Hangovers and fermentation temperature

[SlitheryDee]

So I've noticed that since I built my fermentation chamber, not only has my beer been better, but I've experienced a sharp decline in the frequency and intensity of any hangovers I've had. Homebrew hangovers seems to potentially swing to the two extremes. They can be worse than anything you've ever experienced with commercial products. (see this thread I posted almost 2 months ago), or they can be mysteriously absent despite having every reason to be there.

That last one I experienced last weekend. I woke up early to brew last sunday, got everything in the kettle and cracked my first beer (Biermuncher's cream of three crops @ 6% ABV) at about 10:00 A.M. Over the course of the next few hours I ended up drinking around 12 of those. I slept through the night uneventfully and woke up the next morning feeling a little tired maybe, but really no worse for wear. That beer was fermented at around 60F and was generally clean tasting and quite crushable. It was probably the least bad I've ever felt from drinking 10 or more beers. The contrast from my earlier experience with the wheat beer that was fermented at room temperature is even more stark when you consider that it was much lower in ABV and I drank fewer of them.

The only way I can account for this is the fermentation conditions. It really REALLY made a huge difference I think. Anyone else notice anything like this when they switched to temperature controlled fermentations?

 

[corkybstewart]

Fusel alcohols are created at high fermentation temps, and fusels are famous for head pounding hangovers. Lowering the fermentation temp won't prevent hangovers completely, but it will help remove one of the worst contributors. I've always told people that the single best thing I ever did to improve my beer was to control fermentation temperatures.

 

[pursuit0fhoppiness]

I can't say I drink 12 beers starting at 10am too often anymore lol but interesting theory

 

[Jhu1321]

If I drank 12 6% beers I'm not sure I would wake up regardless of fermentation temp.

 

[SlitheryDee]

I can't say I drink 12 beers starting at 10am too often anymore lol but interesting theory

Yeah it was a rare day for me too. I was quite pickled by the end. The weather was beautiful though and I must say I had a pretty good time puttering around my back yard sloshed. I did take care to have a bottle of water every now and then, which might have made more of a difference than I think, but at that level of consumption I expected some consequences.

 

[seatazzz]

I've "drunk brewed" a couple of times...most notably one day when I fell asleep during the boil and boiled off a LOT more than I intended. Last brew day it was coffee & energy drink until the boil was done, THEN I got hammered. Not as much fun.

 

[corkybstewart]

I've "drunk brewed" a couple of times...most notably one day when I fell asleep during the boil and boiled off a LOT more than I intended. Last brew day it was coffee & energy drink until the boil was done, THEN I got hammered. Not as much fun.

As the safety dude at our company I look at brewing as one potential disaster afte another so I am ALWAYS sober when I brew. I may have a beer with lunch if the timing is right, but usually not. I have 2 or 3 propane burners going, 30 pounds of wet mash at 155F and a hot liquor tank going, or 12 gallons of boiling syrup, all on a stand with hoses and cords all around. I've brewed for 25 years now without so much as a minor burn, I plan to keep it that way. When the wort is in the fermenter and clean up starts it's time to enjoy a homebrew, not before.

 

[b-boy]

I've "drunk brewed" a couple of times...most notably one day when I fell asleep during the boil and boiled off a LOT more than I intended. Last brew day it was coffee & energy drink until the boil was done, THEN I got hammered. Not as much fun.

My standing rule is no drinking until the boil has started. That works pretty well.

 

[SlitheryDee]

My standing rule is no drinking until the boil has started. That works pretty well.

Well that's what I did too. Seemed pretty safe. All I had to do during the boil was put the bittering hops in and wait. I was sober during the prep and mash, but I was starting to feel it when it came time to cool the wort. It was such a nice day I just kept going lol.

 

[Clef051]

My standing rule is no drinking until the boil has started. That works pretty well.

That is usually when I have one, I generally start in the morning so I'm drinking coffee. Then I may have a beer when the boil starts, then one when I'm cleaning up at the end.

I've had a few too many sessions when I've had too many. It just leads to problems. Usually its just missing hop additions.

 

[seatazzz]

All good points. I've got a good loud timer so now missing the hop additions is negligible, also learned my lesson about drinking while brewing. And broke that rule today, as I needed to keg my IPA and needed to kill a keg in order to do so. Only got 2 glasses of my scotch ale out of it so not drunk, but happy.

 

[treacheroustexan]

Today I cracked a 10% stout while heating my strike water. Followed that with quite a few homebrews and the beer is currently chilling. Light weights

 

[Brownalemikie]

At 64 years of age, my 12 pack days are pretty much over but I do have a HB when I start clean-up on brew day.....which is about 2 in the afternoon. Another thing I've learned over many years of drinking beer is to space them about an hour apart. I usually drink 3-4 beers per day on weekdays and sometime 6 on the weekend, but seldom get hammered. I kinda like the constant mild buzz rather than stumbling drunk

 

[Brownalemikie]

Oh yeah...and I don't remember my last hangover. Must be at least 10 years ago

 

[kh54s10]

I don't find any difference in hangovers with homebrew or commercial, but I have temperature controlled my fermentation from the very first one.

I usually only drink a beer or maybe two when brewing. One time I was brewing with a friend. The last thing I remember was that he had to leave when the boil started. I woke up in the morning and wondered if I had even pitched the yeast. Looking around, everything was cleaned up, the beer was in the fermenter already starting..... No hang over though even though I drank enough to go blank!!!!

 

[treacheroustexan]

Today I cracked a 10% stout while heating my strike water. Followed that with quite a few homebrews and the beer is currently chilling. Light weights

Next day update... I regret this decision.

 

[xwass]

Hefes are my favorite style, but my stomach and head feel like hell when I have them so I avoid now (probably the wheat as I have problems with bread, etc. also). If you have issues with yeast unfiltered styles like a Hefe may affect you more despite the relatively low ABV. Hopefully that is not the case and it was just a fermentation issue :0