It is my understanding that during priming the yeast creates the necessary C02 for carbonation in the first 3 to 4 days and the C02 is then absorbed into the beer over the next 10 to 15 days. If this is true, then does bottle temp matter that much after day 4?
I currently ferment/prime in my living room, and then move my beer into the basement. Do you foresee any issues if I move the beer after half a week? Basement temp ranges from 50-75 degrees this time of year.
That shouldn't cause a problem. Reducing the temperature is ideal because it will cause more CO2 to go into solution.
As long as the yeast did their part during the first 4 days you should be fine. I usually let bottles sit a week before letting them chill. Before I was real comfortable with the timing of it I'd move one bottle to the fridge to chill overnight and sample it the next day. If it was carbonated the way I expect then I would have no issues moving all the bottles to storage. If not, I'd let them condition some more at the warmer temp.
