Longer in primary + secondary = Shorter in bottle?

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kingoslo

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Hello my friends,

I have a question for you. I am making a Belgan Ale with SG of 80.

I wonder, if I keep the beer a week longer in primary & secondary, will that mean that it will have time to mature the same as if it was in a bottle for the same time?

I understand that there may not be enough time to produce co2 in the bottle if it is kept there short period before drinking, but will the flavour produced be the same as if it kept in bucket with airlock?

Thank you,
Marius
 
When you add the bottling sugar you are starting a new ferment. It takes a few weeks for that to completely finish.
 
Does that mean that I cannot spend less time bottle, but prolonged in primary/secondary and develop the same flavour (with exeption of co2)?

Marius
 
It will mature in both the primary and secondary, so the answer to your questions is a qualified yes - but it will still need the 3 week minimum in the bottle for proper carbonation.

The difference is that with a longer secondary, it may be ready after that 3 weeks or so - or at least need less bottle aging.
 
It's not really the flavor that is affected. It is the clarity and letting all the yeast drop completely out of suspension.
 
Here's my experience with bottling:

3 week primary/secondary: Bottles take 4 days to carbonate, but 3 additional weeks to clear and taste good.

6 week primary/secondary: Bottles take two weeks to carbonate, and at the same time clear quite nicely.

The short primary/secondary is great for leaving a ton of viable yeast in suspension. This shortens the amount of time for adequate carbonation. However, it leaves quite a layer of yeast in the bottle and takes an additonal 2 weeks to really clear up. On the other hand, a longer primary/secondary is great for clear beer but doesn't have quite so much yeast in suspension. Therefore, it takes a bit longer to carbonate. Either way, for bottling I've found the "3 weeks @ 70 degrees" mantra to be very effective. Do this either way. If you want semi-clear beer, primary for 2-3 weeks. If you want VERY clear beer primary/secondary for 6-8 weeks.
 
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