- Joined
- Aug 12, 2016
- Messages
- 143
- Reaction score
- 74
- Points
- 28
Hi there,
If you're wondering how long beer can stay good in the fermenter once the airlock has dried out, the answer is apparently "a surprisingly long time"...
Beginning of this year, I brewed an ale that I just couldn't be bothered bottling... I was just tapping it out of the fermenter (I have those plastic buckets with spigots), then once it bottomed out, I kept planning to clean it out tomorrow.
Fast forward many tomorrows, to late November.
The airlock has been dry for months. Having finally decided to face the unspeakable horrors that have spawned in that bucket during all those months, I gingerly open the lid and peek inside... and find it perfectly fine!
There was no slime, gunk, moss or filth, just normal bottom-of-the bucket stuff. I didn't taste it, but it smelled remarkably like "fresh" beer.
Now you're probably wondering whether that says more about my standards of brewing than the preservative powers of beer...
I suppose there may have been a layer of CO2 covering the liquid? No idea if that's realistic. But anyway, looks like a bit of exposure to air won't ruin your brew.
If you're wondering how long beer can stay good in the fermenter once the airlock has dried out, the answer is apparently "a surprisingly long time"...
Beginning of this year, I brewed an ale that I just couldn't be bothered bottling... I was just tapping it out of the fermenter (I have those plastic buckets with spigots), then once it bottomed out, I kept planning to clean it out tomorrow.
Fast forward many tomorrows, to late November.
The airlock has been dry for months. Having finally decided to face the unspeakable horrors that have spawned in that bucket during all those months, I gingerly open the lid and peek inside... and find it perfectly fine!
There was no slime, gunk, moss or filth, just normal bottom-of-the bucket stuff. I didn't taste it, but it smelled remarkably like "fresh" beer.
Now you're probably wondering whether that says more about my standards of brewing than the preservative powers of beer...
I suppose there may have been a layer of CO2 covering the liquid? No idea if that's realistic. But anyway, looks like a bit of exposure to air won't ruin your brew.