Pitching Temperature

[MrBJones]

An immersion chiller cools wort slower and slower as the wort temperature decreases. What I've been doing is to chill to below 80 - say, 77 or 78 - then immediately pitch, aerate, and put the carboy in a cooler with ice packs. Takes awhile but the temp will eventually get to the 60s.

Would it be much of an improvement if I put the aerated carboy in the cooler with ice first, and then pitch the next day when the wort temp is already in the mid-60s?

 

[friarsmith]

Unless you're at the North Pole, chilling with ground water after a summer brew day sucks. Let's face it. I understand.

Best practice in this circumstance would be to chill your wort to the lowest possible temp with your groundwater (as you say 78-80), then rack to a fermenter, then chill in your cooler until the wort is somewhere between 65-70 (depending on yeast), THEN oxygenate and pitch.

All that to say, don't oxygenate and pitch until the wort is at the right temp for the yeast.

I just kegged a German Pils which was racked to the fermenter (mid-Aug brew day) at 78*. Even with a pre-chill immersion chiller, I could not get the wort to cool more. I let it set 6 hrs in the keezer until it hit 50*. Then hit the fermenter with 02 and pitched a big slurry. Tastes great. No off flavors. So don't be afraid of waiting a few hours to oxygenate and pitch.

 

[kh54s10]

It really depends on how soon it gets cooler. IMO, it has to be in the sixties before fermentation starts. If it is not there the exothermic action of the fermentation might make it very difficult to lower the wort temperature.

If you wait until the next day, as many do, aerate just before pitching the yeast.

 

[friarsmith]

It really depends on how soon it gets cooler. IMO, it has to be in the sixties before fermentation starts. If it is not there the exothermic action of the fermentation might make it very difficult to lower the wort temperature.

If you wait until the next day, as many do, aerate just before pitching the yeast.

Better to wait a few hours and oxy/pitch at the right temperature than to pitch too warm and get fusels and other yeast stress-related off flavors. My $0.02. Ruined more than a few beers by pitching too warm...

 

[ParanoidAndroid]

If you can, purchase a submersible pump and use that as a prechiller for the immersion chiller.

One way to use it is to get a cooler and fill it with water. Connect the pump to the chiller and put pump in cooler water. Turn on pump and have a hose replenishing the cooler water. Once the wort gets to around 100-120 deg, start dumping ice in the cooler.

Fill an empty keg with tap water the day before and put it in keezer or fridge, or fill empty gallon jugs with tap water and do same thing. Those help minimize ice use.

 

[MrBJones]

It really depends on how soon it gets cooler. IMO, it has to be in the sixties before fermentation starts. If it is not there the exothermic action of the fermentation might make it very difficult to lower the wort temperature.

If you wait until the next day, as many do, aerate just before pitching the yeast.

is there a downside to aerating (shaking vigorously) just before putting the carboy in the cooler, then wait till next day and pitch after it's the right temperature - without taking the carboy out of the cooler?

 

[BlueHouseBrewhaus]

is there a downside to aerating (shaking vigorously) just before putting the carboy in the cooler, then wait till next day and pitch after it's the right temperature - without taking the carboy out of the cooler?

Whatever oxygen you put in solution when you aerate may dissipate by the time you pitch the next day.

 

[C-Rider]

Here in Hawai`i ground water during the day can be 80* or higher. I've been able to chill mine to break into the 70's in about 15 min but then I'm only doing 2 gallons. I use dry yeast and pitch below 80*. Then I put in my refer/fermenting chamber for the next 3=4 weeks. Never had a problem, but that might be as it is easier to get 2 gallons down to mid 60's than 5 gallons.

 

[Sandstorm]

is there a downside to aerating (shaking vigorously) just before putting the carboy in the cooler, then wait till next day and pitch after it's the right temperature - without taking the carboy out of the cooler?

There is an upside. You are working out your upper body. As BlueHouse said all the oxygen will no longer be in solution. You would need to shake it agin before pitching the next day.

 

[MrBJones]

There is an upside. You are working out your upper body. As BlueHouse said all the oxygen will no longer be in solution. You would need to shake it agin before pitching the next day.

