Why so fast?

[dooman333]

Just finished reading Complete Joys of HB and it struck me that everyones always stressing how fast you need to cool your wort. Other than the sanitation aspect and getting fermention rolling asap, what's the big rush? Any other reasons why wort needs a quick cool?

 

[tjpfeister]

A good cold break removes more proteins from the beer, aiding in clarity.

 

[NervousDad]

That's the main reason the longer the wort is in the < 160 zone you&#8217;re at the risk of infection. There is also the issue of DMS, the faster you get the wort cooled the less chance you have of DMS (which this may have been debunked, since many people go with a chill-less wort)

 

[dooman333]

Protiens, cold break, clearity... makes sense. Im hoping this doesn't turn out to be a stupid question...but... whats DMS? Only reason I brought this up is because im about to brew a big IIPA and I dont have a chiller, im broke and its hotter than hell in wisco! This is an expensive brew and I want all my T's crossed and I's dotted. Ice baths are annoying, but its all i got.

 

[NervousDad]

Dimethyl Sulfides (corn taste/smell). with all of the hops in a IIPA you should be ok.

 

[Braufessor]

http://beersmith.com/blog/2012/04/10/dimethyl-sulfides-dms-in-home-brewed-beer/

 

[starrfish]

I had a porter go "wrong" with an open kettle and wort chiller running for 2 + hours... I brew outside under a tree, and I got a funky wild yeast infection. Damn shame it wasn't pleasant, and I love that recipe.

Bacterial infections are worse!

 

[tre9er]

How do the no-chill guys avoid this? Admittedly I've not looked up their methods. I'm assuming they cover and stick it in the fridge or something?

 

[starrfish]

Covered is key. I've done several no chill batches with no ill effect. I've left mine covered in a cool place over night and pitched in morning.

 

[NervousDad]

Longer boils will help and from what I understand it's only noticeable in lighter beers (pils). I had a major DMS problem on my second brew (cream ale).

 

[tre9er]

Covered is key. I've done several no chill batches with no ill effect. I've left mine covered in a cool place over night and pitched in morning.

Just covered with pot-lid? Or something more "air-tight"? I've been thinking of going this way as SWMBO doesn't appreciate the length of time the brew takes. That or I might chill to ~100 and transfer to FV and let it chill the rest of the way over the course of several hours.

 

[wilserbrewer]

Just finished reading Complete Joys of HB and it struck me that everyones always stressing how fast you need to cool your wort.

Yep...Charlies book was near gospel back in the eighties! I remember fretting every minute prior to pitching yeast that my beer was exposed, spoiling, and being contaminated. Lately, I have come to realize that proper fermentation temps are more important than lightning fast boil to pitch times.

I often simply cover the kettle and let cool overnight, then just do an ice bath in a tub to chill to pitching temps without using an actual wort chiller, just using the swamp cooler that I will use to control fermentation temps till the kreusen falls.

Typically after flameout, I let the kettle sit for an hour w/out the lid, when the temp gets down to 170-180, I will add some finishing hops and cover the kettle and let cool overnight.

It is worth mentioning that I use this practice for beer that will be stored cold and consumed fresh (within 6-8 weeks). This "no-chill" practice might not be a good idea for beer that is to be cellared for extended periods where strict sanitation is more critical / beneficial.

Maybe all my batches are infected...but at 34 degrees in my keezer on C02, wouldn't the infection likely be dormant ???

 

[jtejedor]

I don't have any science to back this up but I think it might help with hop flavor/aroma. I had read this somewhere and when I started chilling my beer quickly I did notice an improvement. Hop oils are volatile so to me it makes sense. However with my real hoppy beers I have been leaving the 0 minute additions to steep for 15-20 minutes just because I felt it was a waste to have them in there for such a short time. YMMV and there are probably people who make hoppy beers with the no chill method.

 

[pvtschultz]

Protiens, cold break, clearity... makes sense. Im hoping this doesn't turn out to be a stupid question...but... whats DMS? Only reason I brought this up is because im about to brew a big IIPA and I dont have a chiller, im broke and its hotter than hell in wisco! This is an expensive brew and I want all my T's crossed and I's dotted. Ice baths are annoying, but its all i got.

You can borrow mine for the weekend, I'm not that far away. But, I'm leaving for the weekend at 4:30 so we'll have to arrange for pickup by then.

 

[SeanRRogers]

I don't have any science to back this up but I think it might help with hop flavor/aroma. I had read this somewhere and when I started chilling my beer quickly I did notice an improvement. Hop oils are volatile so to me it makes sense. However with my real hoppy beers I have been leaving the 0 minute additions to steep for 15-20 minutes just because I felt it was a waste to have them in there for such a short time. YMMV and there are probably people who make hoppy beers with the no chill method.

Do a search for "whirlpool hops". Cooling the wort quickly preserves the flavor and aroma compounds of the late addition hops, which continue to isomerize at temperatures significantly below boiling. If you must cool slowly, and you want the hop flavor (as opposed to just bitterness), you might want to at least look into adjusting the timing of your hop additions. First wort hopping, hop teas, as well as the obvious dry hopping may also help you compensate for a slow chill.

 

[dooman333]

Very interesting. I've been able to get my wort to pitch temp in about 45min with an ice bath (ice is expensive!) but I always felt I was hurting the outcome. Thanks pvtschultz for the offer but I might have to push this brew off a bit. I feel like my IIPA has so many late additions that buying a chiller might be the route to take. Capturing hop flavor in its prime might be extra crutial with this one. Thanks for the input guys. Ps check my recipe out in the post titled "just wanted to share..." I'm callin it "The Pounder". Extremely excited bout this one!

 

[b_andersson]

Just finished reading Complete Joys of HB and it struck me that everyones always stressing how fast you need to cool your wort. Other than the sanitation aspect and getting fermention rolling asap, what's the big rush? Any other reasons why wort needs a quick cool?

Basic Brewing had last week (or two weeks ago) a podcast about wort chilling. One of the guys who were interviewed poured the hot wort in a fermentor bucket and let it sit in room temperature until it was down so he could put the yeast in. I can recommend listen to it.

 

[wilserbrewer]

http://www.basicbrewing.com/radio/radio.rss

Home brewers Bob Stempski and Noam Shalev compare beers brewed with traditional chilling techniques with no-chill batches.
07-05-12 nochillexp02.mp3

Interesting listen...panel of "expeerts" basicly conclude "same beer" and could not determine which sample in the taste test was no chilled vs. chilled....hmmm

 

[Northcalais40]

I'm surprised that the hops don't make a different taste/aroma when sitting overnight, you must drain the wort before sitting?

I made a cheap 25' copper chiller that didn't cool at all in a immersion chiller configuration. So I reversed it and run boiled wort through the coil, immersed in ice water. The Ice melts and I drain the water and add ice as it goes. Three to four bags of ice and I am at 70F in the amount of time it takes to drain the kettle.

The whole system is gravity fed. It requires a copper coil with vinyl tubes on the ends, a boil kettle with a drain, a bucket for ice with a drain, and ice. That's it.

 

[brycelarson]

I've done cover and wait, snow-bank, ice bath and immersion chiller. The way I figure it is that the chiller is the easiest way to get a repeatable and consistent chill. If I'm trying to dial in a recipe I want as few variables as possible - so keeping my chilling speed and temp standardized is great. That said, with careful sanitizing and decent recipe design I've rarely had a batch go all that bad. I also tend to drink my beer pretty quickly - so it's entirely possible that, like wilser I may have infections but just never see the bad results.