Force carbonation is pretty much the status quo in the brewing industry; a speedy way to package beer, saving tank space and time. There are few breweries around the world these days that carbonate/condition in the final package. At The Establishment, we bottle condition all of our barrel-aged beers because there are some interesting benefits to naturally carbonated/conditioned beer.

Beer is carbonated in a modern brewery typically by force after fermentation and maturation is complete. To force carbonate beer the brewer injects it with CO2 in a large stainless maturation tank, and in a matter of hours the beer is ready for final packaging (cans, kegs, or bottles). There is certainly nothing wrong with forced carbonation for most beer styles, in fact, the majority of the beers we make at The Establishment are force carbonated.

Bottle conditioning is a more traditional method of carbonating beer. At The Establishment, we bottle condition all of our barrel-aged beers because we find it sets the stage for a more nuanced and ever-evolving product. Once beer is transferred into our barrels, it is introduced to a live mixed-culture of wild yeast, Brettanomyces, and/or acid producing bacteria, Pediococcus and Lactobacillus (yes, the same bacteria in your probiotic yogurt). Once the beer has matured in barrels (usually 6-12 months), they are hand selected for blending and are then ready to be packaged.

At this point the beer is almost still (uncarbonated). In order to carbonate the beer, the brewer (me!) adds a measured amount of sugar, and sometimes additional healthy yeast during the bottling process. The microorganisms present in the beer ferment the additional sugar, producing the alcohol we enjoy, and a bit of CO2 – in a similar process to making bread, sauerkraut, or fermented pickles. Fun-fact - Next time you’re in the taproom, watch the airlocks on top of the barrels carefully… you’ll see CO2 occasionally escaping through the airlocks during the long fermentation that occurs within each barrel. During bottle conditioning the bottle is sealed with a cap, the pressure increases in the bottle, and the CO2 produced dissolves into the beer. This process takes anywhere from two weeks to two months… or sometimes longer.

That said, carbonation isn’t the only thing that happens in the bottle, and this is especially exciting when living microbes are present in the final package. The microbes in the bottled beer (yeast, wild yeast, and sometimes bacteria) will continue to create lactic acid (the sourness we love), as well as transforming existing flavours into new esters (aromatic compounds) in the bottle, some of which were never originally present in the beer before bottling. In a bottle-conditioned mixed-culture beer, the beer is very much alive and in a state of flux. From a brewer’s perspective this is both extremely fun, and also very challenging.

Sometimes unwanted flavours can arise in the early stages of bottle conditioning (THP/tetrahydropyridine [cereal-like], diacetyl [popcorn butter], acetaldehyde [green apple/fresh cut pumpkin], etc). These unwanted flavours and aromas are transformed by the live cultures in the bottle and disappear over time, so while we aren’t too worried about those in the early stages, it does make it hard for us to predict when these beers will be ready to release to the public.

If you've been in the taproom and asked “When will the next barrel-aged beer be ready?!” we probably told you “We’re aren’t quite sure, we hope soon?”. That’s because we don’t really know…the beer tells us when it is ready. This is a big part of what makes these beers unique; we are truly at the mercy of the cultures in the bottle. Our next two releases are in bottles and are conditioning away. We’ll let you know as soon as they’re ready. #slowbeertakestime

We can never predict exactly what will come of these beers as they age over time, but we can predict with great certainty that they will change. Fruit flavours and aromas evolve, dissipate, and transform. The rustic or funky character of the beer will often increase with age, the bitterness can become lower, and the carbonation may increase slightly, and all of this depends on how you store the beer. Ideal aging conditions are away from light and at a cool and stable temperature (10-15C), but if you have to keep it in a fridge or in your basement that’s better than on top of your kitchen cabinets next to your stove.

The beer may taste different month to month, season to season, year to year, and that’s part of the journey. We’re stoked to have you along for the ride.