Time in the barrel

[kiwiguy]

Hi

Does the more time left in the barrel fermenting mean the less time it needs to be in the bottle before you drink it ?

Ive had one brew in the barrelfor 5 weeks due to lack of time to bottle and was just curious if that means only needs to be in the bottle a couple of weeks before I crack it open

Many thanks Phil

 

[Brasco20]

I start cracking all me brews after 2 weeks, some sooner, i just cant help myself!

 

[unionrdr]

The short answer is no. You'll still need to carbonate/age in the bottles for at least 3 weeks before they're ready.

 

[slomo]

Giving that you have left the beer on the yeast cake for that long I would say let the beers carb up, and then drink them.

 

[kiwiguy]

Thanks everyone very helpful

 

[jjward101]

You have to keep in mind that the fermentation process and the bottling process are two very distinct processes. Regardless of how long you ferment your beer in the barrel, the process for bottling will not change.

Once the beer is in the bottle, in a dark, properly tempered environment, it will take a bare minimum of 2 weeks for proper carbonation to occur (3 weeks is much better). Even then, you should cold condition your bottles for at least 2 days for optimal beer.