Conditioning and cold crash

[paparker21]

I think im suffering information overload; done lots of reading on various topics over the past couple days and just want to make sure i've not gotten anything twisted. Also, i'm drinking and don't want to goof up over something stupid:

Primary fermentation
Secondary
Conditioning
Cold Crash
Keg


yes? or does it matter if i cold crash before conditioning?

I use an empty fridge as a fermentation chamber and will simply plug it in when i'm ready to cold crash. I had a week in primary, it's had about two weeks in secondary now, and i was going to go ahead and cold crash it (pending a good final gravity check). The beer is good and clear and i can see a thin layer of floculated yeast at bottom.

 

[Cimerian]

What are you calling conditioning?

 

[maffewl]

Yes... you are correct in your process, even though you could skip the secondary unless you are adding fruit, oaking, freeing up a primary, etc.

Also, you can condition in the keg... so I would skip that too. I would just leave in the primary for 3 to 4 weeks, then cold crash, then rack to keg, then condition in the keg while set and forget carbing.

Cimerian, noticed you were from TN. You should drop over to this thread:

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f45/misfits-brewing-science-248791/

It's the TN brewers thread.

 

[Yooper]

I think im suffering information overload; done lots of reading on various topics over the past couple days and just want to make sure i've not gotten anything twisted. Also, i'm drinking and don't want to goof up over something stupid:

Primary fermentation
Secondary
Conditioning
Cold Crash
Keg


yes? or does it matter if i cold crash before conditioning?

I use an empty fridge as a fermentation chamber and will simply plug it in when i'm ready to cold crash. I had a week in primary, it's had about two weeks in secondary now, and i was going to go ahead and cold crash it (pending a good final gravity check). The beer is good and clear and i can see a thin layer of floculated yeast at bottom.

Those phases you have listed overlap. A beer will condition in the clearing vessel ("secondary") or in the keg, and will clear during the cold crash and in the keg and in the clearing vessel.

For most beers, I do this:

Fermenter (14 days or so)
Keg

In the fermenter, the beer will clear quite a bit, negating the need for a "secondary" (more properly called a "bright tank" or clearing vessel). I can put the keg in the kegerator, so I can cold crash it. It will clear in the keg.

If a beer needs more time, and isn't ready to be cold (as beer ages faster at warm temperatures) you can hold the keg out of the cold kegerator until you think it's ready to be cold.

 

[Sno4Life]

If you cold crash in the keg, doesn't the first glass or two have an unsavory amount of yeast in it?