Why the hate on agitating?

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nickharbour

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I see lots of threads where people set a psi and leave it for weeks to achieve proper carb. I still don't understand why. Dissolved co2 is dissolved co2 so there can't be a taste difference.

I set at 30psi and agitate till I no longer hear bubbling. then I release the pressure and re pressurize at serving pressure. after an overnight in the kegerator to cool down I always get a perfect carb and perfect pour in < 24 hours.

Why are people waiting weeks to get the same carbonation you can get in five minutes?
 
if you set it at serving pressure then there's no way to over carb. also cold conditioning for a week or two is usually a good thing. my beers are usually carbed decently with in a few days and pretty much done in a week. but they always taste better after two weeks in the fridge (and even better after three if they make it that long)
 
It's not just a carb level. We like to condition the ale as well. I understand what you are saying if you need to rush a beer, but the quality does improve with time so if no need to rush, then don't rush.
 
Also, the carbonic acid you are rushing into the beer by force carbing takes time to dissipate. No matter the technique, proper conditioning takes about 2-3 weeks in the keg before the beer is hitting its prime. Many of us just do the waiting while carbing. It is less work and easier to attain my desired volumes of CO2.

But, to each his own.
 
rycov said:
if you set it at serving pressure then there's no way to over carb. also cold conditioning for a week or two is usually a good thing. my beers are usually carbed decently with in a few days and pretty much done in a week. but they always taste better after two weeks in the fridge (and even better after three if they make it that long)
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is over carbing really a problem for most people who agitate? I just find it odd that in all the batches I've done I've never encountered that as an issue. reading all the stuff on this site makes it sound like you're pretty much guaranteed to over carb if you agitate but I'm just saying I'm skeptical. i have screwed everything else up in brewing about as bad as it can be but overcarbing seems to be beyond even my level of fail. I should add that I'm force carbing at room temp, which is less co2 than at refridge temp.

beers tasting better with time in a fridge has nothing to do with the carbing method I wouldn't think, after the first few hours. I'm no BJCP grandmaster lvl 5. nightelf mohawk but I really can't tell the difference in my beers based on just time in the fridge. I can detect hops mellowing out over time and such in certain beers though, so I'm not a total noob.
 
It's not about guaranteed overcarbing. It's just that if and when it does happen, it's a huge pain in the ass to get it back down. There is also some debate about head retaining proteins being "used up" during this shaking procedure. Of course, at the moment I can't recall who said it via what media outlet. I do remember it being from someone credible enough for me to think twice about it until further notice.
 
Bobby_M said:
It's not about guaranteed overcarbing. It's just that if and when it does happen, it's a huge pain in the ass to get it back down. There is also some debate about head retaining proteins being "used up" during this shaking procedure. Of course, at the moment I can't recall who said it via what media outlet. I do remember it being from someone credible enough for me to think twice about it until further notice.
Click to expand...

I've heard Jamil say it several times. I'm inclined to not believe it, but like you said, his credibility...
 
Bobby_M said:
It's not about guaranteed overcarbing. It's just that if and when it does happen, it's a huge pain in the ass to get it back down. There is also some debate about head retaining proteins being "used up" during this shaking procedure. Of course, at the moment I can't recall who said it via what media outlet. I do remember it being from someone credible enough for me to think twice about it until further notice.
Click to expand...

Probably some difference in some sort of scientific lab study or something, but I still get terrific long lasting head with nice lacing on my beers (style dictating of course). If these little differences and opinions are going to keep my kegerator full of beer I can't drink I think I'll stick with my way.
 
It's like anything else. "It works fine for me", especially in the context of something most people caution against, is fine for you until you hit that same point that got everyone recommending against it. You'll overcarb and spend a few days purging it down. Some day you'll get a pipeline going to the point where you're not in such a hurry for the next batch to pour down your gullet. Until then, :mug:
 
nickharbour said:
Probably some difference in some sort of scientific lab study or something, but I still get terrific long lasting head with nice lacing on my beers (style dictating of course). If these little differences and opinions are going to keep my kegerator full of beer I can't drink for a week or two I think I'll stick with my way of potentially over-carbing and drinking green beer.
Click to expand...

Fixed. ;)

Seriously, though - if you like the results you're getting, I wouldn't really care what others think...
 
Like some of the others said, I agitate if I am in a rush, but if there is no pressing reason to get the beer carbonated (I have a 4 keg keezer with only 3 taps, so leaving one carbing works for me) then I let it sit. Whether it is ale or lager i've found that letting it hang out in the keezer for a couple of weeks before drinking it improves the clarity and taste. I am not a fan of green beer if I can help it.
 
nickharbour said:
is over carbing really a problem for most people who agitate? I just find it odd that in all the batches I've done I've never encountered that as an issue. reading all the stuff on this site makes it sound like you're pretty much guaranteed to over carb if you agitate but I'm just saying I'm skeptical. i have screwed everything else up in brewing about as bad as it can be but overcarbing seems to be beyond even my level of fail. I should add that I'm force carbing at room temp, which is less co2 than at refridge temp.

beers tasting better with time in a fridge has nothing to do with the carbing method I wouldn't think, after the first few hours. I'm no BJCP grandmaster lvl 5. nightelf mohawk but I really can't tell the difference in my beers based on just time in the fridge. I can detect hops mellowing out over time and such in certain beers though, so I'm not a total noob.
Click to expand...

i doubt its usually a problem, especially the way your doing it. some people will set to 30 shake set to 30 shake set to thirty... whatever, trying to get it done really fast. i've definately done it the way your describing more than once with no ill effects. but since i've gotten my pipeline a little fuller i don't feel the need to rush anything. and my beers taste better after some time in the fridge. i feel like it might taste the same (or close enough for me) if i did your method then let it sit in the fridge for two weeks.

if its not broke don't fix it. if i could go grain to glass in 1 day and it was good i would do it no matter what some jackass told me on here. the two week thing just works well for most. if your way works for you, then who is someone else to say its wrong?
 
Bobby_M said:
......There is also some debate about head retaining proteins being "used up" during this shaking procedure. Of course, at the moment I can't recall who said it via what media outlet. I do remember it being from someone credible enough for me to think twice about it until further notice.
Click to expand...

In this specific case I don't this this is an issue. If you take a 2 liter soda bottle and shake the beejeezus out of it, you wont see much foam while shaking. The pressure in the headspace keeps it from forming. Just don't open it for a while.
 
Bobby_M said:
There is also some debate about head retaining proteins being "used up" during this shaking procedure. Of course, at the moment I can't recall who said it via what media outlet. I do remember it being from someone credible enough for me to think twice about it until further notice.
Click to expand...

I've heard it from several sources, the two I find credible are Jamil Z and Charles Bamforth. From my own experience the difference is minimal, but the head does seem to last slightly longer if the keg was not agitated. I've seen zero difference in the amount of head. I've only shaken kegs a couple of times though, so the differences may have been from something else.
 
If I agitate at a high psi, that means that I'm disconnecting all of my other lines, etc, etc. If I had a spare bottle + regulator around, I might do it. But the setup I have is in the keezer.

When putting it in the keezer, after hooking up the gas, I usually shake it around some while putting it in. I'm already kicking everything up when I move it to put it in there, so why not give it a slight jump start for carbing also?

I'm really trying to simplify my brewing process as much as possible, and just putting a keg in the keezer and hooking it up really falls in line with that. I don't need beer immediately; I have beer around.
 

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