Chilling wort overnight

[heywatchthis]

With temps high right now, will it hurt anything to rack my wort to the carboy, leave the carboy in the fermentation fridge overnight and pitch the yeast in the morning?

:rockin:

 

[cervezarara]

As long as your sanitation is good and you seal the carboy, there shouldn't be any problem. If you use an airlock to seal off the wort, be advised that you will have suck back, due to the cooling of the wort. You can use cheap vodka or similar in the airlock so the wort doesn't get contaminated.

This is done all the time, actually, with no ill effect.

 

[heywatchthis]

I always use cheap vodka in my airlocks. I suspected that people that brew in the summer in 45/50 states have run into this issue. Thanks for the quick reply!

 

[bdupree]

boiling hot wort will crack a glass carboy and will melt a better bottle. Just be careful with that.

 

[Revvy]

If you want to do that, which is what no chill brewers use, you can't really use a carboy or bb, and I'm not even sure a bucket would work. The way folks do it is dump their near boiling wort into a container and seal it and let it come down to pitching temp.

You can read about it here.

Aquatainers from walmart seem to be popular as vessel to do this in.

Part of the idea is that you rack it while it is still hot enough to be sterile into a container then seal it immediately and let a vacuum form in the container as it cools. This keeps it bug free until yeast pitch time.

 

[jeffmeh]

That's no-chill brewing, popularized by the Aussies. Let the wort cool to about 190F in the kettle, drain into a suitable container (a kettle valve is invaluable for this and is much safer than trying to dump hot wort). Seal and invert to let the hot wort sanitize the top. Turn right side up and let cool to pitching temp. I use Winpak 6 gallon containers.

 

[Beezy]

If you want to do that, which is what no chill brewers use, you can't really use a carboy or bb, and I'm not even sure a bucket would work. The way folks do it is dump their near boiling wort into a container and seal it and let it come down to pitching temp.

You can read about it here.

Aquatainers from walmart seem to be popular as vessel to do this in.

Part of the idea is that you rack it while it is still hot enough to be sterile into a container then seal it immediately and let a vacuum form in the container as it cools. This keeps it bug free until yeast pitch time.

I was looking to see if my wallyworld had those and they do but they also have these ones that are thin and tall and the plastic is thicker. 6 gall. I think I am going to make a chiller soon tho. I have heard people use these as fermenters but I don't like the idea of not being able to see anything. Even just cleaning is a bit of guess work.

 

[jeffmeh]

I was looking to see if my wallyworld had those and they do but they also have these ones that are thin and tall and the plastic is thicker. 6 gall. I think I am going to make a chiller soon tho. I have heard people use these as fermenters but I don't like the idea of not being able to see anything. Even just cleaning is a bit of guess work.

I ferment in the Winpaks. Hot oxyclean soak overnight and they are clean as a whistle. However, after it cools you could certainly rack to a carboy and pitch. I will do that every once in a while, particularly if I expect to brew again before fermentation is complete and I need to free up one of my 2 Winpaks.

 

[Catt22]

I regularly do overnight chilling prior to pitching the yeast. I simply use a plain stopper (no hole) to mitigate the suck back issue. A moderate suction forms as the wort and air contract, but my morning it's ready to aerate and pitch at just the right temperature. I always do this for my lagers, but also for ales in the warm months. No contamination issues to date.

 

[Boodlemania]

I too have to do this in the summers as our water runs in the mid-to-low 70's. Cool to about 80 with an immersion chiller, aerate for an hour, whirlpool and let sit for an hour, then rack into the carboy. I then put the carboy with a sanitized foil lid in the fermentation chamber and let it cool to pitching temps. I then pitch, slap on an airlock, and all is good.

That being said, I have never gone overnight. Yesterday, for example, I brewed a wheat which was done boiling at 1PM. Put in the carboy about 4PM, in the ferm chamber. Pitched about 8PM. Had a nice krausen this morning when I went to work at 6AM.

 

[Patirck]

I've chilled as best I can in 10 - 15 minutes and put the 90* - 130* wort in a bucket overnight with no ill effects. I have also re racked into a new bucket the next day so I end up with super clear wort. After sitting over night you will probably have more sediment on the bottom of the first bucket. You can use this without any harm but a few times when I wanted super bright beer, I just racked off of the trub to a new bucket and pitched the yeast. Another advantage of waiting to pitch is that you can put your starter in the ferm chamber next to the chilling wort and they will both be at the same temp when you do pitch the next day.

I wonder how the professionals do this step? I would seem to make sense to get the wort into a fermenter and then get the trub out before you pitch. If your business is to re use the yeast this saves you a lot of yeast washing.

 

[osagedr]

Does this method have any adverse consequences due to the lack of a cold break?

 

[Revvy]

Does this method have any adverse consequences due to the lack of a cold break?

