Bottle Conditioning Question...

[Kevin Falconer]

OK. So I've got my third brew (treacle stout) in the FV and will be bottling it this weekend. I have seen a few different suggestions on what to do at this point. I bottle straight from the FV, so no secondary. Some people suggest 2 weeks at room temp then a minimum 2 weeks cold conditioning. Some have suggested cold crashing before bottling. Some say room temp till beer clears then cold storage. I currently store at room temp for a minimum of 2 weeks and then put a few in the fridge for a day or two before I drink them. My first batch didn't last much more than about a month. Here are my problems:

1: I can't cold store more than about 6 bottles at a time. No garage, shed etc.
2: I can't wait much beyond the 2 weeks bottle conditioning before I want to drink it.

Am I doing this OK or do I really need to find a way to cold condition after the initial 2 weeks?

 

[Graz]

No, sounds fine to me.

I bottle and then stick them back in my brew fridge for a couple of weeks at 20°C to carbonate. Usually have one or two PET bottles in there so I can see/feel how carbed the beer is but after a few days the bottle is usually quite firm. After that I just stick them on a shelf in my garage until I'm ready to drink them. The temperature out there varies with the time of year. I do usually leave it a couple more weeks but drink when you feel they're ready. Heavily hopped IPAs are often better drunk young whereas strong dark beers benefit from maturing for longer. When I want some of the bottled beers I just stick a few in the fridge a day or two before drinking or if it's cold outside then drink them straight from the garage (unheated).

 

[sdt7618]

I would be tempted to pop a few bottle of a treacle stout away for a bit, to me they are so much better after an extended conditioning time.


as for the rest, bottle, carb, give a couple of weeks to condition and chill as required.

 

[Kevin Falconer]

I would be tempted to pop a few bottle of a treacle stout away for a bit, to me they are so much better after an extended conditioning time.

I currently have all good intentions to put some away, however it tastes lurvely. Also, due to logistical constraints I need to free up some bottles for my next brew, which is a Coopers Hefe Weisen. As well as this, I have another Coopers stout tin with BBE May 2018 that I will need to get started in a few weeks. That batch I intend to store in my dad's garage until nearer the end of the year.

 

[Cwrw666]

Bottle, keep warm for a week or so then start drinking them. By the time you're on the last bottle you'll know that conditioning for a few weeks would have been worth it but what the heck, the first bottles still weren't all that bad.

The only way I get to condition my beer for the right length of time is to brew more beer than I can drink, but then I just up my consumption to cancel it out...

 

[Kevin Falconer]

The only way I get to condition my beer for the right length of time is to brew more beer than I can drink, but then I just up my consumption to cancel it out...

I'm going to be honest... that was the answer I wanted to hear. I'm actually hoping to up production beyond my drinking capacity, but not sure how that will work. Just ordered myself a couple of mini kegs of Hobgoblin to fill the gap and give me something to store half of my next batch in

 

[Zephyr259]

I'm much the same, 2 weeks fermenting, if done it gets a week cold crashed in my brew fridge (the timing is more a concession to being on the rig for 3 weeks than anything else), bottled then back in the warm fridge for 2 weeks carbonating. I also have a couple of PET bottles for checking progress. Then it's into the beer cupboard which sits at 8 - 10c during the cold months, then low - mid teens the rest of the year, think it hit 18c during the brief Scottish "heat wave" last year. If I didn't have the cupboard it'd just sit at room temp til I drank it, probably with a brief chill in the fridge. I'll try a bottle as soon as I think it's carbonated, if it's good then a few get drunk over a couple of nights then I go offshore again so the rest gets a proper time to mature. I'm not one for hoppy beers so my beer are always a bit better once I'm home again.

 

[Kevin Falconer]

I'm not one for hoppy beers so my beer are always a bit better once I'm home again.

I like the dark, sweet and nutty brews too. Unfortunately I just can't seem to keep em long enough to mature. I am on a poor Scottish Heavy right now that has been mellowing out in the bottle over the last 2 and a half weeks. I don't know if it's getting better or if my tolerance is just increasing That might even start to taste nice in a couple more weeks.

 

[Oneiroi]

I haven’t brewed the same brew twice yet so for each one I’m always really keen to try them out. I usually last a week before popping one out of curiosity, then another week before trying another. If it’s good by then load up the fridge if not I’ll wait another week. As a bonus you get to taste the beer as it conditions and learn how it changes, which initial flavours are likely to drop off etc

 

[ACBEV]

I try not to taste beer before 2 weeks in the bottle, depresses me.