House A01 Fermentation at 75F

[Clanderson]

I recently purchased a conical fermenter and made a fatal error. I pitched the yeast at 70F and then realized I couldn't get it into the basement because of the weight. My basement is generally around 64F, but since I couldn't get it down the stairs and my wife isn't willing to turn down the thermostat it seems to be running at about 75F.

So here's my question. Has anyone fermented House A01 at 75F before? Even if you haven't, take a guess and tell me what you think it is going to do to this batch of beer. I was shooting for 7% IPA.

[Oginme]

I have not used Imperial A01, but I can take a pretty good stab at things to watch for based upon early uncontrolled fermentation temperatures on my part.

First, your fermentation will go pretty fast.  Give it time for the yeast to hopefully clean up some of the byproducts which are released during rapid fermentation. 

I would watch for some fusel alcohols.  Higher temperature and very rapid fermentation tends to lend itself to producing some higher alcohols.  My experience is that it is strain dependent on how much is produced.

With an English strain, I would expect additional ester production.  If this is a hoppy IPA, then the fruity esters may fit right in -- though if the yeast is prone to producing amyl acetate (banana aroma) then it may stand out a bit.

Other products of a high temperature fermentation to watch out for is diacetyl which will give a slick mouthfeel and often buttery notes.  The higher temperature will encourage the yeast to reabsorb these compounds and convert them for energy, too much will leave its mark.

[justjim3]

Imperial A01 = Wyeast 1098 = WhiteLabs WLP007 = Fermentis SafAle S-04.  Each company has a slightly different recommended maximum temperature range (Wyeast 72?F the highest). I've used Imperial, Wyeast and SafAle (dry) versions and found them to be very clean finishing and not prone to throw off funky flavors with higher temperature fluctuations. Since your ale is an IPA with expected gravity 7%, I would not worry about a fermenting at 75%. Are you going to get the same IPA as you would at 64?F in your basement? Probably not. But I think you will end up with a very drinkable ale, provided you like your recipe. Let us know how it turns out. Good luck!

P.S. You might want to use a blow-off tube in a bucket of water rather than using an airlock, if you haven't already done that. The fermentation is apt to be quite vigorous.

Jim

[Clanderson]

I have not used Imperial A01, but I can take a pretty good stab at things to watch for based upon early uncontrolled fermentation temperatures on my part.

First, your fermentation will go pretty fast.  Give it time for the yeast to hopefully clean up some of the byproducts which are released during rapid fermentation. 

I would watch for some fusel alcohols.  Higher temperature and very rapid fermentation tends to lend itself to producing some higher alcohols.  My experience is that it is strain dependent on how much is produced.

With an English strain, I would expect additional ester production.  If this is a hoppy IPA, then the fruity esters may fit right in -- though if the yeast is prone to producing amyl acetate (banana aroma) then it may stand out a bit.

Other products of a high temperature fermentation to watch out for is diacetyl which will give a slick mouthfeel and often buttery notes.  The higher temperature will encourage the yeast to reabsorb these compounds and convert them for energy, too much will leave its mark.

Oginme,

Thank you for the input. I can confirm the fermentation did go very fast. I pitched Saturday evening with a starter that had been fed for 12 hours with 1.040 DME. I got up early on Sunday and checked it and it was going wild. It was that way all day Sunday and Monday. Now, early Tuesday morning it has just begun slowing down. Internal temp is down now to 72F, and ambient is 68F. It wasn't meant to be fruity as I was shooting for something more along the lines of an Arrogant Bastard clone. That's the beauty of the brewing hobby, I learn something every time I brew. It will be a long time, perhaps a lifetime, before I get a batch I consider perfect.

[Clanderson]

Imperial A01 = Wyeast 1098 = WhiteLabs WLP007 = Fermentis SafAle S-04.  Each company has a slightly different recommended maximum temperature range (Wyeast 72?F the highest). I've used Imperial, Wyeast and SafAle (dry) versions and found them to be very clean finishing and not prone to throw off funky flavors with higher temperature fluctuations. Since your ale is an IPA with expected gravity 7%, I would not worry about a fermenting at 75%. Are you going to get the same IPA as you would at 64?F in your basement? Probably not. But I think you will end up with a very drinkable ale, provided you like your recipe. Let us know how it turns out. Good luck!

P.S. You might want to use a blow-off tube in a bucket of water rather than using an airlock, if you haven't already done that. The fermentation is apt to be quite vigorous.

Jim

Justjim3,

Thank you also for your input. Hopefully, A01 being less prone to throw off "funky" flavors will work in my favor, even though it ran at a higher temp. It is pretty hoppy, so a little "funky" might get masked. Regarding the blow-off tube, I didn't use an airlock. Another minor mistake on my part, which probably worked in my favor was that the cork I had assumed would fit the top vent in the fermenter was actually too big, so I had to use 1/2" silicon tube instead. It is a 10 gallon fermenter and the batch was 6.5 gallons, so there was quite a bit of headroom. Based on how active it was, it would have just blown everything out of a little airlock anyway. I think I'll just continue to use a blow-off tube in the future as I'm likely to come closer to the 10 gallon capacity on future brew sessions.

[naDinMN]

Imperial A01 = Wyeast 1098 = WhiteLabs WLP007 = Fermentis SafAle S-04.  Each company has a slightly different recommended maximum temperature range (Wyeast 72?F the highest). I've used Imperial, Wyeast and SafAle (dry) versions and found them to be very clean finishing and not prone to throw off funky flavors with higher temperature fluctuations. Since your ale is an IPA with expected gravity 7%, I would not worry about a fermenting at 75%. Are you going to get the same IPA as you would at 64?F in your basement? Probably not. But I think you will end up with a very drinkable ale, provided you like your recipe. Let us know how it turns out. Good luck!

P.S. You might want to use a blow-off tube in a bucket of water rather than using an airlock, if you haven't already done that. The fermentation is apt to be quite vigorous.

Jim

100% This.

The fermentation will go fast, A01 (One of my personal favorites) is a monster and I've fermented out to 1.010 from 1.045 in three days at 65F. I don't know if it is the 200 Billion cells or something they are doing with the organic nutrients, but man I have switched nearly all my fermentations to Imperial.

You may also get some more off flavors at first. Leave it in primary for at least a week after signs of fermentation stopping to allow the yeast to clean those up. Or skip secondary (my personal choice) and just leave it in primary for 2 weeks.

You'll be left with some fruitier characters from the yeast at the end of the day. I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing. You may find you like it and want to ferment again at 75F.

[yamanzop]

In the production of ethanol the process of fermentation is carried out at a low temperature (30⁰-40⁰). Above 40⁰ the enzymes would permanently lose their structure (denature). At a temperature lower than 30⁰ the process would be too slow. Fermentation is conducted in the absence of air.

[Kevin58]

Here's a tip for next time... I'm 64 years old with an artificial hip and arthritis everywhere else so carrying a full fermenter down a flight of stairs is impossible. It finally dawned on my I don't have to carry the entire volume at once. Clean and sanitize a bucket and carry it down a couple gallons at a time.