Brewing Master

Question:

Hi All,  Just a question about CO2 & refrigeration. When I first open a bottle of homebrew that has been in the fridge for a few days, the brew has a strong, very bitter taste to it. If after opening, I don’d finish the bottle, I’ll normally jam the cap back on and put the bottle back in the fridge. Now, the weird part…  When I go to finish the half empty bottle off, the beer tastes much better, and the carbonation seems to produce finer bubbles leading to a better tasting homebrew. Why is this? Is it something to do with too much CO2 in the bottles?? The fridge temprature ranges from 4 – 7 degerees celsius. Thanks,         -Russell

Response:

I’ll normally jam the cap back on and put the bottle back in the fridge.   When I go to finish the half empty bottle off, the beer tastes much better

Boy, I have had over carbonated bottles before but I never thought they made the beer more bitter or less drinkable.  Here are my thoughts.  The colder temps. of the refrigerator will allow more CO2 into solution while at the same time killing some of the intrinsic maltiness.  You should notice that the flavor of the beer changes as the brew warms up a bit.  The bitterness will recede a bit as the malt flavor becomes more apparent. Less carbonation will also have its effects on flavor.  But, for me its more related to mouth feel and crispness. Richard J. Daines Mystic, CT http://www.ctol.net/~rdaines/ NAR# 70562 SR

Response:

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – , Just a question about CO2 & refrigeration. When I first open a bottle of homebrew that has been in the fridge for a few days, the brew has a strong, very bitter taste to it. If after opening, I don’d finish the bottle, I’ll normally jam the cap back on and put the bottle back in the fridge. Now, the weird part… When I go to finish the half empty bottle off, the beer tastes much better, and the carbonation seems to produce finer bubbles leading to a better tasting homebrew. Why is this? Is it something to do with too much CO2 in the bottles?? The fridge temprature ranges from 4 – 7 degerees celsius. Thanks,

Try this one on for size: It is possible that what is happening in your bottle is a miniature version of "real ale."  When you tap (open) the beer, it is harshly carbonated and in need of venting.  Leaving it in the fridge allows some excess carbonation (to your taste) to come out of solution, and a small amount of oxidation happens, smoothing out the flavors as in real ale. Its also possible that this is completely off, as I just pulled it out of my bunghole (sorry)…. – Andrew For all you automated email spammers, here’s the addresses of the board of the FCC:

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