extended fermentation, carb question

[BrewskiBro]

So right now i have a belgian white in the primary. I noticed that it's been actively fermenting for about 10 days now. Im more curious than anything, since my last batch was finished in 5 days. Bottom line...i really want to give it a try, but why taking so long?

oh and i've got another batch in bottles right now, been there for three weeks. After refrigerating for a couple days, it's not flat, but has hardly any head at all. So being curious i cracked a room temp beer, and it poured with a good sized head. What gives/why might the fridge seem to take some of the carbonation away?

thanks

 

[Yooper]

Well, each fermentation is different- I've had some ferment over night, and some take three weeks. I don't know why- but all of them were good in the end! I usually just stick my wort in the fermenter and don't even look at it again for 10-14 days.

As far as the difference in the fridge bottles and the room temperature bottles, it has to do with the co2. In room temperature bottles, the co2 tends to stay more in the headspace. When the bottles are chilled, the co2 is basically forced into the beer. I don't remember much of my high school chemistry, but it has to do with the temperature change and the disolution of the co2 into the liquid. After it's fully carbed, cooling the bottle for at least 24-48 hours before opening seems to give you the best carbonated beer with the best head.

 

[shafferpilot]

temp plays a huge roll in fermentation time. I've given up on trying to predict the time and have gone strictly to hydro readings. It'll finish.... when it finishes. Leave it alone till it's done.

Your chilled beers have the CO2 locked up in solution. If you leave that glass sitting, you'll notice that it bubbles slowly for half an hour. The room temp beer releases almost all of it's CO2 right when you pour it. That's why you have a nice head..... but it'll stop bubbling long before the chilled one does.

To get a better head out of the chilled beer, use a room temp glass and pour the beer straight to the bottom of the glass rather than down the side.

 

[BrewskiBro]

thanks guys. Three weeks? wow hopefully it won't be that long. I actually poured another today, it was perfect. Guess im just fond of good head.