Secondary fermentation at serving temperatures

Discussion in 'Homebrewing' started by jcruz_, Aug 15, 2017.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. jcruz_

    jcruz_ Initiate (0) Dec 3, 2015 Guam

    I have a large chest freezer with temperature control that I use as a fermentation chamber. I would also like to use the freezer to store a keg for serving.

    At the moment I have a Brett saison and a stout which are fermenting away. I plan to secondary the saison on peaches and the stout on oak cubes. I also plan on brewing an IPA which will be kegged. Will it be ok to secondary the two beers and keep the keg at ~40° for serving?
     
    #1 jcruz_, Aug 15, 2017
  2. brchapman

    brchapman Initiate (0) Nov 18, 2014 Georgia

    I would guess you would get some peach/oak flavor out of the secondary but there will be no secondary fermentation going on at 40 degrees. If it were me, if I would find a "coolish" place to put the saison, where the temp was in the 68-72F range, I would stick it out there for a bit before placing in the keezer.
     
    #2 brchapman, Aug 15, 2017
  3. OldBrewer

    OldBrewer Maven (1,385) Jan 13, 2016 Canada (ON)

    If you're in a warm climate and need to use the chest freezer for secondary purposes, then what you could do is bottle some of the beer from the kegs you have (say a two-week supply), keep them in the fridge, and use them for drinking while you wait for the chest freezer to finish with the secondary fermentation.
     
    #3 OldBrewer, Aug 15, 2017
  4. VikeMan

    VikeMan Grand Pooh-Bah (3,067) Jul 12, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    If Lagering were what your beer needed (to encourage yeast flocculation and the settling of proteins/polyphenols), 40F is a good temp.

    But most of the things that typically happen in secondary would be slowed or stopped at 40F. That includes extracting flavors from fruit and fermentation of the fruit's sugars.
     
    #4 VikeMan, Aug 15, 2017
  5. GreenKrusty101

    GreenKrusty101 Initiate (0) Dec 4, 2008 Nevada

    This is why I ferment my beers with a ghetto swamp cooler...and save the temp controlled freezer/keezer for lagering...something has to give...and I haven't room or money for another chest freezer.
     
    #5 GreenKrusty101, Aug 16, 2017
  6. OldBrewer

    OldBrewer Maven (1,385) Jan 13, 2016 Canada (ON)

    GreenKrusty, how do you control the temperature in the swamp cooler, and keep it relatively steady?
     
    #6 OldBrewer, Aug 16, 2017
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.