Will Guinness benefit from aging?

[DaBills]

I ordered a Guinness Extra Stout Partial Mash kit from AHB. I want to have it tasting good for St. Paddy's day. I generally don't like the stuff but know plenty who do so I'm brewing it. Hopefully I'll like my version better than the commercial one (I'm sure I will). Anyways I'm wondering if I brew it now and let it age if it will taste better or if I should wait a couple months to brew it because it would taste better younger. Let me know what you think.

Thanks

 

[AmandaK]

Are the grains milled already? If not, I would wait. But that's just on the principle that I like fresh beer. No science or facts behind that.

 

[DaBills]

Yeah they are milled already.

 

[CGish]

Even though you are going to do a kit, reading through this thread might give you a few ideas.

As for storing milled grains, keep them dark, cool, and dry and you can wait a month or two to brew the kit.

However, if it was me, I would brew the kit, drink it, and brew another for St.Paddy's day!

(St. Paddy's Day is not for six more months! No way a good batch of beer can last that long!)

 

[broadbill]

I've found that beers containing roasted grains need a month or two for that acidic bite to mellow out. Just my experience.

 

[david_42]

Stouts age better than most beers, but unless the target ABV is over 6% I wouldn't push for six months. You could put the grains in the back of your fridge or freezer and brew it in three months.

 

[daksin]

Guinness is a pretty low ABV beer, so it won't benefit much (if any) from aging, IMO, but I don't think it's going to deteriorate much especially if you keep them refrigerated. I'd say the beer would benefit more from brewing with the freshest possible milled grains. Brew it soon, condition it for a good while until it's really good, bottle/keg condition it, and then once it's carbed, keep it in the fridge until March. That's if you absolutely refuse to drink stout in the fall and winter, I guess, and don't want to buy another kit.

What I would ACTUALLY do would be to brew it, condition it until it's tasty, and then drink it. A low ABV stout like dry irish isn't going to need much time, so I'd just make more closer to St. Patty's

 

[DaBills]

Thanks all for the help. I'm going to brew it soon, and then drink it. Then buy and brew again before St. Paddy's. Thanks again.

 

[strambo]

I'm going to brew it soon, and then drink it. Then buy and brew again before St. Paddy's.

This is the only sensible course of action...

 

[DaBills]

This is the only sensible course of action...

Haha right on. I am brewing so much beer right now my liver is gonna hurt.

 

[adamjackson]

Old Guinness is not very good. I would drink this sooner rather than later.

 

[DaBills]

Old Guinness is not very good. I would drink this sooner rather than later.

Yep, I'm gonna drink it fast.

 

[edmanster]

If it's a extra stout what %abv are you looking at? I've made some 7% stout and had it over a year at basement temps. Couldn't really even tell a change only drinking a couple bottles a month..

 

[DaBills]

If it's a extra stout what %abv are you looking at? I've made some 7% stout and had it over a year at basement temps. Couldn't really even tell a change only drinking a couple bottles a month..

Well the original gravity is supposed to be 1.051 with the final at 1.012 which would make the ABV 5.1.

 

[edmanster]

Brew it up, drink it, give some away, see if there's something you might want to change or add to it and brew up another in January/February..

 

[KeyWestBrewing]

Guinness sours a small portion of each batch and blends it back in. Might be worth looking into since your cloning it.

 

[daksin]

Guinness sours a small portion of each batch and blends it back in. Might be worth looking into since your cloning it.

Not familiar with any of the kits, but many clone recipes include a fair portion of acid malt (acidulated/sauermalz) to add that characteristic 'zing.'