Quickerest Brews!

Yes, I have a mild that is great by day 10. See this thread: http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f38/project-10der-mild-10-milds-10-days-month-10-a-77758/ for specifics.

Otherwise, I drink most APAs and IPAs at about day 10-17, depending on the recipe.

 

It's the avatar isn't it? She makes me want to kneel too.

Anyway.........................
I was so inspired by your picture of a one week old beer, I took a picture of my beer! The keg is nearly gone, but this is an IPA I made in mid April (about 3 weeks ago):



I KNOW the lamp is ugly- our family actually calls it "the ugly lamp" but my mom made it in the 70s when she was doing ceramics before she died so it's ugly but it's in a place of honor in my cottage, so that's the reference point. :cross:

 

Too late. {burp}.

Don't be too excited about the cottage. I mean, yes, it's on a lake and there is a one tap kegerator. But it's flippin' snowing, and I'm sitting in front of a roaring fire. Oh, that sounds romantic. But it's MAY. May, as in spring. And it's snowing. Sitting in front of the fire and killing this keg is my only recourse. And reading my Nook by the light of the Ugly Lamp, of course!

 

You are right, of course. And I have to say that I make homemade soap- and call it Ugly Soap, so I'm disparaging of things that I make or that my family makes.

But let me put the Ugly Lamp into perspective (and so sorry to steal the grasshopper's thread- let me know if this bothers you!): my mom made that ceramic lamp in the mid 70s. She knew she had terminal cancer, but I was about 10, and my brother was 2. Her outlet was ceramics and sewing. She made TONS of hideous stuff. She couldn't paint to save her life, and she couldn't sew a bit. My brother wore polyester mixmatched clothes, which he loved at that time. We have TONS of family pictures of this stuff.

The Ugly Lamp was during the orange/brown era of the 70s and it was ugly when she made it. But it had the place of honor in front of the window. So it faded on one side. Badly. About 10 years after she died in 1979, my dad moved it to the attic, horrendous shade and all.

We ALWAYS called it the Ugly Lamp, even to her face. When my dad died suddenly in January, I flew to his home. I took very little of the belongings, but my brother agreed that I should have the Ugly Lamp.

That Ugly Lamp is the only thing in my life that I would die for. Besides my kids and grandkids.




Anyway, I took this thread SO far off topic that I should ban myself- but I thank you two for allowing me to share my story of the Ugly Lamp. I hope my grandson has it in his house someday, in its orange, brown and turquoise glory.

 

Well, it's not like I"m sucking green unfinished beer through a straw out of the fermenter- but now that I think about it.................................

If you make a beer that is not complex, and is good young (say, American wheat, a mild, an IPA without much depth, a hefeweizen), especially if they have a lower OG, and you use a flocculant yeast, there isn't any reason to not enjoy the beer when it's ready.

Think of a good brewpub you know. If you told them you want to keep a beer in the fermenter for 3-4 weeks, they'd look at you like you were crazy. A well made beer without complex flavors and lower ABV is usually ready with a very quick turnaround.

I'm not really impatient. I just don't see an advantage to aging beer that doesn't need to be aged. For my oaked imperial amber, it's best after 6 months in the bottle. I would not enjoy that beer at 3 weeks old. But for many others, sure!

 

What about an English strain like WLP002, fermented on the cool side? If it's fermented warm, it can get fruity, but fermented cool I think it would ferment quickly and clean and drop out like a rock. Or Wyeast 1335. I wouldn't over pitch- just consult mrmalty.com for the correct pitching amount, and that should work well. By cool side, I mean 66-68 degrees for that yeast strain, and not really cool like you can push nottingham.

I don't use KC finings, or any post boil finings, since I want vegetarian-friendly beer, but one whirlfloc tablet in the boil works well for clarity for me.

A good hot break, a good cold break, and proper yeast pitching and temperature management, followed by a cold crash, should all give you a very quick turnaround. I think you've got it down.

 

No. If I ever have a beer that's not clear, I could try it but I haven't really felt the need. I do occasionally use sparkelloid in wines that don't want to clear, but even that is very rare.