One well known scotch ale recipe calls for 10 days primary, 10 days secondary and then further secondary aging the beer at 45F for four weeks before bottling. At that temp not much, if anything, is going on with ale yeast, so what would be the difference between that and going ahead and bottling and then kellering the bottled brew at the same 45F?
Aging beer in bottles versus a secondary?
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homebrewdad
Well-Known Member
You can absolutely bottle to age. Conventional wisdom suggests that bulk aging gives you more consistent beers.
There have been several threads where somebody will split half a batch, age half in a carboy and half in bottles. In every such thread I've read, reports are that the beer matures faster and is more consistent when bulk aged.
Your mileage may vary.
There have been several threads where somebody will split half a batch, age half in a carboy and half in bottles. In every such thread I've read, reports are that the beer matures faster and is more consistent when bulk aged.
Your mileage may vary.
Thanks. Question two, could you do the 30 days in the primary? I'd think so as there are so many reports of long term primaries, but just making sure.
My beers generally spend 3-5 weeks in primary. Than 4 weeks or more in bottles,depending on how heavy the beer is.I've had a Burton ale & my Whiskely ale spend about ten weeks in bottles before they got good. Not to mention,2 weeks fridge time for thicker head & longer lasting carbonation.
homebrewdad
Well-Known Member
30 days in primary is perfectly fine. I just bottled an imperial nut brown ale that did four weeks in primary and four plus months in secondary. I still won't crack one until the fall (at the earliest).
I guess I'll have to break down & brew a nut brown,as Lienenkugel discontinued it's foreside nut brown. That one was great with my wife's pecan pie...
