Does Anything Really Go on in the Secondary?

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jalgayer

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I have a belgian dubel in a secondary that went there are 3 weeks in the primary. This was before I read all that I have about "secondary is not needed"

But the directions that I got for the kit were to "rack to secondary and let age for 2 months" ...

What is going on during those two months? I understand what would happen with extra time on the trub in the primary... Just not what goes on with this dubel... And MAYBE soon to be a tripel. I have a tripel coming up on 2 weeks in the primary.

Thoughts?
 
Usually, higher alcohol beers need time so that any "hot" alcohol flavors can blend with the other flavors and kind of mellow out. What is happening chemically I can't speak to. Of course, additional material will continue to settle out over the 2 months, hopefully resulting in a clearer beer. If you know about autolyzation, then you know why you get it into a secondary. I believe bulk aging (in the carboy) as opposed to bottle aging allows for a quicker "mellowing" and aging process. One note - when you are aging for that long, you should purge the carboy with CO2 first or fill the carboy well up into the neck before aging to prevent oxidation.
 
The same is going on in those two months that is happening in the primary. Really nothing different. Yeast is dropping out of suspension. Dead yeast is settling on the bottom. Aging is happening to the beer. Alcohol is being created.

The only difference is that when you rack to secondary you're pulling the beer off any hops and solids from the brew kettle that made it into the fermentor. Trub, cold break, etc.

From what I'm hearing and reading off flavours really aren't produced in the primary until about 6 months (?) so apparently we have nothing to worry about!

I'm coming at this "hobby" from several years ago and having spent some time in a commercial brewery. I figure if it's good enough for a commercial brewer to send his beer to secondary, it's good enough for me.
 
So is that true that the aging or melding of flavors, etc... happens faster in the secondary as opposed to the bottle?

I am not looking for a QUICKER way for the beer to be done. Just trying to find out (besides clearing which can be done in a week with cold crashing) what the secondary is doing that a bottle would not.
 
Yes it happens more quickly in the secondary, it's called "bulk aging". Just like a 22oz bomber will age faster than a 12oz bottle.
 
Actually, I think it's the reverse. Beer ages faster in smaller quantities. The thing about bulk aging is that the beer will be under the same conditions and less suceptible to temperature changes in a large vessel vs. a small one (bottle). Additionaly, some sediment will settle out that would otherwise be in the bottle.

Beer that's bulk aged will be more uniform from bottle to bottle than a beer that's aged in the bottle.
 
I quietly crept up on my secondary once with a microscope. What is going on in there is quite shocking. There were hoards of microscopic aquatic beer gnomes swimming about clubbing the yeasts to death. It was really quite graphic. I haven't been able to walk past the neighbors garden gnomes ever since.
 
I have no scientific evidence to back up my claim, however if I make a 10gal batch of say my House Red Ale, keg half and bottle half and leave them sit under the same conditions for a month. Chill a bottle and chill the keg then drink both, the keg just tastes better, more mature. It's just not as harsh as the bottled beer.

Maybe it's just because of the reduced exposure to O2 but I tend to think the other way around.
 
Palmer has a good chapter on this. In the initial frenzy, the yeast produce all kinds of chemicals. After the frenzy is over (when the krausen drops and bubbling drastically reduces), the yeast will convert many of these chemicals to less offensive chemicals or consume them outright. They will also hit some of the less fermentable sugars and ferment them. This can happen in the primary or secondary fermenter. I'm not sure how long this goes on for, it might be a continual process with diminishing returns. This is why temp. consistency is important, because shifts in temp. can stop or start either end of the process.

To my point of view, racking off the trub, lets all this happen without having the yeast start chomping on dead yeast or trub at the same time. It also allows me to harvest the yeast within a week of pitching (can be used sooner in the next batch) and frees up a big fermenter for the next batch.

Parallel to this secondary fermentation, the yeast will also settle out and the beer will clear. Astringent flavors will mellow faster in bulk, and as someone rightly said, the entire batch will be more uniform.
 
So in Layman's terms...the secondary is where the magic happens?

LOL, but I would consider the alcohol the magic. 90% of which is made in the first few days. We are just striving to get our alcohol to taste better. ;)
 
I know this general idea has been discussed before but I see some unique and interesting posts that came up this round. I love you guys
 
Yes I agree. Bulk aging is the way to go for sure. I have tried both methods (Bulk and Bottle Aging) and the beer that is bulk aged always is much more consistent and seems to clear up a lot more. I usually keep my darker ales in the secondary carboy for at least 2-3 weeks after 1-2 weeks in the primary.
 

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