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keg conditioning, room temp or cold.

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sunblock

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May 13, 2009
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I have hard time waiting for my beers to condition. I normally brew hoppy beers and after a week in the secondary and then a day in cold keg its ready to go, even though i notice it getting better as time goes on. now this is all fine and good for me but i have been trying to brew some lighter styles for friends and i dont think that method is gonna fly, the off flavors of green beer are just more noticeable if not aged properly. there seems to be a lot of debate over what is needed to properly age beer. when aging in kegs would it be quicker to pressurize the keg up to around 35, and then let it sit at room temp 70 degrees or so, or would it age quicker under constant pressure 10-12 and serving temps to also allow it to fully carb?
 
Carbonating to serving pressure is always good, and keeping your kegs cold is always best for the beer.
I've always thought that cellar temps (45-60) and just enough CO2 to hold a seal was best for conditioning/aging. So what is it?


Edit: With CO2 disconnected.
 
Beer ages faster at warmer temperatures. At cold temperatures, the aging is slowed down considerably. There are some other benefits to cold conditioning of course- it smooths out and helps clarify the beer, for example. But "aging" for most beers (not lagers) is generally quickest in the 60s and 70s.

Cellar temperatures are good for aging bigger beers. Actually, it's a good temperature for other beers too, it's just slower!
 
yeah i can see the benefits of both. I have a lighter batch in the fridge that seems to be getting better by the day, but still has an almost sour green taste that was malty at first. i only left it in the fermenter for a few days, cold crashed and force carbed so I guess i just need to be more patient. I can get my ipas from grain to glass in ten days and have them very drinkable and i have been basing my new brews around that experience.
 
My keezer only holds 3 kegs.

I regularly keg a new beer, purge O2 with CO2 at high psi (and to seat the lid), and then it sits at room temperature until my keezer has space. Sometimes I hit it periodically with high psi to start force carbing it, sometimes not.

for me kegging isn't about 'fast beer' but 'not having to bottle all the damn time' :)
 
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