How long will it stay in corny keg

I am going to try and put a little age on one of my next brews by taking it from the secondary to the corny, flushing with co2 and putting it back in the basement (still pretty cool no exact temp though). How long can I let it sit with co2 on it in a corny in a northern Ill basement? TIA MP Wall

If the beer was clean going in, and your sanitation was good, and you flushed the keg well with CO2, you should be able to age this for a loooooong time. Things like alcohol content and hops tend to perserve the beer a bit longer. What kind of beer is it? For something light and benign, you might not get as much time as something heavier and with more complex flavors. I wouldn't think 8 months is too long for any style, with longer times being possible for higher alcohol contents and higher hop content. I've heard of Lambics being aged for years, but if one of those spoiled, how would you know? Barleywine is also typically aged for a year or more.

Try a small sample every 5 or 6 weeks and take notes to see how the flavor changes.

Prosit,

Thanks for the response, you're pointing out longer times than I need, but its nice to know. I am planning on trying to age some pale ales and ipas as well as a true brew continental dark kit with extra dry hopping (turns to more of an english brown). All three should age to a much better beer at least so I am told and felt. MPW

I have found that my beer peaks at about 5 or 6 weeks (all ales). I brew mostly basic styles, British Best, IPA, APA, Cream Ale, Porter, and the occassional American Wheat. All of these follow approximately the same time table. I'll keg after about 4 weeks, then after a week or two in the keg, the beer matures and then stays about the same until the keg runs dry. The biggest difference happens as the beer clears. From the first few glasses when the beer is cloudy, to about the 1/2 way point in the keg, the change is quite dramatic. Since the beer clears from the top down and the keg empties from the bottom up, the beer will keep getting clearer as the keg empties. The last few glasses are usually brilliantly clear.

Prosit,