What is the science behind aging ?

[Majed41]

Can anyone explain What is the science behind aging ? what Supposed to happen to the Liquid over time ?

from what i read the main reason behind aging is > Clarity
as a results of Clarity we should have better taste since many particles drop out of the Liquid

any things else should we expect from aging ?

i ask becouse i did a little test with a brew that aged for 6 week and another one it hasn't been aged at all . here is what i did

i brew Brewer's Best Mexican Cerveza Kit and let that aged for 6 week after fermentation finish

i did another berw just 10 days ago with same Brewer's Best Mexican Cerveza Kit and after fermentation finish i used 3 steps of filtration process
1- Chitosan + Kieselsol Clarifier for 12 hours
2- Filters the Liquid with 1.9 micron filter
3- Filters the Liquid with 0.5 micron filter to remove most of the yeast
4- force carbonation with Drinkmate for testing only

i honestly like the secund brew more . very clear and taste very great with no yeasty aroma whatsover . so that's lead me to ask about the science behind aging

 

[McKnuckle]

The fining and filtering you did manually are ways of accelerating the clearing of microscopic solids from the beer. Aging does that naturally, albeit over a much longer period, without the chance of accelerated oxidation or contamination (assuming the vessel itself is purged of O2 and free of contaminants).

My assumption is that a similar end is achieved, but the natural way is less invasive and easier to accomplish. Of course it requires much more patience, bane of the new brewer (and a familiar friend to the veteran).

 

[Pappers_]

An added complication - there is the kind of aging you're talking about, and then there is long-term aging. I pretty regularly have beers aging in barrels, for example, for six months up to a couple of years. That is a whole different kind of aging.

For the short term aging, another thing you'd notice is that for beers with a lot of hop aroma, those aromas will begin to dissipate after six weeks. I imagine that has to do with the volatile oils that carry those aromas dissipating, but that's just supposition.

You didn't mention at what temp you aged your beers for six weeks? I remember hearing a podcast interview with Charles Bamford, a pretty well-known chemist and academic who focuses on beer and fermentation, where he made the point that from his research, the temperature beer is aged at is critical - the colder the better, basically.

Its fine to have this conversation here. If you want more science-y conversation, though, you can always hang out in the subform on brewing science here on HBT.

 

[D.B.Moody]

That kit is for a light beer that is lightly hopped and to be served ice-cold with a wedge of lime. This is not a beer of subtle notes. It is not a beer that will develop, mature, or mellow. (Not that this addresses the science of aging.)

 

[hottpeper13]

Like Pappers I age my beers in barrels or on whisky sticks in a carboy. I CONDITION my beers in a keg for 4-8 weeks at ambient for 1-2 weeks and then a 33* chamber. Big difference between ageing and conditioning, all beers IMHO need conditioning, and I don't age beers that are less then 8% abv. Using terminology correctly helps you get the right answers. Just like floculation and sedimentation are related but totaly not the same.