Ha ha ha. Let's face it, home brewing somehow creates the need for additional exercise.

Understand about need to re-oxygenate. What are the issues associated with using an airstone? I like using a glass carboy, but anything that reduces need to move it around when full is a good thing from a safety perspective.

 

[Singletrack]

More oxygen will dissolve into the wort at lower temperatures, so it is somewhat better to chill first, then aerate. In general, you won't lose the dissolved oxygen if you aerate first, because it is dissolved, and chilling will not cause dissolved oxygen to come out of solution.

 

[Denny]

An immersion chiller cools wort slower and slower as the wort temperature decreases. What I've been doing is to chill to below 80 - say, 77 or 78 - then immediately pitch, aerate, and put the carboy in a cooler with ice packs. Takes awhile but the temp will eventually get to the 60s.

Would it be much of an improvement if I put the aerated carboy in the cooler with ice first, and then pitch the next day when the wort temp is already in the mid-60s?

My experience is that would be a better way to do it.

 

[worlddivides]

Although I have pitched yeast in the 70s before, I normally put the fermenter in my fermentation "chamber" (it's not a chamber) and cool it down to somewhere within the recommend fermentation range of that specific yeast. For some yeasts, I might pitch at 72 or 73, but generally I pitch closer to 66-69F. I've never had fusel alcohols that way, but I also haven't had fusel alcohols when I pitch in the mid 70s either because fermentation doesn't start until the wort has dropped into the 60s anyway. Mainly I just do it to be on the safe side. I don't see it as that big of a problem, honestly, considering that when you use dry yeast, you rehydrate it in water that is in the 80s, 90s, or even over 100. So pitching the yeast into 76F water isn't going to cause a problem unless it stays at that temperature.

 

[DevilNuts]

I'll usually boil off an extra gallon, with a gallon of water in the freezer getting cold. When my chiller only brings the wort down to 90F, I just add cold water until I'm within acceptable range.

 

[BrewerE]

Do you guys then chill your rehydrated dry yeast slurry to the same temp as the wort (60's) or pitch it at rehydrating temp (~80)???

 

[billyjohnbrewing]

If you can, purchase a submersible pump and use that as a prechiller for the immersion chiller.

One way to use it is to get a cooler and fill it with water. Connect the pump to the chiller and put pump in cooler water. Turn on pump and have a hose replenishing the cooler water. Once the wort gets to around 100-120 deg, start dumping ice in the cooler.

Fill an empty keg with tap water the day before and put it in keezer or fridge, or fill empty gallon jugs with tap water and do same thing. Those help minimize ice use.

Submersible pump x1000. This weekend was the first time I've used a submersible pump as Harbor Freight was having a Labor Day sale. Picked up their 1/6HP 1350gph pump and that thing does not disappoint. Overkill, yes, but totally worth it. Used the 82F ground water this weekend to get to about 110F in 4-5 minutes with Jaded Hydra chiller, took 30 seconds to switch the hose over to the pump and plugged it in. The pump was in a small cooler that was filled with water and a $3 16lb bag of ice. I didn't have a timer but it felt like no more than 2 minutes going from 110F to 68F. It was amazing. I was able to immediately pitch my yeast and 6 hours later already had 1"+ of krausen. 14 hours and it's taken off with 4-5" krausen and churning like crazy still at 68F in my Cool Brewing bag with 2L frozen bottle of water. I did have a 1.5L starter of WY1335 so I'm sure that helped a lot.

 

[ncbrewer]

Do you guys then chill your rehydrated dry yeast slurry to the same temp as the wort (60's) or pitch it at rehydrating temp (~80)???

Danstar instructions call for attemperation to wort temp - Fermentis doesn't. I cool to within 10F of wort temperature for both.

