Fastest ingredients

Which ingredients have impact on how quickly the beer is ready?

I hear many people say that wheat beers can go "from grain to glass" in as little as 10 days and still be tasty. What makes wheat beers not taste "green" when they are young? Is it the yeast strains typically used with wheat beers, or does wheat itself somehow prevent or mask the "green" flavors?

Pitching enough healthy yeast and good temperature control are most important, no flaws to age out.

Malticulous said:

Pitching enough healthy yeast and good temperature control are most important, no flaws to age out.

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So you are saying what makes "green" beer "green" is mostly flaws, and if you brew a beer perfectly without these flaws it should taste the same as it would after 7 days in the primary as it would after 3-6 weeks of aging?

I find this hard to believe, aren't a lot of the "green" flavors natural byproducts of yeast that would happen no matter how perfect your process is (and flavor of the yeast themselves?).

Lower gravity beers tend to be the quickest. This is because since the yeast have less sugars to consume, they can begin the clean-up process earlier, and since there is less to clean up, they finish that earlier as well. It doesn't hurt to use a fast fermenting, high floccing yeast strain, either.

The clean up yeast do only takes a day or so (unless the fermentation was so out of control they went dormant before they had consumed all the by-products). The real conditioning is solids falling out of solution. Since wheat beers can be served cloudy that part of conditioning is not necessary.

Malticulous said:

The clean up yeast do only takes a day or so (unless the fermentation was so out of control they went dormant before they had consumed all the by-products). The real conditioning is solids falling out of solution. Since wheat beers can be served cloudy that part of conditioning is not necessary.

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Exactly. The "clean up" process is about 24 hours, give or take. So, by the time the beer has been at FG for three days, it's ready to package if it's clear or clearing.

Using flocculant yeast helps alot with clarity at that stage.

I think complex flavors take more time to meld, though. It's not that an oatmeal stout will taste "green" at 10 days (not if it's well made) but the roastiness might not have mellowed and melded with the crystal malt yet. But certainly by 3-4 weeks, it would be fine.

Higher gravity beers might take a little longer to ferment out, but even they will be finished fermenting in 7-10 days, max. If they are fermented at a proper temperature with the proper amount of yeast, they shouldn't taste "green" either, but may take a few weeks or longer for the alcohol flavor to smooth out. (I'm talking about 1.090+ beers).

A barley wine, due to the high alcohol and high amount of hops, may improve for 6 months or more, but most aless won't improve much after a few weeks.

You could do all of the above and turn around a beer quickly, or you could build up your pipeline and be patient which is the better option.

I just brewed a nice Alt beer that went from mash to glass in 10 days. I never rush my beers, and intended to secondary this, maybe cold crash it, etc.
But I took a reading after 10 days and it had dropped to 1.012, and tasted so good I could not wait to get it in the keg...so I didn't.

OG - 1.048, 46 IBU's, 18 SRM. (2 packs of hydrated S-05 yeast to 6.25-gallons in the carboy)

It has now been in the keg for over a week, is nicely carbonated, and I is a very nice beer. I'm brewing it again next weekend so I don't run out!
I think Yooper has a good point about flavors "blending" and mellowing out, though. The flavors from the de-bittered black have mellowed and merged with the rest of the beer, t does taste better after having been in the keg for another week, as typical.

Would pitching a starter of healthy yeast at the end of fermentation be an option? Let the new healthy yeast handle all the clean-up of the by-products left by the old tired yeast.

Xpertskir said:

You could do all of the above and turn around a beer quickly, or you could build up your pipeline and be patient which is the better option.

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Of course a nice pipeline is the intention here eventually, but i started a pipeline before only to discover 20 gallons/5-6 weeks in to my pipeline that I had a serious flaw in my process using the no-chill method that was ruining my beers, so that was quite discouraging to have 20 gallons of freshly brewed bad beer!

So now that I have got a plate chiller and pump and changed my process again, I would like to "proof" my process first with a couple of quick beers before I gamble again my starting a pipeline.

So to recap:

1. Control temperatures (Already doing with swamp coller).
2. Use highly flocculant yeast strains (are there any recommended data charts i can reference to find out which strains are best for this?)
3. Don't worry about clarity.
4. Don't brew high ABV.
5. Don't use ingredients with strong/complex flavors that might need some time to "blend/meld" with other flavors.

Does that about sum up the requirements for a "Fast" beer?

bduane said:

So to recap:

1. Control temperatures (Already doing with swamp coller).
2. Use highly flocculant yeast strains (are there any recommended data charts i can reference to find out which strains are best for this?)
3. Don't worry about clarity.
4. Don't brew high ABV.
5. Don't use ingredients with strong/complex flavors that might need some time to "blend/meld" with other flavors.

