Correct Fermentation Temp?

[Majikcook]

Is 72 degrees OK for dry yeast fermentation? I live in a basement-less house and have turned my guest bath into a brew pub much to my wifes enjoyment.
I have heard that wet yeast is better than dry, but needs to ferment at 60 - 68 degrees. Would really work on the wife if I lowerd the heat... Wondering if that is what may have happened to my first batch, fermented too warm...
I think I'll pick up the Joy of Brewing and figure this out..

 

[smorris]

I often brew in the 72-74 range, just then zen of Florida brewing, and it seems to work ok.

 

[rightwingnut]

Yeah, I think you want it in the mid-seventies, sixties being a bit low, causing slower fermentation.

 

[zprime]

It all really depends.... My last batch was the yeast packet suggested 70-75 deg, but I went at 65 because I have a little wine fridge that I use for at least primary fermentation. Well it was the longest running most active fermentation that I've ever had. I had blowoff for 10 days then good suds for another 6....what a mess. I racked to my secondary yesterday and tried some....boy was I surprised, there was a little burn when I sampled it, the kit was for a Scottish Wee Heavy the "strongest" kit that my local hbs made. Anyway I guess what I'm trying to say is find what works for you, everyones tastes are different, just poke and prod until you find what makes beers you like.

 

[NUCC98]

It all really depends.... My last batch was the yeast packet suggested 70-75 deg, but I went at 65 because I have a little wine fridge that I use for at least primary fermentation. Well it was the longest running most active fermentation that I've ever had. I had blowoff for 10 days then good suds for another 6....what a mess. I racked to my secondary yesterday and tried some....boy was I surprised, there was a little burn when I sampled it, the kit was for a Scottish Wee Heavy the "strongest" kit that my local hbs made. Anyway I guess what I'm trying to say is find what works for you, everyones tastes are different, just poke and prod until you find what makes beers you like.

That actually makes me wonder......if you're fermenting a stonger brew that you know is going to be a blowoff nightmare....could you lower the temp of the wort to a bare minimum to reduce the hyperactivity of the yeast? I know it'd take longer, but it might save some headaches...any thoughts?

 

[Janx]

You don't need to worry about the temp of the ferment quite so much. It will tolerate a very wide range of temperatures. You can use liquid yeast in the 70s. In the summer, my brews are sometimes in the 90s. In the winter, it's sometimes the 50s. It will go faster or slower, maybe generate some different flavors, but it always works out and is good.

And yeah, you could control a blowoff by lowering the temp, but I'd really recommend you just get a large enough primary instead of using the blowoff technique.

 

[zprime]

I didn't realize this when I started the batch, but the carboy was only 5 gallons and not 6 like the box was labelled.....sigh. I bought a 6 gallon "Better Bottle" with the racking attachement for my new primary. I used to use a 7 gallon "Ale Pail" for my primary but everything ended up with off flavors. The "Better Bottle" seemed okay on this first batch, the question is how will it do on the next couple of hundred

 

[Uncle Fat]

The only thing to really consider about temp is that yeast work much faster toward the higher end of their temp range. This produces more fruity esters in the beer than a cooler, slower fermentation (that's why ales are generally fruitier than lagers to begin with). Whether this matters really depends on your taste. A very fast fermentation can result in what's often called the (homebrew desease). Meaning that when you taste it, you say "wow... that's a good beer....for a homebrew".