Direct sunlight??

[Stellarstar]

Hello I was wondering having my brew wart in sunlight will it do any damage other than the temp been higher? Eg cloudy beer.

 

[HibsMax]

Everything I have read says to keep it out of the sunlight. Apart from anything else, direct sunlight will / could make temperature control a little iffy.

 

[BrewKnurd]

Skunky beer is a downside. Unless you like that kind of thing.

 

[stonewall86]

I have wondered this too. I have always read that it should be in the dark. I was watching "Beer Wars" the other day and I noticed that when they were interviewing the owner of Dogfish Head at his house he had a carboy sitting on the window sill. Maybe it's a certain type of beer?

 

[Homercidal]

Skunkiness comes from the hops, which is in the wort. However, unless I'm mistaken, it requires a bit of yeast to convert the hop compound into something the light can make skunk aroma out of.

At any rate, it's so darn easy to keep beer and wort out of sunlight. Just cover it with some towels, or some black VH T shirts, like I do...

 

[ATXweirdobrew]

From what I understand irect sunlight isnt the best while brewing but it is ALOT worse when you let your beer sit in the sunlight while carbing in the bottles or if you store your bottles in sunlight. The sunlight reacts with the hops oils in the beer to cause a chemical reaction that causes the skunkiness property of the beer to appear. Overall, gold rule is to keep it out of the light as best as possible. If you cannot do this then get yourself a big towel and cover the carboy with that or ferment in plastic bottling buckets.

 

[BrewKnurd]

I have wondered this too. I have always read that it should be in the dark. I was watching "Beer Wars" the other day and I noticed that when they were interviewing the owner of Dogfish Head at his house he had a carboy sitting on the window sill. Maybe it's a certain type of beer?

Its also possible that was just for visual effect during the shoot.

 

[brew2enjoy]

I have wondered this too. I have always read that it should be in the dark. I was watching "Beer Wars" the other day and I noticed that when they were interviewing the owner of Dogfish Head at his house he had a carboy sitting on the window sill. Maybe it's a certain type of beer?

I read an interview with Sam and he said he is asked about that constantly lol. It was just put up there for the shoot.

 

[Reno_eNVy]

I read an interview with Sam and he said he is asked about that constantly lol. It was just put up there for the shoot.

That's what I figured. It's a good shot and the benefits of the exposure (television) probably outweigh the negatives of exposure (to direct sunlight.)

 

[Calichusetts]

Skunkiness comes from the hops, which is in the wort. However, unless I'm mistaken, it requires a bit of yeast to convert the hop compound into something the light can make skunk aroma out of.

At any rate, it's so darn easy to keep beer and wort out of sunlight. Just cover it with some towels, or some black VH T shirts, like I do...

I don't think the yeast has anything to do with the hop oils...once you boil, they are out and can be skunked. It is a bit of a mystery how wort in the sun for extended periods of time hardly skunks while a beer can in minutes.

 

[Homercidal]

I don't think the yeast has anything to do with the hop oils...once you boil, they are out and can be skunked. It is a bit of a mystery how wort in the sun for extended periods of time hardly skunks while a beer can in minutes.

Yeah, after a few minutes of refreshing my memory online, it was the boil that I recall did the trick. The isomerization of the hop compounds, not the alcohol.

 

[stonewall86]

Oh ya brew2enjoy, that makes sense. I thought there was some great brewing wisdom I was missing out on when I saw that!

 

[unionrdr]

What actually happens is the UV spectrum of sunlight or neon reacts with the lupulin oils molecules to make what is about the same as skunk spray. Wish I'd have saved that youtube video about it,but the favorites function on there only started working again last week.