Does that about sum up the requirements for a "Fast" beer?

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1 & 3 yes. Clarity improves with time and cold-storage, so you can have a tasty, hazy beer that develops into a tasty clear beer before you're done drinking the batch.
2. Just check the manufacturer's websites, each yeast will have its flocculation listed as high, medium or whatever. Flocculation also improves with time and cold-storage. A 1 or 2 day cold-crash pre-bottling may help you out, although it's not something I do.
4. Yes and no. All beers can taste a little rough if the fermenting temps get too high, which is more likely in bigger beers, as fermentation produces a lot of heat. Time can smooth this out, but a well-brewed 8% DIPA can and should be drunk young.
5. Yes and no. Hops fade with time, so beers dependent on hop flavor and aroma are better young. Unless you're aging on oak or Brett, extended aging may not greatly improve your beer, but malt-derived flavors are pretty stable as long as oxidation is not an issue. A lot of big, malty beers are vintage-dated and designed for long aging.

bduane said:

So to recap:

1. Control temperatures (Already doing with swamp coller).
2. Use highly flocculant yeast strains (are there any recommended data charts i can reference to find out which strains are best for this?)
3. Don't worry about clarity.
4. Don't brew high ABV.
5. Don't use ingredients with strong/complex flavors that might need some time to "blend/meld" with other flavors.

Does that about sum up the requirements for a "Fast" beer?

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Mostly.

I'd reorder them, a bit.
*First, pitch the proper amount of yeast. Consult mrmalty.com and pitch the proper amount- it's probably way more than most people think.
*Pitch at or below the lower end of the "optimum fermentation" range of that yeast strain
*Yes to flocculant yeast (or at least medium to high)
*at the tail end of primary (say, day 5) go ahead and raise the temperature a bit. If the yeast strain's optimum fermentation range is 64-72, and you're fermenting at 64 (I would), on day 5, bring it up to 70 degrees so it can finish up and clean up any diacetyl. That's part of the "clean up" process, but you can encourage it that way
*Keep OG under 1.060 unless it's an IPA, then it's OK for a quick beer to be higher
*Complex flavors take time, so use them in "longer" beers. This would include roasty flavors, spices, etc.

I don't agree about not worrying about clarity. I will not drink a murky beer.

Halbrust said:

Would pitching a starter of healthy yeast at the end of fermentation be an option? Let the new healthy yeast handle all the clean-up of the by-products left by the old tired yeast.

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Does this make any since? Could it work, or just be a waste of yeast?

Halbrust said:

Does this make any since? Could it work, or just be a waste of yeast?

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My guess is that the yeast that are already in solution would be healthier than the yeast you might pitch, as the yeast that are in solution have proven to tolerate the harsh environment (alcohol), where as you might shock new yeast.

Just a guess though.

Yooper: do you think the murky beer causes flavor issues or is this just a personal preference?

I'm not Yooper, but why not throw in my 2 cents. Yeast in solution don't taste good, unless you're brewing a hefeweizen. Actually, I don't like those either, but it's considered part of the style. Hops and protein can cause haziness as well, but don't have nearly the same effect on flavor. But it's said that you taste first with your eyes, so to a lot of people, murky beer looks like it won't taste good, and can become something of a self-fulfilling prophecy. I'm not one of those people, but I'll admit that when I brew something I can see through, I'm always irrationally impressed with myself.

bduane said:

Yooper: do you think the murky beer causes flavor issues or is this just a personal preference?

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kingwood-kid said:

I'm not Yooper, but why not throw in my 2 cents. Yeast in solution don't taste good, unless you're brewing a hefeweizen. Actually, I don't like those either, but it's considered part of the style. Hops and protein can cause haziness as well, but don't have nearly the same effect on flavor. But it's said that you taste first with your eyes, so to a lot of people, murky beer looks like it won't taste good, and can become something of a self-fulfilling prophecy. I'm not one of those people, but I'll admit that when I brew something I can see through, I'm always irrationally impressed with myself.

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I agree with kingwood-kid. Hazes like chill haze or protein haze in a wheat beer don't affect taste, but there is a difference in a slight haze vs "murky" or "cloudy" beer. I've been served murky hefeweizen, and while it may have a protein haze and some yeast haze, it should never be murky like swamp water. That's just a beer that is not ready to be consumed or is poorly made. I don't like hefeweizen all that much, but I can appreciate a well-made one!

The other thing that can have a flavor impact is polyphenols, which drop out with extended lagering. That's one reason lagers are so smooth and crisp and not with harshness. Extended cold aging can really smooth out excess polyphenols, so that is one fix for a tannic tasting beer.