Oh NO!! I think I oxidized my Christmas brew

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BillTheSlink

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I brewed up a spiced holiday ale last Fall that had an OG: 1.090 so I needed to age it and used a bucket both for primary and bulk aging. I opened my email from the BeerSmith blog today and it says you can't bulk age in a bucket because it will oxidize. Should I plan on something else this Christmas? It has been in the secondary bucket since last September. If it needs to be brewed again can anyone recommend a recipe for a spiced ale that will be sweet, warming, spicy, high in alcohol, and can be bottled and ready by this Christmas? Is it too late for a pumpkin ale with real pumpkin in it?
 
I think you'll be just fine. Unless it's been in the bucket for 9-10moz I wouldn't worry about it too much...
 
Have you tasted it yet? Unless it tastes like nasty wet cardboard or has a strong sherry flavor, chances are it isn't oxidized. It's true that you want to do any long term aging in an environment with little head space to minimize the amount of air that's in contact with the beer, but it's also very possible that there was enough of a CO2 blanket in the bucket that the beer is also just fine.
 
Before you worry too much, go try the beer. If it's oxidizing, you'll get some "sherry" or brandy-like flavors. Sometimes it's not a bad flavor in a bigger beer, especially with spices. If it's oxidized badly, you may have some wet-cardboard type flavors. That might be bad.

I have a friend who made a wine 25 years ago. He gave me the last bottle last summer. He calls it "plum brandy". It's a high ABV plum wine that has oxidized over time. It's actually really good, and tastes a bit of brandy from the oxidation. Of course, your beer is far under the ABV of this wine and you're hoping it's not oxidized! I'm just pointing out that it may be good regardless, and may be will have a good flavor even if it is.

Only one way to know, though- go taste it!
 
That's one of those unfounded things that is based on opinion and handed down over and over until it becomes canon. And may have little truth behind it. Me personally I tend to not worry about those things that some folks may arbitrarily proclaim. It's really just a form of the old glass vs plastic debate.

Have you actually tasted it? I would go more by what it tastes like then what someone arbitrarily proclaims. There's as mamy ways to do things, as there are so-called "experts" to proclaim that there way is the only way.
 
That's one of those unfounded things that is based on opinion and handed down over and over until it becomes canon. And may have little truth behind it. Me personally I tend to not worry about those things that some folks may arbitrarily proclaim. It's really just a form of the old glass vs plastic debate.

Have you actually tasted it? I would go more by what it tastes like then what someone arbitrarily proclaims.

I agree- to a point. I wouldn't call not recommending aging in a bucket "unfounded". It IS a bad idea. If you're aging anything, it should be done in a carboy with no headspace or in a keg flushed with co2. The famous co2 blanket doesn't exist over the brew forever, it will equalize with the atmospheric pressure over time. It doesn't just hang out over the beer indefinitely.

That's why winemakers make sure to top up their carboys for long term aging, and why brewers should do the same for long term aging. It's not folklore, it's not an opinion. It WILL cause some oxidation. The issue might be how long you have- six months? Twelve? Two? I don't think anybody really knows for sure.

HOWEVER, you may have done little harm. I'm just pointing out that leaving a beer in a bucket for a year probably isn't a good idea but you may be able to salvage it. Or, it might even taste awesome!
 
I agree with Revvy here. If you took great care of this while in the bucket, I think this is one of the boogy men of brewing. I honestly think that times where a beer does oxidize over time in a bucket compared to a carboy is more of a headspace issue. In a secondary that is a better bottle or a carboy, if you fill to the neck you take away almost all chances for O2 to even be present in the container.

I wouldn't worry, and if you are woried, bottle it and send it to me.
 
OK as soon as I get a new bottling bucket, as I forgot to clean the old one last bottling day and it is still sitting on the porch, I will open it and give it a try. I don't want to open it though until I am at least ready to bottle as I don't want to lose what CO2 I have.
 
IMO the issue is not headspace. To me it boils down to the lid. As Yoop pointed out the gases will equalize and exchange. So a lid with a large perimeter that notoriously leaks will have free gas exchange and more of it.

As far as how long, or if it would actually oxidize I have no clue, cause I haven't been doing this long enough to bulk age anything:p Better safe then sorry, expecially when you consider any beer being bulk aged is prolly pretty damn valueable.
 
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