Lost Power

[Scott Kellen]

So I was day 6 into fermentation of a Belgian Ale and we lost power (heat) at the house for about 11 hours. The house temp dropped from 68 to 41 degrees during that time. It went back up to 68 fairly quickly once we were restored.

Is my batch a lost cause?

I'm a new home brewer so I'm trying to figure out what to do next?

 

[S-Met]

Everything is fine. If it were day 1 and you just pitched yeast I would keep a close eye for signs of fermentation but as long as you had an active fermentation, you should be fine. Most likely, your beer has been done since day 3-4 and its just doing cleanup at this point. I'd take a gravity sample and a taste-test.

 

[khannon]

Lost cause, package it up and ship it to an "expert" for disposal. I can send you my address if needed...

Or proceed as you intended and enjoy your beer.

 

[Dgallo]

As stated previously, as long as your pitchrate was correct you finished fermenting already. Nothing to worry about

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

It would be more problematic to get too warm. Cheers!

 

[jrgtr42]

Nothing to worry about. The thermal mass in the fermenter is enough to keep the beer from cooling more than a few degrees in that (relatively) short amount of time.
One apartment I lived in had a temperMENTAL heating system. It would go off randomly when I wasn't home (I lived there for 5+ years, and never once did it go off when I was there.)
I went away for the weekend one winter, had a batch going, it was second or third day.
I estimate that within about 10 minutes of my going out the door the heater went off.
When I got back Sunday night, it was about 40 degrees in the place, possibly even colder (wasn't freezing)
I turned the heat on, and my morning it was happily chugging away.
Keep in mind I had an ale pail, nothing fancy.

I'd be more inclined to worry about the insulation in your house than the beer.

 

[Kickass]

PG&E or SoCal Edison customer in CA?

I’ve been without power four of the last five days. I currently have the small generator powering the fridge and my yeast stir plate, and nothing else.

 

[Scott Kellen]

Much thanks.

 

[Scott Kellen]

Like your sense of humor. Lol.

 

[Scott Kellen]

It's a log cabin in the mountains so my ceiling is well insulated. The walls are 9in logs.

My mountain spring water has been the secret to my beers. I appreciate the knowledge as I'm learning and crafting.