To coldcrash or not to coldcrash

[thirstypanda]

I'm putting together my strategy for a 5g Zombie Dust IPA and was wondering if coldcrashing at the end of fermentation would be worthwhile? It would mean a whole lot of disturbing the fermenter to get it to my fridge.

I did a well hopped PA and it came out crystal clear without whirlflock (totally forgot) or coldcrashing (which I've never done before).

This is only my 4th batch of hb so be kind.

 

[WBB]

There’s a first time for everything! Try it out and see if it works for you. Why would it mean a whole lot of disturbing of the fermenter?

 

[thirstypanda]

The fermenter is in a nice cozy place in my basement ~ 68f. The fridge is in my detached garage 100'+ away and up and down 2 stairs.... that's a lot of sloshing around.

 

[jturman35]

I wouldn’t bother cold crashing then. You also risk introducing more oxygen when you drop the temp you will get suck back. The first one I cold crashed I got a pint of starsan. Now I use some Saran Wrap and a plug and just completely cap off if I cold crash.

 

[Renegade Brewer]

Forgive me, but I am unfamiliar with the beer. What type of IPA is this? Is it a hazy/juicy?

At any rate, with that much movement I’d say the ends don’t justify the means. Usually when we cold crash we move the beer to a keg and bring it down rapidly to 35* F and add either gelatin or polyclar to the beer. Since we are an Ss Brewtech distributor, we recently started using their brite tank which is absolutely amazing specifically for the ability to cold crash using a glycol chiller. With that being said, with four batches under your belt concentrate on perfecting your brewing practices and making great beer before worring about trivial things like clarity. Clarity is worth 1-3 points in a BJCP comp, so that tells you how important it is. Granted, other things happen to improve your beer when cold crashing, but as a new brewer I’d suggest focusing on making the best beer you can make and explore cold crashing perhaps when you move into kegging.

Cheers, and welcome to a fantastic obsession...I mean hobby

 

[toddo97]

Adding gelatin might be easier than cold crashing if you're looking for a bit more clarity

 

[seabrew8]

Cold conditioning is one of things i think really helps the end product. But you can do that in a number of ways. If your a sipper that means just keeping your carbed bottled beer in a fridge for a few weeks.