Ageing Gracefully

[GuingesRock]

It’s 4-5 months until Garrison and I want to brew my robust porter and age it.

I haven’t aged a beer before and from what I remember reading about it, it’s the darker stronger beers that do well, like barley wines. What I read was about selecting beers to age …beers that had already been made, but how do you brew a beer for ageing? Also I still need to know more about how to age.

Should I brew as usual, chill and force carb as usual, and then bottle and put in the basement for a few months? I’d like to force carb this one if possible.

Do I want to let the beer clear in the keezer before bottling, or do I want yeast in the bottles?

Any other tips would be great.

Thanks.

[Keith]

I don't see any benefit of transferring any sediment if you don't have to.

[McGruff]

Any reason you don't want to bottle condition your Porter? I thought it would age better this way.

[GuingesRock]

I wondered whether that's an advantage. I just want to keep it simple and controlled and don't have enough experience with bottle priming. But what you said makes me wonder if I should bottle while it is still cloudy and hasn't cleared. Leave it in the keezer just maybe long enough to carbonate, then bottle and move to the basement.

[Keith]

If you are force carbonating and filling with a beer gun, there would be no benefit to bottling cloudy. If you can bottle clear and carbonated, you probably serve a better chance of scoring higher on the appearance. If you are pouring sediment from the bottle into the beer that will be suspended again. Chances are you will lose some points based on this style. However it is dark enough you may not notice it.

I'm going to try to bottle off 10 of each keg and submit what I think is the best.

[GuingesRock]

I'm not sure Keith. If there's some yeast in there it might scavenge some 02 and keep working a little in the basement. There won't be any more sediment than a bottle conditioned beer.

[RubberToe]

Regarding the difference of leaving it in the keg or bottling it now, one thing that comes to mind is the temperature and the effect that has on aging.

One is cold conditioning, one is not assuming your bottles will be on a shelf outside of the fridge. If it's in bottles you can move them where / when you like.

[GuingesRock]

Regarding the difference of leaving it in the keg or bottling it now, one thing that comes to mind is the temperature and the effect that has on aging.

One is cold conditioning, one is not assuming your bottles will be on a shelf outside of the fridge. If it's in bottles you can move them where / when you like.

Thanks. I was planning to have it in the keg and keezer just long enough to force carb, then I was going to bottle with the Blichmann gun and put it in the basement around 12C for a few months.

[GuingesRock]

I secondary ferment in kegs with shortened dip tubes for a week before chilling and force carbing. It goes in the keg maybe after 4 days when the yeast has settled down.

I could actually force carb at room temperature at 30 PSI during that week of secondary fermentation. Then I could bottle and put in the basement for ageing. Does anyone have any thoughts about what would happen if I force carbonated during secondary fermentation at room temperature?

I'll brew another batch closer to the time. I think you can put in 2 entries to the Garrison ...just in case this ageing/force carbing idea doesn't work.

I brewed the first batch today, so any help would be appreciated.

Edit: I don't think it will work as I won't be able to bottle room temperature beer with the Blichmann gun; It will foam right out of the bottles.

[Keith]

Did you end up Brewing your entry for Garrison Mark?

[GuingesRock]

Did you end up Brewing your entry for Garrison Mark?

Yes. I brewed it on the 29th Oct. It's in the kegs in the keezer, it's nice, I should have given you a glass when you were here. I'm still undecided how to age it. I'm thinking I might bottle up one keg this weekend and age half of the bottles in the fridge and half in the basement. I'll keep the other keg on tap. I named it Chocolate Orange, based on its flavours, and it's supposed to be seasonal.

[GuingesRock]

I'm making a barley wine next week. I still don't understand ageing. I commandeered the basement freezer this morning and will put a controller on it, so I could age the bottles in there, or would it be better just in the basement?

[amartin]

The basement is probably fine.

[GuingesRock]

The basement is probably fine.

Thanks.