Effect of too warm a fermentation?

[BarneyBrews]

Hi folks, I am a complete beginner and my brother got me a brew kit ft my 30th, with an ingredients kits for a Youngster American Pale Ale. I got it all started 4 days ago and left it to ferment, the temperature has been a pretty stead 22/23 Celsius which I gather is fine, but we're having a rare warm spell here in Ireland and this afternoon it's at 26 Celsius, will this have a bad effect on my brew?

Also, there has been zero bubbling at the airlock in 4 days, is this a bad sign or even a sign that it could be doing better?

Thanks in advance for your comments [emoji106][emoji482]

 

[stickyfinger]

depends on the yeast. now that it is likely almost done, the higher temp is probably not a big deal at all. i'd be more concerned about the 22/23 C for a primary. some yeasts that works, some will give off-flavors. take a sample

 

[Pariah3j]

depends on the yeast. now that it is likely almost done, the higher temp is probably not a big deal at all. i'd be more concerned about the 22/23 C for a primary. some yeasts that works, some will give off-flavors. take a sample

+1 to what Sticky said - if you know what yeast you used, look it up online, you should be able to find the 'preferred' temperature range for that particular yeast. And my understanding as well is that a few degrees higher after the Krausen(the foamy head that forms early during the fermentation) has fallen shouldn't be an issue, its much more important during the initial period.

Also the airlock isn't an indication of fermentation. The bubbling is caused by when there is enough gas/pressure difference as C02 is created by the yeast. This generally stops or significantly slows down after the first few days, but the yeast may not be done yet, a gravity reading it the most accurate way to know that.

 

[henchman24]

Depends on the yeast... 22 ambient probably means ~23-24 peak during fermentation. At that temp I would expect some off flavors with most yeasts. But from my experience, once the first few days are done (really most of the fermentation) the temp can rise without off flavors.

 

[Bosh]

REALLY depends on the yeast, wouldn't worry about it if it got really hot after fermentation is done.

 

[BarneyBrews]

Thanks guys, the kit came with US West Coast yeast, I looked it up and saw that west coast yeast temp should be 'over 17 Celsius'... So I'm concerned this first brew won't be a success! However in the kit instructions the desired temp is between 20 a 24! Is there anything I can do to keep the average temp down in future? Can I use a different yeast and still produce an American style pale ale, as I'm really into them at the moment. (As you can tell I am an complete noob...)

 

[canehdianman]

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=199965

 

[BarneyBrews]

Thanks canehdianman, by the sounds of it higher temp isn't just as much of an issue for an ale yeast.

Please can someone also clarify for me - stickyfinger mentioned above that it is probably almost done by now, however according to instructions I have to keep in the FV for 15 days, then add the hops and bottle a couple of days after. What is the purpose of the 11 days or so in the FV after fermentation has done??

Apologies for the amateurish questions!

 

[stickyfinger]

You'll soon realize that directions are meant as a catch-all. Once you have a feel for your process, you can modify times, temps, everything really. I'd let it sit 10 days and then sample. if it tastes good, bottle. if it tastes bad, you can leave longer in the hope it will clean up. don't let it sit for more than 3-4 weeks or you can start getting off-flavors.

 

[BarneyBrews]

That's good advice stickyfinger, will play this one by ear and see how it turns out. Cheers [emoji482]

 

[Sadu]

My first beer I screwed up the temp controller and it rose to 28c overnight on day 2 or so - exactly the time when you don't want it to rise like that. The beer came out ok, totally drinkable, I was pretty happy.

Just set your expectations accordingly for your first brew - I'm sure some people make amazing beer on the first try, I didn't, but it definitely gets better and better with experience.

 

[thekraken]

I'm concerned this first brew won't be a success!

You brewed. You made beer. Success in my book!

 

[henchman24]

Sounds like it is just chico yeast. The beer should easily be drinkable, but it will have some esters from that temperature. Some of it might age out, some won't. I'd definitely keep the batch though.

The idea of keeping the beer on the yeast after fermentation is for the yeast to clean up after itself. They will go through some compounds that have some undesirable flavors.

Looking back, my first batch came out drinkable, but not good. You learn from these things and your beer improves pretty quickly.

 

[BarneyBrews]

Guys thanks a million for the comments & advice - very excited to see how this turns out and look forward to the brews improving with each batch as I learn along the way! [emoji482]

 

[shanecb]

Guys thanks a million for the comments & advice - very excited to see how this turns out and look forward to the brews improving with each batch as I learn along the way! [emoji482]

For sure! Since this is your first brew, just have fun with it and not worry too much. If you follow the directions, you should have a reasonably nice beer, and you'll only improve from here!