degrees may cause some off-flavors, but it doesn't seem like it was up there very long. It should be ok.

I'm going to disagree a little here. If your beer was at 74 on Sunday and got up to 80+ on Monday, the initial stages of fermentation were far too hot. You will likely get some fusel alcohols from this.

I also think a 20 degree change in an hour is going to shock the yeast a bit, but I'd say this will have less of an effect on your fermentation. If anything, I'd think it would stop short of your expected final gravity, but with the heat in the first part of the fermentation, you might have already fermented a good amount of the sugars.

Despite all that, I am sure it'll be ok. You will just get to understand some of the off flavors present in beer. I'll bet it is still drinkable though.

 

[remuS]

The temperatures were measured from the adhesive thermometer placed on the fermenation bucket. I've read that those are off by a few degrees. So my batch isn't ruined because of the high temps for ~10 hours, but may display some off flavors judging from your comments.

Thanks for the feedback.

 

[kejsport]

There would be a variance if you did two batches, but it should still ferment. I don't know how much of a beer taste expert you are, but most people shouldn't know the difference.

 

[Yooper]

The temperatures were measured from the adhesive thermometer placed on the fermenation bucket. I've read that those are off by a few degrees. So my batch isn't ruined because of the high temps for ~10 hours, but may display some off flavors judging from your comments.

Thanks for the feedback.

Correct- that's exactly what we're saying. During active fermentation, it's very common for the temperature to go up, since fermentation produces heat. You may well notice some fruity flavors (esters) or even a "hot" taste (fusels). It definitely isn't ruined.

Some yeast strains are more forgiving than others, too. Some, like northwest ale yeast, do fine up to 75 degrees. Some, like Nottingham, taste pretty bad over about 72 degrees. So, there are some variables here. Depending on the recipe, and the amount of fermentation that happened at those high temperatures, there could be some very mild off-flavors, or it could be much more noticeable.

Next batch, cool it to the mid-60s if you can before pitching the yeast, and try to keep the fermentation temperature stable. You'll notice a "cleaner" tasting ale.

 

[Captain_Bigelow]

How about secondary? After a week or two when you transfer to secondary, do you still need a swamp cooler? Or does the temperature not matter, as in bottle conditioning.

 

[davesrose]

How about secondary? After a week or two when you transfer to secondary, do you still need a swamp cooler? Or does the temperature not matter, as in bottle conditioning.

By that point, the yeast have gone through their active fermentation. They're already spent and just want to sleep because there's no more food to eat! So yes, as long as you're sure fermentation has stopped, then you don't have to worry as much about exact temperatures.