Best way to cool wort After The Boil??

[BarnsleyBrewer]

Hi
What is the best way to cool wort after the boil??

1. Cool immediately with immersion coil, then let hops and trub settle for 30 mins, before draining?

2. Leave 30 mins for hops and trub to settle, then drain off whilst still hot then cool with immersion coil?

3: Leave to cool overnight with the lid sealed?

I've tried both ways 1 & 2 but i'm unsure which is the best way to do it
Not done option 3
BB

[richard_senior]

I think it is that the harsher the temperature fall, the more things fall out of suspension. So I'd say cool immediately.
Having said this, a lot of people cool their wort to 80 degrees.. then add some hops and leave it for a while, then continue cooling.
Still others pump their boiling wort through a hopback and into a counterflow cooler, straight into the FV.
I have left beer overnight to cool before now and it's been OK. But I have noticed that I get brighter beer if I use the IC.

[Barley Water]

I think you are much better off cooling the wort down as quickly as possible to pitching temperature. You want to get as much cold break as possible to fall out plus you want to get the yeast on the wort quickly to avoid other organisms getting a foothold. What a lot of brewers do here in Texas (because it is hotter than hell in the summer, our highs right now are around 100F) is use a counter flow chiller which we pump ice water through. A few days before I brew, I start freezing water to make big blocks of ice. I then use my mash tun (which is a converted Gott cooler) to hold the ice water and use a pump like those used in garden ponds (which are cheap by the way) to pump water through my chiller. It works pretty well and if you want to make lagers in the summer here, it is almost mandatory. The ground water is getting so warm right now that you really can't get enough cooling just running water out of the tap.

[Whorst]

I do the same here in Southern California. I use two immersion chillers, one that sits in a bath of ice water, which is the pre-chiller.

[agentgonzo]

Just to reiterate what I've said in another topic:
The rate of cooling is proportional to the temperature difference between your cooling water and the wort. If you have bucket-loads of ice, then it's fine to use it all the time. If your amount of ice is limited, then it's best to save it until the end of the cooling. The wort will cool to about 40-50°C pretty quickly with normal tap water or water from a butt. There's no use wasting all your ice in that early stage - save it until you've chilled to about 40-50°C and then use it.

[BarnsleyBrewer]

I do the same here in Southern California. I use two immersion chillers, one that sits in a bath of ice water, which is the pre-chiller.

What's with the scary avatar Whorst? Kids darn't come near computer and all the clown toys have been thrown in the lobby!!

BB

[Whorst]

I know, it's a tad on the dark side. I plan on changing it.

I discovered another way of cooling. I now use the garden hose through a regular immersion chiller to get the temps down somewhat, usually about 15 minutes. Then, I fill a bucket with cold water and ice and use a submersible pump to pump the icy water through the immersion coils. The pump allows you to recirculate the water. Just need to add ice.