Flavor Changes During Carbing Process (Keg)

[Michael S. Henry]

I wanted to open up a open conversation in regards to how the flavor of your beer changes during the carbonation process.

For example:/

I just brewed a NEIPA and like any brewer, struggle to keep my hands off of it. Of course, I pulled a tiny sample and tasted each day. I found that there were times that beer seemed to completely morph into something else and then even change again a few days later. Now, at the two week mark since hooking it up to gas, it seems to have settled in on its final version. I’d love to hear examples and info on this one as well as perhaps some best practices, etc.

 

[HausBrauerei_Harvey]

I had the honor of brewing a GABF pro-am entry with a local place this summer. One of the coolest parts of that brew day was something we don't really have the ability to do as a homebrewer, playing with the carb and tastingt he results on the flavor.

They had two 7 barrel bright tanks filled with Mexican lager they were trying to get the carb right for a festival the next day. We must have tasted those two beers 10 different times as he kept playing with the carb. In the end with more carb the beer had more bite and was completely different than our first taste (which was also completely acceptably carbonated). On the second tank he blasted a bunch of CO2 through it while purging at the same time to blow off some sulfur. After an hour of that the beer had a much reduced sulfur nose. Getting to taste all those differences within just a few hours was an awesome experience and really hammered home to me how much the carb influences the taste, which was certainly not appreciated as much to me before that experience.