Window of opportunity

[Slate Miner]

It's true what a lot of experienced posters/brewers on here say about your brew improving with age. :thumb:

Yesterday evening I cracked open a bottle of Wherry which was 4 months in the bottle, it was superb, it really had improved from what was a respctable pint to something I was very proud of, a good head which lasted all the way down the glass, the flavours had really balanced out well, the bitterness of the early pints had gone as had the wateriness (is this a word? :hmm: ) The problem is I've only got 4 bottles left :whistle: :rofl:

So it got we wondering :hmm: is there a 'window' when your ale is at its best? and when might it start to go down hill, does it fall off a cliff or is it a gradual decline? Just idle thoughts

These 4 bottles I've got left, should I just drink and enjoy the fruits of my labour, or hide them away in a dark cupboard and let them improve further?

 

[abeyptfc]

first thing to do is get another wherry on, try and save your bottles or have 1 per month, then by that time your next batch will be 4 months old. ive got 1 bottle left of my summer ale extract brew from the 19th july, i will try and keep it until its 1 year old and swally on its birthday!

 

[Darcey]

Alot of AG brewers use the .0010 to a week of conditioning. However when you bottle you are restarting a small fermentation to carbonate the beer. Kit beers are a slightly different animal I often find kit beers at their best after 3 months. As is said previously your best off getting afew kits going in succession so you have a back supply of beer. If you sample only one a week you can work out when the kit becomes its best.

The higher quality the kit the less time it takes to mature IMO. Also the yeast has an important role to play. I find that S04 can be drunk pretty young but others my think differently.

D

 

[craigite]

I find different brews age better than others.

I have a pale ale brew is best young.
An export that is not that nice until about 4 months.

For me the best advice I can give is to keep records, sample over a longish period and then you'll know for next time.
But remember storage conditions will change things too, ie temperature.

 

[Darcey]

For me the best advice I can give is to keep records, sample over a longish period and then you'll know for next time.
But remember storage conditions will change things too, ie temperature.

... what that man said :thumb:

 

[Baz Chaz]

The only ale I've brewed that was best young was Gales Festival Mild, that was brilliant after just a couple of weeks and didn't seem to get any better with age :!: although it was that good not many bottles survived longer than a few months

Generally I've found virtually all the brews age well, I've just got the last bottle of my first AG brew left, thats 20 months old I had one bottle this weekend and it was very nice indeed :thumb:

Keep building a stock chaps, you know it makes sense :