There's a massive discussion thread on this topic, it was up earlier today. Just look for the Exploring no chill brewing thread to read about that, it was discussed quite thoroughly in there.

 

[horseinmay]

I do this, but I ferment in Corny kegs. They don't melt when filled with hot wort, and everything gets sanitized when they are filled. I let them sit out on the patio overnight, and pitch in the morning.

 

[osagedr]

There's a massive discussion thread on this topic, it was up earlier today. Just look for the Exploring no chill brewing thread to read about that, it was discussed quite thoroughly in there.

Right; after I asked the question I poked around a bit and stumbled across that thread.

 

[robtotten]

Patirck - A lot (most?) of pro brewers whirlpool their wort at the conclusion of the boil. This removes most of the break material and hop sludge before fermentation.

 

[Clementine]

In essence you are canning your wort just not getting to 250degF on 212 deg F before sealing. I can my starters and before opening them I always dunk them in sanistier so that vacuum does not suck in any nasties that might be grown on any wort on the lip of the container. I would use Alcohol or sanitation solution on the opening before cracking it in the morning.

 

[osagedr]

I've gone to a system where I chill it down with a wort chiller then leave it in the kettle for a couple of hours to let sludge settle out. For ales it gets right down to pitching temps and for lagers I pop the kettle into a lagering fridge until it chills down. Have started getting very clear wort into the fermenter then aerating with pure O2 through a 0.5 micron stone for 60 seconds.

 

[thughes]

If you want to do that, which is what no chill brewers use, you can't really use a carboy or bb, and I'm not even sure a bucket would work. The way folks do it is dump their near boiling wort into a container and seal it and let it come down to pitching temp.

You can read about it here.

Aquatainers from walmart seem to be popular as vessel to do this in.

Part of the idea is that you rack it while it is still hot enough to be sterile into a container then seal it immediately and let a vacuum form in the container as it cools. This keeps it bug free until yeast pitch time.

These things rock (and they're only @ $8.00 ea). I just drain the whole kettle into it and let it cool overnight (or a few days, or even a few weeks).

If you leave it on it's side so the drain spigot is in the proper position, you can then drain it straight into the primary and it'll leave the last .5 gallon (mostly break and hop pellet residue) in the container, giving you perfectly clear wort to pitch into.

 

[wolfman_48442]

This is also a great way to get into Real Wort Starters.
Just dump your desired amount of wort (normally 1600mL or so for me) into your flask, the rest goes into your wort container.
Put the flask into the fridge or freezer long enough to get it down to 70, and begin your starter. The 24 hours the wort takes to cool is enough time for me to get a great starter going on the stir plate.
I have no empirical evidence, but it makes sense to me to grow your yeast on the same wort it's about to see in the fermenter.
Plus, I don't have to worry about overflowing boiling dme onto the stove (not that that's ever happened )

 

[Patirck]

Patirck - A lot (most?) of pro brewers whirlpool their wort at the conclusion of the boil. This removes most of the break material and hop sludge before fermentation.

I whirlpool as well and perhaps it's just my amateur setup but after whirlpool and getting nice cone of trub and putting clear wort in the fermenter, if I take that fermenter and put it in the ferm chamber overnight, the next day there is still a layer of trub on the bottom. It seems to take overnight for solids to really settle out of the wort. I have (a few times) racked off of this layer of trub to another bucket and then pitched the yeast. This is the only way to get truly clear wort that I have found.

Sorry for the poor sentence structure!

In any case, I don't think it makes much difference but does allow you to harvest yeast that is in need of far less washing.

 

[HokieBrewer]

This is obviously mentioned in the No Chill thread, but for those that haven't read it - be sure to adjust your hopping rates considerably. Due to a chiller issue I had to go No Chill style on an IPA I made. This particular IPA had 4oz of late hop additions, and they were all high AA% hops. It was ridiculously bitter to the point of not being good.

 

[cadarnell]

These things rock (and they're only @ $8.00 ea). I just drain the whole kettle into it and let it cool overnight (or a few days, or even a few weeks).

If you leave it on it's side so the drain spigot is in the proper position, you can then drain it straight into the primary and it'll leave the last .5 gallon (mostly break and hop pellet residue) in the container, giving you perfectly clear wort to pitch into.

ok .. so I am going to buy one of these today and give no chill a go this weekend ... what's the best way to get the hot wort into it if I don't have a valve on my BK? ... do I really need to worry about HSA? ... could I pour it carefully in there with a funnel and a stainless pitcher?

 

[jfr1111]

ok .. so I am going to buy one of these today and give no chill a go this weekend ... what's the best way to get the hot wort into it if I don't have a valve on my BK? ... do I really need to worry about HSA? ... could I pour it carefully in there with a funnel and a stainless pitcher?

Stainless steel racking cane and silicone tubing.