Mountainbeers
Well-Known Member
Is one considered "superior" over the other or is it a matter of preference?
Aging is everything. The spunding valve I mentioned is added insurance only for priming. Measurement is key in natural carbonating!!!
I'm posting it merely because I thought you might find it interesting.
This link is not actually appropriate, as it does not describe what home brewers are doing when force carbing. By force carbing, you are speeding the process, but not altering your beer as in the methods described in this link. I'm posting it merely because I thought you might find it interesting.
This link is not actually appropriate, as it does not describe what home brewers are doing when force carbing. By force carbing, you are speeding the process, but not altering your beer as in the methods described in this link. I'm posting it merely because I thought you might find it interesting.
I prefer to naturaaly carb. I gives my beers an extra three weeks to mature, also since I don't secondary it gives more time to settle out alot of the stuff that doesn't get filtered out when I keg my brew.
Yellow 70 cooper
I've heard a few people say they don't secondary and a bunch say they do. What would be the reason for not doing it?
I generally don't secondary. I don't do it because it is not a useful step for me. The beer will clear at whatever rate it clears no matter what it is sitting on. I'll leave it in primary for 3 weeks generally, gives it time to settle time, time for yeast to clean up/drop out. Then I siphon to the keg and put it on gas to carbonate for a week, I'll normally continue to age even at that point, but I can sample if I want.
I also don't secondary because it is just one more chance for an infection to sneak in.
I believe it's hard to compare the two methods because of our nature of being anxious to drink our product.
Given two beers that are aged for the same length of time and carbonated to the exact same level of co2 volumes, they should pour and taste exactly the same (with perhaps the slightest difference due to increased alcohol in the bottle conditioned beer).
However, I suspect that those that compare the two methods actually do NOT have cases of same aging time/ same carb level. It's not easy to nail co2 volumes when bottle conditioning. It's much easier to do so in force carbing if you measure your temp accurately and give it enough time (3 weeks) for absolute equilibrium.
The patience thing is huge. People who force carb tend to try rushing by elevating pressures and/or shaking. In that case, you have no idea what your volumes of co2 are. Even if you set and forget at the chart pressure, many think they're at equilibrium in a week and a half. Nope.
In conclusion, please compare apples to apples. I have beers that are 3 months old that have been at equilibrium for a long time. I know the volumes of CO2. Carbonic acid levels have subsided. I'd put it against all my bottle conditioned beers. Don't pour a 2 week old beer that you shake carbed 2 days ago and compare it to a 2 month old bottle.
You never do any straining of any type? I feel like I'd have a cloudier beer even if it was allowed longer to settle.
No. I mean, if you transfer to the keg too soon before it has cleared in the fermenter and you want to be able to transport that keg to a new serving location, you'd want to do a closed transfer. Otherwise, it's not necessary.
Yes, they are no different in what they are only how they operate. The ports are different, but that is it. They are both pressure vessels.This may be a stupid question, but can you force cabonate in both Corny and Sanke kegs? All of the posts I have seen on force carbonation seem to be with Cornys.
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