aging ale ??

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skunkyboy

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with ale / beer etc.. is it better to leave it to age for years or is it better left for a shorter time ?
 
It depend on the style. I've made pale ales that were good after 6 weeks. My barleywine will be sitting for a year.
 
Again it depends on the style. If you make a dry hopped pale ale and aged it for 6months your going to lose your hop aroma. Generally the higher the alcohol content the longer the aging. Some folks around here just made a mild and I believe it was kegged or bottled after 10 days, ready to drink!
 
wat about if u just want to put in ock or chestnut barrels would that be the same do you think ??
 
You certainly can barrel age beer. Is there a particular type of beer you are talking about, or just any ale?
 
err :D it was an ale kit i bourght and i Tom Caxton and i only have me instruction leaflet and it says on there to leave for 14 days my question was just realy to see if it makes it tast better if you get me lol :)
 
If it has stopped fermenting, then you are going to want to re-rack it and bottle it like the directions say. This is probably not a beer that is going to age very well, it will only oxidize and spoil if you try to age it for more than a month.
 
Also - it's not just the style of ale it's the skill of the making. Keeping oxidation down, using quality ingredients, watching your breaks, etc...
 
ok cool so you wouldn't recomend putting it in an ock barrel then ? unless i am either going to drink it about that time or bottle it after (14 days)??
 
ok cool so you wouldn't recomend putting it in an ock barrel then ? unless i am either going to drink it about that time or bottle it after (14 days)??

If you want to barrel age beer, you really have to design the beer with the intention of barrel aging it. Generally, it will need either:

1) a higher alcohol content to prevent spoiling (i.e. a Barley Wine or Imperial Stout, Double Bock, etc...)
2) be built to intentionally sour with lactic bacteria (i.e. a Lambic)
3) be dry hopped in the barrel (i.e. an IPA)

If what you brewed is just a standard amber or pale ale from a kit, it probably will not barrel age well. Besides, you need enough beer to fill the barrel without any head-space left over. If you still really want to barrel age it, then you could dry-hop it (add a few ounces of whole leaf hops to the barrel while it ages) and it might turn out OK in 6 months, as long as you can fill the barrel to the top.

Otherwise, it will age fine in the bottles, if you bottle it right now (assuming it is done fermenting and has settled out). It will tend to lose hop bitterness as it ages, and will eventually oxidize. You will still want to drink it within 6-9 months, but it will hold up better in the bottles once it has been bottle-conditioned than it will in your carboy.
 

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