"Why the heck didn't I think of that before" Category

[wilserbrewer]

If you live in a snowy area

If you’re brewing outside in a snowy area, try just shutting off the burner and coming back to your wort a couple three hours later.

Chilling au natural

 

[BandonBrewingCo]

If you’re brewing outside in a snowy area, try just shutting off the burner and coming back to your wort a couple three hours later.

Chilling au natural

If it's really cold but not snowing, once I get the kettle down to a safe temp I haul it out onto the balcony to cool. Does not take long at all

 

[Hwk-I-St8]

If you’re brewing outside in a snowy area, try just shutting off the burner and coming back to your wort a couple three hours later.

Chilling au natural

That works, but my recipes with late boil and FO hop additions would be incredibly inconsistent with that method.

 

[RM-MN]

That works, but my recipes with late boil and FO hop additions would be incredibly inconsistent with that method.

Yes, your late addition hops continue to isomerize (add bittering) until the wort gets below 170F. and even at that point you will be losing some of the aromatic oils that give flavor an aroma. I might chill quickly to get below 170, then let the wort cool without active cooling from there on.

 

[LittleRiver]

Another way to take advantage of cold weather is to put 2 or 3 five gallon buckets of water outside overnight. Use a cheap little water transfer pump to recirculate the cold water through your immersion chiller (pump from and back into the same bucket).

The first bucket will get hot enough to serve as your wash water for cleanup, the second bucket will get warm, and can be used for rinsing.

In hot weather, I first recirculate from a bucket of tap water, then from a cooler filled with water and a bag or two of ice.

 

[Lefou]

...or, if you're like me, you can use a pump and source a 42,000gal pool for cool water. Works great in the wintertime.
Set the hot kettle on a mop bucket that's iced over. It makes a great heat sink. Then use the pump to feed cold pool water to the immersion chiller and let the pool water drain back.