I have always never hit above 72F when fermenting, usually between 68F and 70F consistently. I had a power outage and when the heat came on, the thermostat skyrocketed. I have a Shining Star Pale Ale and an Irish Red that are at about 76F and 78F respectively. The Pale Ale I started on 1/19, the Irish Red I started on 1/27. Should I worry too much about this? Any off flavors that I should expect?
When was this temperature raise? The most important time is at the beginning, in the first few days of fermentation.
The one brewed on the 19th should be just fine. The one brewed on the 27th might have some issues…assuming it isn’t already back down to your standard temp, get it in an ice water bath if you can and get the temp down to 70 or lower, then wrap it in a wet towel and put a fan on it. I had a Belgian hit the low 80s for a few hours, dropped it to 68, and it turned out fine.
Regardless, let it finish, bottle it, and if it does taste “off,” don’t toss it; let it sit for a month or two and try again.
