I was cruising the White Labs site and found the following information. It really flys in the face of conventional homebrewing wisdom. Anyone else pitch warm and then cool their wort during beginning phases of fermentation? http://www.whitelabs.com/beer/guidelines-white-labs-pitchable-yeast-cultures "* The fermentation is best started at 70-72° F (21-22°C) (even for lagers), and lowered to desired fermentation temperature after krausen formation or CO2 begins." Also here for microbrew-sized operations: "Lagering Options for the Microbrewer 1) Order two times the amount Order twice the amount (i.e. 15 Bbl. For 7Bbl) and start at your desired fermentation temperature. 2) Start fermentation at ale temperatures Order the corresponding barrel size for your system (i.e. 7 Bbl for a 7Bbl system). Maintain fermenting wort temperature at ale temps (about 68°F) until signs of fermentation are evident (i.e. CO2 evolution). Begin to lower temperatures to desired fermentation temperature. Lower 10°F over each 12 hour period until temperature is reached. For each succeeding generation, repitch as per #4. Flavor effects of this method vary with yeast strain, recipe, and palette. Most of our customers report little or no flavor effects of starting fermentation at higher temperatures." Thoughts? Confirmation?
I think the conventional homebrew wisdom is option #1, i.e. a really big starter and low fermentation temps. Option #2 is for brewers trying to save money.
It sure reads like White Labs is presenting the microbreweries with an option to brew and save some money. The notion of pitching less yeast warm is to save money with the hope that the amount of esters produced during the time that the yeast grows is minimal - not perceptible in the finished beer. The conservative approach is to pitch a lot of yeast cold since this method ensures that minimal esters are produced. Cheers!
I pitch warm on every batch then let it cool to fermentation temps. If I am getting more esters I am not aware.
Jim, I did not perceive any esters in your lagers either. It would seem that this method works as well because your lagers were (are) of very high quality!! Cheers to you sir!!
It sure looks like it. I have no idea what the cost difference would be between a 7 barrel pitch and a 12-15 barrel pitch would be but it has to add up for a small brewer. If I was a small brewer, I would either do lagers with option #1 or I probably would not do too many lagers. With that said, there are a lot of ways to skin a cat or brew a beer
