Aging Porter in Corny Keg - A few Questions

[Jiffster]

I'm brewing my first Porter this weekend. Once it's done fermenting, I'm planning to keg it and let it condition in my basement 65-68F for a short time - I'm thinking 1-2 months (or longer?).

When doing this, do I need to carbonate the beer in the corny or is it ok to purge oxygen from the head space of the keg with CO2 and let it sit?

What's an ideal conditioning time for a Porter?

Thanks.

 

[Yooper]

You can purge the o2 and seal the keg with c02 and let it sit if you'd like. I have a few kegs that just won't stay sealed without a little pressure on them, so I would either keep topping off with c02 (a bit of a pain), keep it on the gas, or else prime with priming sugar and let it carb up as it sits.

As far as aging, it depends on the beer. Some porters are lower ABV and won't need to be aged much, if at all. Others are bigger and roastier (like Edmund Fitzgerald) and can age for a bit and improve. It really depends on the recipe. A brown porter may be at it's peak months before a robust porter.

 

[Jiffster]

I'm brewing BierMuncher's Black Pearl Porter recipe and I'm estimating it to come in around 6.2% ABV.

If I have room in my keezer I'll condition it in there under pressure. I do want want to plan to age something in a corny in the future though.

I guess I better make sure it's one of my better kegs?