hoppyhoppyhippo
Well-Known Member
I live in Northern New Hampshire, throught the summer the high in my basement got to about 65. It generally sits in the 55-60 range as my furnace in the winter does a decent job keeping the basement semi-warm. My question for those who brew in colder climates. What larger scale methods of brewing do you utilize? I'm in an interesting situation where I have less time to brew in the summer than the Winter. My job is not seasonal but from November-April I have a lot more time than I do May-October. I don't really intend to often do winter brews mainly because my setup is outdoor and I don't have a garage/shed so once snow starts falling 5 gallon batches are out. My stove is a mediocre electric stove so I can basically cap out at 2 gallons tops for all-grain. I do have a 1 gallon system I use for test beers and weird beers. So my question is this. How should I go about getting better yield in the summer? My current system (for 5 gallons) is basically 4 fermenters. I have 2 6.5 gallon pails, 1 6.5 gallon carboy, and 1 fastferment conical. I love the conical, it's done well by me. I'm getting used to it but it's produced solid results in fermentation. But my concern is this. I'm looking at my basically finished ale and seeing the temp is 60. I know that's not gonna cut it. I do have the jacket for the fastferment so I am getting into the habit of wrapping the fermenter in that to get better fermentation activity, but my concern is when it gets colder.
So my question is, are there ale yeasts that work really well in around a 60 degree ambient temperature? Aside from some suggestions like building a freezer fermenter is there another good way to get larger scale temperature control? I'm just curious as to anything that people who live in similar climates with similar brewing situations as myself.
So you know my situation on ales. I have a porter in the primary now. I'm cold crashing it as the Krausen has basically all dropped out. It didn't wind up quite as I intended, I screwed something up in the mashing. But it will be beer and hopefully good. after cold crashing final hydrometer and tasting before I add blueberries and maple to it. Let that sit for a little bit to get the flavor I want and then keg it. Next up I plan on brewing in about a week and half. Next week my parents are coming up to visit and I won't have time to brew with them there. So it will be the next day off I have in 2 weeks. I have a belgian strong ale I want to brew and probably let that chill in secondary for a little bit because my experience is those tend to be a bit harsh right after fermentation. I currently have a cider sitting in one of my pails which is taking forever to ferment. It is fermenting, but it's been going since May. I haven't pulled the plug on it and called it a sweet and weak cider yet because it keeps dropping. I want to get another IPA done before snow falls and maybe one more beer? I'm probably gonna lager something just because it seems to be the ideal situation for the winter, but I personally love me my ales.
Thanks for any help in advance!
So my question is, are there ale yeasts that work really well in around a 60 degree ambient temperature? Aside from some suggestions like building a freezer fermenter is there another good way to get larger scale temperature control? I'm just curious as to anything that people who live in similar climates with similar brewing situations as myself.
So you know my situation on ales. I have a porter in the primary now. I'm cold crashing it as the Krausen has basically all dropped out. It didn't wind up quite as I intended, I screwed something up in the mashing. But it will be beer and hopefully good. after cold crashing final hydrometer and tasting before I add blueberries and maple to it. Let that sit for a little bit to get the flavor I want and then keg it. Next up I plan on brewing in about a week and half. Next week my parents are coming up to visit and I won't have time to brew with them there. So it will be the next day off I have in 2 weeks. I have a belgian strong ale I want to brew and probably let that chill in secondary for a little bit because my experience is those tend to be a bit harsh right after fermentation. I currently have a cider sitting in one of my pails which is taking forever to ferment. It is fermenting, but it's been going since May. I haven't pulled the plug on it and called it a sweet and weak cider yet because it keeps dropping. I want to get another IPA done before snow falls and maybe one more beer? I'm probably gonna lager something just because it seems to be the ideal situation for the winter, but I personally love me my ales.
Thanks for any help in advance!