Secondary Temp?

[Boondoggie]

I've got a Belgian Tripel happily fermenting away in the Primary at 70*, in my diningroom...

I'd like to move the secondary to the basement, right now I've got the carboy down there full of sanitized water to see what temp it settles at, and that seems to be 60*....

Is 60* too cold for the secondary?

 

[Nurmey]

No it's not too cold. I keep mine in the basement and it really helps them clear nicely in the cool temperatures.

 

[mramann]

I always try to remember that a secondary fermentation is not really a fermentation. Yes, the yeast are doing some additional cleanup work, but the real point of a secondary is clearing the beer. It's the 'bright tank' for that reason. I put all my brews into a cool secondary after a nice, long primary of at least three weeks, depending on the gravity. For something like a trippel I would absolutely leave it in primary for a month before putting it in the bright tank.

 

[Boondoggie]

I was planning on doing a longer primary... but a month? really?

Also, this is a Northern Brewer kit... they say 3 months... is that 3 month all told, or 3 months after I go to secondary, or 3 months after I bottle?

 

[Nurmey]

My Belgian Triple was the brew I left in the primary for three months. It turned out to be one of the best beers we've done in our 4 years of brewing. It was so deliciously mellow going into the bottles, that it was drank probably faster than any of our other brews.

NB is probably talking about leaving it in the secondary for three months before bottling. I have not seen the recipe but three months in secondary would not be unusual for a triple.

 

[mramann]

My Belgian Triple was the brew I left in the primary for three months. It turned out to be one of the best beers we've done in our 4 years of brewing. It was so deliciously mellow going into the bottles, that it was drunk probably faster than any of our other brews.

NB is probably talking about leaving it in the secondary for three months before bottling. I have not seen the recipe but three months in secondary would not be unusual for a triple.

+1 for the long primary (at least a month, maybe more), followed by a long secondary. Time is the most important, and most often overlooked ingredient. The higher the gravity (I assume your tripel is in the 1.075 - 1.085 range) the more important time becomes.