Yeast Clean Up

I assume that by "clean up" you mean "metabolize unwanted byproducts of fermentation like VDKs and acetaldehyde".

If you pitched enough healthy yeast and had a vigorous fermentation, once a stable terminal gravity has been reached you should be OK to package. No extended aging necessary.

As far as there being enough yeast in solution to metabolize intermediary compounds, as long as you don't use post-kettle finings, there are enough even if you rack off of your primary yeast cake.

 

If you had a healthy fermentation the beer should be ready for packaging once you have reached final gravity.

As a homebrewer I do not need to meet a production schedule so I typically just wait a few 'extra' days before packaging as a 'just in case' procedure.

I have read many posts where folks discuss how they let their beers 'sit' in their fermentors for several weeks (e.g., 2-3 weeks) prior to packaging. Unless you had an unhealthy fermentation there is no need for this IMO. I am also of the opinion that extending the time in the fermentor has the potential for unwanted aspects of yeast autolysis. I am not stating that 3-ish weeks in a fermentor will yield off flavors per se (e.g., meaty aroma/flavor) but there may be more subtle aspects from this extended time in the fermentor.

Yup, the time to reach final gravity (e.g., 7 days) plus another 2-3 days works just great in my homebrewery.

Cheers!

 

To work this question backwards, what is the reason to remove the beer from the yeast/trub immediately? Trub I can understand if you've got a lot of it, but not the yeast. More importantly I'll say that if you've got that much trub that you've got to pull the beer off of it that's the problem that needs to be addressed.

 

Jim, how long do you think it is prudent to let beer 'sit' on the yeast in a primary fermentor?

Cheers!

 

I would certainly be more concerned with oxidation of hop-related compounds over that period of time, than I would of autolysis. Not such a big deal with beers that aren't hop-forward, but definitely a concern with IPAs with a lot of post-boil hop additions.

 

Indeed. You should probably examine your lautering technique in that case.

 

Well I've had a saison sitting on yeast for about 2 months now at 32F and it seems fine. I'll give it another half month before I pull the yeast (I'm actually doing this just to keep the yeast alive rather than putting it in a keg for storage). In a homebrew setting I've done the same in a glass carboy on the basement floor (so roughly 55F) for about the same time and had no issues. I think you could even go longer at that temp. but not with lower gravity beers (English-style mild, etc.). I also like at least 16 days of cold conditioning for beer stability in packaging - that's not possible with some dry-hopped beers, but for others I think it helps.

 

I could package my NE DIPAs in 5 days, with two dry hops, but I usually give them 7 just because it tends to work better from a scheduling perspective.

 

Sure, if the beer is that cold it will certainly 'last' 2 months. I personally 'store' my fermentors at fermentation temperatures (e.g., 68-70 degrees F). I personally would never let my beers 'sit' on the yeast cake for 2 months in those conditions. I sincerely doubt that many homebrewers store their primary fermentors at 32 degrees F for something like 2 months.

Cheers!

 

Trub is also tied to boiling. Without a vigorous boil you can run into issues.

For a hoppy beer of 1.070 I'd expect primary to run about 7 days but maybe more depending on the yeast choice and how much was pitched. I like to over-pitch and see fermentation fairly quickly, but I don't want to get off-topic. From there I'd give it at least 5 days before I touched it, but that's just me. I wouldn't rush it, that's for sure.

 

Not in my experience, no. I usually use Chico, though, so if you use a different yeast strain like @NeroFiddled mentioned, your time may vary.

 

I discussed this in a past thread:

“A couple of days ago I ordered a Shemp's logo T-shirt and a 'light bulb' went on and a new avatar 'appeared'.”

Cheers!

 

I average ten days from primary to keg for ales where I “condition” it a few days. I also don’t usually brew above 1.060 OG so YMMV. I used to do 2 weeks primary religiously but had a party one time where I was rushing beer a few days and noticed no Ill effects.
I’m actually kegging an ESB tomorrow with wlp002 that I fermented on May 5th sooooo 6 days.

 

Was there a reason for the extended (2 weeks) duration?

Cheers!

 

New brewer and a homebrew book told me to.

 

I think that over the past decade or so, and especially in the last four or five years, that homebrewing techniques are starting to become more and more like commercial techniques with less and less fluff and unfounded procedures. Still a LOT of work to do, but I think it is primarily because of all the great blogs and wikis that are out there.