Kolsch Help Needed

[henrik]

Hoping someone can help with a Kolsch question or two. I brewed a Kolsch about 12 days ago. Been fermenting (luckily with blow-off tube attached…it is MESSY yeast!) in the primary at approx 60-62 degrees F in my crawl space. When I check out the carboy I can still see yeast falling. The blow-off tube is producing a bubble approx once every 17-18 seconds. Because of how messy the yeast was, everything above beer level is “painted” with krausen inside and I cannot see the top of the beer to see how much the krausen has settled/disappeared. I’ve normally moved beers to secondary when the bubbling is closer to once every 60-90 seconds, but in past beers that’s only taken about a week or so to accomplish (presumably because the fermentation has been faster at the 70ish degrees F room temperatures?)

Sooo….do you think this is ready to rack into secondary? Also, do I need to take it out of the crawl space a day or so before racking to secondary so anything I stir up while moving the carboy high enough to siphon has a chance to settle again before I transfer to the secondary?

Thanks for any help!

 

[duboman]

Unless you need to free up the the primary there is really no need to go to secondary vessel. Kolsch yeast is slow to flocculate so the longer you leave it the better it will clear out. IMO-3 weeks.

If want to move it then you need to take 2 gravity readings a couple days apart, if there is no change in the readings then fermentation is complete and you can rack it over.

You should never move a beer out of primary without verifying complete fermentation. Airlock activity means nothing.

 

[henrik]

Is that true even if I plan to "lager" it a bit longer than 3 weeks in the crawl space? I was thinking approx 4-5 weeks total before bottling to let it clear as much as possible. I've heard that letting a beer sit that long on the yeast cake can allow it to pick up off-flavors. Thoughts?

 

[zeus53219]

Your yeast cake question is a whole new thread, I'm not touching that one. Assuming you are using a kolsch yeast, this strain is a true top cropping yeast strain. This yeast will remain in suspension post fermentation so just by look is not a real indication if fermentation is finished. The neat thing about this yeast is that it has a huge temperature range 55-70 F, but the lower you go usually the longer the fermentation. I let mine sit about 3-4 weeks @58-62 F, then I will cold crash in the secondary for 2 weeks @46 F.

 

[duboman]

your yeast cake question is a whole new thread, i'm not touching that one. Assuming you are using a kolsch yeast, this strain is a true top cropping yeast strain. This yeast will remain in suspension post fermentation so just by look is not a real indication if fermentation is finished. The neat thing about this yeast is that it has a huge temperature range 55-70 f, but the lower you go usually the longer the fermentation. I let mine sit about 3-4 weeks @58-62 f, then i will cold crash in the secondary for 2 weeks @46 f.

+1

 

[henrik]

Ok, so I've now had this Kolsch in primary for 3 weeks at approx 60-62 degrees. I'd like to rack it to secondary this weekend (and then store for another 2-3 weeks at the same temps). After 3 weeks of primary do I really need to do a two time check of the gravity separated by a couple days to be sure fermentation is complete? Or can I assume that after 3 weeks at the temp range described above that I should be good to go and just grab a final gravity reading to calculate abv against my original gravity?

Another question or two...right now I have the carboy sitting in my crawl space to get those cooler temps. I obviously can't rack into secondary from there since it is literally the lowest place in my house, so I'll have to move it out of there before racking. How long do you think I'll need to wait after moving it to let anything I stir up settle again before racking? I was thinking that since we're having some chilly nights still, I could move it out of the crawl space at night to a table outside in the cooler temps (approx 45 at night right now)...keep it on the shady side of the house and cover it up just in case for light protection and then rack it to the secondary about 10-12 hours later the next morning before it warms up...throw the secondary back in the crawl space. Any issues with that?

 

[14thstreet]

I'd do a gravity check. Taste your beer as it comes along, no harm in that. Just be sanitary about it. If you are worried about stirring up what's settled, I'd bring it out and let sit for a day or two. You'll be racking to a secondary and leaving it for another several weeks, so anything that transfers will settle out anyway.

I personally do not secondary and do not mind any extra 'stuff' in bottles I condition - I'll get yeast on the bottom anyway. You could save yourself the extra worry, work and time by just going ahead and bottling the batch. Carbonate as usual and then fridge the batch. Bottles will clear in time and you'll be drinking it sooner. Otherwise, there really is no issue with your plan as is, it just seems like a lot of fuss for something that may not really matter in the end.