So! I’ve transferred my white house honey ale into a keg after 2 weeks primary and 2 weeks secondary. I put the beer in my fridge and under 18 PSI. I’m guessing it’ll be decently carbonated after a few days but what about the actual age and maturing of the beer? Do you guys usually carbonate the beer and then disconnect it and let it sit or do you keep it under pressure the entire time? Treat me as a noob that I am.
(Disclaimer)I’m a newb too and only on my 4th batch. But here’s what I do… First I take a look at a force carbonation chart to get an idea of the vol of CO2 for the style I brewed. I then put a little CO2 on the keg and bleed it out with the pressure relief valve to get all the O2 out. Let it sit overnight in the fridge at about 35 degrees F. Then I put my desired PSI on the keg and let it sit for a few days. I’ll get a taste every so often to see how it’s doing. If it seems adequately carbonated I’ll start serving it.
To answer your question more directly… If you are just trying to let the beer condition (not carbonate it). I would put a little CO2 on it, bleed of the O2, put it in a fridge with no CO2 and let it sit.
Got it, thanks. So basically, if there’s no oxygen in the keg, I can store it and let it age, correct?
Yup. Cold storage/conditioning will help smooth a beer out nicely. If I had more room, I’d age/condition most of my beers for at least a few weeks before serving. Sadly, I don’t have the space. So I keg, chill, carbonate, and drink. I try to go easy on the drinking part for the first few weeks till the flavors really start coming together. Some beers take some time. Others do not.
You can also leave it hooked up to co2 to let it age as well. I wouldnt keep at 18 psi thats probably alittle to high. I usually keep mine at 10-12 psi for a couple weeks. I also serve it at that pressure as well. Right now I have a lager lagering that is not hooked up to a co2 line because I dont have another line. I do give it squirt of co2 every couple of days just to make sure I dont have a leak and the lid is tight.
Get ready to see people beat me up.
Do to space restrictions I keg carbonate using priming sugar. I have a fridge with only room for two kegs, but have four kegs.
Beersmith has the amounts in their software. After fermention is done I keg with usually 1.90 to 2.2 oz. of sugar., make sure the keg is sealed, bleed off the oxygen, and let it carbonate at 60 to 64 degrees. I have had them sit on deck for 2 to 4 weeks without a problem so far.
When a keg kicks I put the one on deck in the fridge set it at serving pressure and in 24 hours it’s good to go. I have never had more than a pint of cloudy beer then it is good to go. It is the method that I am comfortable with.
[quote=“flytyer”]Get ready to see people beat me up.
Do to space restrictions I keg carbonate using priming sugar. I have a fridge with only room for two kegs, but have four kegs.
Beersmith has the amounts in their software. After fermention is done I keg with usually 1.90 to 2.2 oz. of sugar., make sure the keg is sealed, bleed off the oxygen, and let it carbonate at 60 to 64 degrees. I have had them sit on deck for 2 to 4 weeks without a problem so far.
When a keg kicks I put the one on deck in the fridge set it at serving pressure and in 24 hours it’s good to go. I have never had more than a pint of cloudy beer then it is good to go. It is the method that I am comfortable with.[/quote]
No reason to get beat up about it. If I didn’t have the space, I’d prime carbonate my kegs. Why not get it ready to drink if it’s just going to sit there? Right now I have 4 keg capacity and 4 kegs so I always force carb using the quick, roll method. If I come across more kegs or feel the need to get more, I’ll probably start naturally carbonating with priming sugar.
[quote=“flytyer”]Get ready to see people beat me up.
Do to space restrictions I keg carbonate using priming sugar. I have a fridge with only room for two kegs, but have four kegs.
Beersmith has the amounts in their software. After fermention is done I keg with usually 1.90 to 2.2 oz. of sugar., make sure the keg is sealed, bleed off the oxygen, and let it carbonate at 60 to 64 degrees. I have had them sit on deck for 2 to 4 weeks without a problem so far.
When a keg kicks I put the one on deck in the fridge set it at serving pressure and in 24 hours it’s good to go. I have never had more than a pint of cloudy beer then it is good to go. It is the method that I am comfortable with.[/quote]
Only thing I would add to either process, and you may do it but didn’t mention, apply a large pressure to the keg to seal the lid. 30psi or more.
