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callback79

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Not sure it's the right section of the forum but I would like to know your opinion.

My beer sit in the primary for 3 weeks. I then kegged it, put the keg in the kegerator at 40F and put Co2 pressure at 11psi.

Next time, would it be a good idea to let the keg at room temperature for few days/weeks before putting it at 40F ? It is a brown ale, can it "condition" at 40F ? I've read many thread about conditionning, but if the yeast goes dormant, I don't think the beer will benefits from the time passed in the kegerator.

I tasted it after 3 days carbing, of course it is flat but I also have the impression the beer is green, can it be good for the beer to condition @40F or should I take it out and let the keg sit at room temp ? Should I wait 2 weeks before attempting anything ?

Thanks.
 
One problem with secondary fermentation in a keg is trud will still settle out in your keg and your beer wont be too clear. Other than that, I dont think there is a difference in where you condition your beer. Personally, I would let it condition a little warmer but lets see what others have to say
 
I would like to know this as well. Had pretty much the exact same question.

A couple of days ago (4 days) I Kegged my beer, threw it in at 40F and set the regulator at 14psi after 2 weeks in fermentor. After day I was thinking what you just asked. I took it upon myself to leave the gas on, and turn the temp way up. It's probably at 60F now. My reasoning was that it will help get the yeast to clean up after themselves and allow the favors to mature more quickly.

The reason i did that was because my beer tasted terrible. I'm hoping it's still "green" because it has a spicy taste and cinnamon smell. Very bitter too. I just tried a little today and the cinnamon smell has almost gone and it's tasting a little better. It's not an alcohol spicy which is weird.

It's my first brew and I know it going to take more time. Hopefully the flavors will meld and the beer become better. I wonder if style has anything to do with it? The beer I'm brewing is a kolsch which seems like it benefits from a long cold conditioning process.

I wish I could help more but in the future I may keg it and let it sit for a few weeks before chilling it and giving it co2. It would almost be like a secondary but I won't have to put it in a key afterwards because it will already be there. Can someone who knows what they're talking about help us?
 
Beer will still age at 40 degrees, but it ages (conditions) much faster at room temperature.

If you keg a beer that has some young flavors to it (green apple, yeast bite, some roastiness that needs to mellow), it would be best to keep it at room temperature until it's ready to have the aging slowed down. A week or two often is enough for smaller beers, while a great big barley wine might do best with as long as 6 months at room temperature.

Most of my pale ales and amber ales go right into the kegerator, but I have a couple of beers like my oatmeal stout that need a bit more time.
 
JayCrash450 said:
I would like to know this as well. Had pretty much the exact same question.

A couple of days ago (4 days) I Kegged my beer, threw it in at 40F and set the regulator at 14psi after 2 weeks in fermentor. After day I was thinking what you just asked. I took it upon myself to leave the gas on, and turn the temp way up. It's probably at 60F now. My reasoning was that it will help get the yeast to clean up after themselves and allow the favors to mature more quickly.

The reason i did that was because my beer tasted terrible. I'm hoping it's still "green" because it has a spicy taste and cinnamon smell. Very bitter too. I just tried a little today and the cinnamon smell has almost gone and it's tasting a little better. It's not an alcohol spicy which is weird.

It's my first brew and I know it going to take more time. Hopefully the flavors will meld and the beer become better. I wonder if style has anything to do with it? The beer I'm brewing is a kolsch which seems like it benefits from a long cold conditioning process.

I wish I could help more but in the future I may keg it and let it sit for a few weeks before chilling it and giving it co2. It would almost be like a secondary but I won't have to put it in a key afterwards because it will already be there. Can someone who knows what they're talking about help us?
Click to expand...

In this case, a "spicy" taste could come from some of the hops used, especially if you used saaz hops. That will fade with cold conditioning. Kolsch really smooths out and "crisps" up when cold conditioned. If the flavors are due to something else like too-high fermentation temperatures, chlorine in the water, or a highly alkaline water, it won't get better with age.
 
drewmedic23 said:
One problem with secondary fermentation in a keg is trud will still settle out in your keg and your beer wont be too clear. Other than that, I dont think there is a difference in where you condition your beer. Personally, I would let it condition a little warmer but lets see what others have to say
Click to expand...

perhaps the 1st pint or two will have some yeast debris but as a whole aging/storing at lower temps will help the beer clear faster IME

i agree with yooper - for big beers, roasty beers or beers that may have needed some more clean up it's best to let them age at room temp but for simple greeness a week or 2 in the keezer is usually sufficient
 
Yooper said:
If the flavors are due to something else like too-high fermentation temperatures, chlorine in the water, or a highly alkaline water, it won't get better with age.
Click to expand...

Since I've experienced the same taste with both batches (extract and now it's a all grain batch), I'm afraid it could be something related to my water profile.

I've tried to age my first batch (the extract one) at room temperature for a month but it still has this green-apple flavor.

My last batch has been in the primary for 3 weeks at a constant 65F (isolated probe on the ferm bucket), so ferm temp should not be an issue.

BTW, on my last batch (all-grain), I used tap water, put in the pot the day before brewing day to let the chlorine to evaporate.

Maybe it's normal at this stage, but it is weird both beer has this similar taste.
 
callback79 said:
Not sure it's the right section of the forum but I would like to know your opinion.

My beer sit in the primary for 3 weeks. I then kegged it, put the keg in the kegerator at 40F and put Co2 pressure at 11psi.

Next time, would it be a good idea to let the keg at room temperature for few days/weeks before putting it at 40F ? It is a brown ale, can it "condition" at 40F ? I've read many thread about conditionning, but if the yeast goes dormant, I don't think the beer will benefits from the time passed in the kegerator.

I tasted it after 3 days carbing, of course it is flat but I also have the impression the beer is green, can it be good for the beer to condition @40F or should I take it out and let the keg sit at room temp ? Should I wait 2 weeks before attempting anything ?

Thanks.
Click to expand...

I think we're I the right track...in either case the key will be waiting longer. Seems at the colder temps it will take longer than at a room temperature. to mellow out and become better.

I hope I didn't screw myself because my fermentor probably got a little high in temp. It started out at about 72F for the first couple days. After a day the yeast was going and after about the 4th day it seemed to slow/stop. About a week into it I had to leave on business for a few days and it got really hot in my area. My fear is the fermentor got as high as 80F during that time. Ultimately I think this brew won't ever be that good due to this issue....I guess in another week or two ill know what, if anything I screwed up. I used bottled water and probably will for my next batch so if nothing else I'll know it's the fermentor temp. I need to do some research and figure out how better to control the temp for a few weeks.
 
once fermentation stops/slows down temps are much less of a concern

the 72° for the 1st 4 days is probably the culprit not the 80°
 

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