Tempature control on porters

[Ward Chillington]

I have a batch of porter that I brewed on Sunday that has been bubbling along just fine for the last few days at 66 to 67 degree F in my 53 degree cellar with the help of a heat belt, some recycled Styrofoam and my DYI temp controller and now I'm getting a good strong burb every 20 seconds or so.

In the last few days I have been listening to the Jamil show and a few Brulosophy podcasts on tempature control but they have mostly been talking about diacetyl rests for Lagers and the first 24 to 36 hours of a recently pitched wort. I have also read that a slow steady rise in tempature is a good thing in general to give the yeast a little motivation to keep on keeping on but I haven't come across any good advice specific to porter and how it likes to finish out.

What say you smarter ones? What's the right way to pamper my porter?

 

[J A]

You're doin' it.
It's totally dependent on yeast and not style but the temp range seems perfect. Let it sit at that temperature for at least a few days after it reaches FG, turn the heat off for a week or so and proceed to bottle it up or keg.

 

[White Haus Brews]

Sounds like you're good to go. It seems with most ale's there's really no need to adjust the temp much and the rise of fermentation temp is more applicable when brewing lagers that you are rising to speed up the end of fermentation. One exception on the ale front I can think of off the top of my head is some belgian styles that you let "free rise" after the first few days. I'd say just let it rise and package once you're at FG.

Btw, if you go to the exbeeriment section of the Brulosophy website there are many experiments run on different yeasts on fermentation temp. Just search "Fermentation temp" and you'll see comparisons with many different yeasts and styles. Most have actually not shown significance even with big differences in ferment temp so there may not be much need to baby any of them unless you're dealing with a particularly expressive yeast strain.

 

[Yooper]

If you've got a yeast strain that produces alot of diacetyl, or a yeast strain that gets sluggish, turning the temperature up a few degrees near the tail end of fermentation can be a big benefit. It won't hurt other beers, either, as long as you turn the temperature up a little, but stay in the yeast strain's temperature range.

It doesn't matter if it's a porter or cream ale- the thing that matters here is the yeast strain.

 

[Hogarthe]

Unless you are doing a Baltic porter with lager yeast 67 should be just fine. You shouldn't need to heat it up any, but if you bring it up to 70 when it is almost done fermenting it should get the last few points of gravity and then clean up any diacytl faster then if you left it at 67.

 

[Ward Chillington]

the thing that matters here is the yeast strain.

Thanks Yooper! Simple yeast here...Safale 05. Rehydrated in 2 cups of boiled water with a tablespoon of local honey (also boiled to kill any wild yeasts) for the 05 to show me it's alive and hungry before pitching.

 

[Head First]

Thanks Yooper! Simple yeast here...Safale 05. Rehydrated in 2 cups of boiled water with a tablespoon of local honey (also boiled to kill any wild yeasts) for the 05 to show me it's alive and hungry before pitching.

In my experience 05 likes a little warm up in later fermentation. I can't say it is absolutely necessary but it works for me to help it clean up. Every yeast is a different animal, some like scratched behind the ears some don't.

 

[Yooper]

Thanks Yooper! Simple yeast here...Safale 05. Rehydrated in 2 cups of boiled water with a tablespoon of local honey (also boiled to kill any wild yeasts) for the 05 to show me it's alive and hungry before pitching.

That's fine- but next time I would not use the honey or proof the yeast. You can rehydrate the yeast, but by adding simple sugars you are acclimating the yeast to ferment simple sugars instead of maltose (a disaccharide), and harder for yeast, maltotriose (a trisaccharide). It wouldn't hurt that much for a lower OG beer, but I'd be sure next time to rehydrate by the package directions.

 

[J A]

In my experience 05 likes a little warm up in later fermentation. I can't say it is absolutely necessary but it works for me to help it clean up.

Depending on OG and pitch size, I usually start lower and raise to 68 after krausen drops but the times I've used US-05 at 67 I've skipped it and, if anything, it's a little better. It can't hurt to ease up to as high as 70 once attenuation is within a point or two of FG but unless things are going slow, 67 or so is kind of a sweet spot, in my experience.

 

[Ward Chillington]

You can rehydrate the yeast, but by adding simple sugars you are acclimating the yeast to ferment simple sugars instead of maltose (a disaccharide), and harder for yeast, maltotriose (a trisaccharide).

Thanks again Yooper...skip the honey and use some DME. Is it OK to assume if I get some "puffiness" to the package after removing it from the fridge that it's good to go?

The OG for this was 1.058; a few points higher than what the spec sheet that came with the Mid West Kit said, 1.0432 - 1.046, but no final SG stated although the last few batches finished in that 1.010 range.

The pitch was 16 oz with one 11.5 gram packet of the 05. Burping is at about a minute and 45 seconds apart this morning at day five and a half. I should check my gravity tonight if I have the time.

 

[J A]

Is it OK to assume if I get some "puffiness" to the package after removing it from the fridge that it's good to go?

Puffiness isn't necessarily something that happens. Unless your yeast is open or has gotten too hot, it's good to go. Some folks just sprinkle right onto the wort. A lot of us rehydrate, but using sugar of any kind isn't necessary or even desirable. Just use clean water about 85 degrees, let it sit for 15 minutes, stir it up with a sanitized utensil, let it sit another 15 minutes, swirl it around and pitch into aerated wort.

 

[Ward Chillington]

Let it sit at that temperature for at least a few days after it reaches FG, turn the heat off for a week or so and proceed to bottle it up

OK so can I assume that my 42 to 46°F cellar will help floculation as turn off the heat belt?

 

[J A]

OK so can I assume that my 42 to 46°F cellar will help floculation as turn off the heat belt?

Yeah! If you've got 42 degrees, that's as good as any cold-crash. Make certain that you're at FG and have given a few days to let the yeast finish up their work of metabolizing and let the temp drop. Pro brewers go right from FG to chilling but we home brewers usually take it a little slower because our method and process isn't usually as perfect. Most of what happens after FG is reached is just yeast and proteins dropping out of suspensions and taking extra stuff with it, but it's not a bad idea to let it ride a little.