Bottle Conditioning vs Carboy Conditioning. What's the difference?

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BrewOnBoard

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Like I said, what's the difference? :p

I understand the premise behind conditioning one's beer. I liked the analogy of a poster (revvy?) who compared it to letting chili sit for a day to mix flavors. So after fermentation is done, why then does the prudent brewer transfer to a secondary and THEN transfer to bottles? (I'm trying to grasp the concept of the secondary) How is time in a secondary better than the same amount of time spent in a bottle?

Bring on the wisdom!

BrewOnBoard
 
Someone will probably pop in with the science behind it but the general consensus is that bulk aging is better. Meaning aging 5 gallons of beer in a single vessel is better than aging it in 54 individual significantly smaller vessels. Sorry that I can't explain it better than that but like I said, the general consensus...

From experience I can say that I have done the experiment where I have bulked aged a batch in a keg and aged a 12 pack and that "green" flavor is gone much sooner in the keg than the bottles.

:tank:
 
The secondary is used for clearing (allowing for more yeast to drop out of suspension). Without a secondary this extra yeast makes its way into your bottles.

The clearer the beer going into the bottle the cleaner the beer coming out. ;)
 
As far as I can see around the HB world, secondary fermentation or aging is done primarily for clearing the beer. this serves a couple purposes.

1. the beer is clearer so it looks nicer. You may not care but maybe you want to impress friends, etc.

2. It reduces the possibility of sediment in your bottles to stir up and get in your pour and possibly change some flavors.

3. It saves on cleanup because your bottles will be cleaner after pouring. Sediment hardens and is a pair to scrub out.

I have seen some argument for flavoring getting stronger in a secondary however I have seen a lot of warnings that too long in a secondary can actually hurt flavor more than help it. So it's all a matter of preference I suppose.
 
Yeast are a social animal, they prefer to be among friends. 5 gallons of bulk aging lets them party harder than in a 12oz bottle. (this could be bull****, I'm pretty drunk and quite the newb)
 
Well, there's pretty much going to be some sediment in your beer no matter what. So leaving it in the primary/secondary longer will get rid of more of it than if you bottle after like 10 days. That sediment is easily disturbed. And can create lame flavors. Why not have as little of it as possible in your beer? Clean beer is nice and clear. Why have a bunch of it sitting in the bottom of your bottles when you can get it almost totally out of the picture before it even touches the bottles. The less the better in my opinion. Bottles aren't secondaries!!!
 
The secondary is used for clearing (allowing for more yeast to drop out of suspension). Without a secondary this extra yeast makes its way into your bottles.

The clearer the beer going into the bottle the cleaner the beer coming out. ;)

...And with this yeast extra yeast in your bottles that didn't drop because you didn't use secondary and didn't give the beer long enough before you bottled you risk the "yeast farts" factor. Literally these are the worst farts that I CONSISTENTLY had when I first started brewing. Anyone can deal with the occasional HORRIBLE fart can deal with it. Those around you can deal with it. When it happens ALL the time it's not funny anymore. You gross yourself out. Bad times...

:tank:
 
...And with this yeast extra yeast in your bottles that didn't drop because you didn't use secondary and didn't give the beer long enough before you bottled you risk the "yeast farts" factor. Literally these are the worst farts that I CONSISTENTLY had when I first started brewing. Anyone can deal with the occasional HORRIBLE fart can deal with it. Those around you can deal with it. When it happens ALL the time it's not funny anymore. You gross yourself out. Bad times...

:tank:

First time i have run across this, but i'm sure the same topic is discussed on the forums, but I've been dealing with the HORRIBLE issue for a week or two, and I am convinced that I will be using a secondary for everything now. After reading this i had that Ah -HA! moment. Secondary FTW!!!:rockin:
 
I never "secondary" as I never add fruit or stuff like that to my beer. I leave it in the primary for a minimum of 3 weeks usually 4 weeks to let the yeast clean itself up. I also cold crash and my beers are CRYSTAL clear/clean as long as I stop the pour before the bottle settlement get into the glass. So I miss what 1/2 oz of beer?? [url=https://www.homebrewtalk.com/photo/clear-irish-red-64781.html] [/URL]
 
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