When is it too cold to brew?

[Bobby_M]

I brewed today and it was 16F out. I barely cracked the garage doors. After heating the strike water, it got to be a nice 50F in the garage but any washing outside was miserable. I had to spend some time de-icing my hose bib to get the chiller running.

 

[SSRider]

Well I wasnt brewing, but I was working on my herms setup. Just got back inside, You could see every time I took a sip of the brew because it had a ring frozen around the glass.

 

[Bernie Brewer]

Well, 2 years ago,when they closed school because of cold, I brewed this

and last year when they closed school again, I brewed again.

If you can't brew in winter, well, you're just a pu$$y.

 

[BeerPressure]

If you can't brew in winter, well, you're just a pu$$y.

Ah, I love brewing in the cold. Brewed a porter in the snow and 20 degree weather. But, I am imagining myself on a hot summer day, standing out in the yard with a homebrew in my hand watching a belgian wit boil.

 

[SixFoFalcon]

Somewhere in the 20s is as cold as I've had to deal with so far. I just hauled the mash tun and HLT into the laundry room once they were filled up, and did my mashing and lautering in there. Put the HLT on top of the dryer, and the MLT on an old end table, and the kettle on the floor. It actually worked out better than my outdoor rig. And since it was a stout, I only had to go back outside to bring it up to a boil, then toss in the hops, and relax inside for 40 minutes before returning to drop in the chiller, yeast nutrient, and whirlfloc tabs. But even if it was something with a lot of hop additions, I still don't think the cold would have deterred me. When you are standing in front of a big burner, with your upper body being bombarded with beer steam, the cold doesn't matter.

 

[BeerCanuck]

Brewing in winter is great...
Tuke and a good stove..who needs a chiller when you got a big snow pile

Cheers
BeerCanuck

 

[jcarson83]

It's 13F right now with 15mph winds. I've got 2 batches waiting to brew and it's killing me. Last time I brewed when it was this cold and windy it took me 3 hours to get up to a boil. I'm going to work on equipment today and hope it gets above 20 for tomorrow.

 

[Kilgore_Trout]

I've brewed well below zero out doors in the open wind. The turkey fryer has trouble keeping up so I usually have to split the boil for the first half.

I brewed last night at a whopping 4f, no issues. Coldest I've gone is ten below with a wind chill warning, the boil was pathetic but the beer was good. Use the shower hookups inside for the chiller.

If i didn't brew when it was cold I wouldn't brew much at all!

 

[Bills Brew]

It is too cold to brew when the beer you are drinking freezes.

 

[Bernie Brewer]

It is too cold to brew when the beer you are drinking freezes.

Nah, it won't freeze if you use an insulator.

 

[sirsloop]

Its too cold to brew when your panties get in a bunch...

 

[jcarson83]

My long underwear is in a bunch today but I'm still brewing. 23F. But my hose was frozen so I had to put it in the bathtub to warm it up.