Discussant Jeremy Kees Why use a Secondary Remove beer from the yeast cake trub Autolysis To quote John Palmer How to Brew 1ed When a yeast cell dies it ruptures releasing several offflavors into the beer When you have a large yeast mass on the bottom of the ID: 229428
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Slide1
The Myth of Secondary Fermentation: Why Many Modern Brewers (including Palmer) Don’t Recommend It
Discussant: Jeremy Kees
Slide2
Why use a Secondary?
Remove beer from the yeast cake (
trub
)
Autolysis
To quote John Palmer (
How to Brew
, 1ed)…
“When
a yeast cell dies, it ruptures - releasing several off-flavors into the beer. When you have a large yeast mass on the bottom of the
fermentor
, you have a large potential for off-flavors due to autolysis.
If this ever happens to you, you will know it. The smell is one you will never forget
.”
“At
a minimum, a beer that has experienced autolysis will have a
burnt rubber taste and smell
and will probably be
undrinkable
. At worst it will be
unapproachable
.
”Slide3Slide4
But consider this…
In a recent podcast, John Palmer and
Jamil
Zainasheff
discussed the issue and concluded…
Secondary fermentation was recommended in the 1
st
edition of Palmers book (1999) (which is widely available for free online)
Health and vitality of yeast is different now (i.e., we use liquid yeast and make starters)
YOU DON’T NEED TO TRANSFER THE BEER OFF THE YEAST TO AVOID AUTOLYSIS LIKE WE USED TO RECOMMENDSlide5
My thoughts
Leaving the beer in the primary for a month (and probably 2 months) is not a problem
The very small risk of off flavors is offset by the more likely “damage” done by racking to a secondary (e.g., infection, oxidation) and taking the yeast away too early (e.g.,
diacetyl
, acetaldehyde)
Plus, there is the added benefit of the yeast being able to “cleanup after themselves” (i.e., metabolizing fermentation byproducts)
Use a secondary for
lagering
, ageing, fruit additions, dry hopping, etc.
If it’s good enough for Palmer and
Jamil
, it’s good enough for me!!Slide6
Remember
ANY
strain on the yeast increases the potential for yeast derived off-flavors
Use healthy yeast
Consider pitch rates (use a yeast starter)
Jamil’s “Mr. Malty Pitching Rate Calculator”
Properly aerate the
wort
before pitching
Ferment at cool temps (below 70 for ales and below 50 for lagers)Slide7
Equipment Corner
Refractometer vs. Hydrometer