bottle conditioning time

[william_shakes_beer]

OK, So I've read the Palmer book, several times. I've read through the forums. In all these resources there are:

Pitching rates for yeast based on OG, and fermentation temperature.
Boil schedules for addition of hops at 60 minutes, 45 minutes, and 15 minutes
detailed procedures for mashing temperatures and lautering

Why is it that even the recipies are mostly silent on the recommended bottle conditioning time for most beers? Seems like the only recommendation I can find is "til its done, longer is better" and "bigger beers need more conditioning time" Am I missing something, or is this so basic that only a newbie like myself would think to ask?

 

[trevorc13]

generally 3-4 weeks. High gravity beers and beers that have been sitting for a while need the yeast replenished. Pitch the same strain of yeast to the bottling bucket, which will condition in about 10 days. Hope this helps.

 

[buckeyebrewer]

There are several factors that will dictate when the beer has bottle conditioned. How old it was when it went into the bottle? What temp it's held at after it's bottled? What kind of beer style it is? If you had a 1.050 in the primary for 2 weeks..then bottled it and held it somewhere at 65-70 degrees for another three weeks it should be carbonated and ready to drink. Some IPA's I've made are ready to drink in three weeks... (I only keg though) A barley wine I just bottled sat in my secondary for 8 months before I felt it was ready to bottle. To many factors to give you THE answer. Sorry

 

[Cellarbrau]

Oops.

 

[Cellarbrau]

No BS?

Ale fermentation takes like 3-5 days for most of the world. Your bottles should be fizzy in that time.

Most beer at the store was grain to shelf in ~2 weeks.

 

[rpappi]

Most beer in the stores were carbonated before they got put in the bottle.

 

[superjunior]

...and fissy doesn't mean ready

 

[bullinachinashop]

The debate rages on!!

To the OP...
There are alot of different factors that go into how quickly your beer will condition in the bottle. That's why your not finding any constants.
The general thought is to let your beer sit for a couple of weeks @ 70 and then try one.
Many people will say longer and I agree that your beer will get better with age, but I've had some that were great after a week.
Building a pipeline is a great way to see how your beers will transform over time.
Bull

 

[william_shakes_beer]

OK, I get it. Its yet another variable that makes this hobby so deliciously varied. I guess my best plan is to

1. Establish a controlled environment temperature to condition
2. Try the first bottle after 3 weeks or so
3. plan on brewing a second( and third?) batch prior to really being able to try the results of my first effort.
4. Keep meticulous records to assure I can correct "mistakes" I made 6(8?10?12?) weeks ago
5. limit initial efforts to medium to low OG recipies to keep the cycle time down

I was hoping to identify a "barley fruit fly" beer recipie that would be able to condition in short order and permit batch 1 results to yeild improvements to batch 2. Hmmm. perhaps I could identify not 1 but 3 recipies/styles to try, and rotate... Gotta think about this. Thanks for the input. I now have a great deal more information to ponder.

 

[idigg]

Answer for you is keg and force carb. Bottling is a PITA.

 

[Cellarbrau]

Just go with whatever makes sense to you. You will learn more by being curious and openminded than listening to superstitious nonsense.


1) Exactly!
2) I taste pre-boil, post-boil, pre-package and then again after 4-7 days if bottle conditioned and in a day if it's kegged. I don't see why you wouldn't taste your beer at every stage.
3) Good idea!
4) Probably a waste of time, but...
5) ...you sound kind of obsessive

Hefewiezen, Ordinary Bitter and Blonde Ale would fit the bill. Get those 3 down and you are well on your way. And best advice: be very clean but be on that beer like white on rice. Smell the airlock, watch the yeast, use your hydrometer often.

 

[cincybrewer]

I vote to taste a beer after a week. I just tasted my Belgian that had been bottled for only a week. It wasn't ready (not really close either) but I figure it is a good way to get a feel for how the tastes change over time. I figure I'll eventually have a good understanding and at that point I won't waste a good beer by tasting too early.

 

[slantedbolt]

I vote to taste a beer after a week. I just tasted my Belgian that had been bottled for only a week. It wasn't ready (not really close either) but I figure it is a good way to get a feel for how the tastes change over time. I figure I'll eventually have a good understanding and at that point I won't waste a good beer by tasting too early.

I am only 2 batches old ( :cross: ) but for my first batch, I tasted it every step of the way, and I set aside 4 bottles just for tasting. I tasted one every 7 days. From what I have read on here, 3-4 weeks is the norm for standard beers. The only way you will know its done is by trying it.

 

[thenessy]

Yes, this is an old thread, but there is so much paranoia about letting beer age like it's a fine wine. Not needed. 1 week in the bottle is surely enough to be ready to drink, for standard IPA and Ales at least. I've been brewing for a decade and have never bottle conditioned for longer. Sure, you will get some nice flavor profiles and the best quality letting it sit for a few weeks but it's not needed. You will get a darn good IPA after condition for just 5-7 days and 24 hours in the fridge - I've found that just letting it sit in the fridge for a week can really enhance the quality.

Force carbonating a beer makes it subpar? I don't think so. Production IPA such as Hoppyum is brew to shelf in a few weeks including dry hopping and it is excellent beer.

Brew to drinkable in 2 weeks if you aren't dry hopping, any more time is just being an elitist brew snob with a lot of patience. Not needed.

 

[kmcrae]

I'm relatively new to brewing, but I found that I HAD to wait two weeks after bottling my first brew for it to calm down enough. I opened one after 7 days and it was a slow but steady foam geyser (albeit... a tasty one). At 14 days the carbonation was perfect though.

My second batch was the other way around though. There was little to no carbonation in the beer @ 7 days. I shook the bottles every few days to suspend the yeast a couple times through the next week, and they ultimately turned out okay. So both had issues in the beginning that either required my patience (not easy for a noob) or some intervention.

 

[ChelisHubby]

Currently I have brewed the same or almost the same 3 times. I have kept my notes and am learning what I like and Dislike. That is about as good as I can do at this time, But it aint bad. Rotating recipes would work to try different styles. The brew process is where you will make your largest improvements at first. It just takes time and a good liver and friends .