Bottling in Florida, need advice

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TheZarge

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Hi! I'm bottling my first 5gal batch of MLT extract ale tonight-woohoo! I just moved to Florida from Minnesota so this weather is all new for me. The recommended temperature to keep the beer at is between 60-70 degrees. We do not have a second fridge. What recommendations might you all have to help out this newbie on making sure the beer that gets bottled doesn't go bad! Thank you for your help!
 
freisste is right. Just bottle it and store it in the closet for about 3 weeks. Then put in the refrigerator for a few days and your all set.
 
Fantastic! Thanks so much! Bottling went well tonight. We filled 48 12-oz bottles but lost two to the cap crimping device-oops! Looking forward to learning more here, both in Florida and in the homebrewing realm! We appreciate your help!
 
Does Florida get sort of warm in the Spring? You may need a swamp cooler to keep fermentation temperatures down for your next brew.
 
flars said:
Does Florida get sort of warm in the Spring? You may need a swamp cooler to keep fermentation temperatures down for your next brew.

Warmer than Wisconsin. I would guess most (if not all) of Florida has been experiencing 80* days pretty frequently already this year.
 
Sounds just like SoCal. 53F or so at night,chilly. By 8:30 something AM,it was 89F already..in November! You'll def need a cooler of some kind for fermentation,but the bottles will be fine in a dark place. Ferment yeast temps do not have the same effect parameters when bottled.
 
I'm from florida as well. for my first few batches, i fermented a bit hot, then started lowering hte A/C during fermentation. SWMBO didn't like that idea much. So i finally bought a small chest freezer for $50 on craigslist and a temp controller. beer has been much better since.

as far as bottling goes, i have had no problem conditioning at 75-80, depending on what the A/C is set to...
 
Agreed. Welcome to FL. Where are you in FL BTW?

We've already got temperatures here near Jacksonville in the low 80's. Fermentation temperature control is a necessity in our state in just about every month. I tell people that don't live here that we only have two weather seasons: February and hot.

Swamp coolers are cheap but they're like putting a band aid on a gash that needs stitches. You'll be much happier and produce much better quality beer if you invest in a cheap chest freezer and power it with an external temperature controller. It doesn't have to be pretty. Mine sits in my garage and I can basically dial in the temperature I need, put the wort in it and forget about it for three weeks or so until the primary fermentation is done.

Without one, all of your beers are going to turn out Belgian-style: Tons of banana, clove and other phelonics typical of hot weather stressed out yeast.
 
I guess many folks forget that Florida is in the Northern Tropical Zone. So heat is always going to be an issue. the freezer with controller would then be the most viable option.
 
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