After bottling: Still another 2 weeks!?

My beer has been in the second fermentation carboy for nearly two weeks now, soaking in an ounce of Cascades. I'm going to bottle in the next day or two, and now I'm reading that I have to wait EVEN LONGER until I drink the fruits of my labor!

Some have said I can drink it right after bottling, some say I have to wait two weeks, some have even said I need to wait a MONTH to crack my first bottle.

What say you on length of bottle conditioning?

3 weeks @ 70*.

of course, I always sample a few at 1 week and 2 weeks - just to "see how they're aging" (aka - I'm impatient)

3 weeks @ 70- the minimum time required for the yeast to consume the priming sugar and properly carbonate the beer. Longer if you can stand it. The very best beer in the batch will be the last one....sad but true.

Time to brew more and fill up your pipeline!

You can drink one on bottling day, though it won't be ready. If nothing else, it needs to carbonate. Conditioning is helpful too.

Heh... kinda reading the instructions as you go alone huh. Well, in case you're wondering, even the fastest batches will be drinkable at a minimum of 5 weeks after pitching in the yeast. Bigger beers like 6% ABV and above really really need longer to age. This is not a hobby for the impatient but rather one for the persistently patient.

I have a question. I read that you want to refrigerate the beer for 3 days before opening. Is this true, and if so, should I refrigerate it starting at 3 weeks or 3 days prior to 3 weeks. *crosses fingers for latter. I can't go an additional 3 days without losing my mind.

Thanks for the beginner's video series, Bobby.

I guess I'll settle in for 5 weeks to wait for my beer to do its thing. THE PAIN!

Two weeks minimum to carbonate. Three is better.

Now... Get another batch (or three) in the pipeline, and soon you will have no worries about drinking green homebrew.

I feel for you. I really do. Because I'm about to bottle my latest batch too! Actually, I feel pretty good because this time I have a KEG to put it in, so I only HAVE to wait a couple of days to get carbed before trying.

That said, I usually drink a half-glass at bottling time, just before adding sugar. That way I can get a real good sample and evaluate the beer. Then it's a terrible 2-week wait before I get to sample from the bottle. Then I usually wait another 2 weeks before drinking more.

THis explains all about carbing and bottle conditioning.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/558191-post101.html

there's even a nifty video.

Great vid! Thank you.

StrictlyIPAs said:

Some have said I can drink it right after bottling, some say I have to wait two weeks, some have even said I need to wait a MONTH to crack my first bottle.

What say you on length of bottle conditioning?

Click to expand...

You can definitelly drink it right after bottling, but it really is better when it's carbonated!

It takes two to three weeks at a decent room temperature (70 degrees is perfect) to carbonate properly. Then, they should be chilled about 24 hours before opening. That just ensures that the co2 is dissolved better into the beer- co2 dissolves into solution more readily at fridge temps- that's why people have told you to chill it for 3 days or so before drinking.

I always figure 3 weeks but I drink/try a bottle once a week to see how things are shaping up.

get into kegging. you can drink lighter beers within just a few weeks

It's worth the wait. My first brew seemed to be pretty well carbonated after only 4 days in the bottle and it held a nice head. It tasted ok, but a little odd and I was really dissapointed, thought maybe this hobby wasn;t gonna be so great. A week later and it was not bad at all, not the best beer I ever had but not terrible. By the last few bottles it turned into outstanding beer and my wife is begging me to make another batch of it. Got 4 in the pipeline and am planning my next 2. Can't wait but I will anyway.