improved body after conditioning

[JBmadtown]

This is a beer geek topic...

I brewed the extract kit from Northern Brewer for Dunkelweiss last Nov. The brew day went well and it fermented with wy3068 at 65 F for 3 weeks. I bottled it and everything was great.

After 2 weeks there was decent carbonation, but the body felt thin. I was comparing it to the NB hefeweizen I did 3 months earlier. I assumed that this was due to the kit having less wheat malt (3.15# lme vs 6#lme+1#dme).

After 6 weeks, the beer has better carbonation. To my surprise the body has significantly improved. There is a great mouthfeel now that wasn't present earlier.

Any beer geeks have an explanation?

 

[scinerd3000]

my guess is that some of the subtle off flavors may have aged out leaving you with a smoother and more enjoyable beer. PLus depending on temp not all beers are done carbonating after exactly 3 weeks so maybe it just wasn't finished all the way yet.

 

[mattmcl]

More time = better beer, in just about every case. When I bottled, I conditioned for a minimum of 4 weeks, more like 6 for anything dark.

 

[Ace_Club]

Hmmm...and here I thought this was going to be a thread with some before and after SWMBO pics.

 

[JBmadtown]

Scinerd3000 - I don't think off-flavors would give the beer less mouthfeel. It tasted good, it just didn't have body. Your second point about carbonation is my hypothesis. I wonder if the carbonation interacts with proteins or non-fermentables to give more mouthfeel after time.

Mattmc - true, but why?

ace_club - sorry to disappoint... feel free to hijack the thread...