Cold yeast?

What went wrong? Was this supposed to happen? Should I throw it out? What do I do now?

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HardcoreLegend
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Cold yeast?

Post by HardcoreLegend »

I brewed an IPA yesterday and everything went very well. I aerated the wort, pitched the yeast, and left it at 3:30 Saturday. Today, I discovered that the temp in the basement was down to 58F due to a cold spell we are having here. So what should have been bubbling like crazy, wasn't doing much at all. I moved the fermenter into the upstairs bathroom, and it is now about 70F. Will this batch recover? Is there anything I can do to help? I used a WhiteLabs pitchable vial of California Ale Yeast.
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jeff
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Leave it alone for a little longer

Post by jeff »

If you have kept things clean, I wouldn
jayhawk
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Stir it up

Post by jayhawk »

You might want to consider giving the brew a little stir. The yeast might have dropped to the bottom of the bucket and could probably use a hand getting back in to suspension. A yeast strain I use regularly (Wyeast 1968) is highly flocculant, and occasionally I have to give the batch a stir awhile after to pitching to kickstart things. Just a thought.

Chris
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Two things...

Post by Brewer2001 »

"Hardcore"

I don't believe that yeast is 'pitchable' right out of the vial. The operative word is viability.
Think of this: yeast cells in a tube, cold and dormant (some dead, some unable to feed), no food. Drastic change: pitched in 'warm' wort, shock, too much food (yeast: "I will eat until I bust" and not reproduce).
My suggestion is to raise all yeast slurry to the required pitching volume. You can control the SG of the starter wort, temperature and repitch as required. I was suprised how fast that the yeast in the brewery took off, minimal lag time. That yeast was in prime condition (viability, pitch rate, wort oxigenation and temperature).

I would put my fermenter in the kitchen before choosing the bathroom. Bathrooms tend to harbor more bacteria and mold spores than other rooms in the house.

For the next brew make a yeast starter at a low SG, oxigenate the wort and pitch the correct 'amount' of yeast for the batch size and SG.

Good brewing,

Tom F.
HardcoreLegend
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Thanks...but what now?

Post by HardcoreLegend »

OK guys. Within 24 hours of moving the fermenter to the upstairs, it is quite happily bubbling away. Only one problem I can see now. The temp upstairs is abot 72-74F, the temp in the lower level is currently about 66F. One seems too warm, the other too cool. What should I do? And remember, the fermenter is happy right now. Nice bubbles, happy critters.
fitz
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water bath

Post by fitz »

If you have the room, you can run a tub of water, and let it get to the desired temp and place the fermenter in the water. Place a couple towels over the top and down into the water. The water will insulate the fermenter so the temp doesn't flucuate. It will slow the rise of the temp in the fermenter until the fermentatin is complete. Once you get it fermented and carbonated, put it in the basement to clear. The cold will make it clear quicker.
Gravity Thrills
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66F is fine

Post by Gravity Thrills »

As long as that 66F is more or less stable, the yeast strain you are using will do fine there, and should produce a very clean tasting beer. I regularly ferment the Wyeast equivalent (the ubiquitous 1056) at 64-66F with great results.

Cheers,
Jim
HardcoreLegend
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Thanks!

Post by HardcoreLegend »

Thanks Jim! I needed a vote of confidence that it was OK to move the fermenter back to 66F now that active fermentation had begun. Do you think it will extend the fermentation at all?
Gravity Thrills
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couple of days

Post by Gravity Thrills »

My active primary fermentation at that temperature is generally 3-5 days
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