bottle conditioning really does pay off

my other 4 batch's i let got for 3 week usually , this time i had the patience and let them go for 6 weeks and man did it pay off , even the clarity greatly improved .

I have to hide bottles at relatives houses sometimes.....Its really hard not to constantly sample.

Good to hear your waiting paid off.

Cheers.

The turtle theory works for me. Glad to hear some made it to maturity!

I need accountability for this in a stupid way....I only brew half batches, my LHBS is over two hours away and I lack complete and total control....

Compulsivity is my middle name.....glad you all are being successful here....

It really pays off for bigger, dark ales like stouts and porters. I have kicked myself many times for drinking most of a batch within a month of bottling, only to find a few stray bottles many months later and they are SOOOOO much better. Now I condition in the secondary for a month, then bottle condtion for at least another when brewing bigger/darker ales.

lgtg said:

I need accountability for this in a stupid way....I only brew half batches, my LHBS is over two hours away and I lack complete and total control....

Compulsivity is my middle name.....glad you all are being successful here....

Click to expand...

Why are you brewing half batches? I can't imagine doing this much work and waiting 6 weeks for 28 beers, thats not even a beer a day for your wait!

I'm about to get another carboy so I can get two batches going at once. I need to stock up on bottles though. Every 12er of cindercone is another half case I can bottle later

The waiting is the hardest part. "Tom Petty"

Rook said:

Why are you brewing half batches? I can't imagine doing this much work and waiting 6 weeks for 28 beers, thats not even a beer a day for your wait!

I'm about to get another carboy so I can get two batches going at once. I need to stock up on bottles though. Every 12er of cindercone is another half case I can bottle later

Click to expand...

Rook,

I'm at ahlf batch for the time being as I got a Beer Machine for Christmas (I picked up a Mr Beer for a secondary vessel for $10) to experiment with. My wife thoughtfully bought me the gift of beer and said that if I liked brewing that the following Christmas she would upgrade me.

So, it's been small batches but it's not any less fulfilling! Space is a commodity at this point but I've been planning and I think that with the patience, I could be brewing full batches by next year. Yes, I brew under a case at this point because I ususally test 6 to 12 ounces suring fermentation and claryfication for off flavor and contamination. Just picked up a hydrometer and testing cask and that will further deplete the final volume but I'll brew as often as I can and be happy with whatever yield.

The major objective right now is to brew accurately, build confidence by knowing that no matter how or how much I brew, it's always good or better beer.

Just maximizing the value of the gift for now......looking forward though, always looking forward.