How worried should I be?

[spiff2268]

I'm getting ready to bottle an IPA I brewed a couple weeks ago. Of course the next day after I brewed my AC went on the blink, meaning I had to turn it off when I went to work during the day. During that time the temperature in the house was getting up into the upper 70s during the day. Even got up to 80 once. How big an impact might this have?

I used Safale 05, btw.

 

[cyanmonkey]

Might get some fusels. Did you have a shorter fementation time than usual?

 

[spiff2268]

No, the fermentation time seemed to be normal, as did the activity level.

 

[spiff2268]

And what are "fusels"?

 

[DocScott]

Fusel alcohols. Taste and smell like rocket fuel. Give bad headaches and non drinkable beers. Happen at high fermentation temps. You can usually tell by smelling the beer. If it smells like rubbing alcohol, I'd probably dump. Hope it didn't happen to you! S05 at those temps is a bit worrisome

 

[kh54s10]

Fusels are harsh complex alcohols that come from hot fermentations. The beer will have a harsh alcoholic bite if they are present.

The high temps were not good. It really depends on how far along the fermentation got before the temperature rose and how high it went for how long.

Let it ride and hope for the best. I suspect it will not be as good as it could have been, but still a good beer.

 

[spiff2268]

Thanks, all! I'm getting ready to bottle right now, so I'll give it the ole smell test. Even if it's bad, though, I'll power through it. I ain't throwing out nothin'!!

 

[spiff2268]

Just smelled and tasted and I think I'm gonna be OK.

 

[mongoose33]

If that happens again, whomp up a swamp cooler. Put the fermenter in a pan of water (I use a foil Turkey pan from Dollar Tree), drape an old t-shirt over the fermenter and allow it to extend into the water. Pour water over the upper part of the t-shirt doing what you can to get the entire shirt wet.

This will cool down the fermenter. I use one in my basement where ambient is about 65 degrees, and without that the fermenting beer will get up to 70 or a bit higher. The swamp cooler knocks it back to 65.

You can also add frozen bottles of water to the pan in the morning when you leave to help keep things at a reasonable temperature.

 

[spiff2268]

Damn good advice! I'll keep that in mind if something like this happens again. Right now I'm sipping on some leftover that I tossed in the freezer before I took the dogs for a walk. Homebrew and Hokie football. Does it get any better?

 

[cyanmonkey]

I've had some luck with beers like smell 'fusel-y'. That is, they smelled very alcoholic when I racked to the keg and then turned out much better after some cold conditioning. Suspended yeast tend to give off some weird stuff, so, if you can taste it before it's had a chance to "become beer," you might have some luck by letting it settle. Unfortunately, there's not a whole lot you can do with fusel alchols regarding aging out off-flavors.

Things like glassware, carbonation, and serving temp will all effect flavor. The lower the carbonation, the less you'll be put off by fusels.

 

[55x11]

I'm getting ready to bottle an IPA I brewed a couple weeks ago. Of course the next day after I brewed my AC went on the blink, meaning I had to turn it off when I went to work during the day. During that time the temperature in the house was getting up into the upper 70s during the day. Even got up to 80 once. How big an impact might this have?

I used Safale 05, btw.

If you pitched at 65, say, and the temperature slowly went to 80 during the 8 hours and then back down to 65 again, chances are - your beer only went to 70 or 72 or so. It takes a long time to change the temperature of 5 Gallons of beer. That's why it takes so long to cool it down and so long to warm it up again.