Kegging after only 10 days Primary??

jimdurt · 02-03-2012, 02:15 AM

I have a Liberty Cream Ale that I just finished kegging after only 10 days in the primary. The FG reads 1.010 like it is supposed to. So I went ahead and kegged it so I could hopefully force carb before Super Bowl :-) The fermentation goes quick with this style and is pretty much non existant after 3-4 days for me.

Has anyone had any luck with rushing to serve up their homebrew?

Also, do you think it will be carbed up if I keep it at 20 psi until Sunday?

Nateo · 02-03-2012, 02:24 AM

If it's a recipe you've brewed before, and you know where it's going and when it gets there, flavor-wise, you can turn beer around pretty quickly. The beer is done on its own terms, not on yours.

Almost always though, rushing your beer will mean it's less good than it could be.

**Seven** · 02-03-2012, 02:34 AM

I'd recommend chilling it and setting the pressure to 30-PSI. Usually 24-hours at 30-PSI will give you a decent amount of carbonation but everyone's setup is different. After about 24-hours check the carb level then drop it down to 12-PSI once it's carbed sufficiently.

**starrfish** · 02-03-2012, 02:39 AM

fast carbing can result in over carbing (excess foam) and carbonation bite. For fast serving I go 30psi for 18-24 hours then knock it back to serving pressure (11 psi for me) for the rest of the time in keg before serving day. Seems to work pretty well for me, but beer is always better about a week in keg after force carbing. 20 psi from now to sunday will probably be over carbed and foamy.

I also do some cream ales, a crowd pleaser, and being a lighter style beer they tend to carb pretty quick. Check it after 18hrs, and if it is close to your liking knock it back to serving pressure. It will carb up more over the last few days.

**sudsmcgee** · 02-03-2012, 02:43 AM

High PSI for 1-2 days is better than the shake method IMO. 30 PSI for 24 hours should get you close as stated above. I find 40 PSI for 24 hours really gets me there quickly.

jimdurt · 02-03-2012, 02:53 AM

Thanks for the input I kicked it up to 30 psi. I will check it after 24 hours. This will be beer number 1 in my newly converted kegerator. Pretty pumped!

**starrfish** · 02-03-2012, 02:55 AM

Yeah avoid the shake method if possible. Did that once, and didn't like the results. I do have a keg that labeled PSI rating is 30psi, so I try not to go over that.

Congrats on new Keggerator! let us know how it works for you.

wailingguitar · 02-03-2012, 12:57 PM

I recommend getting a carbonation stone such as the ones AHS sells. You can carb your kegged beer at serving pressure in a couple days and not have to futz around with stuff and worry about over carbing, shaking, disturbing sediment, etc.

As to time to flip a beer? Depends on the beer, but if you consider the norm for commercial breweries brewpubs size out their tanks with the expectation of 14 days brew to glass... My norm was 14-21, but I did flip beers in 10days on many occasions... and sometimes do at home as well

solbes · 02-03-2012, 01:36 PM

I think you can get carbonation by Sunday. But getting the yeast to clear sufficiently might be an issue. It always tastes better after it clears as you get an artifical yeast bitterness. Get that baby as cold as you can if there is still yeast in suspension, then maybe warm it up a tad for Sunday.

Gigan · 02-04-2012, 08:25 AM

Jim I did the same thing to my latest brew for the same reasons. I put it at 30 psi and went to work (I work Nights) tomorrow after about 19 hours or so Ill drop it to 24 for a bit more and see how it looks around 8 pm tonight. Good luck!