rifraf
Well-Known Member
Hi all,
I finally went on my first brewery tour post homebrew addiction, and was very excited to get a bunch of questions answered that I'd never thought to ask. Unfortunately, our tour guide had only been brewing for 4 months and had never homebrewed before so was not able to answer many of my questions and even game some odd answers to questions from other people. For example, when asked what the difference between wet hopping and dry hopping was, and what effect it had on the beer, he responded that wet hopping means using pelletized hops and dry hopping means using whole hops. He went on to say that there isn't a difference in the final product, it's just personal preference of the brewer and cost/availability. He later told me that his first beer was coming up ready for tapping and that he really likes bitter beers so he "dry hopped the **** out of it in the fermentor".
First of all, that sounded completely wrong to me but is that true of brewpub scale commercial brewing?
Second of all, the one question I wanted answered that he admitted he had no idea is this:
Is there something about the commercial process and scale that they brew on that eliminates the need to condition for a long time? How is it that they can basically serve 3 days after they transfer out of primary without having to condition off flavors out of their beer or let flavors mellow and come together?
Everything I've read about homebrewing says that our beers will be better the longer they sit and condition. I've already found that to be true, but I doubt that commercial breweries can afford to let their flagship beers sit for months at a time. He said the normal brew day to tap day time for most the beers at this brewpub is 3-4 weeks, and they're actually set up to serve right out of their bright tanks if necessary. He said they typically ferment for 3 weeks, force carb for a day or two in the bright tank, and go straight to tap/keg. All (95%) of the beers brewed at this brewpub are consumed on site, and are very tasty FWIW. Do they just have such complete control over their process that they don't NEED to condition?
I finally went on my first brewery tour post homebrew addiction, and was very excited to get a bunch of questions answered that I'd never thought to ask. Unfortunately, our tour guide had only been brewing for 4 months and had never homebrewed before so was not able to answer many of my questions and even game some odd answers to questions from other people. For example, when asked what the difference between wet hopping and dry hopping was, and what effect it had on the beer, he responded that wet hopping means using pelletized hops and dry hopping means using whole hops. He went on to say that there isn't a difference in the final product, it's just personal preference of the brewer and cost/availability. He later told me that his first beer was coming up ready for tapping and that he really likes bitter beers so he "dry hopped the **** out of it in the fermentor".
First of all, that sounded completely wrong to me but is that true of brewpub scale commercial brewing?
Second of all, the one question I wanted answered that he admitted he had no idea is this:
Is there something about the commercial process and scale that they brew on that eliminates the need to condition for a long time? How is it that they can basically serve 3 days after they transfer out of primary without having to condition off flavors out of their beer or let flavors mellow and come together?
Everything I've read about homebrewing says that our beers will be better the longer they sit and condition. I've already found that to be true, but I doubt that commercial breweries can afford to let their flagship beers sit for months at a time. He said the normal brew day to tap day time for most the beers at this brewpub is 3-4 weeks, and they're actually set up to serve right out of their bright tanks if necessary. He said they typically ferment for 3 weeks, force carb for a day or two in the bright tank, and go straight to tap/keg. All (95%) of the beers brewed at this brewpub are consumed on site, and are very tasty FWIW. Do they just have such complete control over their process that they don't NEED to condition?