No Chill Brewing

[BribieG]

I have yet to hear of any incidence of botulism from no chilling, after doing it for about 8 years so far. According to the Bureau of statistics botulism cases are less then one per year in Australia, and the fatality rate of botulism cases that do occur is around 5%
On the other hand, It is estimated there are five to ten deaths and over one hundred severe injuries caused by lightning strikes every year.
I'll take me chances ;-)

 

[HB_in_Subic]

Due to my locale, (the Sandbox), I have adopted this method as well without issue.
I do it even lazier, I just put my kettle (with lid and spigot) on a stone floor in my apartment, crank down the AC to 19C and leave overnight. I also put my Hydrometer and Thermometer in the hot wort as it sanitizes them due to the temperature.
The next day I take my gravity and temperature reading prior to aerating and pitching the yeast in my 7.9 gallon ferm. bucket.
Over 30 batches without any issues. I mostly brew Irish Reds, Belgians, Stouts, Porters and Saisons.

 

[Kelsey]

I've been using this method for a little over 4 years now without any problems other than one cube that blew out because of an infection, likely due to a dodgy tap seal. Other than that, no issues. I make either 21 or 25 litre size batches depending on which cubes I'm using. I don't make any real adjustments to hopping schedules, it's more that I've worked out hopping schedules that work best to give me the flavour I want in the beer. For pale ales I usually dump a fair load in at 5 or 10 minutes and at flameout, and make up any bitterness requirements with a 60 minute addition of something, plus a 40-50g dry hop later on.
I find the method very convenient because I can brew whenever I have some spare time without needing an empty fermenter available. This is extremely useful given I only use one fermenter and ferment in a fridge. It also has the advantage of being able to knock out 3 or 4 batches in as many days, negating the need to do any brew days for a couple of months, which I did last year to free up more weekends. Overall, really happy with the method and won't be changing in the near or longer term future i don't think.
Cheers

 

[rex clingan]

I have been brewing without chilling (really ambient chilling) for ~20 years. Overnight in a half barrel fermenter is usually adequate.
I have also done this when using glass carboys to ferment in, by first steaming them to avoid thermal shock.
Commercial wort chilling is about productivity and energy conservation.
Most arguments I have seen for counterflow chillers ignore the time the wort spends waiting hot for its turn in the rapid-cooling chiller.

 

[sikkingj]

Danny G -
DMS occurs from a boil that is not vigorous enough - meaning the DMS is already in the wort before you begin your "No Chill"phase of brewing. I believe a more vigorous boil - even for as little as 20-30 minutes - would cure this problem.
I hope this helps...

 

[sikkingj]

I've not noticed any difference. Having said this I rarely let my beers "No Chill" for more that 1-3 days, chilling in my boil pot with its lid on - no towel, clamps, etc. Occasionally the lid, which is indented, has a cup or two of water on it (when it rains).

 

[Siberian]

I'm curious if you've noticed any increase in Hop Utilization? Though maybe through the whirlpool most hop material is left behind in the kettle. The recent IBU experiment by the Experimental Brewing podcast showed a pretty huge variance in actual IBUs vs theoretical IBUs. Much of the difference seem to come down to chilling, those who chilled fast (like me) had far lower utilization then those who took well, a long time to chill.

 

[pacman]

Thanks for all the comments and responses. At the end of the day, it is up to each individual which processes they adopt.
Most questions have been answered by readers, and I am very appreciative of these inputs. I hope I don't come across as arrogant or smart assed if I mention that questions that have gone unanswered have been addressed in the original article. I am not a professional writer, so it may be necessary to read the article two or three times to glean all the information I was endeavouring to convey.
For those of you who wish to try no-chill, some experimentation may be necessary to iron out some of the finer points, particularly in the area of hop additions/utilization, where the hops themselves can sometimes be quite variable.
If anyone has specific questions that haven't been adequately addressed, now is the time. I will come back in a week before heading overseas for a couple of months. First stop? Carlsberg Brewery in Copenhagen!

 

[kbaggen]

Hi there, sorry to hear you visites Carlsberg, as a Dane I find those beer so borrowing unless in is 27`C + (and almost never we get those kind of temps.).
Regarding chilling, I just trasfer the still hot wort (80`C +) to my fermenter, and let it chill Down over night with som sanitized liquid in yeast tube to ensure exposed air is not draged into the fermenter! I even just spalsh the wort over and not even care above hot wort aeration.
Made 50 brews this way and never had issues doing so whereof they might be better doring it the "correct way" is ofcouse unknown, but I think people shuld empatzied grain bill, hops, pH and Water chemistry even more than the cooling down. The fast cooling down is important in the light of infection, and by trasfing the still hot wort to you fermeter this means of error is eliminated, and the wort can stay for days this way as it is now utterly pastiuered!
If people are afried of hot wort aeration, just use the siphon to trasfer with and allow it might not hold for ever!
(sorry for all the misspellings)
Klaus

 

[wdl]

Chiming in here to comment that the necessity of exposing storage surfaces to hot wort is over exaggerated. The steam from the near boiling wort is enough to keep the fermenter sanitary as long as you pour into an already sanitized HDPE bucket. I brew this way and have never had an issue. I just set the sanitized lid on and walk away for about 12 hours. However, I also make sure to never let my wort sit for any longer than it takes it to get to room temperature, otherwise I could see the risk of contamination growing the longer it sits. If you intend on racking your wort for extended periods, having minimal exposure to air would be required I'd think and thus the need for the cubes.