15 replies to this topic

[ThroatwobblerMangrove]

My old ale seems carbed up and is tasting great even though it's not "old" yet. Right now it's bottled and stacked up in my dining room with a blanket over it at 65F. My basement is 48F right now. Should I move it down there or wait until the temperature comes up in the basement a little bit?Another question - what happens if a cellared beer gets cold but then slowly warms back up? Will the aging still be beneficial?

[ChefLamont]

Personally, I would leave it at the higher temp. I believe that would speed up the process a little bit. Historically, I think it would be kept at "cellar temp" which is somewhere in between the two.

[ThroatwobblerMangrove]

Personally, I would leave it at the higher temp. I believe that would speed up the process a little bit. Historically, I think it would be kept at "cellar temp" which is somewhere in between the two.

I did a little bit of googling around and for something like this I think the 50-60F range is probably pretty good. Perhaps once the basement warms up to 50F I'll haul the beer down there. I don't think it will get particularly warm down there in the summer. I think the high is something like 66F or so and that only last for a couple of weeks.

[jayb151]

Basement seems fine. Jamil says it's best to keep it at a constant temp all the time, but I"m sure the gentle changes in your basement will be fine.

[ThroatwobblerMangrove]

Basement seems fine. Jamil says it's best to keep it at a constant temp all the time, but I"m sure the gentle changes in your basement will be fine.

Is it too cold right now? What I don't want to do is somehow stop the aging process. I guess I'm not clear on what is causing the aging. Do the yeast need to be semi-active?

[jayb151]

No, It's not too cold. Although it will take much longer to age. I believe that for every rise in 10 degrees C, all beer related processes happen 10 times faster. The only thing you will do by putting it in that environment will be to slow down the aging process. If your basement is hitting 40 in winter and 65 in summer, you should be fine. The importaint thing is to keep the change gentle, which it should be if it is in your house. Ideally you should keep it at constant 55 degrees, I believe. Since you really don't have the means for that, I say put in in the corner of your basement and just forget it for a year or so. That's what I would do.

[ThroatwobblerMangrove]

No, It's not too cold. Although it will take much longer to age. I believe that for every rise in 10 degrees C, all beer related processes happen 10 times faster. The only thing you will do by putting it in that environment will be to slow down the aging process. If your basement is hitting 40 in winter and 65 in summer, you should be fine. The importaint thing is to keep the change gentle, which it should be if it is in your house. Ideally you should keep it at constant 55 degrees, I believe. Since you really don't have the means for that, I say put in in the corner of your basement and just forget it for a year or so. That's what I would do.

I wish I could but it's already so delicious

[MyaCullen]

I wish I could but it's already so delicious

Brew another batch!having extra helps

[jammer]

Brew another batch!having extra helps

This times a bunch.

[ThroatwobblerMangrove]

I'm hoping when I'm not staring at the pile of beer in the dining room that I'll be less tempted

[jayb151]

I wish I could but it's already so delicious

I hear ya!I was talking to my brew partner about brewing an Am. Barleywine and a RIS. He wants to do 5 gallons because it's so strong, but I'm like, "Five gallons! I'll drink that before it even reaches its prime!"Needless to say, we're brewing 10 gallons...

[MyaCullen]

I hear ya!I was talking to my brew partner about brewing an Am. Barleywine and a RIS. He wants to do 5 gallons because it's so strong, but I'm like, "Five gallons! I'll drink that before it even reaches its prime!"Needless to say, we're brewing 10 gallons...

10 gallons of each recipe ?

[jayb151]

Yea, that's what I meant

[3rd party JKor]

No, It's not too cold. Although it will take much longer to age. I believe that for every rise in 10 degrees C, all beer related processes happen 10 times faster. The only thing you will do by putting it in that environment will be to slow down the aging process. If your basement is hitting 40 in winter and 65 in summer, you should be fine. The importaint thing is to keep the change gentle, which it should be if it is in your house. Ideally you should keep it at constant 55 degrees, I believe. Since you really don't have the means for that, I say put in in the corner of your basement and just forget it for a year or so. That's what I would do.

I believe it's twice as fast fr every 10 degrees C. It's based on the Arrhenius equation which is a generic chemistry equation that gives the temperature dependence of the reaction rate constant for a chemical reaction. Since aging is just a bunch of simultaneous and/or consecutive chemical reactions, the Arrhenius equation gives a reasonably good estimate for temperature dependence of aging rate.

[jayb151]

You're right JK, Why would I think it 10X?

[3rd party JKor]

You're right JK, Why would I think it 10X?

I don't know, but that would be sweet if it was. We could all age our beer in a few days!