Away Posted January 17, 2016 Share Posted January 17, 2016 In the never ending quest to make the perfect brew I went a step further with cold crashing and with my last batch I dropped from 2C to 0.5C, hoping to get an even cleaner beer. I have an STC-1000 controlling my fridge and it was reading 0.5C plus or minus about .3C depending on whether the compressor was running or idle. My secondary thermometer which I simply sit on top of the FV was showing the same readings. My fridge has an exposed "cold plate" on the rear wall and I made the mistake of pushing the FV too far back in the fridge, so that it touched the plate. Because of the location of my thermometers I had no idea that the rear of the FV was freezing. When I went to bottle tonight I noticed the blob of ice on the inside of the FV. I didn't know whether to let it thaw or just bottle what I could, knowing that the ABV would be higher because the ice block will have concentrated the alcohol into the remaining brew. Anyway, I end up getting 20L of a 23L brew, which still tastes fantastic and I will have to make up a piece of plywood with holes drilled in it to line the rear of the fridge so that it doesn't happen again. I'm not concerned about having enough yeast left to prime the bottles, there should be well and truly enough "live" cells in the liquid that didn't freeze. My latest brew fridge is a different design and shouldn't cause the same issues, but at least I know what to look out for in the future. Yet another lesson learned in the art of brewing. Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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