I’ve got 5 gallons of porter that has been fermenting in a water bath for 6 days at 70 F with Safale S 04.
The outside weather is getting cooler and I could move it into my garage and probably drop the fermentation temp by 3 or 4 degrees. After 60 days at 70 F, will this make any appreciable difference in taste or quality?
Thanks in advance for your advice.
Probably not. Most of the business end of fermentation occurs in the first 3 days or so…next batch however if your garage is in the low to mid 60’s or lower that would be useful.
No, after 6 days, the great majority of your fermentation is finished. There’s probably just a point or two and a little cleanup left. 70 is not horrible for S-04, but not as clean as it would be down around 63-65. With a porter, it will probably taste just fine. In the future, you would get better results by starting your fermentation on the lower side of your yeast strain’s temp. range, then raising the temp by 5 degrees or so toward the end of fermentation. That technique helps keep the yeast active through the end of fermentation and usually results in a more complete fermentation and cleanup.
