Bottle conditioning vs keg conditioning

[dhelegda]

If a recipe says to bottle condition 2 or 3 weeks do you keg condition the same amount of time? Is there any conditioning time difference if you are using CO2 vice Yeast to carbonate?

 

[Takuie]

Personally, I can't tell the difference between bottle conditioned or kegged. I've read that more flavored come out when bottle conditioned. I'm guessing it's saying to bottle condition for carbination reasons. Keg on! Give it it a try, if it still seems green, let it sit in keg for a couple of weeks.

 

[vincentAlpha]

Kegging will get you carbonated faster (if you use CO2 and not priming sugar), but the flavour will develop at about the same rate I find. Might happen a bit faster in bottles if you are putting the keg in kegerator/keezer/etc and the bottles at room temp. Like @Takuie said, give it a try when you think it is carbed up and if it tastes good drink it!

 

[dhelegda]

Ok so I cold crashed my Black IPA, then Kegged, hooked it to CO2 and put it in the Keezer, should I let it warm and condition at room temp? Or would you just let it stay in cold?

 

[vincentAlpha]

If carbonating with CO2 keep it in the cold, the CO2 dissolves into solution better in the cold. If you were naturally carbing with sugar you'd want it warm to let the yeast do their thing.

 

[dhelegda]

I have always carbed cold in a keg. I guess I was just reading to far in to the room temp

 

[Yooper]

I have always carbed cold in a keg. I guess I was just reading to far in to the room temp

Beer ages faster at room temperature, so if you've got a young beer that needs a bit of time and age for the flavors to meld, then storing it at 70 degrees makes sense.

I only have a couple of beers that need a bit of age after packaging- one is my oatmeal stout. It's better after a week or two at room temperature followed by a few days of cold conditioning so that's one keg I may keep out at room temperature after kegging.

Most of my other beers are hoppy and are better fresh- pale ales, american ambers (reds), and IPAs.

 

[AnOldUR]

If carbonating with CO2 keep it in the cold, the CO2 dissolves into solution better in the cold.

Beer will carb a little faster at room (or basement) temperature than chilled if set to the proper pressure to get your desired volumes. If you have a beer that will benefit from aging, that's your best plan.

 

[vincentAlpha]

Beer will carb a little faster at room (or basement) temperature than chilled if set to the proper pressure to get your desired volumes. If you have a beer that will benefit from aging, that's your best plan.

So carbonation due to exposure to CO2 gas will happen faster at warmer temps? I've been told/read the opposite here plenty of times

Ok just read the link you had there (I assumed it was one of those auto-inserted ones and ignored it). Kinda wish someone would link out to those 'boring gas laws' as I'm actually pretty interested and the technical side doesn't bother me (I'm a physicist so calculus don't scare me...). I've dealt with the basic gas law stuff, just never seen anything on the dissolving of a gas into a solution before.

 

[AnOldUR]

I'm a physicist so calculus don't scare me...

I'm a machinist and can't help with the actual science, but from experience I know it's true. I carb and store all my kegs at cellar temps, but don't chill them until needed.

 

[doug293cz]

So carbonation due to exposure to CO2 gas will happen faster at warmer temps? I've been told/read the opposite here plenty of times

Ok just read the link you had there (I assumed it was one of those auto-inserted ones and ignored it). Kinda wish someone would link out to those 'boring gas laws' as I'm actually pretty interested and the technical side doesn't bother me (I'm a physicist so calculus don't scare me...). I've dealt with the basic gas law stuff, just never seen anything on the dissolving of a gas into a solution before.

CO2 dissolves into beer by diffusion driven by the partial pressure of CO2 in the headspace being higher than the equilibrium partial pressure determined by the beer temperature. Once enough CO2 dissolves into the beer that the equilibrium partial pressure over the beer equals the headspace partial pressure, net diffusion stops (the amount of CO2 in the beer doesn't change.) At colder temperatures the equilibrium CO2 partial pressure over the beer is lower for a given amount (volumes) of CO2 in the beer.

For example, here are the equilibrium partial pressures of CO2 over beer with 3.0 volumes of dissolved CO2 at various temperatures.



So, I will get the same amount of CO2 in beer at 40°F and 17.9 psig as I do at 70°F and 38.0 psig. But, at 70°F and 17.9 psig, I would get much less CO2 in the beer. The later fact is the basis for the common statement that "CO2 dissolves better in cold beer."

More CO2 in beer at lower temps with lower pressures does not translate to CO2 dissolving faster in cold beer. Remember, dissolution occurs by diffusion, and diffusion occurs faster at higher temps.

Brew on