 

[ParanoidAndroid]

Submersible pump x1000. This weekend was the first time I've used a submersible pump as Harbor Freight was having a Labor Day sale. Picked up their 1/6HP 1350gph pump and that thing does not disappoint. Overkill, yes, but totally worth it. Used the 82F ground water this weekend to get to about 110F in 4-5 minutes with Jaded Hydra chiller, took 30 seconds to switch the hose over to the pump and plugged it in. The pump was in a small cooler that was filled with water and a $3 16lb bag of ice. I didn't have a timer but it felt like no more than 2 minutes going from 110F to 68F. It was amazing. I was able to immediately pitch my yeast and 6 hours later already had 1"+ of krausen. 14 hours and it's taken off with 4-5" krausen and churning like crazy still at 68F in my Cool Brewing bag with 2L frozen bottle of water. I did have a 1.5L starter of WY1335 so I'm sure that helped a lot.

Nice.

Here's the one I have:

https://www.amazon.com/Superior-Pump-91250-Thermoplastic-Submersible/dp/B000X05G1A/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1473706099&sr=8-3&keywords=submersible+pump

A pump or another type of pre-chiller is mandatory where I live (Alabama). The ground water is 80-85 degrees in the summer. It takes forever just to get your wort to that. I don't like sticking it in a fridge or waiting to pitch as I believe oxidation is taking place during that time. Chill as fast as possible, pitch, and aerate.

 

[billyjohnbrewing]

Nice.

Here's the one I have:

https://www.amazon.com/Superior-Pump-91250-Thermoplastic-Submersible/dp/B000X05G1A/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1473706099&sr=8-3&keywords=submersible+pump

A pump or another type of pre-chiller is mandatory where I live (Alabama). The ground water is 80-85 degrees in the summer. It takes forever just to get your wort to that. I don't like sticking it in a fridge or waiting to pitch as I believe oxidation is taking place during that time. Chill as fast as possible, pitch, and aerate.

That's pretty much what I have. It puts out water pressure equal to or higher than what comes out of the house. This is mine. Excited to use it again and again.

http://www.harborfreight.com/lawn-garden/pumps/16-hp-submersible-utility-pump-1350-gph-61904.html

 

[BlueHouseBrewhaus]

I put my IC (homemade from 3/8 copper) in the BK for the last 15 min of boil. Then I put the BK in my sink filled with ice water. I have an old 12V Rule bilge pump (scavanged from my boat and spliced to an old cell phone charger) that circulates through the IC and back into the sink. As the ice in the sink melts I replenish it. With stirring I go from boiling to 68F in about 15 min.

If I have a starter to pitch, I take it out of the fridge when I start mashing. By pitching time, it's within 10F of the cooled wort. If I'm pitching rehydrated dry yeast, I gradually cool it with additions of cooled wort every 5 min or so until it's within pitching range.

All that being said, I have pitched dry yeast directly without rehydration and have pitched starters at least 20F cooler than the wort and pitched rehydrated dry yeast 20F warmer than the wort. All of them came out fine. Yeast are very forgiving.

 

[Denny]

I put my IC (homemade from 3/8 copper) in the BK for the last 15 min of boil. Then I put the BK in my sink filled with ice water. I have an old 12V Rule bilge pump (scavanged from my boat and spliced to an old cell phone charger) that circulates through the IC and back into the sink. As the ice in the sink melts I replenish it. With stirring I go from boiling to 68F in about 15 min.

If I have a starter to pitch, I take it out of the fridge when I start mashing. By pitching time, it's within 10F of the cooled wort. If I'm pitching rehydrated dry yeast, I gradually cool it with additions of cooled wort every 5 min or so until it's within pitching range.

All that being said, I have pitched dry yeast directly without rehydration and have pitched starters at least 20F cooler than the wort and pitched rehydrated dry yeast 20F warmer than the wort. All of them came out fine. Yeast are very forgiving.

FWIW, there is no advantage to warming up the yeast before pitching. For 18 years and hundreds of batches I've taken it out of the fridge and immediately pitched. There is actually some evidence that colder yeast into warmer beer is the way to go.

 

[BlueHouseBrewhaus]

I actually think yeast are a higher form of alien intelligence and they start each day thinking, "How can we mess with these pathetic humans' heads today? I know ... we'll take a nap for a day or two and watch them scramble around and stress out trying to figure out why."

Now if you'll excuse me I need to go put my foil helmet back on.